In order for a gaming company to be successful and to keep players playing trying their titles over and over again, they must make sure that players also enjoy the classics in order to enjoy similar concepts. One franchise that has continued to keep players entertained is Nintendo's most iconic character of Mario and his friends. With players loving its newer titles, many fans also can't get enough of the older ones which are still going strong after many years.
Before getting into the Mario franchise games that have aged best throughout the years it must first be noted that all games mentioned on the list were released before 2005. Therefore, these are by far some of the most retro choices of games that many are still enjoying.
8 Mario Tennis
The second release of the Mario Tennis series hit the Nintendo 64 in 2000, and it was a big hit for players, especially through the combination of the much-loved Mario franchise characters and the addition of sports.
It contains a few courses for players to test their skills as well as a few more to unlock by winning tournaments. This simplistic game of tennis managed to age well considering its graphics can still be enjoyed by fans of retro gaming today. The most recent was Mario Tennis Aces, which was released on the Nintendo Switch in 2018 and received impressive reviews.
7 Paper Mario
Another Mario game that aged incredibly well over the years since its first release is the role-playing game Paper Mario, which is not only as beautiful looking as it is entertaining. Paper Mario has since successfully traveled across Nintendo Platforms so that there is always a creative RPG to explore.
With the visuals of a pop-up book, the graphics of Paper Mario have aged well as little changed with the art style in the most recent game, Paper Mario: The Origami King, which was released in 2020, with the only difference being the saturation of the franchise.
6 Mario Golf
Sports combined with the Mario franchise continue to age well throughout the years as golf has even been combined with Mario and his friends. Mario Golf plays exactly like many other golfing titles where players must complete a course in as few hits as possible, but when combining this with the Mario universe this can lead to some interesting courses for players to complete.
Mario Golf continued to guide the way for the Mario sports titles in the future, with it also being the first modern sports game to be produced before other Mario sports games got their time to shine.
5 Luigi's Mansion
Besides Mario himself, attention should also be brought to his green-wearing brother Luigi who managed to branch out into his own game in 2001 on the GameCube. In this title, it is up to Luigi to save his brother who has disappeared into a mansion that Luigi won in a contest he never remembered entering.
Players loved this spin-off from the main franchise, especially as they got to know Luigi more than just as a side character. Luigi continued to grow his ghost-busting career in future games of the Luigi's Mansion series.
4 Mario Party 2
Party games may appear like something that wouldn't succeed the test of time. However, when it comes to Mario Party, it is not only a great game but also a memorable experience for groups of people to enjoy together.
Mario Party 2 is arguably one of the fan favorites of the Mario Party series line for its great maps and hilarious mini-games. When this version of the title was released it was set in stone that Mario Party would continue to be a game that players would enjoy either on their own against the AI or with friends.
3 Mario Kart: Double Dash
Besides Super Mario Bros. Mario Kart is a title that a wide variety of players know and love, be it the original that was released on the SNES in 1992 or the Nintendo Switch version, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. However, the original continues to be one that players fell in love with.
Mario Kart has kept to its simple format of racing around famous tracks as well as adding new and exciting courses with each game. Nintendo has also experimented with other mechanics such as Mario Kart: Double Dash which saw players teaming up with one another in races as well as being the first Mario Kart title to use 3D graphics.
2 Super Mario 64
Paving the way for other Mario titles, Super Mario 64 is by far one of the games that have managed to age well as a much-loved platformer. Super Mario 64 was the first Mario title ever that had 3D graphics, and it changed the game for the franchise entirely as many players fell in love with this new style.
Since then, Nintendo has continued to use this 3D style in their Mario games. Players still return to Super Mario 64 for various speed-running challenges or for nostalgia.
1 Super Mario Bros.
As mentioned during Mario Kart, many players' fondest memories of the Mario title begin with one of its earliest games, Super Mario Bros. on the Game & Watch in 1988. With the title releasing on a variety of different platforms, this platformer branched out into other genres and first entertained players with its simple pixel graphics and side scroll roots.
Titles like Super Mario Maker allowed players to mimic these retro graphics as well as access the original Super Mario Bros. on the Nintendo Switch. Many Nintendo fans are able to still play this simple game that will never get old.