Super Mario Advance: Super Mario Bros. 2
Platforms: NES(original), SNES(Super Mario Allstars), GBA, Wii(VC)
Players: 1-4
Original Release Date(s): Jun 10 2001(US), Jun 22 2001(EU), Mar 31 2001(JP)
With the launch of Nintendo Gameboy Advance it was one again time for a Mario game to come with the system and it was possibly the weakest game in the series too, but that didn't stop Nintendo from bringing it to their new hardware and following on from Super Mario Bros. Deluxe adding new features to make it a different experience.
Presentation
Not only does the game use the enhanced SNES version from Super Mario All-Stars as its base game but it goes further by borrowing from Super Mario Bros. Deluxe and throwing many extras into the mix to help make it a different experience, right from the new intro at the start and even the new character select screen the differences are plain to see, but it actual goes some way to enhancing the experience as it becomes its own game rather than a simple port.
Graphics
On the surface it looks like it is just a direct port of the enhance SNES version of the game but it is far more than that, not only does it refine the game in some areas tidying everything up a bit but it uses many more effects such to give some good on screen visuals as well as huge enemy sprites and a few new areas to mix things up.
While the game doesn't offer a vast overhaul that it could have done it does offer enough to make it a different looking game and anyone who has played the SNES version enough will spot all those differences right away, and now more than ever looks like a different game than the one that was considered just a reskinned Doki Doki Panic.
Sound
Much like the look of the game the sound has overall been left untouched from the SNES All-Stars version with one slight but very noticeable change the characters now have voices that is all four playable ones as well as the boss ones, while not a huge difference it is noticeable and anyone who played the game before may find it odd or off putting at first but doesn't affect the game at all. Other than that it does feature the same quality sound track as the remade SNES version and despite not sounding as Mario like due to their origin they are now very much a part of the series thanks to the passage of time.
Gameplay
Overall pretty much unchanged from that of the original so it is the one area of the game you know exactly what you are getting if you have played it before, although it has been changed in a few ways to make it a little more Mario like thanks to the new scoring system, also chaining multiple enemies being wiped out all with one item get you an extra life because the way the scoring system works, maybe making the game a little more forgiving than before mixed with the save feature level by level.
Lasting Appeal
Definitely the best thing about this game is the extras that have been added as not only is it now a case of simply just beating the game but finding and collect the five coins on each level which is starting to become a trademark on the handheld remakes, after it was added as a challenge mode in Super Mario Bros. Deluxe as well as fining the hidden Yoshi egg within each level, it really does add a new level of challenge to the game and helps towards setting this apart from other versions of the game, although the game overall remains the same as it did and anyone who has played and beat it before will likely breeze through with only the newer collectables being the reward.
There is also a newer version of the original Mario Bros. arcade game playable in both single and multiplayer with up to four people on one cartridge which is a nice little diversion but for the most part you will play the main game and nothing else.
Overall
For me this is the most definitive version of Super Mario Bros. 2 not only do they manage to alter the game even more than the original from Doki Doki Panic but they manage to getting closer in line to other Mario game by adding certain things like the score and the collectable coins, if it wasn't a Mario game to begin with it certainly feels much more like one now, for me that really is an impressive feat and for me is worth picking up to compare with what the original was and what it has become.
Scores
Players: 1-4
Original Release Date(s): Jun 10 2001(US), Jun 22 2001(EU), Mar 31 2001(JP)
With the launch of Nintendo Gameboy Advance it was one again time for a Mario game to come with the system and it was possibly the weakest game in the series too, but that didn't stop Nintendo from bringing it to their new hardware and following on from Super Mario Bros. Deluxe adding new features to make it a different experience.
Presentation
Not only does the game use the enhanced SNES version from Super Mario All-Stars as its base game but it goes further by borrowing from Super Mario Bros. Deluxe and throwing many extras into the mix to help make it a different experience, right from the new intro at the start and even the new character select screen the differences are plain to see, but it actual goes some way to enhancing the experience as it becomes its own game rather than a simple port.
Graphics
On the surface it looks like it is just a direct port of the enhance SNES version of the game but it is far more than that, not only does it refine the game in some areas tidying everything up a bit but it uses many more effects such to give some good on screen visuals as well as huge enemy sprites and a few new areas to mix things up.
While the game doesn't offer a vast overhaul that it could have done it does offer enough to make it a different looking game and anyone who has played the SNES version enough will spot all those differences right away, and now more than ever looks like a different game than the one that was considered just a reskinned Doki Doki Panic.
Sound
Much like the look of the game the sound has overall been left untouched from the SNES All-Stars version with one slight but very noticeable change the characters now have voices that is all four playable ones as well as the boss ones, while not a huge difference it is noticeable and anyone who played the game before may find it odd or off putting at first but doesn't affect the game at all. Other than that it does feature the same quality sound track as the remade SNES version and despite not sounding as Mario like due to their origin they are now very much a part of the series thanks to the passage of time.
Gameplay
Overall pretty much unchanged from that of the original so it is the one area of the game you know exactly what you are getting if you have played it before, although it has been changed in a few ways to make it a little more Mario like thanks to the new scoring system, also chaining multiple enemies being wiped out all with one item get you an extra life because the way the scoring system works, maybe making the game a little more forgiving than before mixed with the save feature level by level.
Lasting Appeal
Definitely the best thing about this game is the extras that have been added as not only is it now a case of simply just beating the game but finding and collect the five coins on each level which is starting to become a trademark on the handheld remakes, after it was added as a challenge mode in Super Mario Bros. Deluxe as well as fining the hidden Yoshi egg within each level, it really does add a new level of challenge to the game and helps towards setting this apart from other versions of the game, although the game overall remains the same as it did and anyone who has played and beat it before will likely breeze through with only the newer collectables being the reward.
There is also a newer version of the original Mario Bros. arcade game playable in both single and multiplayer with up to four people on one cartridge which is a nice little diversion but for the most part you will play the main game and nothing else.
Overall
For me this is the most definitive version of Super Mario Bros. 2 not only do they manage to alter the game even more than the original from Doki Doki Panic but they manage to getting closer in line to other Mario game by adding certain things like the score and the collectable coins, if it wasn't a Mario game to begin with it certainly feels much more like one now, for me that really is an impressive feat and for me is worth picking up to compare with what the original was and what it has become.
Scores
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