Mario is, without a doubt, one of the most iconic characters in gaming and pop culture. He's appeared in hundreds of games across about a dozen platforms, as well as in several TV shows and films, including the 2023 Super Mario Bros. Movie. And after all that, it seems like our favorite Italian plumber is only getting started, with plenty more appearances in the green pipeline.
At the end of the day, though, it's the core Mario platformer games that have kept players coming back for decades. In fact, it's the Super Mario series' 40th anniversary in September 2025 – the first Super Mario Bros. was released all the way back in 1985. So, in celebration of Nintendo's mustache-sporting hero and his major milestone, we've created a list of the very best Super Mario platformer games.
It wasn't easy, but here is IGN's pick of the 10 best Super Mario games of all time.
Top 10 Super Mario Games
11 Images
