Just found out recently that Dr. Mario is officially turning
25 years old July 27! And what better way to celebrate it than to talk about it
in a blog! It's not like I can throw a party for it.
First of all, the flipping title screen is enough to give
one the Serious Nostalgia Feels. Dr. Mario and that little blue virus, 8-bit violins, slightly Caribbean beat, A
major.... ahh.
You can choose one of two modes. One-player or two-player.
Being an only child, playing two-player mode was a bummer. Mom played Dr. Mario
a lot, but I don't think we've ever played 2-player mode.
Anyway, I usually started at level 00 as a child, stopping
around level 5, as I deemed it too challenging for my young mind. I guess I was
a teenager when I stopped playing it for awhile. After many movings and
re-discoverings, I saw it again. I wondered how in the world we still had that
game even though it was broken. You see, the version we originally had was
played so much, and jammed and blown upon so many times in the bottom, that the
inner cartridge had actually shifted, making it impossible to play... unless
you like a jacked-up pixellated screen from time to time. I looked in the
bottom and realized that we'd actually purchased a replacement. I put it into the NES console,
and after a few jiggles and
readjustments (hey, I still prefer it to the Wii), I got that beautiful 8-bit
theme playing with a clear screen.
There are 3 music options for the game: Fever, Chill, and
Off. First of all, playing it on “Off” is kind of a waste of time. It feels
weird to me... but that's how I'm wired. Chill is pretty sweet. I like how I
feel as though I'm playing with stealth as I try to kill the evil (and slightly
cute) viruses. Fever, however, is the household favorite.
Also, I almost always play on Low speed. I know that it
gives me only one cut scene (completion of level 20), but I never quite
developed the reflexes to master Medium speed, let alone Fast speed. Also, I
don't play all 20 levels straight through. Firstly, it's complete madness to
play the game straight through. Mom pointed this out, and I fully agree: There's
no point to the game. Honestly, it's just a weird version of Tetris, using
a beloved licensed character with a bleach job and a doctor's costume. He
doesn't even do anything! Unless you count throwing 6 different
combinations of 2 colors (9 if you count reverses), shaped like pills to get 4+
in a horizontal or vertical row!
Seriously, he had more of a part as a villain in Donkey Kong
Jr.
Seriously, those things still creep me out.
And even when that happens, he just looks at you with this
dumb, “I can't do anything,” face. Seriously, dude, you're Mario! No
power-ups? No little star? No... anything related to your other games?
So yeah, as a game.... not the most complex. I think the old
Tetris game (which I'll write about in another review), had more of a point to
it. And Mario makes a cameo appearance in the game, and that
showed more purpose.
Usually, I play to relieve myself of stress, or when I feel
inspired to sketch something out, and I need something to break my mind away
from brain barfing on pages. I either start at 00 and keep going until I feel
like I'm losing brain cells, or I start at level 20, and keep going from there.
I have no idea if there is a “final level.”
Why do I play it? It's a game of my generation. It's the
nostalgia. It's the memories attached to it. It's so simple. And yes, if I had
children, I'd let them play it.
So how was your experience playing Dr. Mario within
these past 25 years? And do you say, “Cah-RIH-bee-in,” or “Cah-rih-BEE-in”?
*** Update: My mother and I finally played the 2-player mode recently. I've beaten her in every match, and probably lost one game to her. Heh heh heh. ^_^
*** Update: My mother and I finally played the 2-player mode recently. I've beaten her in every match, and probably lost one game to her. Heh heh heh. ^_^
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