The Mario series is one of the longest-running in gaming and has appeared on each and every one of Nintendo's home consoles in some capacity. The franchise's success hasn't just been limited to the home console market though, with numerous Mario titles having also been released for the Japanese giant's hugely popular Game Boy and its various successors.
Despite the systems being far less powerful than their home console equivalents, many of the handheld Mario titles have found a way to impress; both in terms of their critical reception and the number of units that they've been able to ship during their lifetimes. These are the very best Mario games for the Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance, at least according to their GameRankings.com and Metacritic ratings, anyway.
Updated May 18, 2022, by Tom Bowen: Given the hybrid nature of the Nintendo Switch, it seems likely that all future Mario games will be portable to a certain degree; at least for the next few years, anyway. In the past, however, those looking for a handheld Mario experience had to turn to the Game Boy line of consoles in order to get their fix. Though this often meant accepting some compromises when it came to quality, there were still plenty of great handheld Mario games. Interestingly though, many of the best Mario games on the Game Boy and Game Boy Advance were actually ports of some of the plumber's earlier home console classics, suggesting that, while often thoroughly enjoyable, games designed specifically for the handheld systems typically weren't quite up to scratch.
12 Mario Tennis: Power Tour
- Platform: Game Boy Adance
- Initial Release Date: December 5, 2005
- Metacritic Score: 81
The Mario Tennis series can sometimes be a little hit and miss, but Mario Tennis: Power Tour is one of the better installments. Granted, it still has its fair share of problems, but, for those looking for a great tennis game on a handheld system, there aren't really many better options. The fact that the game allows players to control Mario and his many friends only serves to sweeten the deal.
As with some of the series' previous installments, Power Tour implements a raft of role-playing mechanics which perfectly complement the game's surprisingly enjoyable single-player campaign. The real fun, however, can be found within the game's multiplayer mode, with various game modes and match types available for those looking to dunk all over their friends (or whatever the tennis equivalent is).
11 Mario vs. Donkey Kong
- Platform: Game Boy Adance
- Initial Release Date: May 24, 2004
- Metacritic Score: 81
Given that Mario made his debut in the original release of Donkey Kong, it seems somewhat fitting that at least one game featuring the iconic ape should rank among the best Mario Game Boy games. Mario vs. Donkey Kong was developed for the GBA by Nintendo Software Technology and was the first of seven Mario vs. Donkey Kong titles to be released for the system and its successor, the 3DS.
The Mario vs. Donkey Kong series also marked the return of Pauline, who had at that time been absent from the Mario franchise for more than a decade following the Game Boy release of Donkey Kong in 1994. Since then, however, she has appeared in plenty of other titles, including Super Mario Odyssey and many of the more recent Mario Sports spin-off games.
10 Super Mario Advance
- Platform: Game Boy Adance
- Initial Release Date: June 11, 2001
- Metacritic Score: 84
Super Mario Advance is a port of Super Mario Bros. 2 for the NES, which itself was based on the Japanese 2D platformer, Doki Doki Panic. For the most part, it mirrors the version of the game that was included in the Super Mario All-Stars pack for the SNES and was released as a launch title for the Game Boy Advance.
Though some publications criticized the decision to release a remastered version of Super Mario Bros. 2 ahead of the game's sequel or the vastly superior Super Mario World, Super Mario Advance was one of the best selling launch titles for Game Boy Advance and was added to the Player's Choice lineup soon after thanks to its strong sales performance.
9 Mario Golf: Advance Tour
- Platform: Game Boy Advance
- Initial Release Date: June 22, 2004
- Metacritic Score: 84
Though many consider Mario Golf: Advance Tour to be better than its handheld predecessor, it's important to treat it as a product of its time. Granted, it improved on many of the elements found in Mario Golf and looks a lot better too, but, for the era in which it was released, it just wasn't quite as impressive.
That said, Advance Tour is packed full of excellent game types and features a huge roster of fan-favorite characters. By connecting the game to its GameCube counterpart, it was even possible to transfer over four additional characters, although this functionality and the extra golfers themselves were sadly lost in the game's Virtual Console release.
8 Mario Golf
- Platform: Game Boy Color
- Initial Release Date: October 5, 1999
- GameRankings Score: 88%
At the time of its release, Mario Golf was a hugely impressive title, even managing to edge out its N64 counterpart by a few fractions of a percent on GameRankings.com. The game features 11 playable characters, six courses, and a variety of game modes for players to enjoy; a miraculous feat for a Game Boy Color game.
When compared to Mario's first golf game, NES Open Golf Tournament, Mario Golf is an incredibly impressive achievement and serves as a clear indicator of the rapid advancements being made in the industry throughout the nineteen nineties. It may not hold up all that well today, but the same could also be said of many of the best games from that era.
