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At the end of Super Mario Bros III, Mario and Luigi succeeded in dealing an almost fatal blow to their arch nemesis, Bowser the Koopa King. But being the cunning little devil that he is, Bowser escaped and headed to the mountains to recover and plan an evil vengeance of terrifying proportions!

Hailed as heroes by the liberated Mushroom minions, Mario and Luigi thought that they had finally defeated their most feared foe. Obviously, they were both a tad shocked when Bowser returned to the scene with seven new Koopa Kids and proceeded to take over the entire Mushroom World! But not only that, Bowser stunned the Mario Brothers by once again abducting the beautiful Princess Mushroom and taking the seven priceless Mushroom Eggs - Mushroom World's priceless heritage!

Once again, it is down to Mario (and Luigi in two-player mode) to traverse the scrolling platform levels that make up the Mushroom Worlds, taking out the various minions that Koopa has left behind. The overall objective is to undo the majority of the damage Koopa has done by infiltrating the strongholds of the Koopa Kids, dusting their monkey asses and recovering the Mushroom Eggs they have hidden. This paves the way to the lair of Bowser in his secreted mountain hideout, known as the Koopa patch. Then it's the familiar Final Confrontation: Mario versus Bowser in an all or nothing battle to the death!

Travelling between each mini-level is accomplished on this large scrolling map. Simply move Mario to the destination of your choice and press the button. However, you can't just select any level. Only by completing the mini-levels do you open up the paths leading to more stages!

Mario's into mushrooms in a big way - and it's not surprising considering what they do to him! Collecting a green spotted mushroom, for example, endows Mario with an extra life. Red spotted fungi has far more dramatic results - they make Mario grow to double his normal size, and open up a range of power-up weaponry to the lucky Italian plumber!

As if you didn't know, Mario's primary form of attack comes in the form of his devastating jumping prowess. Simply by jumping up in the air and falling on his prey, Mario instantly duffs up most Koopa minions! However, some of Bowser's pals are a bit clever, and repel the Mario assault by having spiked skin or even being on fire!

Collecting a special flower has a strange effect on our plumbing hero. Its herbal effects dye Mario's dungarees white and he's able to fire bouncing fireballs at his unsuspecting prey! This comes in handy for slapping Koopa minions about in a confined space where there's no room to jump and squash the meanies.

Special leaves that Mario collect turn him into Super Mario - complete with cape! With this wondrous item, Mario is able to fly and thus get to previously unreachable platforms. These could lead to secret levels and bonuses!

Some levels of Super Mario Bros IV are staged completely underwater! Being a bit plump, Mario isn't best suited to this change of scene. The extra inertia generated by the water makes his movements a lot more sluggish, and if he doesn't keep up his breast stroke, he falls to the bed of the river/ocean (depending on the level) and drowns! But if Mario is particularly lucky, he might find a special block that, whilst carried, speeds him up and makes him more agile too!

The real test for Super Mario Bros IV players is to complete the Star Worlds hidden deeply in the game. Each of these tests an aspect of your Mario abilities, be it your jumping accuracy, flying skills or just your reactions in general. Complete every one of these Star Worlds and you're given a special congratulatory message - and not only that, the majority of the enemy sprites are completely altered!

To show that this change has occurred the main map's colour scheme is altered to tasteful pastel shades!

What a game to give away free with the Super NES!! Nintendo have created a giant roller coaster of a cartridge here, packed with masses of challenge, scores of secret rooms and what can only be described as almost perfect playability!

Super Mario Bros IV is quite similar to its 8-bit predecessor in terms of gameplay, and the completely brilliant control method that made Mario III so intuitively superb also returns. The little dinosaur that Mario runs around on is also a delight, adding a new dimension of gameplay to the concept.

What is perhaps the most breathtaking aspect of this game must be its sheer depth - completing the game shouldn't take very long at all, but it's in finding all 96 levels that the game really gets you coming back for more.

There's just so much to see and enjoy in this game, I guarantee that you'll be hooked for months! Here at Mean Machines, we've seen every Super NES game there is, and yet Super Mario Bros IV remains the most superb game on the system, and gives Mario III a good run for its money in the 'Best Video Game Ever' stakes!

Back in October said that Super Mario Bros III was the finest videogame I'd ever played. Ask me now and I'd tell you a different story! Yes, there's a new 'greatest game' in town and it's called Super Mario Bros IV. There might be games with better graphics and sound, but in the all-important playability stakes, this is King.

The perfect-feeling control system, beautifully balanced difficulty level, outstanding puzzles, immense long-lasting appeal and loads of undiscovered secrets make this the most addictive, rewarding and enjoyable game yet seen.

To put it simply, Super Mario Bros IV is the ultimate videogame experience. The only bad news is that if you want to taste its excellence, you've got to go out and buy a Super NES!

Presentation 93%
There are loads of excellent little graphical touches and a completely fab control mode.

Graphics 91%
Perfectly defined and superbly animated sprites along with excellent backdrops.

Sound 93%
The Super NES remixes of the distinctive Mario themes are great and the spot effects are superb.

Playability 98%
Super Mario Bros IV immediately grabs you with its highly enjoyable, challenging, frustration-free gameplay.

Lastability 97%
Completing the game is pretty easy, but it's finding all 96 levels that makes this one of the longest lasting Super NES games.

Overall 98%
The greatest 16-bit platform game yet devised - and it's free when you buy a Super NES!