Super Mario Bros. Deluxe on GBC is the definitive portable version of the founding classic. The original game plus extra challenges, hidden levels and scores to beat. An absolute GBC must.
Your verdict
Category
Platformer1 player3+
Description
The original Super Mario Bros. is ported to Game Boy Color with colourful visuals and numerous all-new bonus features. Published by Nintendo, released in Europe in June 1999. Full original SMB in colour, Challenge mode with additional objectives, Boo Race mode and race against Boo, illustration gallery and secret levels. Multilingual version.
Super Mario Bros. Deluxe review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
MAX
Music
★★★★★
"Legendary"
1/5
Story
★★★★★
"Anecdotal"
The conversion solves a framing problem: the console's screen shows only a portion of the original levels, and the answer is a vertical pan triggered on demand, letting you inspect the top and bottom of a stage without moving forward. The colours, absent from the 1985 model, are assigned with a restraint that respects the original's contrasts.
Timeless, Koji Kondo's immortal theme regains all its punch on the Game Boy Color, faithful to the note. Hearing this founding tune accompany Mario's jumps brings an intact pleasure, laced with nostalgia. This melody, etched into collective memory, remains one of the greatest anthems of video games.
Gameplay
"Masterful"
Bringing the 1985 classic to GBC could have been enough, but the added challenges, a medal-hunt mode and a replayable map clearly broaden the fun. The pixel-perfect jump and timeless level design still respond beautifully in the hands. The smaller screen hampers visibility a little, without denting the effectiveness of a foundational platformer.
Fun
"From the very first seconds"
The 1985 plumber is reborn on a handheld screen with renewed comfort and bonuses galore: timed challenges, hidden levels, a versus mode and a medal hunt. The joy of the pixel-perfect jump is intact, elevated by overflowing replay value. Ideal for reliving a classic or discovering it, this is pure, joyful platforming.
Addictiveness
"Obsessive"
Running, jumping and hoarding coins through levels honed to a razor's edge delivers an immediate pleasure that every board reignites. Medals to earn, timed challenges and scores to beat add a thousand reasons to replay stages you already know by heart. A timeless platforming benchmark, this portable edition keeps a playability whose precision still thrills.
Initial retail pressing from May 1999, the first European edition of the cartridge. A historical target for collectors after the copy that exactly matches launch state, prior to the Rev 1 tweaks. The European sleeve carries the reference artwork, but the printed manual varies by Nintendo plant, a checkpoint for anyone hunting a complete set with an original booklet still intact.
A cult cover
Mario springs forward, fist raised, in a pop setting where green pipes, golden blocks and azure sky revive the very first Mushroom Kingdom. The punchy colorization and the leaping pose convey the good-natured energy of this freshened-up classic. Familiar at first glance, the image bridges 8-bit nostalgia and handheld freshness.
Is Super Mario Bros. Deluxe still worth playing in 2026?
This rework of the 1985 Super Mario Bros. does much more than recolor the levels, namely a world map, time trials, hidden boards, score missions and the bonus inclusion of The Lost Levels make it the most complete version of the founding game. The pixel perfect precision still feels intact and translates beautifully to the small screen. The whole package remains a platform design lesson that is still taught today. An obvious detour for fans of Mario, of classics, or simply of well crafted two dimensional play.
