Best Family Games Like Super Mario World

The best family games like Super Mario World are Yoshi's Island, Super Mario Bros Wonder and Donkey Kong Country 2. Below are 7, each with the reason it is here — and, at the end, what filtering to family costs you.

Why Family Is a Good Answer for Super Mario World

Filtering to family means the game has to work for a child and an adult at the same table without either of them being bored. That is a much harder design problem than a difficulty slider.

What you get: Something you can put in front of anyone. The best family games make the skill gap not matter rather than pretending it is not there.

What made Super Mario World worth playing in the first place is covered on the full list. This page is the family part of that answer, and only the family part.

7 Family Games Like Super Mario World

  1. 1. Yoshi's Island

    The direct follow-up, and the most inventive platformer on the SNES.

  2. 2. Super Mario Bros Wonder

    The modern 2D Mario, and the closest in spirit to World's playfulness.

  3. 3. Donkey Kong Country 2

    The other SNES platformer with hidden exits and a secret world.

  4. 4. Super Mario Maker 2

    If the level design was the appeal, this is infinite.

  5. 5. Rayman Legends

    The most polished 2D platformer since.

  6. 6. Super Mario Bros 3

    The NES peak, and much of World grew out of it.

  7. 7. Donkey Kong Country

    The other pillar of SNES platforming.

What This Filter Leaves Out

Edge. Family games rarely go anywhere uncomfortable, and a few of them are too generous to hold an experienced player for long alone.

Specifically, these are strong answers for Super Mario World that are not family games, so they are not on this page:

  • Celeste — The best-feeling modern platformer, with a hidden B-side for every level.
  • Shovel Knight — Deliberately retro, but with a modern sense of fairness.

The full list is on games like Super Mario World — 9 picks, no genre filter.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best family game like Super Mario World?

Yoshi's Island. The direct follow-up, and the most inventive platformer on the SNES.

Are all of these on the Super Nintendo?

No. Super Mario World released on the Super Nintendo, but a recommendation is only useful if you can play it, so the picks above span platforms and eras. What they share is the genre and the reason.

How do I check a game is suitable?

Age ratings cover content but not difficulty or frustration, which is what actually ruins a family session. Five minutes of unedited play footage tells you more than any rating.

Competitive or co-operative?

With mixed ages, co-operative usually wins. The competitive ones that work are the ones where being in last place is still entertaining.

How are these chosen?

By hand. Each pick was written for the full Super Mario World list first, on what the game actually does, and this page is the part of that list that is family — never a genre tag lookup, which is how "best racing games like Super Mario 64" used to be a page on this site.

Other Angles on Super Mario World

More Family Games Recommendations

Or read the family guide for where to start in the genre generally.