If you've ever blasted through the original Super Mario World and thought, "Man, I wish there were more of this," then SMW The Second Reality Project 1 is basically that wish granted. It’s a ROM hack, yeah, but it doesn’t just slap new sprites on old levels—it actually feels like a lost sequel. The first few minutes throw you into these weirdly beautiful, slightly off-kilter stages that play with Mario’s mechanics in ways Nintendo never did. Like, there’s this one level where the platforms are these floating, shifting blocks that disappear if you stand still too long. Classic SNES charm, but with fresh tricks.

Some of the enemy placements will absolutely wreck you if you’re on autopilot—in a good way. It’s not unfair, just… inventive. And the music? They remixed some of the original tracks, but there are new ones too that somehow don’t feel out of place. If you’ve got an emulator and a soft spot for 16-bit platformers, this one’s worth the hassle of tracking down. Just don’t blame me when you lose an afternoon to it.