Charts Genres Community
Charts Genres Community Settings
Login

Super Mario Land

スーパーマリオランド

Developer / Publisher: Nintendo
21 April 1989
Super Mario Land [スーパーマリオランド] - cover art
Glitchwave rating
3.02 / 5.0
0.5
5.0
 
 
819 Ratings / 6 Reviews
#2,889 All-time
#23 for 1989
Super Mario Land is the first Mario's outing on the Game Boy. It is a side-scrolling platformer much in the vein of the previous Super Mario Bros. This time, Mario must save Princess Daisy, rather than Princess Toadstool, from her kidnapper Tatanga, a mysterious spaceman.
There was an error saving your submission.
Rate / catalog Rate / catalog another release
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Releases 7
Filter by: All 7 GB 5 3DS 2
1989 Nintendo  
Cartridge
JP 4 902370 500899 DMG-MLA
1989 Nintendo  
Cartridge
XNA 0 45496 73004 8 DMG-ML-USA
1990 Nintendo  
Cartridge
GB
Show all 7 releases
1991 Nintendo  
Cartridge
ES 0 45496 73004 8 DMG-ML-ESP
Super Mario Land Players Choice Million Seller
1996 Nintendo  
Cartridge
XNA 0 45496 73004 8 DMG-ML-USA-1
2011 Nintendo  
Download
2011 Nintendo  
Download
JP
Write review
Title
Great Soundtrack; poorly aged
best soundtrack out of every GB title at the time, but with clunky platforming and at times unfair design, this game pales in comparison to the other entries in the Mario 2D Platformer titles. The shoot-em-up levels were a nice change of pace though I wish Mario did that type of thing more often.
Body
tips
Formatting
[b]text[/b] - bold
[i]text[/i] - italic
[s]strikethrough[/s] - strikethrough
[tt]text[/tt] - fixed-width type
[color red]text[/color] - colored text (full list)
[spoiler]text[/spoiler] - Text hidden with spoiler cover
[https://www.example.com/page/,Link to another site] - Link to another site

Linking
When you mention an album, artist, film, game, label, etc - it's recommended to link to the item the first time you mention it. Doing so will make it easier to search for your post and give it more visibility. To link an item, use the search box above, or find the shortcut that appears on the page that you want to link. You can customize the link name of shortcuts by using the format [Artist12345,Custom Name].
Paste the address (or embed code) below and click "embed".
Supported: YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Vimeo, Dailymotion
Embed
InOkGoblinRainbows 2022-08-20T03:41:14Z
2022-08-20T03:41:14Z
3.0
1
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Supplement
tips
Formatting
[b]text[/b] - bold
[i]text[/i] - italic
[s]strikethrough[/s] - strikethrough
[tt]text[/tt] - fixed-width type
[color red]text[/color] - colored text (full list)
[spoiler]text[/spoiler] - Text hidden with spoiler cover
[https://www.example.com/page/,Link to another site] - Link to another site

Linking
When you mention an album, artist, film, game, label, etc - it's recommended to link to the item the first time you mention it. Doing so will make it easier to search for your post and give it more visibility. To link an item, use the search box above, or find the shortcut that appears on the page that you want to link. You can customize the link name of shortcuts by using the format [Artist12345,Custom Name].
Paste the address (or embed code) below and click "embed".
Supported: YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Vimeo, Dailymotion
Embed
Attribution
Requested publishing level
Draft
Commentary
Review
review
en
Expand review Hide
Title
A tiny Super Mario Bros
Super Mario Land is kind of like a handheld version of the original Super Mario Bros on NES. In fact, a large chunk of the Gameboy's library is comprised of handheld versions of NES and arcade games. Even though it never stacks up to it's NES inspiration, it's still a fine game in its own right. It's a bit hard to see on original hardware but I was lucky enough to experience it on an original Gameboy in the first place.
Body
tips
Formatting
[b]text[/b] - bold
[i]text[/i] - italic
[s]strikethrough[/s] - strikethrough
[tt]text[/tt] - fixed-width type
[color red]text[/color] - colored text (full list)
[spoiler]text[/spoiler] - Text hidden with spoiler cover
[https://www.example.com/page/,Link to another site] - Link to another site

