When comparing Super Mario Bros. vs Half Life 2, the Slant community recommends Super Mario Bros. for most people. In the question“What are the best and the most revolutionary games of all time?” Super Mario Bros. is ranked 1st while Half Life 2 is ranked 40th. The most important reason people chose Super Mario Bros. is:
Super Mario Bros. introduced the concept of [level design as a tool for educating players](http://www.1up.com/features/learning-level-design-mario) that created a low barrier to entry for new players that was instrumental in pulling the industry out of the [North American Video Game Crash of 1983](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_video_game_crash_of_1983) and set the bar for level design for generations to come.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Birth of modern level design
Super Mario Bros. introduced the concept of level design as a tool for educating players that created a low barrier to entry for new players that was instrumental in pulling the industry out of the North American Video Game Crash of 1983 and set the bar for level design for generations to come.
Pro Greatly influential
The game's influence stretches beyond even this - many of the most important franchises and development studios in the industry got their start from imitating Super Mario Bros., including Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog and id Software's Commander Keen.
Pro One of first side scrollers
This game was one of the first side scroller games.
Pro It saved the video game industry
If this game didn't happen then video games would've died. Zelda, Metroid, DOOM, Sonic the Hedgehog, GTA, Call of Duty, and Halo would not have existed if it weren't for this game.
Pro Created defining mechanics of the platformer genre
Super Mario Bros. introduced several game mechanics that would become the bread and butter of platformers as a genre.
Pro Many mods will run with just the free Source Engine installed
A total conversion which does not directly use any assets from Half Life 2 can be played without even purchasing the base game.
Pro Supports total conversions
The Source SDK allows mod creators to build new game content from the ground up, leaving no trace of Half Life 2.
Pro Some Half Life 2 mods were later released as stand-alone games
Examples include Garry's Mod, Dear Esther, and The Stanley Parable.