Just that good old charm
Playing Super Mario Land 3D turned out to be more of a treat than I thought it would be. Maybe it was because I didn't really have much of an expectation for it other than the stuff that I knew was gonna be guaranteed; it was gonna be Mario, with the usual jumping mechanics, including the run crawl jump that is so famously used in a lot of speed-runs videos of the old classic 64 title you may see on the internet.
If you've played a 3D Mario game before nothing in this game should be much of a surprise. The stages play in a half 2D and 3D format. Levels are mostly linear but allow for exploration in small very creative ways. There isn't too much of a challenge, as most of the platforming doesn't even require you to use the dash-run almost ever. Each level has three big-starred coins, which are required to unlock certain levels to progress the game. They're not hard to spot if you put in some effort, as I went through the game pretty completionist-like with them, I didn't ever get stuck trying to find a coin. The fire suit makes a return, and a new squirrel-suit makes an appearance that allows you to float. If you die too many times you are given an invisibility version which along with letting you hover a bit, also makes you invincible.
What unlocks after the main game is a special second quest, which features levels that are a lot more challenging for your average adult or long time gamer. An example of a challenge would be getting chased through the level by your shadow from 3-seconds ago. A lot of it are nice and a needed challenge for people who might've thought the main 8 worlds were too easy.
It also makes good use of the 3D feature in some spots where you may need to turn the 3D function on, for just a second, to really see if that block in front of you is really there, or vaguely hiding behind something else. Overall it's a good tech demo of the 3D, allowing you to even switch between two modes of 3D. One where the objects stick out of the screen, and another where everything in the game feels shoe-boxed into the screen.
It's just solid platforming with an already established charming franchise. I would definately recommend this to every 3DS owner for simple, although slightly-nostalgic fun.
