Experiencing Super Mario Bros. Deluxe for the first time in more than a decade reminded me of one very important fact: Super Mario Bros. is more or less an immaculate game. The creativity on display in the early NES classic isn’t something I often think about, but after playing it every which way in the 1999 Game Boy Color port/remake (as well as romping through it in Ultimate NES Remix), I am overwhelmed by how smartly crafted and designed the original Super Mario Bros. is.

It’s a master class in how to wordlessly instruct players how to play. Levels build on each other, informing the player of how to combat later obstacles. Some of my favorite parts from the original are the repetitive castle sections that require you to go down a certain pipe or through a particular route. It’s been so long that I forgot about most of these parts. Being faced with them for the first time in a long time was more rewarding than I expected, especially from a nearly 30-year-old game that I played incessantly in my youth.

Even aside from the original game and the slightly modified unlockable version of The Lost Levels, Super Mario Bros. Deluxe stands on its own with extra modes. Challenge Mode tasks players with finding five red coins, uncovering a Yoshi egg, and clearing a high score in every single level, which repurposes these classic stages and makes you combat them in a new way. While you can’t mess around with any of the multiplayer in the 3DS Virtual Console version, you can essentially take part in time trials in the You vs. Boo mode that pits your plumber against a speedy ghost. Once again, the levels are delicately revised in a wonderful way.

The only real downside to this package is that screen size of the Game Boy Color makes you only see a fraction of the action. While you have the ability to easily move the camera, it’s still cheap and frustrating at times as enemies come from off-screen with little notice and warning. Newly added sound cues help a little bit, but it’s still a big issue that holds back Deluxe from being the definitive version of Super Mario Bros.

If you haven’t sat down and played Super Mario Bros. in a while, do yourself a favor and pick up Super Mario Bros. Deluxe on the 3DS Virtual Console. The presentation is a little flawed, but Deluxe is a package that perfectly highlights why Mario took the world by storm and people still celebrate the original game to this very day. Also, it’s a great way to start thinking about what Mario Maker levels you can create.