Mario Bros is an often forgotten game. Donkey Kong gets nods for being Mario's start, and well Super Mario Bros just stole the show. But Mario Bros deserves a second look, as hiding under that simplistic exterior is an ingeniously designed little game.
You're Mario (or Luigi), and for some reason you're down in a sewer (not exactly typical plumber work). It's been overrun with pests, and you have to clear them out. The basic premise is simple: hit the pest from beneath, which stuns them, then come up and kick them off the ledge. The game board consists of one screen with various, symmetric platforms. The critters come out pipes at the top and work their way down to the pipes at the bottom, which warp them back up again for another go.
It's a very simple game, and when playing one player this is a detriment as it can get dull rather quickly. But grab yourself a partner and the game transforms itself into incredible fun!
The real fun comes from killing and manipulating your partner. You can push him, bounce on his head, bump him from beneath, not let him down from ledges (infuriates him everytime), unstun a pest he's about to kick off, and various other things. Killing your partner is incredibly satisfying and leads to cussing and laughing very quickly.
To compliment this chaos, the game's controls are quite loose. Turning around usually means sliding, and you're just never quite in control of your character. This is quite intentional and lends itself to the crazy game it can become when the two players are going for the throat.
But no where does it say you have to kill your opponent. You're quite welcome to work as a team and see how far into the game you can get. But can you really trust him? Do you really know he's going to let you get that turtle? The tension this causes adds to the game, and all it takes is one attack to change a calm cooperative game to mayhem.
The end result is a very simple game that has a surprising amount of depth, tension and replay value. It's not easy to reach the level of gameplay this game does with such simple elements to work with.
Like I said, a one player game this is not. But join up with someone, get a feel for the game, and have a blast.
