I know, I know. Shaun Musgrave's article said: Rayman Fiesta Run, Wind-Up Knight 2, and Punch Quest. But none of those games are vertical/ portrait orientation, pick-me-up, one-handed auto-runners like SMR is. So what competition does SMR really have? What are the alternatives if I like what it tries to do, but believe that it could and should have been better done?
Portrait, one=handed auto runners? How specific do you have to be? Does it have to have Mario too? I think Shaun was justified comparing it to those other auto runners, even if they are in landscape. But I take your point too. Dankrio's Leap Day shout is a good one, though I wouldn't personally say it is any better than SMR - I reckon they're both four-star games. Nekosan is flipping brilliant, though: one-handed, portrait, pick up and play. It's also very hard, despite being pretty short. Better auto runners, there aren't many. Lost Socks is genuinely better, but it's landscape, has virtual buttons and is hard as nails. I reckon the Rayman games are as good as SMR. Better actual old-school Mario-style games - from this year alone - include Super Phantom Cat and Super Cat Tales. Catformers - it's a thing.
When SMR was announced I thought: this is neat, a one handed, portrait platformer. I tried to find other games like that and the only two I found were Leap Day and Magic Castle ( another Nitrome game). I didn't really care for Castle and Leap Day being about one level per day didn't offer much sense of progression and felt like I was just spinning my wheels. If anyone has other suggestions for similar games I would also like to hear them. Thanks.
For me, the details I mentioned, matter. I wasn't simply trying to be difficult. I'm not a Nintendo fanboy. I have no personal attachment to the Mario artwork. But auto-running vertical platformers like SMR are different from vertical, non-autorunning platformers in feel and approach, just like stealth-based FPS games are different from non-stealth isometric action games. Super Phantom Cat is one of my favourite iPhone games. But saying that it's comparable to SMR is, for me, a joke. I'm honestly asking: if I admire what SMR was trying to do, but accept that others have done it better, what games should I try? Who are these others? I tried Leap Day, and I simply think that SMR is (much) better. I absolutely loved the Rayman games, and think they serve as SMR's closest competition in terms of polish; but they aren't really the same either. For me, the Rayman games aren't games I can play comfortably one-handed on the bus, or while standing in line holding stuff with my other hand. I haven't played Lost Socks. I guess I'll try it, though even the adulation sounds forbidding.
I'm RIGHT THERE WITH YOU. I was really excited when I first downloaded Magic Mansion but no. It was cute, but shallow. And I didn't like Leap Day's setup either. I realise that most Touch Arcade gamers seem to be strongly attuned to sit-down, horizontal gaming. I like that too, but sometimes I want something different.
Yep, I take your point. In my defence, I wasn't comparing Super Phantom Cat to SMR, but to old-school Mario games. Try Nekosan. It's not Super Mario Run, but it is portrait, one-handed and you can rage-quit it on the bus. No web connection required either. I liked it a lot more than Leap Day and Magic Mansion. To be fair, I also prefer Super Mario Run to Leap Day. Lost Socks divides people, but you can get it for a buck (79p) at the moment, so it is worth a shot. Definitely a two-hander though.
Nekosan's a good game I also prefer it to Leap Day and Magic Mansion. It's more innovative than SMR, but less polished. I'm downloading Lost Socks and re-downloading Nekosan now. I'll play them both in alternating sequence with SMR, and see what I prefer!
I somehow forgot about Nekosan. That is really well done. The controls take some getting used to but work really well for what the game is and yes it is hard as nails. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys a good rage-quitter.
I think that SMR is suffering, in the minds of some gamers, in comparison to dreams of what it might have been, had Nintendo stuck with a two-handed horizontal platformer with a traditional virtual joystick and high difficulty, instead of a one-handed, vertical autorunning platformer with one-touch controls and casual-gaming appeal. I'm happy to see Nintendo try the latter rather than the former, but I understand not everyone is.
SMR was designed to be more accessible for a wider audience. The average mobile gamer isn't going to play a game that is "too hard" and old school MARIO games would need virtual controls, which take a lot of practice to use effectively. Combining MARIO's difficulty with virtual controls wouldn't sell very well except to hardcore mobile gamers and there aren't enough of those to make it worth it for Nintendo.
I know part of your requirement is "vertical", but Mikey Jumps is what you want in every other way. The stages are not as long as SMR, but it has the same kind of "tap at the right time to perform different actions" mechanic, is an auto-runner, is free (and extremely generous), and is one button only. Plus, for my money, Mikey is basically iPhone's Mario as far as platformers are concerned.
Mikey Shorts is a great casual game. I love the short levels, though the initial ones seem too simplistic. It's not as visually polished as SMR by a long shot. But it's definitely staying on my iPhone for now!
Nekosan: Brilliant. Visually unpolished. Lost Socks: Brilliant. One of the most charming, visually polished games I've seen in years. Ruthless, unforgiving difficulty. Definitely not a casual, pick-up-and-play, one-handed game. I can applaud it, but I'm honestly not enjoying it as much as I could. Will continue to play for now, though.
I think Nintendo did a terrific job bringing Mario to mobile. As proved through emulation, having a second virtual button for running as in the classic games is not feasible for the touch screen so I think they made the correct design choice. Of course, despite the advanced production values, the level design and environmental interaction pale in comparison to the Rayman series. Fiesta Run is, IMHO, among the best auto-running platformers on iOS. For those looking for alternatives, I also suggest Mega Run and Monsters Inc. Run.
Try the sequels if you want slightly juicier mechanics. The package is really cheap for what you get.
Also, mos speedrun 2, while not auto, has so much variety and different playing styles. Love that game; shame it didn't sell so well.
None are better at what Mario Run offers as it's pretty unique outside of being a runner-platformer, but here are a few suggested alternatives. These arent auto running, but some wholesome, relaxed, light-hearted platformers: Icycle Paper Monster Bloo Kid (i think that's the right title) Leo's Fortune Miss Claire Garden Mikey Jumps As for auto-runners with actual platforming and not just avoiding and jumping over obstacles, try this: Adventure Beaks TMNT Run (actually forgot the full title to this one) Run Roo Run (would fit here if this was still available, but iirc this has been pulled) Project 83113 (this one's a really good semi-auto runner platformer with run n gun elements and the ability to switch running direction like a real platformer) Kid Tripp may just be the most Mario kind of auto runner, but the difficulty has been ramped up quite high. And yes, Rayman Run titles are among the best games on the appstore.