Linking
When you mention an album, artist, film, game, label, etc - it's recommended to link to the item the first time you mention it. Doing so will make it easier to search for your post and give it more visibility. To link an item, use the search box above, or find the shortcut that appears on the page that you want to link. You can customize the link name of shortcuts by using the format [Artist12345,Custom Name].
Paste the address (or embed code) below and click "embed".
Supported: YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Vimeo, Dailymotion
Embed
Joe_Kloos 2022-02-09T23:41:49Z
2022-02-09T23:41:49Z
3.0
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Supplement
tips
Formatting
[b]text[/b] - bold
[i]text[/i] - italic
[s]strikethrough[/s] - strikethrough
[tt]text[/tt] - fixed-width type
[color red]text[/color] - colored text (full list)
[spoiler]text[/spoiler] - Text hidden with spoiler cover
[https://www.example.com/page/,Link to another site] - Link to another site

Linking
When you mention an album, artist, film, game, label, etc - it's recommended to link to the item the first time you mention it. Doing so will make it easier to search for your post and give it more visibility. To link an item, use the search box above, or find the shortcut that appears on the page that you want to link. You can customize the link name of shortcuts by using the format [Artist12345,Custom Name].
Paste the address (or embed code) below and click "embed".
Supported: YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Vimeo, Dailymotion
Embed
Attribution
Requested publishing level
Draft
Commentary
Review
draft
en
Expand review Hide
Title
Mario is too tiny
My little eyes cannot handle the tinyness of mario on the gameboy so I had to pirate it on my computer for better screen size. The music is nice and mario is a little man who runs too slow, he kinda jumps too slow aswell. The game is pretty short and I beat it in under an hour haha. The ending is nice because [/spoiler] you kill a little man in a tiny water ship [/spoiler] . I hate the stupid fucking ninjas in that one world, it’s so bullshit how they don’t die BUT I DO WHEN THEY RESURRECT AND TOUCH ME✌️☮️
Body
tips
Formatting
[b]text[/b] - bold
[i]text[/i] - italic
[s]strikethrough[/s] - strikethrough
[tt]text[/tt] - fixed-width type
[color red]text[/color] - colored text (full list)
[spoiler]text[/spoiler] - Text hidden with spoiler cover
[https://www.example.com/page/,Link to another site] - Link to another site

Linking
When you mention an album, artist, film, game, label, etc - it's recommended to link to the item the first time you mention it. Doing so will make it easier to search for your post and give it more visibility. To link an item, use the search box above, or find the shortcut that appears on the page that you want to link. You can customize the link name of shortcuts by using the format [Artist12345,Custom Name].
Paste the address (or embed code) below and click "embed".
Supported: YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Vimeo, Dailymotion
Embed
Cody645 2022-11-25T08:14:11Z
2022-11-25T08:14:11Z
3.0
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Supplement
tips
Formatting
[b]text[/b] - bold
[i]text[/i] - italic
[s]strikethrough[/s] - strikethrough
[tt]text[/tt] - fixed-width type
[color red]text[/color] - colored text (full list)
[spoiler]text[/spoiler] - Text hidden with spoiler cover
[https://www.example.com/page/,Link to another site] - Link to another site

Linking
When you mention an album, artist, film, game, label, etc - it's recommended to link to the item the first time you mention it. Doing so will make it easier to search for your post and give it more visibility. To link an item, use the search box above, or find the shortcut that appears on the page that you want to link. You can customize the link name of shortcuts by using the format [Artist12345,Custom Name].
Paste the address (or embed code) below and click "embed".
Supported: YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Vimeo, Dailymotion
Embed
Attribution
Requested publishing level
Draft
Commentary
Review
commentary
en
Expand review Hide
Title
The soundtrack was easily the highlight of Super Mario Land, that otherwise collects an ugly jumble of warped enemy designs and revised mechanics. While the idea was perhaps to approach the formula from a different perspective (and therefore justify a series), the result was a minor work that juxtaposed an awkwardly thin, cramped platformer with a trivial sidescrolling shooter.
Body
tips
Formatting
[b]text[/b] - bold
[i]text[/i] - italic
[s]strikethrough[/s] - strikethrough
[tt]text[/tt] - fixed-width type
[color red]text[/color] - colored text (full list)
[spoiler]text[/spoiler] - Text hidden with spoiler cover
[https://www.example.com/page/,Link to another site] - Link to another site

