Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros.

The system's button layout.

Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros. is primarily a side-scrolling platformer in which the player needs to make it to the far right of levels. The game also includes the Game & Watch game Ball, an action-puzzle game, however, the game is updated to make the character that appears in the game be Mario[3] (with Luigi also being playable through an easter egg)[4] - this makes it more like the final Game and Watch game released "Mario the Juggler", than the original ball, which features the "Mr Game and Watch" character. Although the "Mr Game and Watch" character is seen on the game select screen, he is not seen in the actual gameplay. The game also includes a clock function, which features 35 "little touches" (animations)[5] and easter eggs.[6]

Multiple easter eggs were also added throughout all three games, such as being able to give Mario infinite lives in Super Mario Bros. and The Lost Levels by holding the A button upon starting the game and being able to access and listen to the Mario Drawing Song (which included a language error)[7] by holding down the A button in the clock mode.[4]

Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros. was announced in a Nintendo Direct held to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the Super Mario series, where its content, release date, and launch price of $50 were first unveiled.[8][9] Due to lack of authorization by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), pre-orders for the game were delayed in the United States.[10] A more in-depth trailer for the game was posted later on September 10.[11] Two Japanese tie-in websites were also launched following the game's announcement, one for Super Mario Bros. and one for Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels.[12] The game is scheduled to be discontinued on March 31, 2021.[13]

Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros. (top) next to the 1981 Widescreen Game & Watch game, Parachute (bottom).

The game is powered by a STM32H7B0VBT6 microcontroller, which consists of an ARM Cortex-M7 core, 128 KBytes Flash, and 1380 KBytes of SRAM,[14][15] and 1 MBytes of Serial Flash.[16][17] According to IGN, the game's screen is about 35 millimeters.[18]

The game's hardware is modelled after the Widescreen Game & Watch series[19] (however, unlike the original Widescreen systems, the game's A and B button are moved to the right side to be alike the Nintendo Entertainment System controller[10] and includes a d-pad and a full-color LCD screen)[20] and has a built-in lithium-ion battery, identical to that found in Nintendo Switch Joy-Cons, which is estimated to last 8 hours.[21] The game weighs 0.15 pounds[22] and shipped with a USB-C charging cable.[23] Unlike prior Game & Watch systems, the game doesn't have a kickstand.[24] The game also has a power button.[25]

Seth Macy, writing for IGN, gave Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros. a 9/10, and labeled it as an editor's choice.[18] Macy stated that he was surprised by the quality of the hardware, and said that, due to the quality, is an "appealing way to play decades-old games".[18] Macy, reviewing the feel of the game's hardware, said that the metal surface the game is made out of doesn't attract fingerprints, something he said other handheld systems have an issue with. Macy also stated that the tactile-rubber the game's buttons are made of feels "really solid."[18] Macy also praised the game's button inputs for being "high quality", citing "no unintended inputs".[18]

Blake Morse of Shacknews gave the game an 8/10, praising the game for looking "gorgeous", the hidden secrets it contains, and the watch feature, but criticizing the audio and how the down on the d-pad could "function better".[26]

Writing for Mashable, Adam Rosenberg said that the "squishy-feeling directional pad and A/B buttons" weren't the best way to play Super Mario Bros. and The Lost Levels, but said that the "budget-friendly gift item" would "delight any Nintendo-loving fanperson". Rosenberg also praised the game's clock.[27]

Nintendo Life's Damien McFerran praised the game's backlit LCD screen, the clock feature, and said that the game emulates Super Mario Bros. and The Lost Levels "very well", but criticized the lack of a kickstand and also questioned why only three NES games were included. McFerran stated that older video game players would "love the nostalgia factor", and that'd it be "of interest" for younger players.[24]

Chris Plante, in a review for The Verge, called the hardware "well built", and said that the d-pad is "firm and responsive" and that the A and B buttons are "soft but not mushy". Plante noted how after clearing Super Mario Bros.'s first level, his hands felt "achey", and that after multiple levels, his thumbs "cramped". Plante said that the discomfort he experienced with the game was due to the Game & Watch consoles being designed to play more simple games, such as the included Ball.[28]

When reviewing the game for CNET, Scott Stein stated that the game is an "unexpectedly satisfying mash-up" and also said that "it feels really good to play on", citing that the d-pad, A, and B buttons are "very-well placed". Stein also criticized that consumers only got 3 games for the Game & Watch's launch price of $50, and said that it should've included more Game & Watch games.[25]

• Official website