Super Mario Bros. 3 was released in 1990 and since then the Mario franchise has never been the same.  While Mario games have really always been big and full of adventure, I believe that this installment really took gaming to the next level and gave the series a solid place in pop culture history.

Each world that Mario or Luigi found themselves in was an epic, themed world that featured multiple levels, different castles, and a boss.  These themed levels really created the template for the future worlds that Mario would explore.  It gave us characters, locales, and items that all gamers and most non gamers will recognize.

Even more interesting was the promotional campaign Nintendo rolled out for the game.  In 1989, the feature film The Wizard starring Fred Savage and Jenny Lewis (later of Rilo Kiley fame!).  Basically, the film was an hour and a half long commercial for Nintendo.  Did it work.  Heck yes.  I remember being a rather impressionable nine year old kid that wanted EVERYTHING THAT THIS MOVIE OFFERED ME.

So, wait, where were we?  Oh yeah.  The movie ended with a video game tournament featuring Super Mario Bros. 3 as the final challenge.  It was the first time the game had been shown to a wide audience in North America.  The effect?  Mass pandemonium and huge sales.  Super Mario Bros. 3 quickly became one of the biggest selling and most influential games of all time.  Did it have something to do with The Wizard? Thinking back to my nine year self, I’d say yes.  I was in hysterics about the game after I saw the film.  I had to have it.  Advertising really does work.

So how can we incorporate Super Mario Bros. 3 into the classroom?

  • Super Mario Bros. 3 really drew a line in the sand for Mario games.  It combined elements of the first game and took a major step forward.  Since then, every Mario game has incorporated some element originally found in Super Mario Bros. 3. Have students play Super Mario Bros. 3 and then some of the later games in the series (Super Mario World, Super Mario 64, Super Mario Galaxy come to mind first) and have them compare and contrast the games.  Obviously, all the games are different, yet there are features running through each game that link them all together.  What are these features?  Why do you think these features remain a mainstay in Mario games?
  • How has promotion and advertising for video games changed over the years?  Have your students look at a brief history of video game ads.  How have they changed?  What was the focus of some of the older ads?  What is the focus now?  I highly recommend having your students create YouTube playlists that take the viewer on a journey through video game advertising history.  You can find my example here on the 8BitLibrary YouTube Video Game Ads Playlist.