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- It needs to be expanded. Tagged since November 2008.
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In the early 1990s, many educational games were released in the Mario series of video games.
Mario Is Missing!
Mario Is Missing! is a geography-based game for the PC, Macintosh, Super NES and NES. It was developed by The Software Toolworks and released in 1992 for PC. In 1993, two different versions were made for SNES and NES, the latter being developed by Radical Entertainment. All three versions were published by the Mindscape Group.
Mario Is Missing! is the first Mario game to feature only Luigi as a playable character, which did not occur again until Luigi's Mansion.
This game gave birth to the internet fads "Malleo," "Weegee," and "Yushee" due to Mario Luigi and Yoshi's appearances in the DOS version of the game.[1]
Plot
Screenshot of the NES version
Bowser sets up a castle in Antarctica, and plans to use many hair dryers from Hafta Havit, a mail-order company, to melt Antarctica's ice and flood Earth. He sends Koopas to cities across Earth to steal artifacts to fund his operation. Mario, Luigi and Yoshi travel to Bowser's castle to stop him. Luigi is hesitant to go in, so Mario goes by himself and is captured by Bowser, prompting Luigi to rescue him.
Gameplay
Luigi progresses through the game by completing levels in Bowser's castle; each floor is guarded by one Koopaling and contains a number of pipes which transport Luigi to a city containing Koopas. Once a floor is completed, Luigi must defeat the Koopaling guarding that floor to proceed to the next.
The main gameplay consists of moving around a city in side-scrolling manner while jumping on Koopas to collect stolen artifacts (pieces of famous landmarks). Luigi then must take these artifacts to their respective locations and correctly answer three questions about the landmark. Once an artifact is returned, the landmark is reopened. During the quest to return all three artifacts to their proper landmarks, Luigi must determine his location to receive the assistance of Yoshi by using a device called the Globulator. If Luigi takes Yoshi to the correct location, he can ride him for double the walking and running speed. Once the exit pipe is found, Luigi is returned to the castle as long as he has Yoshi with him to scare the Pokey into the pipe; otherwise he will be unable to return to the castle. He can then proceed to another town to do it again.
In each city, Luigi is able to question the locals to gain clues as to his current location, the general direction of remaining Koopas, and information about the affected landmarks. He is given a map showing where information booths, people and Koopas are in the city where Mario is.
Mario Teaches Typing
Mario Teaches Typing is a video game designed to teach typing skills to children.[citation needed] It was published and developed by Interplay and officially licensed by Nintendo. It was released for MS-DOS in 1991, Microsoft Windows and Macintosh in 1995, and a follow-up named Mario Teaches Typing 2 was released in 1997. Mario is voiced by Ronald B. Ruben in the floppy disc version, and by Charles Martinet in the CD version.[citation needed] This game and it's sequel are very popular in remixes on the video sharing site YouTube.
Gameplay
Mario Teaches Typing includes three selectable characters: Mario, Luigi and Princess Toadstool. The game displays two pairs of hands which show which finger to use; for example, if the player has to type "A", the leftmost finger is highlighted. If the player makes an error, the cursor does not advance until they enter the correct key. After time ends, the exercise ends and a chalkboard screen appears, displaying statistics on how well the player performed.
Reception
It's ranked 10th on ScrewAttacks' "Top ten worst Mario games" saying it was a terrible attempt to cash in on the rise of computers in the 1980s and the music sounded like "a retarded R2-D2". [2]
Mario Teaches Typing 2
Mario Teaches Typing 2 is a computer game developed by Brainstorm and published by Interplay Entertainment. As with the previous game, Mario Teaches Typing 2 was designed to teach children to type. In it, Mario and Luigi must recover the pieces of a magical typewriter that was destroyed when Mario incorrectly typed a magical phrase which would destroy Bowser's castle on it. When all the pieces are recovered and the typewriter repaired, Mario is able to type the phrase correctly and Destroy Bowser's castle. The game also features a number of CGI sequences featuring a disembodied Mario head who talks to the player. Players can choose to select to take a placement test (which is scored based upon accuracy and speed) or participate in lessons (whether in order or selected individually). Also, the sequel has numerous new features, including a customizable certificate of achievement, color coded on-screen keyboard, and customizable lesson plans. Mario was once again voiced by Charles Martinet.
Mario's Early Years! Fun with Letters
Mario's Early Years! Fun with Letters is a video game released for SNES on June 1, 1993. It was one of the few educational games for the SNES and had two alternate games with the same gameplay engine, but different things to learn about. The game contains Mario, Princess Peach, and Yoshi on a wooden boat traveling from island to island, learning about grammar and letters.
Mario's Early Years: Fun with Numbers
Mario's Early Years! Fun with Numbers was released for SNES on June 15, 1993.
Mario's Early Years: Preschool Fun
Mario's Early Years! Preschool Fun was released for SNES on June 1, 1993.
Reception
It's ranked 3rd on ScrewAttacks' "Top ten worst Mario games" [3]
Mario's Game Gallery
Mario's Game Gallery is a computer game developed by Presage Software, Inc. and published by Interplay Entertainment Corp. on February 23, 1995.[4] It was later re-released as Mario's FUNdamentals in 1998. It is notable for being the first Mario game to feature Charles Martinet as Mario's voice actor.
It is distributed by Sierra On-Line Inc.
Gameplay
Mario's Game Gallery consists of the player competing against Mario in games of checkers, Go Fish, dominoes, backgammon and yacht (a version of Yahtzee). The game was rated "K-A" (Kids to Adults) by the ESRB.
Most game pieces and cards are represented by characters from the Mario series. For example, in checkers, one player uses baby Yoshis while the other uses Koopa Troopas; when one of these is kinged, it turns into an adult Yoshi or Bowser, respectively.
Reception
It's ranked 6th on ScrewAttack's "Top ten worst Mario games"
Mario's Time Machine
Screenshot of the Nintendo Entertainment System version
Mario's Time Machine is a video game made for PC, Super NES, and NES. In this game, Mario has to travel back in time to restore artifacts which were stolen from their original times, and, in the NES version, save Yoshi from Bowser. This game was made in 1993 and was released for PC. A version for the SNES was also made that year. The NES version was also released in 1993.
Set in 1993, Bowser is in possession of a time machine. He went back in time to steal many artifacts from the past, and placed them in what he considers "...the greatest museum of all time". If the items are not returned soon, history will be changed permanently.
Reception
It's ranked 4th on ScrewAttacks' "Top ten worst Mario games" [5]
Super Mario Bros. & Friends: When I Grow Up
Super Mario Bros. & Friends: When I Grow Up is a children's computer coloring game, featuring Mario and Luigi, released in 1991 for the PC Software. Players can paint Mario and other Nintendo characters.
References
