3D Land proves that Mario can be just as iconic on his newest platform as he was on all his previous ones. And the visuals use the stereoscopic 3D better than virtually any other game on the system. The stages are brief enough for a portable, but pack a ton of creativity into every corner - along with some really challenging bits in the post-credits content.

The colorful visuals, power-ups, and enemies are all reminiscent of past Mario titles, but it plays fresher than ever thanks to some of the best level designs in series history. As you can tell by its placement on this list, it did all that with a simple whip of its Tanooki tail. It needed to transition Mario's well-defined gameplay onto the handheld screen, make the series more mainstream than previous entries, and sell the 3DS to consumers worldwide. Kid Icarus: UprisingĪfter revolutionizing and evolving the 3D platformer on consoles, Super Mario 3D Land had a lot to live up to as the first original, handheld entry in the 3D sub-series.

If this is Layton's legacy, then he handled it like a true gentleman. While Layton tries to find the connection between a lost civilization and an amnesiac young lady, the stereoscopic 3D visuals continue to impress until the last puzzle is solved. Even better, the visuals support the puzzles brilliantly. But the title's best tribute to the franchise is its consistently rewarding puzzles.Īs before, most of the gameplay involves solving increasingly difficult brain teasers as the story unspools, and the conundrums meet Layton's high standard of quality. The plot ties together the stories from many of the previous games and is packed with references to earlier adventures. Hershel Layton's globetrotting adventures (for now), and developer Level-5 goes all out with the fan service. After five core games and a number of spin-offs, Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy is the finale to Prof.

2017 nds games cooking mama