Intro –

Sometimes walking away from a game doesn’t mean you’re walking away forever. It doesn’t have to. In fact, taking a break can have a benefit that many gamers never stop to think about—it can give you a completely new perspective on how to approach a challenge.

I recently jumped back into Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe on my Nintendo Switch after taking a short break, and I immediately noticed something. I wasn’t just playing the game again; I was playing it differently.

Many of the game’s levels aren’t particularly difficult. The objective is simple enough: collect the Star Coins, reach the end of the stage, and move on.

The secret levels, however, are a different story.

After spending time battling through a few of them, I came to a realization: sometimes the smartest thing you can do is walk away and come back later.

That isn’t about avoiding a challenge.

It’s about refusing to let one difficult level ruin the enjoyment of the entire game.

After all, I’d already invested a lot of time into Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe, and I genuinely loved the progress I was making. My goal was to finish the game, not let one optional level dictate my entire experience.

That’s the point I want to make today.

When you’re playing a game like Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe, perseverance will always outweigh unnecessary frustration. Knowing when to step away from a difficult challenge doesn’t make you a weaker gamer.

Sometimes it takes even more perseverance to recognize when it’s time to move forward and return later.

When Does Persistence Stop Being Productive?

I want to go on record as saying that I’m a stubborn son of a bitch when it comes to video games. My never-say-die attitude and strategic approach have always been enough to get me through just about any game I’ve played.

Persistence is never a bad thing because it shows you care enough about a game to want to finish it. But there are times when, no matter how hard you push, your productivity eventually begins to drop.

You reach a point where simply crawling away from a level becomes your greatest accomplishment.

That’s exactly what happened to me during the Secret Level, Flight of the Para-Beetles. I tried over and over again to get through that level, but after so many failed attempts, I realized I wasn’t having fun anymore.

I refuse to let one level ruin an entire game for me.

After my fourth or fifth death, I simply walked away. Besides, my goal isn’t to 100% the game. My goal is to have fun, learn from the experience, make it through the adventure, and ultimately beat it.

With seven massive worlds to explore, I wanted to experience everything the game had to offer. That one secret level was nothing more than a pimple on the larger face of the game.

Walking away from it restored my sense of calm and reminded me that the level wasn’t going anywhere. If I decide to come back later, it’ll still be there waiting for me.

Always remember, the goal is to have fun. If a level gets to the point where it’s doing nothing but frustrating you, don’t be afraid to walk away. Sometimes the best way to move forward is to leave that challenge for another day.

Why Don’t I Need to Beat Everything Right Away –

To put a finer point on my persistence versus unnecessary frustration, I want to explain why I’m comfortable leaving certain levels alone if they start becoming too much.

The thing is, it isn’t that they’re impossible.

They’re designed to challenge you, and sometimes they’re designed to frustrate you just enough to make you question whether it’s worth continuing.

My answer is simple.

That one level isn’t the whole game.

I don’t have to spend thirty minutes throwing myself at the same obstacle only to make little or no progress. I’d rather acknowledge the challenge, leave it alone for a while, and continue enjoying the rest of the adventure.

That’s exactly what I did with Flight of the Para-Beetles.

Instead of letting one optional level dictate my entire experience, I moved on to the rest of Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe, continued making progress, and eventually found myself reaching World 6: Rock Candy Mines. Had I stayed there beating my head against that one level, I would’ve missed everything the game still had waiting for me.

I’ve applied that same mindset to other games as well. In Black Myth: Wukong, I stepped away from Yin Tiger after realizing I wasn’t ready. Later, I came back, defeated him, and even beat him a second time to prove it wasn’t a fluke.

That experience reinforced the same lesson.

Optional challenges can wait.

The main adventure doesn’t have to.

Walking away from an optional challenge isn’t giving up.

It’s simply saying,

“I’ll deal with you later.”

There’s no shame in that. Sometimes taking a step back is exactly what keeps you from rage-quitting altogether, and that’s a line I’ll never cross.

What I Focus on Instead of Perfection –

Progression opens the world within a game. Perfection simply puts a finer point on it, but it isn’t necessary.

I’ve spent a good amount of my time in Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe working my way through its many levels because, despite the hardship and struggles I’ve faced, it’s a genuinely fun and rewarding game.

Perfection, on the other hand, can eventually get in the way of enjoying it.

I think about that every time I sit down to play. Instead of making it my life’s work to uncover every hidden path, collect every item, or conquer every secret level before moving on, I focus on progressing through the adventure itself.

Forcing a 100% completion isn’t what makes a playthrough memorable.

It turns it into a marathon.

I’ve learned that lesson the hard way over the years, and it’s not how I want to experience games anymore. Eventually, I had to ask myself one simple question:

“Does the 100% matter to the game, or does it only matter to me?”

That question changed everything.

Focusing on enjoying Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe is what makes it such a great game. Even if I never complete another secret level, the Star Coins hidden within them won’t define my experience.

By simply progressing through the adventure, I’ll already have collected more than enough to feel satisfied with my journey.

Ultimately, that’s what makes Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe so enjoyable.

One or two over-the-top levels aren’t enough to ruin an otherwise fantastic game.

Think about that for a moment.

Why Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe Is Such a Fun Platformer –

I’ve been playing Super Mario Bros. games for as long as I can remember, and they’ve always kept me coming back because there was always something new to learn or another obstacle to overcome.

