Nintendo certainly had a knack for “Nintendo-cizing” things, mostly using Mario (even though they had an amazing stable of other characters available). From SimCity on the Super Nintendo to Dr Mario, Nintendo knew how to add just enough Mario charm to help a game get over whatever hump they foresaw on their road to success. Puzzle games have never been the number one selling category in gaming, even though powerhouses like Bejeweled may make you think otherwise over the years. Nintendo did what Nintendo does and added Mario to their take on Columns, a limited version at that.
Plumber by Day, Medical Student at Night Apparently
Unless these are different Marios, then Mario himself has been stupid busy. Saving the Mushroom Kingdom by day and finding time to attend medical student classes in his spare time (I wonder if he did it through correspondence courses?).
If you have never seen Dr Mario in action, which I guess could be a thing, then you are in for either a treat or the most boring game starring Mario that you have ever played. There is not much in between here.
Cure Diseases and Make Patients Better
I am not sure how Nintendo settled on this aesthetic for Dr Mario but diseases have infected the pill bottle. Dropping pills with one, or two, colors into the bottle gives you the chance to guide them accordingly. Pair four of the same color up/down or left/right pill or germ and they disappear.
Dr Margo looks like it has kept the feel of Dr Mario quite well, even changing up the character – he is no longer Mario, now a nondescript physician looking character.
If you have played Columns then you will be at home with the gameplay. Basically Dr Margo, and Dr Mario, are slightly more advanced Tetris clones.
Unlike Sega’s puzzle title, Dr Margo/Dr Mario does not recognize diagonal connections. That means your combos are going to be fairly basic affairs here, removing quite a bit of the strategy and chance to create a huge cascade of eliminations.
Still, fans of Dr Mario will be right at home with Dr Margo. Check it out on Plus/4 World.
Thanks to Indie Retro News for the heads up on Dr Margo.