Super Mario All-Stars
25th Anniversary Edition
Four legendary NES classics, a soundtrack CD and a history booklet — celebrating 25 years of Mario
Overview
In October 2010, Nintendo marked 25 years of Super Mario Bros. with one of the most lovingly assembled limited-edition packages in gaming history. Super Mario All-Stars: 25th Anniversary Edition isn’t just a re-release — it’s a celebration. Inside the box: four legendary NES platformers updated with SNES graphics and sound, a soundtrack CD spanning 25 years of Mario music, and a detailed history booklet charting the series from 1985 to 2010.
The package is a Wii emulation of the original Super Mario All-Stars for the SNES (1993) — itself a groundbreaking compilation that brought the original NES trilogy plus The Lost Levels to a new generation with revamped visuals and sound. The Wii version plays identically to the SNES original, supporting the Classic Controller and GameCube Controller alongside the Wii Remote.
The full European package contents — disc, booklet and soundtrack CD
The All-Stars title screen on Wii
Nintendo described it as a “limited edition” — and while Nintendo of America did later issue a reprint under the Nintendo Selects label in March 2016, that version came without the booklet and soundtrack CD. If you wanted the full collector’s package, you needed the original 2010 release.
What’s in the box
The 25th Anniversary package contains three distinct items, each adding a different dimension to the celebration:
Regional packaging
The four games
All four games are the SNES Super Mario All-Stars versions — not the original NES ROMs. This means updated 16-bit graphics, remastered music, and save game support that the originals never had. Each game is playable from the title screen selector:
“If you missed out on them the first time, now’s your chance to discover four of the reasons why Super Mario has been one of gaming’s most loved series’ of all time.” — superluigibros.com original coverage
The soundtrack CD
The Super Mario History 1985–2010 soundtrack CD is a genuine collector’s item — a curated selection of music spanning the entirety of the mainline Super Mario series to that point. The tracklist covers:
The iconic overworld theme, underground music and castle theme.
The grassland, overworld and boss themes.
The overworld map, world themes and athletic music.
The athletic, cave and castle themes.
Bob-omb Battlefield, Cool Cool Mountain and Bowser themes.
Delfino Plaza and the resort themes.
The main theme and underground.
Good Egg Galaxy and other orchestral highlights.
Overworld and castle themes.
Starship Mario and world themes.
The CD also includes sound effects — the coin collection chime, the level clear fanfare, and other iconic audio cues that will be immediately familiar to anyone who has played the games. Total coverage: every major entry in the series’ first 25 years.
The history booklet
The Super Mario History 1985–2010 booklet is a glossy, illustrated publication tracing 25 years of the series. It features:
- A chronological journey through every major Super Mario game from 1985 to 2010
- Information about Shigeru Miyamoto and the teams who created the games
- Insight into how the series evolved — from simple NES platforming to the 3D open worlds of Galaxy
- Acknowledgement of the key milestones: 240 million units sold making it the best-selling video game series in history
- Commentary on how Mario became one of the most globally recognised entertainment characters in the world
The Super Mario History 1985–2010 booklet
Legacy & reception
Nintendo launched the 25th Anniversary with significant fanfare. A promotional letter — written in-character as Princess Peach, referencing her letters from Super Mario Bros. 3 — was sent to video game press sites around the world to announce the package. It was a charming, personality-filled gesture that set the tone for a celebration rather than a standard product launch.
The promotional letter from Princess Peach sent to press to announce the package
By the time this collection launched, Mario had already achieved extraordinary milestones. The Super Mario Bros. series had sold over 240 million units globally, making it the best-selling video game series in history. Shigeru Miyamoto’s creation had, in 25 years, become one of the most recognised entertainment characters on the planet — a cultural institution as much as a game franchise.
The Nintendo Selects reprint
In March 2016, Nintendo of America issued a reprint of the game disc under the Nintendo Selects budget label — making the games more accessible at a lower price point. However, this reprint came without the booklet or soundtrack CD. If you own the Nintendo Selects version, you have the games but miss the collectible heart of the original package.
Why this package matters
More than a simple re-release, the 25th Anniversary Edition was Nintendo’s way of acknowledging what Super Mario meant. Not just as a series of games, but as a shared cultural experience across generations. The booklet and CD transform what could have been a cheap nostalgia cash-in into something genuinely celebratory — a package made for people who grew up with these games and wanted to hold a piece of that history in their hands.
Videos
Two videos from our collection covering the Super Mario All-Stars 25th Anniversary Edition:
Gameplay video
Unboxing
Interesting facts
- The package is a Wii emulation of the 1993 SNES game Super Mario All-Stars — itself a compilation that brought the NES trilogy to the Super Nintendo with enhanced 16-bit graphics and sound
- Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels — the fourth game in the package — was the real Super Mario Bros. 2 in Japan in 1986 but was considered too difficult for Western audiences. It remained Japan-exclusive until the SNES All-Stars brought it to the rest of the world
- The promotional campaign featured a letter written in-character as Princess Peach, referencing the in-game letters she sends in Super Mario Bros. 3 — a charming piece of Nintendo personality-driven marketing
- By 2010, the Super Mario Bros. series had sold over 240 million units worldwide, making it the best-selling video game series in history at the time
- Japan was the first region to receive the package in October 2010 — North America was last, in December 2010
- Nintendo of America later issued a Nintendo Selects reprint in 2016 — disc only, without the booklet or CD, making the original 2010 package the definitive collector’s version
- The soundtrack CD covers 25 years of Mario music across 10 games — from Super Mario Bros. (1985) to Super Mario Galaxy 2 (2010) — and includes iconic sound effects alongside the music tracks
- A 25th Anniversary emblem and promotional logo were created specifically for the package — separate from the game’s standard branding — giving the edition its own distinct visual identity
- An official 25th Anniversary video was available on the Wii’s Nintendo Channel and anniversary websites — but used footage from the Japanese versions of the games
Reference & downloads
Guides & information
Individual game pages