Linking
When you mention an album, artist, film, game, label, etc - it's recommended to link to the item the first time you mention it. Doing so will make it easier to search for your post and give it more visibility. To link an item, use the search box above, or find the shortcut that appears on the page that you want to link. You can customize the link name of shortcuts by using the format [Artist12345,Custom Name].
Paste the address (or embed code) below and click "embed".
Supported: YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Vimeo, Dailymotion
Embed
Blah_Blee 2022-08-04T02:11:41Z
2022-08-04T02:11:41Z
5 /10
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Supplement
tips
Formatting
[b]text[/b] - bold
[i]text[/i] - italic
[s]strikethrough[/s] - strikethrough
[tt]text[/tt] - fixed-width type
[color red]text[/color] - colored text (full list)
[spoiler]text[/spoiler] - Text hidden with spoiler cover
[https://www.example.com/page/,Link to another site] - Link to another site

Linking
When you mention an album, artist, film, game, label, etc - it's recommended to link to the item the first time you mention it. Doing so will make it easier to search for your post and give it more visibility. To link an item, use the search box above, or find the shortcut that appears on the page that you want to link. You can customize the link name of shortcuts by using the format [Artist12345,Custom Name].
Paste the address (or embed code) below and click "embed".
Supported: YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Vimeo, Dailymotion
Embed
Attribution
Requested publishing level
Draft
Commentary
Review
draft
en
Expand review Hide
Title
Super Mario Land is awesome at showing what happens when you haven't yet established a formula to follow. So much of this just feels out there and downright surreal when looking at it from the context of a Mario game. The koopas turn into deadly bombs when they explode, the world design takes overt inspiration from real locations, ranging from ancient Egyptian tombs, feudal Japan, and even Easter Island, some worlds end with a scrolling shoot 'em up, the invincibility star plays the Can-Can upon picking it up, there's just a bunch of weirdness that goes on. When playing for what felt like the 10th time however, I started thinking beyond this surface level weirdness and realising how this is really something that only could have occurred in these formative years of the Mario franchise, before anything was 100% established. While it almost feels like a weird, 3rd party spin off at points, there's still this clear charm underneath it all, with some really great attention to effectively guiding the player through all of these challenges, it still has that abstract Mario spirit.

However even with this in mind, I find it hard to believe that such an off kilter game in such an omnipresent series as Mario would actually be made today, which makes it feel even more special. Even in the very final moments of the game, this still ends up throwing new things at you, to the point where the very last obstacle before the final boss is something you haven't seen before, and it's always hard to predict exactly what you'll need to deal with at any point in time. This is a big part of how these relatively simple level designs end up feeling so interesting, there's this perpetual sense of uncertainty within each stage that keeps the player on their toes and goes a long way to diversify the experience. This works especially well thanks to how short this game is, only having 4 worlds with 3 levels each, but making each of these longer and introducing many new things in each. It's also great that this game feels very generous with the extra lives, not only packing a plethora of pipe sub-areas with an insane amount of coins, but also allowing the player to gain up to 3 more at the end of each stage if they take on a little optional, usually difficult platforming section to reach a higher goal. These little optional challenges are cool and allow the game to have those moments of insane precision without feeling unfair, as the only cost is not getting the bonuses and still allowing you to get to the goal.

I feel like the combination of how short this game is and how generous it can be with giving you lives ends up making for an experience that is pretty manageable all around, with even a couple of game overs not really being too horrible due to the experience you've accrued allowing you to go through the game again, only this time with another 5 - 10 lives with you. Sure, the lives system as a whole, especially in this sort of context is still a flaw in itself, but this is one of the more forgiving games that use this particular style of it, and there was no point where it ended up feeling like a save state would be anything close to necessary. With this all said I do still feel like the game has some issues that hold it back from true greatness. The biggest is how Mario controls, as while it's largely playable, the physics feel very janky and make it difficult to move around with any sort of nuance, which as expected, makes some later parts feel way trickier than they should. I also feel like a bit more time could have gone into properly framing and dressing up elements of the level, as a lot of times had them feeling closer to "standard game platform" and the like, rather than something that actually had a place within the game world. Kinda wish that there was a bit more content here as well, because it does feel as if it ends a bit prematurely and I'd have loved to see one more shoot 'em up stage as well. One final positive note is that of the 8-bit Mario games, this is the one that I consider to have the best soundtrack by quite a wide margin. Overall I think this is a rather underrated Mario game for the virtue of being such a bold, weird experience alone, with the amazing OST, cool level design and relentless creativity just being icing on the cake. If the controls were improved and there was a bit more content to this, I'd consider it a genuinely amazing little game, but even as it stands, it's definitely worth a play, or in my case throughout the years, around 10.
Body
tips
Formatting
[b]text[/b] - bold
[i]text[/i] - italic
[s]strikethrough[/s] - strikethrough
[tt]text[/tt] - fixed-width type
[color red]text[/color] - colored text (full list)
[spoiler]text[/spoiler] - Text hidden with spoiler cover
[https://www.example.com/page/,Link to another site] - Link to another site

