Super Mario World

A new console, a new companion

Mario’s adventure launched with the Super Famicom in Japan in November 1990 and introduced Yoshi and the Cape Feather. Its connected world gave Nintendo room to hide optional discoveries around familiar platforming. The new hardware helped the game broaden Mario’s world while keeping his movements readable.

Taking the other exit

A ledge or a tempting coin can teach a move without stopping the level to explain it. Super Mario World then leaves room to try something else. Yoshi changes how familiar hazards can be crossed; the cape makes an ordinary stretch of sky feel like a second level. The map keeps a record of those possibilities. Reaching an exit often raises the question of where the other one might be.

Start with reaching the credits. Finding every exit is a fine second project, and the cape is worth practising without making perfect flight a condition of enjoying the game. Modern saving lets you return to a difficult or suspicious level whenever you have a few minutes.