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Mario's Cement Factory

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Game & Watch: Mario's Cement Factory
Tabletop version
Developer(s)Nintendo R&D1
Publisher(s)Nintendo
SeriesMario
Platform(s)
Release
  • Tabletop
  • April 28, 1983
  • New Wide Screen
  • June 8, 1983
Genre(s)Platform
Mode(s)Single-player

Mario's Cement Factory[a] is an LCD handheld electronic game developed by Nintendo and published in 1983 under their Game & Watch series. It follows earlier Mario games, like the arcade and Game & Watch versions of Donkey Kong. Players control Mario as he navigates elevators and funnels cement through a factory, while trying to prevent the cement from crushing his fellow workers. Two modes were released: a tabletop model; and a handheld version akin to most other Game & Watch titles. Development was headed by Nintendo R&D1, led by engineer Gunpei Yokoi.

The game has been re-released several times; it was featured as part of Game Boy Gallery for the Game Boy, Game & Watch Gallery 4 for the Game Boy Advance, and as a digital download for the Nintendo DSi. It has been described by critics as one of the strangest games in the Mario franchise.

Gameplay

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Mario's Cement Factory puts players in control of Mario, who works at a cement factory where he funnels cement into cement trucks. Mario must navigate two dangerous elevators and avoid falling or being crushed and losing a life. He must also continually empty cement into the trucks, or else the cement will overflow and crush one of the workers below, which costs players a life. There are two game modes: A and B, the latter being faster paced and more difficult.[2][3][4]

Development

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Mario's Cement Factory was developed by Nintendo R&D1, which at the time was led by Gunpei Yokoi, and published by Nintendo.[5] Like all Game & Watch releases, each unit is a standalone portable device that doubles as a clock and can only play the one game.[6] Hirokazu Tanaka composed the game sounds.[1]

Gameplay from Game A on the Table Top version of the game.

Two versions of the game were released. The first is part of the Game & Watch Table Top series and debuted on April 28, 1983. It has a full color illuminated screen, and approximately 250,000 models were produced.[7] The Table Top series did not sell as well, leading to Mario's Cement Factory being one of only four Table Top units ever produced.[8] A smaller handheld version was later released on June 8 that year as part of the New Wide Screen series. It has a monochrome screen with a color overlay, and approximately 750,000 units were produced.[9][10][11]

The game was released the same year that Nintendo's Famicom system debuted in Japan, and two years after the first Mario title (the arcade game Donkey Kong).[12]

Re-releases

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See also: Game & Watch ports and remakes
The New Wide Screen version of the console.

Mario's Cement Factory has been re-released in various forms. It was included in the 1995 Game Boy Gallery for Game Boy, featuring updated graphics.[13][14] It was also re-released in the Nintendo Mini Classics line, which repackaged Game & Watch games in small Game Boy-like devices.[15][16] Both the New Wide Screen and an updated version were included in the 2002 Game & Watch Gallery 4 for the Game Boy Advance.[13] In 2009, the game was re-released for the Nintendo DSi's DSiWare download service (along with other Game & Watch games).[17][18] The DSi version was released in Japan on August 18.[19] It was released in North America and Europe in March 2010.[17][20] The DSi version was also given as a reward on Nintendo's now-defunct Club Nintendo service.[21]

Reception

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Mario's Cement Factory received generally positive reception, called one of the best Game & Watch games, and praised for its relative complexity and fun factor.[3][22][23] It was identified as a favorite by Wired writer Andy Robertson, and in a preview of Game & Watch Gallery 4, NintendoWorldReport writer Ben Kosmina expressed that he loved Mario's Cement Factory.[4][24] Staff for the magazine Video Games regarded it as a more difficult game than many before it.[25] It was also named the 10th best Game & Watch game in a survey of ITMedia readers.[26] Despite this positive reception, it received some criticism, considered primitive by the standards of today,[3][27] In a review by IGN writer Lucas M. Thomas felt that the controls were too "picky and precise".[28] NintendoLife writer Corbie Dillard noted it as being among the most popular Game & Watch titles, feeling that it's more playable and enjoyable thanks to the diversity of its gameplay. He noted that there may be nostalgia involved in the enjoyment of Game & Watch games, he legitimately had fun with the game.[29] It has been called one of the stranger entries in the Mario series.[30][31][32] Mario's role as a cement factory worker has been mentioned in multiple articles that cover the array of professions Mario has undertaken.[33][6]

The original units have become collector's items and, like many Game & Watch titles, a complete-in-box unit can sell for over US$100.[30][23] The game was featured in a Gunpei Yokoi exhibit in Harajuku in 2010.[34]

Notes

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  1. ^ Japanese: マリオズ・セメント・ファクトリー[1], Hepburn: Mariozu Semento Fakutorī

