Nintendo does a pretty good job at keeping up with the Mario franchise. That is to say there isn’t much time where fans have to wait for a new game (unlike some other series under their belts, like Metroid). However, the games that do come out are not always what fans want or expect.
That’s why many of them have turned to creating their own Mario games. Some of these exist in playable states that everyone can enjoy, while others are movies, and some are even taken down. This article will cover the best projects Mario fans should be aware of. Just don’t tell Nintendo.
Updated May 5th, 2021 by Tristan Jurkovich: There might be more Mario fan games out there than actual Nintendo-made projects. One might think that is a lofty statement to make, but after doing more research, the line is pretty blurred. The big asterisk to that is the fact that not all fan games are created equal.
That is to say many of them aren’t worth looking into as a lot are just minor hacks to already existing titles. While exploring through more examples, more games popped up that seemed like worthy additions for this list. How does a Mario Metroidvania or a tower defense game sound?
15 Mari0
The name might be deceiving as to what this game is but the picture should be loud and clear. This is a stand-alone hack that was released of the original Super Mario Bros. but if Mario had the titular gun from Portal. It’s not so much a puzzle game on PC so much as it is a chaos simulator, but this very idea should have fans of both series curious enough to take a look at it.
14 Mariovania
This name is a little on the nose but this is indeed a Mario inspired Metroidvania. Sure, Mario looks lanky and weird in this game but it’s a really neat idea all the same. Nintendo has been clear that while they may like the Metroid series, the games never sell that well to make it a regular release next to bigger series like Mario or The Legend of Zelda. If that’s the case then Nintendo should take inspiration from this fan game and make a Mario Metroidvania themselves or better yet one with Link.
13 Toads Vs Koopas
This is an original game that takes the concept of Plants vs Zombies and redoes it for the Mario universe. Toads are basically plant people and Koopas aren’t zombies but they are mindless henchmen which is close enough. It plays just as one imagines with both sides being filled with other familiar characters. Making a real one of these but with Captain Toad could be cool.
12 Super Marios Bros. X
This is like the hack that never ends. Oh yes, it goes on and on Mario friends. What started as a new adventure based on the SNES version of Super Mario Bros. 3, turned into one of the biggest fan projects in history. Tons of Mario games are represented in this standalone game on PC. There are multiple versions out there to enjoy.
11 Super Mario 64 Maker
Will Nintendo ever venture into the 3D world of Mario adventures for their Super Mario Maker series? For that matter will there be a third one in general? After the sequel, it’s hard to say as it didn’t have the biggest splash but for now fans can get a taste of what could be through this fan game. It’s not as robust as what an official Nintendo version could offer, but playing around in this Super Mario 64 creator is still fun as is.
10 Super Mario Flashback
Super Mario Flashback showed up in 2018 with a demo, which is still available. It is primarily being handled by ten developers. While the demo hasn’t been updated much since, the game’s Twitter account still gives regular notes mostly on the soundtrack. The game itself is a stunning 2D adventure with sprite work and animations to die for. The biggest difference between a typical 2D game and this is that Mario has a health bar akin to Super Mario Galaxy.
9 Super Mario Bros. Super Show: The Game
As the name would imply, this game is attempting to convert the original cartoon series into a game. It’s being developed by Jesus Lopez and his two kids and first appeared in 2019. Lopez is not just a fan. He’s worked on big games in the past including Double Dragon Neon and DuckTales Remastered. Given the game’s art style, this makes a lot of sense. There is no demo out there for others to check out, but there is a video.
8 No Mario's Sky
This title, developed by ASMB Games, appeared in 2016. It mashed up a typical 2D Mario game with Super Mario Galaxy’s planetary rotation and No Man’s Sky's ship-to-planet exploration. It was a neat mashup that was quickly taken down by Nintendo. Not to get discouraged, the four developers from Australia reworked the title and re-released it as DMCA's Sky. It is still available to play.
7 Mario Royale
In a similar mashup of ideas, Mario Royale was a take on the blossoming genre. Instead of creating a shooter, like most Battle Royale games, this was a race through classic levels.
Players could not interact with each other and would instead just see ghosts of what others did in their runs. This too was taken down quickly in 2019 and was re-released as DMCA Royale. Unlike the previous title, this reworked version was taken offline. Nintendo wasn’t playing around anymore.
6 Super Mario Brawl
OpenBor is an engine that started out as a fan tribute to Streets of Rage called Beats of Rage. This then led to the creators releasing the engine, which led to many, many fan games based on other franchises including this game, Crisis Evil which is Resident Evil in brawler form and Chrono Killer based on Chrono Trigger. The sprites used in Super Mario Brawl appear to be from Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga.
5 The Super 1-1 Challenge
This was created by one guy, Sean Noonan. It’s a first-person shooter involving Mario rocketing plungers at Goombas in a reimagined 3D rendition of World 1-1 from the original game. It’s very cartoony so don’t expect Mario to get the Call of Duty treatment anytime soon. The game is still available to download online.
4 New Super Mario Land
This is a Super Nintendo remake of Super Mario Land from the Game Boy. That said, it looks like it’s on the DS as it seemingly reuses assets from New Super Mario Bros. Besides the graphical upgrade, it also adds 4 player co-op, making it like the Wii version of the game. It’s a hodgepodge of many Mario ideas, but still cool nonetheless.
3 Super Smash Flash 2
This is technically not a Mario game, but more if a tribute to Nintendo as a whole. That said, this fan-made pixel take on Super Smash Bros. needs to be seen. Since it started almost a decade ago, the game has been constantly updated with balancing tweaks, new modes, and best of all, new fighters. Goku from Dragon Ball Z, Sora from Kingdom Hearts, Lloyd from Tales of Symphonia, and many others grace the battlefield next to Mario and other Nintendo favorites.
2 Daisy Land
Joakim "Konjak" Sandberg, the creator of Indie games like Iconoclasts, and a Zelda fan game called The Legend of Princess, shared some concept art in 2018. It showcased Daisy beating some Koopas with a bat.
This is technically not a game, but more of a wish of a project Sandberg would like to tackle. Hey, if the creator of Crypt of the NecroDancer got to make a Zelda game, then surely other indie developers will follow suit.
1 Dreams
There are too many projects in the PS4 game Dreams to name. So far Nintendo has been pretty lax about taking down content, but they aren’t against it either. Earlier this year they had Media Molecule take a model down of Mario. That didn’t deter others from continuing to make fan games though. The dream, pardon the pun, lives on.