Super Mario Land

Not to be confused with Super Mario 3D Land.

Super Mario Land is a 1989 platformer for the Nintendo Game Boy. The game stars Mario, who must traverse across perilous platforms on a quest to save Princess Daisy, albeit while being sick of being tricked at the end of each world.

Gameplay

The gameplay of Super Mario Land is similar to Super Mario Bros., though due to the small screen size of the Game Boy, Mario's sprite is noticeably smaller. Additionally, the game lacks Mario characters which were stables at this point in time, such as Princess Peach or Luigi. Fire flowers are replaced with Super Balls, which is what they are called. Stomping on this game's version of a Koopa Troopa, the Bombshell Koopa, causes their shells to explode.

Legacy

Before Super Mario Land, the only portable games in existence were 3-frame LCD games. The situation was even more dire on road trips, where there was a lack of all but travel Scrabble packs. This changed with Super Mario Land. While the Nintendo Entertainment System game looked better by comparison, it still marked a milestone year for handheld gaming.