It shocks me when I realize I’ve been playing “Super Mario Bros.” games for most of my life. I’ve been collecting mushrooms, tossing turtle shells and saving princesses since I was 7 years old and Marty McFly was driving a DeLorean.

Spend that much time with a video game franchise and it teaches you things. These aren’t obvious concepts like the ones you learn in math class. It’s something you discover and internalize after months of play. Firing up the latest entry to the series, “New Super Mario Bros. 2” on the Nintendo 3DS, those lessons and a heavy dose of nostalgia came flooding back to me.

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