Challenging yet full of fun. You'll have trouble putting down the controller.
Story
The game begins with Mario receiving an invitation to Princess Peach's castle for cake, but when he arrives, a mysterious voice tells him to go away. Of course, you're not going to leave, so you go into the castle and discover that Bowser has kidnapped the Princess and has stolen the castle's Power Stars. Now it's up to Mario to save Peach and get the Stars back. It's the standard "evil guy takes the princess" story, but then again, you're not playing the game for its story, now are you?
Gameplay
The gameplay is what shines here. Mario must run, jump, and punch his way to find all 120 Stars (although you don't have to get them all. You can beat the game with 70) in 15 unique courses each filled with different obstacles and enemies. Each level has 7 Stars, usually consisting of collecting 8 red coins, defeating a boss, solving a puzzle, etc. But the way each level is designed differently from one another keeps things fresh and diverse. This occasionally makes certain Stars seem impossible to get or hard to find, but there is a sense of accomplishment when you do finally obtain a Star.
The controls also deserve the credit for making the gameplay so great. They're very simple to pick up, yet take time to master. You can pick up the controller and expect to jump on some Goombas and nap a star or two, but to get some of the game's harder stars you need to master moves like the triple jump and the wall kick. Occasionally the camera can get in your way, but it's not a huge issue most of the time.
Graphics and Sound
Bottom line: the game doesn't look as good now compared with today's games, but the graphics are full of color, giving everything its own distinguished look. They basically get the job done. Mario and his foes all have good animations and everything has its own distinct sounds. On a whole the game's graphics and sound still hold up today, although there is some slow down when there's lots of things going on at once.
Overall, this game is brilliant. The difficulty never feels too hard but never feels really easy, like any Mario platformer. The graphics and sound hold up, even after all this time, and the gameplay is rock solid. It's a classic game you should definitely pick up if you haven't played it yet (then again, who hasn't?) and is worth adding to your collection.
10 out of 10