Linking
When you mention an album, artist, film, game, label, etc - it's recommended to link to the item the first time you mention it. Doing so will make it easier to search for your post and give it more visibility. To link an item, use the search box above, or find the shortcut that appears on the page that you want to link. You can customize the link name of shortcuts by using the format [Artist12345,Custom Name].
Paste the address (or embed code) below and click "embed".
Supported: YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Vimeo, Dailymotion
Embed
Kempokid 2021-06-26T08:28:02Z
2021-06-26T08:28:02Z
3.5
1
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Supplement
tips
Formatting
[b]text[/b] - bold
[i]text[/i] - italic
[s]strikethrough[/s] - strikethrough
[tt]text[/tt] - fixed-width type
[color red]text[/color] - colored text (full list)
[spoiler]text[/spoiler] - Text hidden with spoiler cover
[https://www.example.com/page/,Link to another site] - Link to another site

Linking
When you mention an album, artist, film, game, label, etc - it's recommended to link to the item the first time you mention it. Doing so will make it easier to search for your post and give it more visibility. To link an item, use the search box above, or find the shortcut that appears on the page that you want to link. You can customize the link name of shortcuts by using the format [Artist12345,Custom Name].
Paste the address (or embed code) below and click "embed".
Supported: YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Vimeo, Dailymotion
Embed
Attribution
Requested publishing level
Draft
Commentary
Review
review
en
Expand review Hide
Title
Fun... But Underwhelming
Super Mario Land is a neat little launch title for the Game Boy. But boy did it leave me wishing there was more.

Super Mario Land isn't anything special. It's mostly the same as every Mario game to have released at the time. Sure, it's graphically underpowered (Which isn't a bad thing as it makes sense seeing that it's on the Game Boy). But other than that, the basic gameplay wasn't anything remarkable. It's 4 Worlds, 12 levels. So it's by far the shortest Mario game in this retrospective. There's the mushroom and Fire Flower. Everything you'd expect. Yes, there are unique bosses and enemies but that's really it. It does have one thing... There is submarine gameplay. They are basically Auto-Scrolling Shooter levels. Unfortunately, there are only two of them.

What I do like... Is the plot. Bowser isn't in this. It also introduces another character. Princess Daisy... (Who was then regulated as a Spin-Off Character but I digress). Daisy, Princess of Sarasaland is kidnapped by an Alien named Tatanga. Mario must rescue Daisy and stop Tatanga. That.. Is really unique and is a nice change of pace.

The music is also pretty neat

Super Mario Land is a fun and charming game. But it left me wanting more. Good thing there is a sequel.
Body
tips
Formatting
[b]text[/b] - bold
[i]text[/i] - italic
[s]strikethrough[/s] - strikethrough
[tt]text[/tt] - fixed-width type
[color red]text[/color] - colored text (full list)
[spoiler]text[/spoiler] - Text hidden with spoiler cover
[https://www.example.com/page/,Link to another site] - Link to another site

Linking
When you mention an album, artist, film, game, label, etc - it's recommended to link to the item the first time you mention it. Doing so will make it easier to search for your post and give it more visibility. To link an item, use the search box above, or find the shortcut that appears on the page that you want to link. You can customize the link name of shortcuts by using the format [Artist12345,Custom Name].
Paste the address (or embed code) below and click "embed".
Supported: YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Vimeo, Dailymotion
Embed
Supplement
tips
Formatting
[b]text[/b] - bold
[i]text[/i] - italic
[s]strikethrough[/s] - strikethrough
[tt]text[/tt] - fixed-width type
[color red]text[/color] - colored text (full list)
[spoiler]text[/spoiler] - Text hidden with spoiler cover
[https://www.example.com/page/,Link to another site] - Link to another site

Linking
When you mention an album, artist, film, game, label, etc - it's recommended to link to the item the first time you mention it. Doing so will make it easier to search for your post and give it more visibility. To link an item, use the search box above, or find the shortcut that appears on the page that you want to link. You can customize the link name of shortcuts by using the format [Artist12345,Custom Name].
Paste the address (or embed code) below and click "embed".
Supported: YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Vimeo, Dailymotion
Embed
Attribution
Requested publishing level
Draft
Commentary
Review
draft
en
Expand review Hide

