By J. DeVoy
If you’ve ever wondered how much easier it would be to beat Super Mario Brothers with characters from other Nintendo classics, you’re not alone — and now you can indulge your fantasy.
In Super Mario Crossover, you can play through Super Mario Brothers as Mario, Link (Legend of Zelda), Bill R. (Contra, pictured above), Simon Belmont (Castlevania, pictured below), Mega Man, and Samus Aran (Metroid).
Surprisingly, some aspects of Super Mario Brothers remain much easier with Mario, especially underwater levels. As a lifelong Castlevania devotee (yes, those are pajamas), I’m surprised and disappointed by how difficult it is to make Simon Belmont work well in the game. But the strong projectile attacks of Mega Man and Bill R. make up for it, and are really freaking cool.