Super Mario Brothers level 1–1:

Even though this Super Mario Brothers level was played on a more classic console than I grew up playing it on, it still brought back an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia. When I was a kid, I played mostly with a handheld gaming device, the Nintendo DS, and this was my first time playing with a game controller. And despite the game design not changing too much, it did provide me with a much different feel. Additionally, the game controller was a very different, much more rectangular the shape which felt very comfortable to hold, the buttons felt like they were in a very intuitive place.

When the opening jingle came on, the feeling of nostalgia was reinforced even further. Next came the task of playing the game, that I was so used to playing growing up, but with a more critical eye. You start on a brick road, where you are tasked with just figuring out how to navigate the Mario world. My first observation was that the way they introduce you into the game is an optimal level of difficulty. From the beginning, it is easy enough to get through, but teaching you through the controls, slowly making you more comfortable and ready for the rest of the level. The level design provides a lot of hints through sound effects and visuals.

Compared to the newer version, I found this version slightly harder to play because it felt less responsive to my controls. However, once I got over this learning curve it became super fun and got much easier. Also, something I found very helpful was to go slowly, given that there was no penalty for going at a slower pace. The extra time to wait for the right timing to advance, definitely helped me make it further, faster because, despite a slower pace, it kept me alive longer.