Super Mario GBA |
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Super Mario Advance was
Nintendo’s premier game for the Game Boy Advance
launch this year in the United States. The game, which is
a compilation of Super Mario Bros. 2 and the classic
Mario Bros. arcade game, was originally one that I had
not planned on getting with my Game Boy Advance. However,
it arrived with my system anyway due to the Game Boy
Advance package deals, most of which included it. Super Mario Bros. 2 is to Mario as Zelda II: The Adventure of Link is to Zelda. Both games are the misfits of their respective series. Where in most Mario games the gameplay consists of hopping on enemy’s heads and jumping up and smashing bricks, Super Mario Bros. 2 takes a much different approach. Hopping on them will still kill some monsters, but for others you’ll have to resort to throwing things at them such as other monsters and vegetables which are pulled out of the ground. Yes, vegetables… The differences don’t end there. In all other Mario Bros. games, you can play as one of two characters that play exactly the same, Mario or Luigi. However, Super Mario Bros. 2 allows you to choose from one of four characters at the beginning of each stage. The four characters include the regulars Mario and Luigi, but also add Princess Peach and Toad into the mix. Each character has its own attributes and different style of play. Toad is fast, Princess Peach can float for a few moments when she jumps, Luigi can jump the highest, and Mario is all around average. While these changes do provide some interesting variations on gameplay, some things are best left unchanged as seen in more recent games such as Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2 for the Sega Dreamcast. Speaking of changes, this version of Super Mario Bros. 2 has changed very little from the version found on Super Mario All Stars for the SNES and the original version on the NES. A few giant monsters and vegetables have been added in, which are a novelty for about as long as it takes to beat the first stage. Also added is the “Yoshi Challenge”, which is really just an egg hunt with eggs hidden throughout the game. Despite the disappointment that is Super Mario Bros. 2, the classic Mario Bros. arcade game is still as fun as ever, if not more so. The basic idea of the game is to clear the small multi-platform level of monsters while avoiding other dangers such as fireballs. The simple gameplay is perfect for the Game Boy Advance. It can become very addictive trying to beat your best score and get to new levels. This game is also where the four-player mode comes in, which I unfortunately have yet to try. My only two complaints about Mario Bros. are that you have to start at level one every time you begin a new game and that there is no save feature for when you are in the middle of a game (there are three save slots in Super Mario Bros. 2). The graphics in both games are what you would expect from a Mario game. They aren’t going to blow you away but they get the job done. The sound is also adequate, except the character voices in Super Mario Bros. 2. Each character sounds very annoying and whiney and will constantly repeat a few different phrases while you’re playing with them. The only recommendation I can give this game is to not get it. The Super Mario Bros. 2 port is a poor one of a mediocre game, and the classic Mario Bros. arcade game can’t save it at a price of 29.99 – 34.99. There are much more worthwhile titles around. - Wolfman |
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| All text, original pictures and HTML © 2001 Bob Mackey. All rights reserved. |