Mario Melodies: Final Exam

I've realized that a lot of material has been covered on this blog. I feel that the material covered up through the Mario Melodies series is about the amount of material I would pack into a semester intro course in game design. So, what better way to end the series than a final exam! Answer what you can. Feel free to refer to the glossary in the side bar or read through the articles again from the beginning. Email me your answers and I'll give you a grade. It may not sound like fun, but getting down to the nitty gritty of game design is music to my ears. If you know anyone who thinks they're knowledgeable in game design or Super Mario Bros. feel free to send this test along.

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Name _______________
Years gaming _________
Favorite genre (optional) _________
Favorite game (optional) _________

If you don't have a physical test to write on, use the letters and numbers to refer to specific positions. For questions 5-7, only use elements from Super Mario Bros. for the N.E.S. Make all decisions considering Small Mario as the starting player state.

1. Discuss the pros and cons of Mario's run button/function in Super Mario Brothers.
2. Why do you think it's significant/important that Mario's death animation and the enemy death animations after getting hit by a fireball fall down through the stage? Explain in full detail.
3. Why do you think it's significant/important that the fire bars (see figure 3) rotate clockwise and the powerups travel to the right (when unobstructed)? Explain in full detail.
4. Using figure 1, arrange these distinct sections to create a refining & linear trend. Explain your reasoning.
5. Using figure 2, arrange at least 5 of these distinct sections so that they represent a refining & conceptual trend. Explain your reasoning.
6. Using figure 3, add a level element to make the trend between section 1 and 2 diminished - conceptual. Explain your reasoning.
7. Using figure 4, add a single element to make the trend between section 1 and 2 static.
8. What kind of enemy would you add to Neo*RPG (if any) and why? Explain answer in full detail.
9. What changes would you make to Neo*RPG to make the game cleaner? Explain in full detail.

Bonus: Which is a better power up: The Tanooki suit (Bros. 3) or the Blue shell (NSMB) and Why?

And if you haven't noticed already, the image below, which used to be the header image of the critical-gaming blog, isn't sheet music. It's actually World 1-1 from Super Mario Bros. Though I used real musical notation, if you look closely enough you'll find Goomba, Koopa, coin blocks, pipes, coins, and those crazy green hills from the background. Did I just blow your mind?