7 Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
- Platform: Game Boy Advance
- Initial Release Date: November 17, 2003
- Metacritic Score: 90
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga is the first game in the long-running Mario & Luigi series and helped to lay a lot of the foundations onto which future entries have been built. It does owe some of its success to Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars though, as it's from there that many of its best ideas were taken.
The game performed strongly with fans and critics alike, with many praising its originality and creativity, which helped it to stand out from the many other handheld RPGs that were released around that time. Though the original still holds up fairly well today, those hoping to check it out would be better served picking up the 3DS remake, which includes enhanced visuals and plenty of additional content.
6 Super Mario Advance 3: Yoshi's Island
- Platform: Game Boy Advance
- Initial Release Date: September 24, 2002
- Metacritic Score: 91
Despite being rather different from the rest of the earlier mainline Mario titles, Yoshi's Island is still a great game that remains popular with speedrunners & retro gamers to this day. Being able to play the game on a handheld device was, therefore, a pretty big deal at the time of its release and lead to positive reviews and impressive sales figures all around.
Unlike the earlier Super Mario Advance titles, Super Mario Advance 3: Yoshi's Island features some rather big changes from the original, most notably the inclusion of six brand new stages. The game also utilizes sound effects taken from Yoshi's Story for the N64, leading to many labeling it as the definitive port of Yoshi's Island.
5 Mario Tennis
- Platform: Game Boy Color
- Initial Release Date: January 16, 2001
- GameRankings Score: 91%
As was the case with Mario Golf, the Game Boy Color release of Mario Tennis was incredibly impressive for the era and is considered by many to be among both the best sports and Mario titles for the system. It's packed full of excellent content and provides a surprisingly authentic tennis experience to boot.
The game features multiple game types and a large cast of playable characters, including Wario and Waluigi, who could be transferred into the game by connecting it to its N64 counterpart using the Transfer Pak. It also features several mini-games, which would go on to become a staple of the series' handheld versions in the years that followed.
4 Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World
- Platform: Game Boy Advance
- Initial Release Date: February 11, 2002
- Metacritic Score: 92
Less than one year on from the first Super Mario Advance title, critics and players finally got their wish, with Super Mario World being ported to the GBA in the form of Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World. As its Metacritic score should indicate, it ended up being a fantastic port.
Though Nintendo opted not to make too many changes, there were a few subtle differences and quality of life updates implemented for the release. These did come at the expense of the two-player mode found in the SNES version, however, although this was more to do with the limitations of the GBA than anything else.
3 Super Mario Bros. Deluxe
- Platform: Game Boy Color
- Initial Release Date: May 10, 1999
- GameRankings Score: 93%
While Super Mario Land and its 1992 sequel were both excellent games, the limitations of the original Game Boy - particularly when it came to its awful display - prevented them from really wowing critics. This all changed with the Game Boy Color, however, and Super Mario Bros. Deluxe was more than ready to take advantage of the system's vastly superior screen.
The game serves as an enhanced port of the original release of Super Mario Bros. for the NES and features a variety of additional content. As well as The Lost Levels being included, there are also numerous new game and challenge modes, and it's even possible to play with a friend using the link cable. As an added bonus, when connected to the Game Boy Printer, players can also gain access to a wide selection of printable pictures, icons, and banners.
2 Mario Kart: Super Circuit
- Platform: Game Boy Advance
- Initial Release Date: August 27, 2001
- Metacritic Score: 93
Given the complexities of the series, it's perhaps unsurprising that it took so long for a portable version of Mario Kart to be released. Super Circuit was definitely worth the wait though, as it brought the long-running kart racing franchise to the handheld market in magnificent fashion.
As well as a varied selection of original and challenging tracks, the game also allows players to unlock classic circuits from the series' debut release. It also features all eight playable drivers found in the N64 version of the game and even allows players to share ghost data with friends with the help of the GBA's Link Cable.
1 Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3
- Platform: Game Boy Advance
- Initial Release Date: October 21, 2003
- Metacritic Score: 94
Buoyed by the positive response to the additions found in Super Mario Advance 3, Nintendo opted to take a similar approach for the release of its sequel, Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3. Once again, the graphics and visuals remained largely untouched from the All-Stars version of Super Mario Bros. 3, but with the help of the e-Reader, players were treated to a plethora of new content.
By swiping certain e-Cards, players were able to unlock new stages, while also gaining access to instant power-ups. A brand new power-up, the Boomerang, was also created specifically for the release. As the E-reader never received an official release in the region, Europeans missed out on most of the new functionality offered in the GBA port. That didn't damage the game's reputation with reviewers though, with the title currently boasting an impressive 94 rating on Metacritic.