The first of many new HTML5 games in my Flash game sites

Tragically Adobe Flash will become unavailable for use at the end of this year. This will mean that come January 2021 every single Flash game in every single website in the entire world will stop working. So very, very sad.

The end of Flash was announced way back in 2017, so there has been plenty of notice about it, to say the least. But the road to establishing a global standard replacement for it has been a somewhat bumpy one. Initially a system called "Unity3D for web browsers" was a preferred solution, being able to create much better games than was even possible using Flash. However, that died several years ago, so it has the dubious distinction of being created and being killed off during the lifetime of Flash. Lol.

The replacement for Flash games now and going forward into the foreseeable future is HTML5, which means games written in that (which also includes the use of JavaScript and CSS) will run in any web browser without the need for Flash or any other software or app downloads.

HTML5 / JavaScript / CSS was chosen as the successor to Flash pretty much alongside the arrival of Unity3D, but for the longest time it was not possible to create the complex style of games that Flash offered, so it was a very poor choice. However, in the past few years that has changed enormously, and very large complex games are now possible in HTML5, as you can see if you play the following incredibly accurate recreation of the 1985 Nintendo NES classic game "Super Mario Bros.":



Super Mario HTML5

New Super Luigi U is released in Europe today

"New Super Luigi U" is out on the Nintendo Wii U in Europe today. It will be released in Australasia tomorrow and North America later next month.

It is a downloadable content package for "New Super Mario Bros. U" that changes Luigi into the main character, replaces Mario with Nabbit (who is a bad guy in the original game), and alters all the game levels to have their time limit reduced by 100 seconds. Sounds like great fun!

If you like "freebies", you will be delighted to know that there are loads of great free Flash online games featuring Luigi in the MarioSonicGames.com and MarioWebGames.com websites, five of which you can play here:

  Luigi's Revenge

  Luigi's Day

  Luigi - Castle on Fire

  Luigi Vlax

  Luigi's Mansion

Mario & Luigi: Dream Team is out on the Nintendo 3DS in the UK today

The latest Mario game for the Nintendo 3DS, "Mario & Luigi: Dream Team", is released in the UK and the rest of Europe today. It will be released in Australasia tomorrow and North America early next month.

It is the fourth entry in the "Mario & Luigi" series of Mario RPG games, which feature turn-based gameplay rather than the traditional platforming/free-roaming style of regular Mario games. One of the biggest changes in this game compared to previous versions is that players are now able to save their game progress anywhere on the overworld, as well as via Save Blocks.

Presumably you're a Mario and Luigi fan since you are reading this blog, so you might like to know that there are loads of great free Mario and Luigi Flash games for you to play in the MarioWebGames.com website.

Mario Kart Arcade GP DX will be released next month

Nintendo's latest Mario arcade game, "Mario Kart Arcade GP DX", will be launched in Japan next month. It is the third "Mario Kart Arcade GP" title. It will have 10 newly designed courses and incorporate features of Mario Kart 7 such as the ability to use hang-gliding attachments for the karts, and the ability to drive underwater.

Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move is out tomorrow

The first Nintendo 3DS Mario game released exclusively via download from the Nintendo eShop, "Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move", is released in the UK, the rest of Europe and North America tomorrow. It is the fifth installment in the "Mario vs. Donkey Kong" series.

I am a massive Donkey Kong fan - I still own the wonderful "Donkey Kong Game & Watch" LCD handheld game made by Nintendo in 1982 - so I am always happy when new official games featuring the character are released. Some great free Donkey Kong Flash games are listed below for your enjoyment, and there are loads of great free Mario games for you to play in the MarioWebGames.com website:

  Donkey Kong: Banana Barrage

  Donkey Kong Jr. Game & Watch

  Donkey Kong II Game & Watch

Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon is released on the 3DS in the UK today

"Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon" for the Nintendo 3DS is out in the UK, the rest of Europe and Australasia today, having already been released in North America at the end of last week.

The game is the direct sequel to 2001's "Luigi's Mansion" for the Nintendo GameCube. It includes a cooperative multiplayer mode that can either be played locally or online via the Nintendo Network.

Since you're currently online reading this, you might like to have a quick play of the excellent free Luigi (and Mario) online games in the MarioWebGames.com website.

Paper Mario: Sticker Star is out on the Nintendo 3DS today and tomorrow

"Paper Mario: Sticker Star" is released on the Nintendo 3DS in the UK, Europe and Australasia today and tomorrow, having already been released in North America earlier last month.

This is the fourth game in the "Paper Mario" series, and is the first Paper Mario game for the 3DS (or any handheld console for that matter).

Here are two superb free Flash online Paper Mario games (from MarioSonicGames.com) for you to play right here:

  Paper Mario World

  Paper Mario World 2

Nintendo Wii U and New Super Mario Bros. U are out today!

Nintendo's new gaming console, the Wii U, is released throughout the PAL zone today (i.e. Australia, New Zealand and most of Asia, Africa, South America and Europe). Hooray!

It is the replacement for the original Wii, and is the first eighth generation console - Sony's PlayStation 4 and Microsoft's Xbox One will be the other ones, but they won't be launched for another year. See the excellent Wikipedia article about it for more information.

