Super Mario Islands was one of those old Flash games that somehow stuck with me. You pick Mario or Luigi (obviously I always went with Luigi—underdog vibes, you know?) and just start running. The controls are simple, but the levels get sneaky fast—pits open up out of nowhere, enemies pop in from off-screen, and those coins? They’re always juuust out of reach unless you time your jumps right.

It’s got that classic Mario feel but with a weird, almost dreamlike pace—like someone took the usual Mushroom Kingdom energy and slowed it down just enough to make you second-guess every jump. And yeah, you’re technically supposed to “earn coins,” but half the fun is seeing how far you can push it before the game throws something ridiculous at you. One wrong move and you’re watching your little plumber tumble into the abyss while that cheerful music keeps playing. Brutal.

If you ever played Flash games back in the day, this one’s a weird little time capsule. Just don’t blame me when you lose an hour to it.