Catalog

dotnds スーパーマリオランド 2024-03-22T18:52:37Z
2024-03-22T18:52:37Z
1.5
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
TyLeRiNgO スーパーマリオランド 2024-03-19T03:24:23Z
2024-03-19T03:24:23Z
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
bgw8 Super Mario Land 2024-03-12T13:25:48Z
GB • XNA
2024-03-12T13:25:48Z
3.5
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Action52 スーパーマリオランド 2024-03-11T12:48:53Z
2024-03-11T12:48:53Z
2.5
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Gibbous スーパーマリオランド 2024-03-06T17:21:20Z
2024-03-06T17:21:20Z
3.5
1
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
locomotic スーパーマリオランド 2024-03-03T16:34:40Z
2024-03-03T16:34:40Z
3.5
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
kendricco スーパーマリオランド 2024-03-03T03:51:12Z
2024-03-03T03:51:12Z
5-
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Zombiejoejoe Super Mario Land 2024-03-01T06:42:47Z
3DS
2024-03-01T06:42:47Z
3.0
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
3.25
georgeft Super Mario Land 2024-02-27T00:16:16Z
GB • XNA
2024-02-27T00:16:16Z
3.5
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Nintendo Gameboy
666LILGILGAMESH666 Super Mario Land 2024-02-24T04:28:58Z
3DS
2024-02-24T04:28:58Z
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
airslashes Super Mario Land 2024-02-23T16:24:50Z
GB • GB
2024-02-23T16:24:50Z
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
shadowjac スーパーマリオランド 2024-02-22T19:26:43Z
2024-02-22T19:26:43Z
3.0
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Player modes
Single-player
Media
1x Cartridge
Franchises
Also known as
  • Super Mario Land
  • View all [1] Hide

Comments

Rules for comments
  • Be respectful! All the community rules apply here.
  • Keep your comments focused on the game. Don't post randomness/off-topic comments. Jokes are fine, but don't post tactless/inappropriate ones.
  • Don't get in arguments with people here, or start long discussions. Use the boards for extended discussion.
  • Don't use this space to complain about the average rating, chart position, genre voting, others' reviews or ratings, or errors on the page.
  • Don't comment just to troll/provoke. Likewise, don't respond to trollish comments; just report them and ignore them.
  • Any spoilers should be placed in spoiler tags as such: [spoiler](spoiler goes here)[/spoiler]
Note: Unlike reviews, comments are considered temporary and may be deleted/purged without notice.
  • Previous comments (13) Loading...
  • foiebump 2023-03-08 14:34:18.919334+00
    this game plays like a #retro meme
    reply
    • More replies New replies ) Loading...
  • SNA999 2023-03-13 00:45:58.774682+00
    soundtrack is ungodly hard
    reply
    • More replies New replies ) Loading...
  • Jaxijin 2023-03-15 20:47:45.506154+00
    Holds up way better than I expected tbh. It's almost refreshing to play an old Mario game with less-slippery controls. Also the shooting sections are just a blast. Would love to see more stuff from this game re-appear in later games.
    reply
    • More replies New replies ) Loading...
  • omo_ree 2023-11-19 17:37:42.460698+00
    i personally enjoy this game but i have questionable taste and can see why other people would hate it,but i guess they dont, i kinda want to call it mario franchise bias lol
    reply
    • More replies New replies ) Loading...
  • figurehead 2024-01-20 02:55:05.816625+00
    fun but the physics system is rough
    reply
    • More replies New replies ) Loading...
  • kaifmo31 2024-02-05 02:31:30.299491+00
    im ngl this game sucks
    reply
    • More replies New replies ) Loading...
  • LuraEternal 2024-02-09 14:37:59.056085+00
    It's weird but fine, doesn't feel much like Mario though which is odd
    reply
    • More replies New replies ) Loading...
  • Sothras 2024-02-16 17:16:18.469926+00
    Still kinda surprised Nintendo didn't bother putting this on the NSO Game Boy service yet. Not that I'd look forward to it though, all signs point to this being the worst Super Mario game for me.
    reply
    • More replies New replies ) Loading...
  • More comments New comments (0) Loading...
Please login or sign up to comment.

Suggestions

There was an error saving your submission.
There was an error saving your submission.
ADVERTISEMENT
Examples
1980s-1996
23 mar 2015
8 apr - 12 may 2015
1998-05
Report
Download
Image 1 of 2