Honestly, the release of Super Mario All-Stars Wii was one of the weirdest moments in Nintendo's history. It’s a 2010 disc that contains a 1993 SNES game, which itself contains four games from the late 80s. When it first dropped for the Mario 25th Anniversary, fans were... conflicted. You had this massive hype cycle for what essentially turned out to be a ROM on a disc. No widescreen support. No remastered textures. Just the same 16-bit sprites we’d been playing for nearly two decades. Yet, if you try to find a complete-in-box copy today, you’re going to be reaching deep into your wallet. Why? Because Nintendo knows exactly how to weaponize nostalgia, even when the "product" is technically a bare-minimum effort.
It's a strange beast.
What Super Mario All-Stars Wii Actually Is (and Isn't)
If you were expecting a "New Super Mario Bros." style remake, you were probably disappointed back in 2010. The disc contains the exact 1993 Super Mario All-Stars compilation. That includes the upgraded 16-bit versions of Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 2 (the US version), Super Mario Bros. 3, and Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels.
Wait.
There is one glaring omission that still bugs collectors. The original SNES version had a later revision that included Super Mario World. For some reason—likely to protect Virtual Console sales at the time—Nintendo chose the version without it. It felt stingy. It still feels stingy. You're playing a game designed for a 4:3 CRT television on a Wii that’s likely hooked up to a 1080p flat screen, and the result is a giant pair of yellow borders on the sides of your display.
The Collector’s Edition Gimmick
What actually made people rush to stores wasn't the software. It was the "Limited Edition" packaging. Nintendo bundled the game with a soundtrack CD and a "History" booklet. The booklet is actually pretty cool—it features design sketches from Shigeru Miyamoto and internal notes that hadn't been widely seen by the public at that point. It gave the package a museum-quality feel, even if the game itself was just a digital archive.
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The soundtrack is a bit of a letdown, though. It’s mostly just short clips of sound effects and the most famous themes. It isn't a comprehensive "Best Of" collection, but at the time, getting an official Nintendo soundtrack in the West was a rarity.
The Emulation Debate: Is it a "Bad" Port?
Technically, the Wii isn't "running" the game code natively. It's using a proprietary internal emulator to mimic a Super Nintendo. For the average player, it feels fine. The physics are there. The music sounds right. But for the hardcore purists and speedrunners, there are issues.
- Input Lag: There's a microscopic delay between pressing the A button and Mario jumping. It’s much more noticeable on modern HDTVs than it was on old tubes.
- Resolution: The Wii outputs at 480p, but the game is rendered internally at the original SNES resolution. It’s soft. It’s crunchy. It doesn’t have the crisp pixel-perfect clarity you get on a modern emulator or the Nintendo Switch Online service.
- Control Schemes: You can use the Wii Remote (turned sideways), the Classic Controller, or a GameCube controller. Most people stick to the Classic Controller because trying to run and jump using the 1 and 2 buttons on a Wii Remote feels like a form of digital torture.
Despite these flaws, the game sold like absolute wildfire. It was so popular that Nintendo eventually had to do a "Nintendo Selects" re-release in 2016 just to kill off the insane scalper prices on eBay. That version stripped away the box and the booklet, giving you just the disc for $20.
Why The Market Price Refuses to Drop
If you look at the 25th Anniversary Edition today, it’s a blue-chip item for Nintendo collectors. It sits in that sweet spot of being "common enough to find" but "desirable enough to stay expensive."
The Wii was a household staple. Everyone had one. But by 2010, many people had moved on to the PS3 or Xbox 360. This meant the initial print run of the "Big Box" version was smaller than you'd think for a Mario title. Then there's the "Wii effect." Because the console sold 100 million units, there are 100 million potential customers for this one disc. Supply vs. Demand 101.
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Also, it’s the only way to play these specific 16-bit versions of the NES games on physical media without owning an actual SNES. For a generation of gamers who grew up with the Wii but missed the 90s, this was their gateway to the classics.
Does it hold up against the Switch version?
Nowadays, you can play Super Mario All-Stars for "free" if you pay for a Nintendo Switch Online subscription. The Switch version is objectively better. You get save states. You get rewind features. You get a higher resolution output.
But there’s something about the Wii disc.
Holding that red box in your hand feels different. It’s a physical artifact of a time when Nintendo was celebrating a milestone before they became obsessed with digital-only limited releases (looking at you, Super Mario 3D All-Stars).
Technical Reality Check
Let's talk about the "Lost Levels" for a second. This was the original Japanese Super Mario Bros. 2. It's famous for being brutally difficult. The Wii version is the 16-bit remake, which actually makes the game slightly more tolerable because it has a proper save system. In the NES original, if you lost all your lives on World 8-4, you were basically toast. On the Wii (via the All-Stars port), you can restart from the beginning of the world.
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It’s still hard. It’s still frustrating. You will still hate the wind mechanics and the poison mushrooms. But it’s the most "complete" way to experience that specific era of Mario history in one sitting.
How to Get the Best Experience Out of Your Copy
If you actually own this disc and want it to look good, don't just plug your Wii into your 4K TV with the standard yellow RCA cables. It will look like a blurry mess.
- Get Component Cables: The red, green, and blue tipped cables. This allows the Wii to output at 480p.
- Wii Dual or HDMI Mods: If you’re a tech nerd, internal HDMI mods for the Wii make these 16-bit sprites pop.
- Wii U: Playing the disc on a Wii U via backward compatibility usually provides a cleaner signal over HDMI than a base Wii does.
Realities of the 25th Anniversary Booklet
The booklet is 32 pages. It’s not a massive tome. It contains brief blurbs about every major game up to Super Mario Galaxy 2. While it’s labeled as a "History" book, it’s really more of a commemorative pamphlet. Don't expect a deep-dive investigative look into the development of Mario. It’s very much a "clean," Nintendo-approved version of history.
However, the "Developer's Comments" section is gold. Seeing Miyamoto, Takashi Tezuka, and Koji Kondo talk about their favorite memories from the 8-bit era adds a layer of soul to the package that is missing from modern digital storefronts.
The Verdict on This Anniversary Package
Is it a "lazy" port? Yes.
Is it overpriced on the second-hand market? Probably.
Is it still a must-own for a Nintendo fan? Absolutely.
Super Mario All-Stars Wii represents a specific era of Nintendo’s corporate identity. It was a bridge between the old-school physical media world and the new digital frontier. It’s a flawed, 4:3, non-widescreen, incomplete collection that somehow remains incredibly charming.
Actionable Next Steps for Collectors
- Check for the "Nintendo Selects" Logo: If you're buying it to play, get the Nintendo Selects version. It's cheaper. If you're buying it as an investment, only go for the "Big Box" 25th Anniversary Edition.
- Inspect the CD: Many used copies are missing the soundtrack CD. Always ask for a photo of the inner contents before hitting "Buy It Now."
- Verify the Region: The Wii is region-locked. A European (PAL) copy will not work on a standard US (NTSC) Wii unless you’ve modified the console’s firmware.
- Compare to Snes: If you already own a SNES and the original cartridge, there is zero reason to buy the Wii version other than the booklet. The gameplay is identical.
Buying this game isn't about getting the "best" version of Mario. It's about owning a piece of the 2010 anniversary celebration. Just make sure you know exactly which version you're getting so you don't overpay for a disc-only copy of a 30-year-old ROM.