Year released: 1983 (Arcade), 1985 (NES)

Number of Players: 1-2 simultaneously

Mario and Luigi work together--or competitively--to clear the baddies out of the underground piping system.

Graphics: That black background. Sprites are comparable to Donkey Kong, but are a bit larger. Mario and Luigi will run into turtles, fireballs, and crabs, and more, all of which are well done, although with few colors.

Play control: Also similar to Donkey Kong. Left and right on the control pad to move left and right, and A makes Mario or Luigi jump. The jumping portion of the engine is what really sticks out when comparing Mario Bros. to Donkey Kong; in Mario Bros., you can't change the direction or speed of your jumps; however, your jumps have greater height.

Sound: "You've got some original tunes in there, but you know your NES instruments by now. Same old, same old." - Taken from my review of Hydlide.

Challenge: Mario or Luigi have to bash any given enemy that comes out of a pipe from below to turn it over, at which point they can kick it off the screen. Once the blue enemy appears, knock it over and kick it to clear the level. Sometimes the screen gets overwhelmed by enemies, and getting to something you flipped over or finding the right spot to flip something over can seem impossible. Mario and Luigi can only take one hit before dying, but they have multiple lives.

Gameplay: It's a concept that really works, and you can sit down for fifteen phases (stages) at a time without getting too bored. The gameplay lends to frustration, though.

Bottom line: The perfect answer to the NES owner who hates Pinball, and the perfect follow-up to Donkey Kong and Donkey Kong Jr. If either of those apply to you, look into Mario Bros. As you may know, this also available in the new Super Mario Advances (every single one) as well as Mario & Luigi.

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