Why was “Super Mario Collection” released over 30 years ago a “monster” for children? Circumstances unique to that time that are unthinkable now

Multiple works are included in one software. This is not uncommon in modern times, but it was not the case in the 1990s.

Due to the software's capacity limitations, it was extremely difficult to include multiple works.

However, there is a legendary piece of software that completely overturns this situation. This is Super Mario Collection (hereinafter referred to as Mario Collection), a software for the Super Famicom released in July 1993.

This software was produced to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the release of the Family Computer, and it was literally a “monster” as it included remakes of the previous four Mario series titles. In this article, I would like to look back at “Marikore,'' which had a huge impact on children at the time.

◆Game situation in the 90s
The Super Famicom was released in November 1990.

The author, born in 1984, was a nursery school student preparing to enter elementary school the following year.

Since his father worked at the now-defunct Hachioji Medical Prison, he lived in an official residence in Sagamihara City, Kanagawa Prefecture, not far from there. The people who live there are all prison officers or law instructors. In other words, all households had the same level of economic power.

All the families, including the author's, came from all over the country to the official residence in Sagamihara for work reasons. As a result, the taste of miso soup and the contents of side dishes vary from household to household.

The fact that M-kun, who is from Hokkaido, was drinking guarana cider was a shock to the Sawada family, who are from Shizuoka City, but on the other hand, the sight of our family eating black hanpen was a shock to M-kun's family. Ta.

Government buildings have different cultures and identities depending on the household. However, even under such circumstances, households with children always owned a Famicom. In the 1990s, the Super Famicom and Game Boy were added. After all, Nintendo is an amazing company!

In the mid-1990s, Sony introduced a hardware called PlayStation to the market. However, it didn't become popular right away, and around 1995 I think there were still many households with two computers, an Famicom and a Super Famicom.

Children back then switched between the Famicom and Super Famicom as needed.

Because of this way of playing, “Marikole'', released in 1993, had the biggest impact on children at the time.

◆The excitement of being able to play Famicom titles on Super Famicom!
There are four works included in “Maricore”: “Super Mario Bros.”, “Super Mario Bros. 2”, “Super Mario Bros. 3”, and “Super Mario USA”. All of them were originally Famicom software, but they have been remade to match the specifications of the Super Famicom.

In particular, in “Super Mario Bros.'' the scenery that children were completely familiar with was transformed into a Super Nintendo version. It's just another world.

However, since the stage structure, rules, and operability were exactly the same, I remember it being an indescribably strange feeling.

With MariColle, you can play Super Mario Bros. after playing Super Mario World or Mario Kart on the Super Famicom without having to take out your Famicom. I wonder if young people today can understand that this process is a considerable shortcut…? Of course, after playing “Maricolle,'' I also decided to try playing the Famicom version of “Super Mario Bros.''

◆Perfect for Golden Week companions!
Such “Marikore” is included in the lineup of works included in Nintendo Switch Online. It is a work that can be fully enjoyed even in 2024.

It's good to compare the original Famicom version and the remake version, it's good to just have fun, or it's good to be immersed in old memories while playing.

It's also a good idea to pass down this masterpiece from parent to child.

All of the remakes included in “Marikore” are highly complete versions of the original works, so even modern children should be able to enjoy them. It wouldn't be a bad decision to spend Golden Week with his family playing a lot of “Maricolle.''

A masterpiece remains a masterpiece no matter how many decades pass. The outstanding gameplay captivates children throughout the ages. “Marikore'' is packed with all the important elements for a computer game, and is the perfect retro game to decorate Golden Week 2024.