Super Mario Bros. Deluxe

One of the best things about the Game Boy Color is that it's basically an original Nintendo Entertainment System that
can fit in your pocket. What this means for gamers is that many of the great games for the classic system are being
ported to the Game Boy Color, giving us a chance to re-play (or in some cases discover) the best game titles from the
'80s.

Nintendo's own Super Mario Bros. Deluxe is among the first of these conversions, and it certainly remains one of the
best. Actually, calling this game a conversion really doesn't do it justice. This version actually contains more
levels than the original game, including the entire Japanese version and a slew of extras (such as a two-player mode).

The controls in this game are easy to grasp--even for novice gamers. All Mario can do is jump (and shoot fireballs
with the right power- ups), but it is amazing to see how much gameplay can be squeezed from these simple actions when
the controls work in direct harmony with a player's thoughts. The only element of this game that could have been
better is that the Game Boy Color's screen isn't quite large enough to show the entire layout of the original game
screen, so players may occasionally need to press up and down on the control pad to see some offscreen action. While
this can be distracting, it ultimately has minimal impact on gameplay. If you are looking for the quintessential
side-scrolling platform game, you can't do much better than Super Mario Bros. Deluxe. --T. Byrl Baker

Pros:

* Classic side-scrolling action gameplay
* Lots of extras

Cons:
* Screen isn't quite big enough to show the entire layout of the game