Super Mario: 10 AMAZING Features That Only Appeared Once

With over forty years behind him in the gaming world and over two hundred titles in everything from 2D platforming to sports games simulations, it's clear that Nintendo have had to constantly freshen up their Mario franchise with new and interesting concepts. As mechanics and capabilities of consoles continue to shoot up, so do the possibilities after all.

Whether it be an expansive 3D adventure or a more classic homage to the heyday of his 2D platforming roots, there are a list of features that every Super Mario game has to adhere to: Bowser kidnapping Princess Peach, hitting item boxes to find Mushrooms, jumping on everything from Koopa Troopas to Goombas etc.

However, there have been plenty of instances where Nintendo have pulled out a mechanic, mode or feature and left fans of the franchise absolutely stunned. Whether it be through lucking out with a theme of a game that a character really nails, a last minute throw in that exceeds expectation, or simply a gimmick that so bad it's good, here is our top list on some of the most amazing features from Super Mario history that only turned up once.

The Super Mario Bros. series has had a bit of a hit-or-miss record when it comes to it's games' bonus features, which is strange given the fact that they hit the big time during the very first title.

New Super Mario Bros. for the DS brought with it a couple of unique bonus modes players could run through once they were tired of the main storyline. Most of the mini-games from Super Mario 64 DS returned again, however the highlight was undoubtedly the Mario Vs. Luigi mode two players could take on.

The game mode features both Italian plumber fighting it out for stars, and can take place across five specially designed levels based on some of the themes from the main game.

The mode is absolute chaos, side scrolling wildly and requiring players to either jump or ground pound on each other to steal stars.

Power ups such as Stars and Mega Mushrooms are thrown into the mix, adding to the mayhem and making this one of the most addictive features in any Mario game. Making use of power ups and two screens as well as multiplayer action, it's baffling to think this awesome feature never returned.