Duck Game | May 24, 2019 | 35:00hrs | rating: 3.5/5

You’re ducks and you kill each other in a very fast-paced fashion. Think Smash Bros but simpler and faster.

GAMEPLAY: It controls like a traditional 2D platformer with a ton of guns to pick up and discard. One hit and you’re dead, and we move on to a new level within seconds. It feels snappy and good.
AUDIOVISUALLY: Very basic pixelart and the music gets tiresome quickly. Really nothing special.
STORY/PRESENTATION: There’s some unimportant background story, but no one cares.
MULTIPLAYER: There is a short single player mode where you clear challenges (it mostly serves as a tutorial, but is addictive if you go for gold/platinum), but playing with friends is the whole point, and it’s a ton of fun! The online mode is alright too, where you can decorate your “room” and choose among your unlocked hats/masks while waiting for players to join, and it makes it more personal and fun. Unfortunately you can only be one player per console, unless you’re the one hosting. Still better than Smash…

What I’ve spent way too much time on is the level editor. It’s incredibly robust, and it’s a great way to keep the game fresh for each new multiplayer session. The gameplay is simple, but we’ve kept coming back to it for weeks now, so it’s well worth the price.

Super Mario Bros. 2 | March 14, 2019 | 2:06hrs | rating: 3.5/5

Another game that’s really hard to judge, since I’ve played it countless times as a child, and also the GBA port.

GAMEPLAY: Much better and more variation than SMB1 and more “logical” secrets.
AUDIOVISUALLY: It’s simple but clean. One of the better looking NES games for me. Music is killer.
STORY/PRESENTATION: The plot is barely there, but the world itself tells a story thanks to being more coherent and continuous.

I hadn’t played it in many years, but I enjoyed it a lot once again. It’s a great adventure!

Super Luigi U | Mar 5, 2019 | 12hrs | rating: 4/5

Very similar to NSMBU, but shorter and harder levels.

GAMEPLAY: It took a while to get used to Luigi’s higher and floatier jump, but it opens up for even more acrobatic moves, so it’s fine. The level design is much more focused, which is more fun in some ways (quicker levels, smaller area to search for star coins), but worse if you’re co-op:ing, because there’s often just no space for more than one player.
AUDIOVISUALLY: Exactly the same plain visuals as NSMBU.
STORY/PRESENTATION: Exactly the same as NSMBU.
MULTIPLAYER: Since the level design requires more perfection, it’s harder or near impossible with two people, but you can bubble yourself and let just one person run through the tightest spots. It’s still a lot of fun!

I’ll just never get tired of playing through level after level. Hopefully Mario Maker 2 has co-op and is just as stimulating.

New Super Mario Bros. U | Feb 5, 2019 | 25hrs | rating: 4.5/5

An absolute blast if you have someone to play with, which is really the whole point of the game.

– GAMEPLAY: The collision detection is a little stricter which occasionally surprised me when I died from jumping “on” an enemy, but other than that, it’s near perfection. Each level has its own little gimmick, and it makes it fresh and varied. The main thing that separates Mario from other platformers is the abundance of well-designed secrets, so it’s always satisfying to go out of your way just to see if anything is there.
– AUDIOVISUALLY: Looks plain and the music is nothing special. Worst aspect of the game for sure.
– STORY/PRESENTATION: The standard Mario plot. I like that the world map is back though, as it helps the game feel like a journey, and it’s satisfying to see where the road takes you.
– MULTIPLAYER: Compared to most other co-op platformers, this one has “friendly fire” on, so you have to communicate and collaborate, and it elevates the game so much and makes it one of my favorite co-op games!

SMB3 and SMW were more creative and impressive considering release dates, but for me, the co-op of NSMB just takes it to a new level.