Mario wasn't always super. In fact he wasn't even always Mario, but now there's no denying it; Mario on the Nintendo 3DS is definitely high in the super qualities. While he's still got more than a gleam of the addictive qualities that made Jumpman (his first incarnation facing Donkey Kong in the 1970s) so cool, he's got way more substance than he had back then. This is all the more true now that he's being rendered in 3D stereoscopic vision on the Nintendo 3DS, and there are a good few Super Mario 3DS games released for the hand held console in 2011.

First on the boards is Mario Kart 7, which on the face of things looks like a simple port of all the genius of previous Mario Kart games combines into 3DS form. However, there are more than a few new additions for the 3DS, including underwater and hang glider modes. You will also be able to customise your cars in much more detail than ever before and the importance of coins to speed and resilience are back. Mario Kart 7 has a release date of December 2011.

Luigi's Mansion 2 is a classic pseudo 3D platform game with side scrolling tendencies. It puts Luigi back into the ghost-ridden mansions of his youth with his proton pack-like ghost vacuum cleaner thing (the Poltergust 5000) and a rescuing firmly on the cards. It's great to see Luigi taking the limelight once in a while and with the addition of Toad the puzzle breaking duties is a great new feature. Luigi's Mansion 2 has a release in 2012.

Mario and Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games is a bit of an anomaly on the Nintendo 3DS as the hand held console doesn't really allow for much in the way of the frantic motion controls of previous Wii based Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games games. Mario and Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games has a release date of February 2012.

Paper Mario 3DS will return to the turn based 2D platform romp of the original Paper Mario game. It's cute, fun and probably a bit addictive. The battles commence in 2012 with overtones of RPG game play.

Super Mario 3DS, however, is the pinnacle of Super Mario gaming on the Nintendo 3DS. It's a full 3D adventure in the palm of your hand, with graphics on a par with Super Mario Galaxy. This eagerly anticipated game sees Mario pit himself against Bowser in the same way that he first started in Super Mario 64. The game play looks epic and the visuals and sound are the usual brilliant offering from the legends at Nintendo HQ. One of the best addition to the game is the racoon tail from Super Mario 3 on the SNES. However, here it will be rendered in a 3D world giving it a whole new dimension especially with the stereoscopic 3D vision of the Nintendo 3DS. Super Mario 3DS has a release date of December 2011.