My first Mario games were Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros. 3...
The first"New" game I played was New Super Mario Bros. Wii...
The game was great when playing just by myself, but the multiplayer was really what made the game great...
My friends and I put more time into NSMBW than probably any other game this generation...
I later played the first "New" game, and while I did love it, I did wish I could go through the game with friends...
I felt like New Super Mario Bros. 2 was just okay...
And while I haven't finished New SUper Mario Bros. U, I do think it's great...
While I do think New Super Mario Bros. 3 is the best 2D Mario game, it's not by a horribly large margin...
Have a nice day...