# Retro Game: Dr. Mario ## Overview *Dr. Mario* is one of the most iconic and beloved puzzle games of the 8-bit era. In a departure from his usual platforming adventures, Mario dons a doctor's coat to combat a sudden outbreak of nasty viruses. Armed with an endless supply of two-colored vitamin capsules, players must strategically drop and rotate the pills to align them with viruses of the same color. It's a simple premise that leads to frantic, brain-teasing action that has captivated players for decades. ## Background Developed by the legendary Nintendo R&D1 team and produced by Gunpei Yokoi, *Dr. Mario* was released in 1990 for the NES and Game Boy. It was created during the puzzle game boom ignited by *Tetris*, offering a distinct and compelling alternative. With its charming presentation, catchy music, and perfectly balanced difficulty curve, *Dr. Mario* quickly became a massive hit. It established itself as a cornerstone of Nintendo's puzzle game library and has been ported and reimagined on nearly every Nintendo console since. ## Gameplay The objective in *Dr. Mario* is to clear the playfield—a large glass bottle—of all the viruses inside. Players control the two-toned vitamin capsules that Dr. Mario tosses into the bottle one at a time. These capsules can be rotated and moved left or right as they fall. The goal is to create a horizontal or vertical line of four or more matching colors, consisting of either pill halves or viruses. When a line is completed, it disappears from the screen. Eliminating all the viruses on screen completes the level. As the game progresses, the speed at which the pills fall increases, and the number of viruses grows, demanding faster thinking and more precise placement. The game also features a fantastic two-player versus mode, where clearing multiple lines at once sends junk capsules to your opponent's screen, making it a highly competitive classic.