New Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo DS)

Twenty years after Nintendo`s biggest franchise was born, the Mario Bros. return in a dazzling, all-new platformer sure to set players` fingers twitching. Fans from Mario`s classic days will see their dreams answered in this return to the Mushroom Kingdom, while a new generation of Mario" players will learn what true platforming greatness means.

Game Storyline: Bowser and Bowser Jr. have kidnapped Princess Peach again, and only Mario can save her.

Characters: Mario, Luigi, a ton of Mushroom Kingdom enemies, both new and old, Peach, Bowser and Bowser Jr.

How to progress through the game: Run, jump and battle enemies through multiple levels in each world. Every time players finish one world, they can move onto the next, but each level features impediments in the forms of fortresses, Hammer Bros. and bosses. After defeating the boss of each world, players can move on to the next, culminating in the final fight in the last world.

Special powers/weapons/moves/features: Mario and Luigi can do all kinds of jump maneuvers: increasingly high triple jumps, wall jumps and high bounces off enemies. Mario also can use power-ups like Mushrooms (grow big), Fire Flowers (throw fireballs), Starmen (become invincible), Blue Shells (turn into a speedy, blue Koopa shell) and other mushrooms that make him tiny or huge.
 

The lowdown:
Considering the last Super Mario Bros. game is still the best selling video game of all time (17.28 million copies and counting) this has a lot to live up to, but it almost effortlessly captures the action and charm of the old games. The basics of the game are the same as always as you run and jump through mostly horizontally scrolling levels. New to the game are power-ups that turn Mario into a giant or make him really tiny, as well as one that gives him a Koopa shell on his back to attack enemies with. Although the gameplay is all in two dimensions the graphics are 3D, with all new moves such as the triple jump and wall jump added in as well.

Most exciting moment:
As well as the single player mode there's also a wireless multiplayer mode where you get to battle a friend (as Luigi) across a whole bunch of specially designed levels.

Since you ask:
As Super Mario World on the SNES (since re-released as Super Mario Advance 2 on the GBA) was subtitled Super Mario Bros. 4 in Japan that name couldn't be used for this new game, although that's secretly whatever everyone's calling it - behind Nintendo's back.

The bottom line:
The impossible has happened: Nintendo have created a worthy follow-up to Super Mario Bros. 3!
Harrison Dent