References

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  1. ^ a b Tanaka, Hirokazu. "Nintendo Archive - Works". Sporadic Vacuum (in Japanese). Archived from the original on August 8, 2014. Retrieved November 1, 2014.
  2. ^ "Game & Watch™ Mario's Cement Factory". Nintendo of Europe. Archived from the original on August 16, 2024. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
  3. ^ a b c Gilbert, Henry (March 20, 2011). "The 8 best Game & Watch games". GamesRadar. Archived from the original on August 16, 2024. Retrieved May 17, 2019.
  4. ^ a b Robertson, Andy (April 23, 2010). "DSi Ware's Game and What?". Wired. Archived from the original on September 22, 2021. Retrieved May 17, 2019.
  5. ^ Marrujo, Robert (August 2, 2018). "The History of Game Boy (Revised for 2019)". Nintendojo. Archived from the original on August 27, 2019. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  6. ^ a b Ryan, Jeff (2012). Super Mario: How Nintendo Conquered America. Penguin. p. 61. ISBN 978-1591845638. Archived from the original on August 16, 2024. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  7. ^ Panayiotakis, Michael (June 24, 2008). "Game & Watch: A Retrospective: Just add table". DS Fanboy. Archived from the original on July 5, 2008. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  8. ^ McFerran, Damien (January 1, 2021). "Feature: How Nintendo's Game & Watch Took "Withered Technology" And Turned It Into A Million-Seller". NintendoLife. Archived from the original on July 1, 2021. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
  9. ^ Panayiotakis, Michael (June 24, 2008). "Game & Watch: A Retrospective: Not just any old Wide Screen ..." DS Fanboy. Archived from the original on July 5, 2008. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  10. ^ Powers, Rick (August 29, 2002). "Mario, This Is Your Life". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on August 25, 2019. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
  11. ^ Nintendo (October 23, 2018). Super Mario Encyclopedia: The Official Guide to the First 30 Years. Dark Horse Comics. pp. 237–238. ISBN 9781630089450. Archived from the original on August 16, 2024. Retrieved September 14, 2019.
  12. ^ a b Frear, Dave (January 4, 2016). "Game & Watch Gallery Advance Review (Wii U eShop / GBA)". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on August 16, 2024. Retrieved May 17, 2019.
  13. ^ Thomas, Lucas M. (July 17, 2011). "Game & Watch Gallery Review". IGN. Archived from the original on May 27, 2019. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  14. ^ North, Dale (August 5, 2009). "Nintendo's Game & Watch come back as Mini Classics". Destructoid. Archived from the original on October 8, 2009. Retrieved May 17, 2019.
  15. ^ Thompson, Michael (August 5, 2009). "Nintendo Mini Classics resurrects Game & Watch titles". Arstechnica. Retrieved August 25, 2019.
  16. ^ a b Aaron, Sean (March 22, 2010). "Nintendo Download: 22nd March 2010 (North America)". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2019.
  17. ^ Van Duyn, Marcel (July 10, 2009). "Game & Watch Games to be Released on DSiWare". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2019.
  18. ^ "Game & Watch Mario's Cement Factory (2010)". Nintendo Life. 15 April 2010. Retrieved May 15, 2019.
  19. ^ Van Duyn, Marcel (March 25, 2019). "Nintendo Download: 26th March 2010 (Europe)". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2019.
  20. ^ Whitehead, Thomas (January 14, 2014). "Club Nintendo Rewards Updated for January". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2019.
  21. ^ Knight, Rich (November 28, 2011). "Portable Plumber: The Complete History of Mario in Handheld Games". Complex. Retrieved May 17, 2019.
  22. ^ a b Cipriano, Jason (May 3, 2010). "Game & Watch Revival - 30 Years Later And Still Ringin'". MTV.com. Archived from the original on May 27, 2019. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  23. ^ Kosmina, Ben (July 16, 2002). "Game & Watch Gallery 4". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on January 24, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  24. ^ "Video Games". Video Games. Vol. 2, no. 1. Pumpkin Press. October 1983. p. 76.
  25. ^ "【任天堂ゲーム＆ウオッチ】人気のタイトルランキングTOP10！1位は「オクトパス」【2021年最新投票結果】". ITMedia. February 9, 2021. Archived from the original on January 25, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  26. ^ Riley, Adam (April 11, 2010). "Game & Watch: Mario's Cement Factory (Nintendo DS) Review". Cubed3. Archived from the original on May 17, 2019. Retrieved May 17, 2019.
  27. ^ Thomas, Lucas M. (July 27, 2010). "DSiWare Capsule Reviews: Third Week of July". IGN. Archived from the original on May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  28. ^ Dillard, Corbie (March 22, 2010). "Game & Watch Mario's Cement Factory Review (DSiWare)". NintendoLife. Archived from the original on August 16, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
  29. ^ a b Lynch, Gerald (March 11, 2017). "The weirdest Super Mario games ever". TechRadar. Archived from the original on May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2019.
  30. ^ Rouner, Jeff (August 29, 2013). "10 Mario Games You've Probably Never Heard Of". Houston Press. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved May 17, 2019.
  31. ^ Gaspin, Ben (June 30, 2017). "The 7 Weirdest MARIO Spin-Off Games". Nerdist. Archived from the original on June 16, 2018. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  32. ^ Houghton, David (October 9, 2017). "26 jobs that Mario is inexplicably qualified for". GamesRadar. Archived from the original on May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  33. ^ Walker, Matt (August 24, 2010). "Gunpei Yokoi Exhibit in Harakuju: "The Man Who Was Called the God of Games"". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on August 16, 2024. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
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