Super Mario: Every Game Ranked From Worst To Best

18. Super Mario Maker

Mario Feat Copy
Nintendo

In his play Bruis et Palaprat, Charles-Guillame Étienne famously opined that if you want something done properly, do it yourself. But some things might be best left to the experts.

The Nintendo mascot's farewell appearance on the ill-fated Wii U console offered fans chance to play God - that being Shigeru Miyamoto - as they upped spanners to shift pipes and piranha plants to their hearts content. In other words, it's Mario Tycoon, with the only limit on the number of available courses being your imagination.

A cynic might suggest Mario Maker was a devious way for Nintendo to canvas fresh ideas for free - especially with Takashi Tezuka openly admitting the game was "a huge motivation for us to do better" - but even if it was an elaborate crowd-sourcing exercise, it was a fun one. What it lacked in cohesion it made up for in possibilities, but as a Super Mario construction kit, it's difficult to place it above the portly plumber's more comprehensive outings.

Editorial Team
Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.