Super Mario Bros. as a masterclass in teaching how to play
Super Mario Bros. is not only an iconic game, but a real game design manual. Released in 1985, the first chapter dedicated to Mario not only redefined the platform genre, but also showed how it is possible to teach the player complex mechanics without ever resorting to explicit instructions. Level 1–1 is a perfect example of an “invisible tutorial”, a work of design that introduces players to the world of Mario in a natural and intuitive way.
A wordless tutorial
When the game starts, Mario appears in a world that extends to the right. There are no texts that indicate what to do, nor arrows that suggest a specific action. The player is simply there, with the controller in hand, ready to explore. This is one of the most brilliant aspects of the 1–1 level design: everything is built to guide the player without ever breaking the dive.
The first natural movement is to go to the right, where the first enemy, a Goomba, awaits us. Here, the player must react: if he does not dodge or jump, he is defeated. This first obstacle is essential: it teaches the player that enemies can be avoided or crushed with a jump, without the need for any explicit explanation.
Jumping is the key to everything
After the Goomba, the 1–1 level introduces another key element: the jump. A block different from the others implicitly explains that it can hide something and the elevated position requires the player to jump to continue, but here is one of the first surprises of the game. Jumping, Mario hits a block with a question mark, revealing a mushroom. The player does not yet know what this object does, but he will soon discover that it serves to make Mario grow and make him more resistant.
This is one of the main lessons of the design of Super Mario Bros.: the game rewards curiosity and exploration. Each block, each enemy and each object offers a lesson without the player realising it. There is no need for written tutorials: the game speaks through its mechanics.
As the player advances, the 1–1 level introduces new challenges. After jumping and crushing enemies, you encounter higher platforms, tubes that block the path and new enemies. Each of these challenges is designed to be overcome with newly learned skills. The newly obtained fungus allows Mario to survive a blow, while jumps become increasingly important to avoid obstacles or reach higher areas.
The level is structured in such a way that each new challenge seems natural and not forced. The player learns through doing, trying again when he makes a mistake and advancing with greater confidence each time he overcomes an obstacle. What if the player loses all lives? No problem, because he is still in the very first moments of the game and starting over is not too punitive.
A design that resists time
The first level of Super Mario Bros. is often cited as one of the best examples of design in video games, and for good reason. Decades later, its impact is still visible in modern games. The idea of teaching the player through gameplay, without having to resort to long explanations, has become a well-established practice in the industry. Successful games like The Legend of Zelda or Dark Souls follow the same design philosophy: letting the world and the mechanics speak for themselves.
The 1–1 level of Super Mario Bros. is an example of how design can be a powerful tool to teach the player without using a single word. Every element, from the position of the enemies to the arrangement of the platforms, is designed to guide the player through the basic mechanics without ever breaking the flow of action. Even today, Super Mario Bros. remains a masterpiece of design that all game designers should study and appreciate.
