10 Best Launch Video Games Ever
6. Super Mario Bros (NES)
Super Mario Bros can consider itself a little bit unlucky to only rank at sixth. However, the quality really cranks up at this point, and there is another Mario game still to come too.
A common misconception is that Super Mario Bros is the first ever Mario game, but that acclaim actually belongs to regular old Mario Bros. However, considering that game put you in a single sewer level where moving off one side of the screen saw you pop back on the other a la Pac-Man, Super Mario Bros is really the first one that counts.
It’s been ported to many other Nintendo systems since, and you can see why. It established Mario as a cultural icon and is a core reason side scrolling games have retained their popularity to this day. As well as the many Mario sequels it spawned, it’s also responsible for another gaming phenomenon.
Yuji Naka, the lead developer of Sonic The Hedgehog, used to play Super Mario Bros and try and beat each level in the quickest time possible. From this, the idea for Sonic was born, and like so many comic book heroes, means Mario is directly responsible for the creation of his own rival.