One of the most eagerly awaited launch games for the Wii U is "New Super Mario Bros. U", the fourth game in the "New Super Mario Bros." series, and the direct sequel to "New Super Mario Bros. Wii" that was released back in 2009. It is the first High Definition Mario game, and up to 5 players can play simultaneously, so it certainly sounds like it will be a true family game.

You don't need to rush out and buy yourself the new console and game to be able to enjoy some New Super Mario fun though. There are lots of brilliant free Flash online versions of the classic Super Mario Bros. games available in the MarioSonicGames.com site, and you can play five of them right here:

  New Super Mario Bros. Flash

  Super Flash Mario Bros.

  Monolith's Mario World

  Super Mario World Flash

  Classic Mario Bros.
(the last game above is a Flash version of the first ever Mario Bros. game)

New Super Mario Bros. 2 is out on the Nintendo 3DS in the UK today

"New Super Mario Bros. 2" for the Nintendo 3DS is released in the UK and the rest of Europe today, and will be released in Australasia and North America during the next two days.

The game, a traditional 2D side-scrolling Mario platformer, is a direct sequel to "New Super Mario Bros." released in 2006 on the Nintendo DS. It has a heavier emphasis on coin-collecting than other Super Mario games - the game's ultimate goal is to collect one million coins. Sounds like quite a challenge!

There is a brilliant free online version of a classic Super Mario Bros. game which you can play for free here: New Super Mario Bros. Flash Online Game. You can play as either Mario or Luigi, and there is also a level editor you can use to create and save your own levels.

There are hundreds more great free Super Mario Bros. online games for you to play in the MarioSonicGames.com website.

Mario Party 9 is out today on the Nintendo Wii in the US

"Mario Party 9" for the Nintendo Wii is released in North America today, having already been released in Europe and Australasia last week.

It is the second Mario Party game for the Wii, the ninth on all Nintendo home consoles, and (slightly confusingly given the name of the new game) the twelfth overall.

As with all the previous games in the series, the new one features a variety of classic Mario franchise characters which two to four people can play as, competing in a virtual board game interspersed with minigames. There are 80 minigames in Mario Party 9, which have a larger focus on gameplay than they did in the previous game, divided into four categories: Free-for-all, 1-vs.-Rivals, Bowser Jr., and Boss.

Sounds like a lot of fun to me!

The 3DS version of Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympics is now out

Further to my post about the release of the Wii version of the game in November last year, the Nintendo 3DS version of "Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games" is now available in North America, Europe and Australasia.

Mario Kart 7 is out on the Nintendo 3DS today and tomorrow

"Mario Kart 7" is released on the Nintendo 3DS in the UK, Europe and Australasia today and North America tomorrow. Hooray - an almost simultaneous worldwide release for once (it was released in Japan yesterday)!

This is the first Mario Kart game for the 3DS, and is the follow-on to the hugely successful "Mario Kart Wii" which was released back in 2008.

New gameplay features include hang-gliding attachments for the karts, the ability to drive underwater, the ability to fully customize the vehicles, and support for both local and online multiplayer modes for up to eight players. Wow!

To keep you going until you can get hold of a copy of this great new game (if you haven't already got one), here are a couple of silly but fun Flash online Mario Kart games from the MarioSonicGames.com site which you can play here:

  Mario Kart Racing

  Super Mario Kart Xtreme

Super Mario 3D Land is released on the 3DS in the UK today

"Super Mario 3D Land" is out on the Nintendo 3DS in the UK and Europe today. It was released in North America last week, and will be out in Australasia next week.

This is the first Mario game for the excellent 3DS handheld console, and as such it is the first ever Mario game in 3D (of course). It is also a new type of Mario game, combining elements from the traditional 2D side-scrolling Mario games with the more modern free-roaming 3D Mario games.

Early reviews for it are very positive indeed, so it's bound to be a top seller. Sounds absolutely brilliant, and I can't wait to have a go!

If reading about this potentially revolutionary new game has made you fancy a quick play of a classic Super Mario Bros. game, here are four excellent free Flash online versions (two of them with interesting twists) courtesy of the MarioSonicGames.com site:

  Super Mario Sunshine 64

  Mario's Adventure 2

  Super Mario: A Koopa's Revenge

  Super Mario: Bullet Bill 2

Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games is out now

"Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games" is the third title in the Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games series, and it is released on the Nintendo Wii in North America today. It will be available in Australasia on November 17th and Europe the day after that. It is also going to be released worldwide on the Nintendo 3DS in February next year.

The game continues in the style of the previous two games in the series, this time bringing together the two title characters and eighteen more from both game franchises to participate in environments based on the official venues of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. The characters are divided into four performance categories, namely: all-around, speed, power, and skill.

Several new Summer Olympic events, including football/soccer, badminton, and equestrian will debut alongside improved versions of previously existing events such as athletics, aquatics, and table tennis. There are also new "Dream Events", which are alternate versions of Olympic events taking place in locations from older games in the Mario and Sonic series.

Now, why not get in on all the Mario and Sonic fun for free - there are hundreds of fantastic Mario and Sonic online games for you to play in the MarioSonicGames.com website.

