by Matthew Adams

Created on: December 03, 2010

The Guinness Book of Records lists the Mario game series as the highest grossing game franchise. This cannot be considered much of surprise, for since the release of the Super Mario Bros game new records have been set by a few of the Mario games for their respective game consoles. As such, Mario games have gained a huge fan base since the original Mario game title was released in 1985.

There are a few reasons behind the Mario phenomenon. Let us first consider that the first Super Mario Bros game title was a ground breaking game. It set a standard for platform games, and also subsequent games in the Mario game series. As such, Super Mario Bros did not just launch the Mario game series, it launched Nintendo game consoles.

Given this, the first Super Mario Bros game gained many fans. With this, any sequels to the Mario game series would always have fans also. As such, combined as a launch game with new Nintendo game consoles this has given Mario a great platform.

Regardless of the latest hardware developments, Nintendo have always seemed to produce great Mario game titles. Moving from 2D Mario games to 3D required something of a revamp in terms of game design. However, Mario 64 was a great Mario game title that retained all the great Mario game-play combined with the new 3D graphics.

Despite a number of game sequels, Nintendo have also been able update the Mario game franchise with new innovations. In this respect, the game sequels were rarely just tweaked re-runs of the previous Mario game. They always added something new and exciting to the Mario game platform game series, be it new items, Yoshi the dinosaur, or other Mario tricks. As such, new additions to the Mario game series always remained fresh and more original, particularly when combined with new console hardware. So, Mario games have usually just got a little better.

Above all else, great game-play is what has really provided the momentum for the Mario game franchise. Sure, new Nintendo game consoles have provided revamped graphics for Mario games. However, ultimately Nintendo have usually retained superior game-play for Mario games that have eclipsed the other platform game alternatives. Rarely has the classic Mario game-play been sacrificed, even if the game design has been adjusted for new hardware.

As such, the Mario game series now celebrates its 25th anniversary. An anniversary celebrated by many Mario game fans. One of the longest running of games series shows little sign of running out of steam, as the release of Super Mario Galaxy 2 has provided another great addition to the Mario franchise.

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