Super Mario Bros. (NES)

[A Black Falcon]

Did you know if you hold A on a Game Over you will continue from the same world you were last on?  It's not even considered a cheat code, it's right there in the (Japanese) manual.  Basically the game has infinite continues.

Of course, yes, I said that.  But after you beat the game you unlock a WORLD SELECT!  Pressing B on the main menu changes which world you start from, straight out, no "hold A to restart" stuff.  Why is this something you only can use after beating the game, it's so strange.

It's particularly strange given that you unlock the 'second quest' hard mode after beating the game, but don't actually need to play most of it to beat this mode, you can just skip to world 8 with the level select you've also unlocked...

Lost Levels was the first to implement added "bounce" off of enemies, and then Super Mario Bros 3, to me, is the ultimate expression of that style of design on the NES.  It's usually what I call my favorite 2D Mario game, but Super Mario World creeps up to take it's place whenever I'm actually playing World.  Now though, there's another contender.  Super Mario Bros. Wonder is just so amazing.

I have long thought of the NES Mario games being 1>2>3>LL, honestly, with World being better than any of them.  SMB3 is an incredible game, but the levels are just too short!  Mario 3 levels are great... then they end at what should be like maybe the halfway point.  It's distractingly annoying.

I will say though, I'd totally forgotten that LL is the first one with a high bounce off of enemies.  I should play it some more...