[thatmariolover]

I've played through all of them a few times, and it's still hard to sort out why they're uniquely good. I'm just going to talk about the first, for now (mostly because I think we have a few haters here).

I think SMRPG had a few synergies that made it so successful.

First of all, it was the first game of its kind for many Mario fans. It was somewhat familiar for those that had played other SNES RPG's, but there were still certain dynamics that were unique to it. For example, timed attacks were a great addition to the game, and helped combat flow by keeping the player focused. But in terms of pure mechanics, the game wasn't terribly special.

There was a human element that also played largely on the game. Mario's world got a lot bigger, and characters were more detailed, nevermind the introduction of new races and characters. There was tons of comedy, a plethora of secrets to find, and a whole new world to explore.