Super Mario All-Stars: 25th Anniversary Edition

Let's face it, there's probably many Wii owners who don't actually use their Wii online and probably don't even know about the Virtual Console service. For these people, this is their first chance to play the Mario games they knew and loved 20 years ago. They're still as good as we remember them...

If you have a nostalgia kick for these games, then you'll enjoy seeing them again.

For a very low price you will be able to get four classic games that will make the older gamers very nostalgic. The old Mario games are as great as ever, even after almost 25 years.

Contains some of the best platform games in history. Nuff said.

This new All-Stars offers the same content of the original and can be considered another gift for the 25th anniversary of Super Mario Bros. The release could've been crafted much better, in a more special and exclusive way, but the three games deserves respect and attention anyway.

Four pieces of game history.

The games themselves are the real stars here, only really let down by lack of 60hz support.

But perhaps the greatest value of this pack is the packaging itself. Owning a physical copy of Super Mario All-Stars on Wii allows these games to sit proudly on your shelf, a statement to everyone who enters your home and sees it.

Super Mario All-Stars is undeniably a shameless attempt to make money from old games on Nintendo's part, but it is an enjoyable and fun shot at gamers' wallets that's held up well in the 25 years since the debut of Super Mario Bros.

Your enjoyment of this title will largely depend on your experience with the previous version of All-Stars. If you already have that game (or one of these from the Virtual Console), don't bother. If you don't, you'll waste hours playing in the Mushroom Kingdom.

Super Mario All-Stars on the Wii is not a bad compilation by any means. The included content is solid and offers a good look at the early years of the series. Unfortunately, everything in the bundle is fairly predictable and doesn't exactly shine for a momentous benchmark like this.

On the whole, it's a good collection for all the Super Mario fans in this planet.

If the best we can hope for to mark the silver anniversary of one of the most monumental video game masterpieces is a quick and dirty rerelease with a bit of pretty but insubstantial packaging, it's little surprise that so few people take gaming seriously as a medium.

Super Mario All-Stars is precisely the same game you played on your SNES seventeen years ago-graphics, soundtrack, copyright and all. While these classic games haven't lost any of their appeal, this still feels an awful lot like an overpriced Virtual Console title.

Four of the greatest games in history, presented in an upgraded format not available on the Virtual Console, at a bargain price… is that worth your money?

This celebration for the 25th anniversary turned out to be a real disappointment; a short audio cd and a ultra-thin booklet are just simply not enough to thank the old italian plumber for his fantastic career.

Seriously, Nintendo... the same exact game as in 1993? Mario deserved much more for his anniversary.

A nonsensical score for a nonsensical rerelease. We would have loved a remake. [Jan 2011, p.95]

These may be some of the greatest games ever made, but this package isn't worth double dipping for again.

Super Mario All-Stars - 25th Anniversary Edition is not what it should have been: an homage to the glorious story of the most famous videogame character. Instead, it's the umpteenth product made only to make the most out of his name, flawed in its presentation and by its disappointing quality.

Having a copy of those cult Super Mario games from the 8-bit era is almost reason enough for a gamer to get this collection. But it's still a "light" edition of Super Mario All-Stars (the Super Nintendo one), with few bonuses - the liflet is pretty but not really full of surprises nor knowledge, and the audio CD has 10 tracks and 10 sound effects that, sure, you will love hearing crystal clear again. But it could have done more.

Let's hope the 30th Anniversary package is a bit more ambitious.

A deserved homage to Mario, but too short in extras and not adapted for current times.

Hardcore Super Mario fans no doubt know that the collection could have had more value, but they've likely already picked up the game based on the nostalgia factor alone. The other crowd that will probably purchase this collection is the Wii owners that have enjoyed the plumber's other Wii adventures, but aren't internet-savvy enough to plumb the depth of the Wii Shop Channel. The middle ground -- gamers who respect the franchise, but aren't exactly fanboys for it (Genesis owners, I'm looking at you) -- should be aware that the collection is a few bucks too high (or a few games too short) of being a worthwhile purchase.

No surprise : Super Mario All-Stars - 25th Anniversary Edition aims to the biggest fans of Mario, who are keen to buy and play games that they've already finished some years ago, just for a few more goodies.

The only real worthwhile audience for this game is Wii owners who can't or won't get online and would like the chance to play their old favorites again. Anyone else would be better off avoiding this game, as the extras certainly don't make up for the high price tag.

Even dedicated followers of the portly plumber will have difficulty getting excited over a flimsy art book and a CD that is good for one listen and no more.