Review Information
Game Reviewed Mario's Big Adventure, by Marigi
Review Author Vitiman
Created Mar 8 2019, 6:54 AM

General Commentary and Game Overview
Mario's Big Adventure, circa 2003, is about as remarkable as off-brand toothpaste. It works? That's uh... that's really all I got. It's a one level demo, as was oh-so common back then (even now, really), and it... it kind of just exists. There's nothing terribly special about it, it has no real gimmicks or amusing moments - apart from the opening credit, where Space Ghost wearing a sombrero in a SMW Ghost House with hilariously inappropriate music - it's just... a Mario fangame. That's only okay. From the year 2003.

Let's get on with it.
 
Pros It's functional!
The music is neat, I suppose
The sounds are surprisingly high quality for pre-2006
I liked that it was in wide screen for some reason?
 
Cons It's boring
It's functional but it's not refined, if that makes sense
One level, that's it
 
Impressions
Gameplay
2 / 10
Ah-ah-ah! Experience ONE LEVEL of play! Oh the times we'll have, playing through what I presume to be a 14 year old's idea of a good Mario level. It's boring. It's barebones and it's boring. Yeah, it works, but it only works well enough. I never died because of crappy engine stuff, but Mario's collision mask is still his whole sprite, so you can fall onto the edge of a platform and get your foot hung on it, and the enemy killing is still wonky.

I commend the creator for not trying to program shoddy Koopa shell action, as one jump just knocks them off the screen like any old enemy, but it is very dull and not too fun.

For a game titled Mario's Big Adventure, it's... rather stale and played out. No power ups, no fun little ideas or concepts, it's almost the genesis of the modern day Mario fangame. Cookie cutter in its way, and yet... it still tries to be something... else? Hard to really put it to words except that it's just there. Can't say a whole lot. Next!
 
Graphics
5 / 10
Serviceable. That's about it. Mario's falling animation is him holding a vegetable for some reason (minus the veggie, obviously), seemingly taken right out of the newest Mario 2D platformer in 2004, Super Mario Advance 4! Was it a mistake? Did he think that was the falling animation? Was it done on purpose? We'll never know, and frankly I don't care.

The title screen drawing was cute, if a little weak. I'm a sucker for MS Paint line art, though.
 
Sound
4 / 10
Some MIDIs, some actually pretty competent sound effects here! No old school rips, just... almost decent rips. They're not perfect, but they work well.
 
Replay
1 / 10
It's just one level. One really, really boring level. I wouldn't play this again even if you told me there was some wild secret buried in that one level.
 
Final Words
3 / 10
Though presentable and competently made for a The Game's Factory game in 2003, Mario's Big Adventure is hardly Big and barely Mario. But it is an adventure... just one that lasts a whole level because the creator scrapped it before he could even start it.

It's just as well, it's an unremarkable piece of MFGG's history.

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