Nintendo did not, alas, cooperate with this author. As a result, some of Ryan's anecdotes are left with an asterisk hanging by them in the reader's mind. Without a doubt, however, Super Mario is packed with enough strange—and confirmed—nuggets to please most fans…For the most part, the pages here turn as quickly as any of Mario's platform-jumping adventures.
—The Washington Post

Nintendo’s thirty-year history in the gaming business is long and convoluted, and Ryan does a game job of narrowing it down while cramming everything into a single, readable tome.”

A fascinating read. While much of the information may be known to those who have read other gaming history books, in Super Mario: How Nintendo Conquered America, it is all brought together and more detail added to give you a full timeline of events…If you have any interest in Nintendo, then this is certainly a book to add to your collection…And following reading it I’ll guarantee your first desire will be to pick up a Mario game and start playing.”

Fascinating…Jeff Ryan’s Super Mario: How Nintendo Conquered America delivers illuminating details…It’s almost surprising that the chronology of a Japanese video game company could be this entertaining, but Ryan makes it so.”

One of America’s favorite pastimes is covered in exhaustive, enthusiastic detail.”

Ryan explores the history of Nintendo and the evolution of video games through the iconic Super Mario. Ray Porter has a great voice for this production since he sounds largely like the primary demographic: a twenty- or thirty-something male with a passion for video games. Ryan argues that the success of Nintendo is not the power of its graphics but the fun factor, made explicit through the icon of Super Mario and his appearance in many great games. Porter’s delivery is lively and enthusiastic; he maintains a good energy throughout the reading. His strong projection helps navigate the sometimes ridiculous game descriptions as well as punctuates Ryan’s insights. Porter’s joviality makes one wonder if he himself has also been a fan of Nintendo.”