Top 10 Hardest Mario Levels

Top 10 Hardest Mario Levels

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Top 10 HARDEST Mario Levels - Best of WatchMojo!

Mamma Mia! Where’d all my lives go? Welcome to WatchMojo.com and today we’ll be counting down our picks for the Top 10 Hardest Mario Levels. For this list, we’re taking a look at the most difficult levels in games where you can play as Mario. We’re excluding race tracks from the “Mario Kart” games, such as Rainbow Road. We’re also limiting this list to official levels only. So don’t plan on seeing your course from “Super Mario Maker” here.

Putting Mario inside a Pachinko game sounds like a really awesome concept. While this hidden minicourse from “Super Mario Sunshine” is indeed a lot of fun, it’s also ridiculously challenging. With Mario getting launched into the air like a pinball, you’ll need perfect aim, precision, and timing to collect all eight red coins. If you fall down the opening at the bottom, then it’s back to square one. You know what the absolute most frustrating part is? Once you do nab every coin, the Shine Sprite appears in the trickiest possible area to reach. You’re so close to victory, but even closer to potential doom.

#9: The Impossible Pack “New Super Mario Bros. 2” (2012)

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It’s called the “Impossible Pack” for a darn good reason. If the name of these downloadable courses isn’t already an obvious indication of its difficulty, the Dry Bowser icon at the beginning certainly is. So what exactly makes it so dangerous? For starters, you have to power through three courses with zero power-ups in one sitting, so it feels like one long level. Although this is a Coin Rush challenge, there actually aren’t any coins in the level. The amount of coins you earn all depends on how much time is left once a stage is completed. So if you want to score 100 coins, make best friends with those green clocks.

Jumping on enemies and collecting coins is simply in Mario’s nature. The player must show mad restraint while taking on this challenge, as the objective is to get through the entire course without touching anything. This is only made harder due to the abundance of coins in your path and those pesky Lakitus throwing spikes everywhere. If Mario weren’t in his mini form, this course would be virtually impossible. Even with that slight advantage, though, you’ll be lucky to just get a bronze medal when all is said and done.

#7: World C-3 “Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels” (1986)

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The Japanese version of “Super Mario Bros. 2” was initially considered too hard for North American gamers and…yeah. It is relentlessly hard! One of the most vexing levels in the entire game is World C-3, in which the player must hop from platform to platform via springs. While that’s already pretty tough, this level kicks things up a notch with violent winds that can blow you away. You rarely know where you’re going to land and it’s likely you’ll collide with an enemy. Believe it or not, this isn’t even the most brutal stage the game has to offer.

#6: World 8 Airship “Super Mario Bros. 3” (1990)

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The World 8 Airship is possibly the greatest 2D “Mario” level ever conceived, not to mention one of the hardest. Although the entire Dark World is an arduous trek, it’s this particular airship that’ll put your gaming skill to the test and make you scream at the top of your lungs. You’ll definitely want to conserve your P-Wings for this level, seeing how it’s easy to fall and even easier to get stricken with a wrench. Faster than your average Airship level with obstacles always on the horizon, it’s easy to see why some angry video game nerds consider this world to be hell.

#5: Luigi’s Purple Coins “Super Mario Galaxy” (2007)

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Of all the coin collecting challenges in the “Mario” franchise, Luigi’s Purple Coins is quite possibly the most inventive and difficult. Landing on a planet shaped like 8-bit versions of the little green brother., the objective of this level is to collect 100 of 150 purple coins. This level constantly keeps you on your toes with rotating tiles, disappearing tiles, and poisonous water. A valuable piece of advice: be sure to leave a trail open back to the starting corner. Otherwise, you’ll never be able to reach the Star and cash in on your payday.

#4: World 8-3 “Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels” (1986)

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Hammer Bros, why did it have to be Hammer Bros? These minions of Bowser are some of the most infuriating foes Mario has ever encountered. World 8-3 is overrun with them, as well as a number of other trials. This lost level especially had gamers scratching their heads towards the end where pulley platform rests beyond their reach. You need to hit a couple secret blocks in order to make the jump. And this is why we’re so grateful for the Internet today.

Although modern “Mario” games arguably aren’t as consistently hard as the classics, each one throws in a level that gives pro gamers a run for their money. Champion’s Road from “Super Mario 3D World” is a maddening journey without a checkpoint in sight. Unless you’re a hardcore player, we’d strong advise that you enter the world with a power-up. Due to their jumping skills, Luigi and Peach are the ideal characters to get through this unpredictable obstacle course composed of vanishing boxes and dash panels. If you can conquer Champion’s Road with every character, however, then you truly deserve a golden crown.

Tubular finds the player having to navigate through a gigantic gap full of football players and jumping piranha plants. Unless you’ve got a cape or Yoshi on hand, the only way through is inflating Mario like a balloon. If you get hit or run out of P power, Mario will go tumbling down and your controller will go flying at the TV screen. This has got to be one of the weirdest and most trippy “Mario” levels ever brought into fruition, which is saying a lot. As you might expect, it amounts to an insanely difficult special zone. Before we get to our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions: World 8 Fortress “Super Mario Bros. 3” (1988) World 8-3 “Super Mario Bros.” (1985) Wing Mario Over The Rainbow “Super Mario 64” (1996) World 9-7 “New Super Mario Bros. Wii” (2009)

#1: The Perfect Run “Super Mario Galaxy 2” (2010)

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You can’t call yourself a Grandmaster until you’ve completed the Perfect Run in “Super Mario Galaxy 2.” If you thought the Ultimate Test was impossible, the Perfect Run ups the ante with no checkpoint flags and only one piece of life. Each tribulation is more over-the-top than the last, which only makes it more gratifying when you achieve that final Star. As challenging as this level is, The Perfect Run also exemplifies everything we love about the “Mario” games with it’s inspired gameplay mechanics, crazy environments, and endless creativity. Even if you can’t beat it, you’re still going to have a ton of fun trying. Do you agree with our list? What do you think is the hardest “Mario” level? For more entertaining Top 10s published every day, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.