Super Mario is 30 years old today!

Last month it was Sonic the Hedgehogs's 20th birthday, and now it's Mario's turn - it's his 30th birthday today.

The first ever game featuring Mario was the first ever "Donkey Kong" arcade machine released this day in 1981. Originally Mario was called "Jumpman" in that game, but that was very quickly changed to the name he has been known by ever since.

Since 1981 there have been more than 200 Mario related video games, introducing other famous characters like Mario's brother Luigi, friends such as Yoshi, Toad and Princess Peach, and enemies such as Bowser, the Goombas and the Koopa Troopas. The Mario franchise is the best-selling video game franchise of all time. Happy 30th Birthday Mario!

Have some fun and celebrate this second amazing video gaming milestone in a month by visiting my MarioSonicGames.com site, where there are more than 60 Super Mario Flash online games for you to play for free!

Mario Sports Mix is out on the Wii in the UK today

"Mario Sports Mix" for the Nintendo Wii is released in the UK today (having already been released in Australasia and the rest of Europe in January). It will be out in North America on February 7th.

The game features Mario and friends in Mario-based locations, and the sports that can be played are volleyball, both field hockey and ice hockey, dodgeball, and street basketball.

In addition to the usual Mario characters, guest appearances are made by The Ninja, White Mage, Black Mage, Cactuar and Moogle characters from the Final Fantasy game series, while the Slime monster from the Dragon Quest series also appears.

Super Mario Galaxy 2 wallpaper (multiple sizes available)

Further to my recent posts about the release of Super Mario Galaxy 2 (see here and here), I am now pleased to be able to provide you with a fantastic Super Mario Galaxy 2 desktop wallpaper picture based on the game which you can use on your computer if you wish.

It is available in 800 x 600 pixels, 1024 x 768 pixels, 1280 x 960 pixels, 1280 x 1024 pixels and 1600 x 1200 pixels sizes:

Super Mario Galaxy 2 is out in Europe today

Following on from the US release of Super Mario Galaxy 2 last month, European Nintendo Wii owners can now enjoy the best game ever made as of today, hoorah!

Those of you in Australia and New Zealand wanting to get hold of the game will have to wait until the beginning of next month though, sorry. However, it's worth the wait, it really is!

Super Mario Galaxy 2 is released in North America today!

It's here at long last, the ultra-eagerly-awaited "Super Mario Galaxy 2" game for the Nintendo Wii is out today in the USA and Canada. It will be released in Japan on May 27th, Europe on June 11th and Australasia on July 1st.

Early reviews of it give it the highest rating of any video game ever released, currently scoring 98% at the Metacritic website, so it sure is a good reason to go out and buy a Nintendo Wii now if you don't already own one!

You can buy a Nintendo Wii and the Super Mario Galaxy 2 game from Amazon.com here:

     

A free Super Mario game download for the Nokia N97, 5730 XpressMusic and 2700 Classic (and others)

If, like me, you love having great games on your Nokia mobile phone, then here's a lovely treat for you - a FREE with NO ADVERTS download of a really fun Super Mario Bros. Java game called "Super Mario Planet" for the Nokia N97, the Nokia 5730 XpressMusic, the Nokia 2700 Classic and other Nokia models (I have installed and tested the game on all three of the above-named models and it works fine, so presumably it will work okay on other modern Nokia models too):

Super Mario Planet .jad and .jar files - installation and executable game files

Download the .zip file above and unzip it, and then transfer the .jad installation file and the .jar executable game file to your Nokia phone, preferably to your phone's mass storage or memory card if you have either of them, in a new folder named "Web Games". Then check the new folder via your phone's File Manager to see if you can directly run the "Super Mario Planet" .jar game file - if your phone doesn't have File Manager, you should see the .jar file in your phone's gallery in the new "Web Games" folder.....

If you can directly run the "Super Mario Planet" game (as happens on the Nokia 2700 Classic for example), you should see the game start and you can play it from then on whenever you wish (and you can delete the .jad file as it isn't needed);

If you can't run it directly (as with the N97 and 5730 XpressMusic for example), select the .jad installation file to install the game on your phone's mass storage or memory card, then delete the .jad and .jar files, and then you should find the "Super Mario Planet" game in a folder named "Games" in either your phone's Main Menu or the Applications Menu. You can play it from there whenever you wish.

The game works perfectly on both the N97 and the 5730 XpressMusic, and it is also fine on the 2700 Classic except that the sound doesn't work on that particular phone. It is great fun to play, and has really good graphics as you can see from the screenshots at the top of this post. The first time you play it you will have to watch a short tutorial level, but after that you can play the proper game every time you start it. Very usefully, the game remembers your progress each time you play it for when you go back to it in the future.

As an extra special treat for you, here are two more great free Nokia Java game downloads, both of which also work fine on the N97, the 5730 XpressMusic and the 2700 Classic (and presumably other Nokia models too):

Space Cowboy .jad and .jar files - installation and executable game files

Yet Another Tetris .jad and .jar files - installation and executable game files

Install both games in the same way as the Mario Planet game above. Have fun! :-)