Take Jungle of the Giants (5-1), for example. The enemies are enormous, and the usual methods of defeating them no longer work as efficiently. Where one or two fireballs from Fiery Mario might normally get the job done, these oversized enemies can take four or five before finally going down.

That’s what I enjoy about games like Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe.

Every level teaches you something.

Whether it’s learning how far Mario can jump, figuring out the safest way to cross a dangerous section, or discovering a new way to approach an obstacle, every success adds another piece to your understanding of the game.

To me, that’s mastery.

I want to reach the point where I understand everything the game is trying to teach me—from the timing of difficult jumps to the spacing between platforms. Shutting myself off from opportunities to learn isn’t an option because every lesson eventually pays off somewhere else.

That’s why I enjoy the level design so much.

Take Bridge over Poisoned Waters (5-2). At first glance, the poisonous water seems unfair because touching it means instant death. But once you slow down and observe the level, you realize there’s nothing there that you can’t overcome with good timing and careful platforming.

The game gives you just enough room to succeed.

The rest is up to you.

That’s what I’ve grown to appreciate throughout my journey to World 6: Rock Candy Mines. Every world has introduced another lesson, another obstacle, and another opportunity to become a better player.

I think the Star Coins represent that philosophy better than anything else.

Some are sitting out in the open, while others require you to think outside the box, explore, and experiment before you can reach them. Those are the moments that continue to make Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe such a rewarding game to play.

There is One Thing I Would Change About The Game –

It cannot be argued that Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe is a great game. Like any game, however, it isn’t without its flaws, and the biggest one for me is the item reserve system.

While I appreciate having a reserve slot for emergencies, I often found myself making unnecessary decisions about which power-up I wanted to keep and which one I had to leave behind.

I understand why Nintendo designed it that way.

Resource management is part of the challenge.

But I also think the game would’ve benefited from allowing players to carry one or two additional reserve items without making the experience any easier.

Eventually, I stopped worrying about replacing every item I found. Instead, I simply waited until I had used most or all of my stored power-ups before collecting more.

That approach made managing my inventory much less frustrating and allowed me to focus on what mattered most—playing the game.

Additional item storage wouldn’t have removed the challenge.

It simply would’ve given players more flexibility in deciding when to use those items rather than forcing difficult decisions every time another power-up appeared.

Even with that one criticism, it never took away from what made Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe enjoyable.

The game’s level design, platforming, and constant sense of progression always outweighed the inconvenience of the limited item reserve.

What Super Mario Bros Deluxe U Taught Me –

Levels become harder the farther you progress, but they’re always doable. After spending nearly four days with Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe, I learned something that I’ll carry into every platformer I play.

Walking away from a difficult secret level is sometimes the smartest decision you can make.

Even if you have no intention of collecting every Star Coin or reaching 100% completion, there’s still an incredible adventure waiting for you.

As I’ve said before, walking away from one level doesn’t ruin the game.

If anything, it gives you another reason to keep moving forward because most of the levels that follow aren’t nearly as frustrating as the one you decided to leave behind.

That’s what’s always helped me keep my composure while playing games.

I believe every obstacle can eventually be overcome, but only if you’re willing to put in the work and recognize when it’s time to step back for a while.

Sure, it would be easier to look for shortcuts or ways to bypass a difficult challenge, but that’s never been my approach.

I’d rather give a level everything I’ve got before deciding,

“I’ll come back later.”

That way, one optional challenge never prevents me from experiencing the larger adventure waiting ahead.

The next time I sit down to play, I’m excited to continue from where I left off instead of dreading the same level over and over again.

That’s what Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe reminded me.

The journey is more important than forcing every challenge the moment you encounter it.

For me, the real reward isn’t reaching 100%.

It’s becoming a better player than I was when I started.

Conclusion –

To wrap up, Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe taught me that sometimes the smartest thing you can do is walk away from a difficult challenge—not forever, but long enough to come back with a fresh perspective.

When the going gets tough, fight through it until you honestly feel you’ve given it everything you’ve got.

Enjoy the game, learn from your mistakes, and know where to draw the line. If a level is beating you down, step away, come back later, and study what’s getting the better of you. Patience goes a long way.

More often than not, time away from a difficult level is exactly what gives you the strength and confidence to beat it later.

That’s a lesson I’ve followed for years, and I hope it helps you too because, at the end of the day, gaming is a hobby that’s meant to be enjoyed. Nothing should ever stand in the way of that enjoyment.

Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe became another reminder of the philosophy I’ve come to live by:

Love it. Leave it. Then leave it alone.

Sometimes, that’s exactly what it takes to keep a level head instead of a hot one.hat enjoyment.

This game is a true testament to my strategy of love it, leave it then leave alone which has helped maintain a leveled head instead of a hot one.

If Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe reminded me of anything, it’s that the best gaming experiences don’t come from forcing perfection—they come from making steady progress, learning from every mistake, and enjoying the journey along the way.

If you’re looking for more platformers that reward persistence, smart level design, and the satisfaction of overcoming tough challenges without sacrificing the fun, be sure to check out my accompanying Benable list.

I’ve put together a collection of games that capture that same feeling and may just become your next great adventure.

https://benable.com/RoddyMcG/platformers-that-reward-persistence-not-perfection