Super Mario Run Critic Reviews

If you’re able to make peace with the game’s online requirement (and to be fair, I was most of the time), the experience is mostly fantastic. Super Mario Run impresses in ways I wasn’t convinced this approach to the character could. This, let’s not forget, is Nintendo on someone else’s hardware making good. Who else can stroll this assuredly into a stranger’s house, size up the joint lickety-split, then remind us of how much we have yet to see?

We had our eyebrow ready to raise at how the D-pad-focused plumber would translate to smartphone taps, but we needn't have – this oozes that classic Nintendo charm, the soundtrack is familiarly strong and the visuals are slick with tonnes of variety.

Super Mario Run is not only a great game but accessible, innovative and original in the Super Mario series; providing a lot of levels, secrets, multiplayer and a good taste for designing.

A brilliant and addictive Mario entry in the mobile world which will engage us for hours despite its expensive price and optimization problems.

A thrilling celebration of Mario's jump, packed with imagination and sharp level layouts. One of the best auto runners around.

Super Mario Run is the perfect implementation of Nintendo’s biggest star in mobile form. While it’s hard to deny the success of Pokémon Go, Niantic’s mobile offering doesn’t truly capture the heart and soul of the franchise it belongs to. Super Mario Run excels in that department, offering a title that’ll have you constantly coming back for more.

Proof that these brands should have been on mobile all along. Took you long enough, Nintendo, but here’s hoping you stick around for a while.

If you’re a huge Nintendo and Mario fan, then it’s needless to say that this is a no-brainer.

Super Mario Run is a different Mario game, but a great one. Fast and furious and full of coins.

Nintendo is successful in maintaining the charm and quality of Mario games in this jump to smartphones and tablets. Super Mario Run won't stand out for its originality, but for its quality. The simplified game mechanics make the game even more accessible, but the excellent level design guarantees challenges to every kind of gamer.

After all this time we’re treated to a Mario game on our Apple devices, and boy is it a load of fun; easy controls, great game modes and hours of addictive gameplay to sink your teeth into.

Super Mario Run is a different take on the classic Mario formula, that manages to deliver a satisfying experience perfectly adapted on the mobile devices.

Super Mario Run is an elegantly designed platformer with strong hooks that kept me coming back. Once I wrapped up the main campaign, the addictive, replayable stages urged me to perfect my coin runs. Kingdom Builder and Toad Rally provided further motivation to keep dashing for the finish line, so I could invest the spoils in my own Mushroom Kingdom. While this isn’t the best-looking Super Mario game by a longshot, it successfully distills the core fun and charm of the Mario franchise into a smart, one-handed experience.

Super Mario Run is an excellent and smart step into mobile gaming for Nintendo, but difficulty spikes might frustrate casual players.

Super Mario Run's lack of offline play is a bummer, but otherwise it's an engaging experience that demonstrates Nintendo understands what makes for a good mobile game. Even if you're not a fan of mobile titles, it's worth a try: The initial download is free, and you can pay for the additional levels if you like what you see.

There are a few oddities, like the online play requirement, and it would be nice to know if and when Nintendo plan to add more levels to the game, but Super Mario Run is a fantastic mobile debut for Nintendo’s most enduring and best known character.

Super Mario Run is thankfully miles away from being the simplified disaster that many nay-sayers had feared; in fact, what's striking about this mobile release is how similar it is to traditional Mario titles in terms of gameplay and challenge. Despite having limited control over Mario there's still a strong focus on skill, especially if you want to grab all of those pink, purple and black coins. The brevity of the experience is an issue however – an average player should be able to finish an initial no-frills World Tour run in around an hour – and as a result Super Mario Run's social element becomes its long-term focus. Challenging pals via the elegant in-game friends system is addictive, and the Toad Rally mode – which underpins the kingdom-building meta game – is sure to soak up plenty of play time.

A real Super Mario game on smartphone might have seemed impossible at one time, but this has all the polish and charm you’d expect of a top flight Nintendo game.

Super Mario Run is a really promising start of Nintendo on mobile gaming.

Super Mario Run is a great iPhone game that sticks to the expected formula but makes that formula extremely fun. And there’s nothing wrong with that.