| 'Unofficial' Super Mario Bros. 2 (only released in Japan) Introduction As everyone knows, the official US version of the Super Mario Bros. 2 is an English replica of the Japanese game 'Dream Factory - Doki Doki Panic'. The only difference is that it merely changes the Arabian characters of the game to Mario & company while retaining the exact gameplay of the Japanese game (a rip off!). However what I'm talking about now is NOT this US version but another Super Mario Bros. 2 that is released only in Japan. Special Features This 'unofficial' Super Mario Bros 2 looks and plays exactly like the original Mario Bros. Only this time, all 32 stages have been newly redesigned to become much more difficult than its predecessor. I believe that Super Mario Bros 2 arises from the same makers who produced the original game, but now they have made Mario 2 into an incredible monstrosity that is VERY HARD to complete. No joke about it. In fact, the game is so difficult that even experts like me find it relatively tedious to finish it in a couple of hours. The game originally has only 3 'Continues' with 3 lives each, making it only 9 pathetic lives for the entire game. To make the matter worse, it has a vicious feature that dictates the real Princess will only be revealed if you successfully complete ALL 36 stages of the game without the use of any level-warping pipelines. Hence the ONLY way to get the true ending is to lengthen the number of lives given to you by obtaining the so-called 'Infinite 1-Ups'. This can be done by continuously 'kicking Koopas' on the staircase in specific stages where this feature is possible. It is advisable to obtain at least a hundred lives in the first stage before venturing further to tackle the more difficult ones. You will see why this is necessary as you get yourself killed by the 'tens' in some of the almost impossible stages of the game. Apart from the basic controls similar to the original Mario, a unique addition to the game include stages that have strong malicious winds blowing you from behind. The winds add so much difficulty to the controls when Mario need to jump onto narrow platforms. If you are not careful, the wind will just force you off your feet. But on the other hand in some stages, it is impossible to jump very far distances without the strong wind supporting you from behind. Another new feature is the dreadful recurring mazes appearing in the castles of the boss stages. The maze will repeat itself and threaten to time-out Mario, unless you can solve them by following a specific route that will reach Bowser at the end. Without any guidebook to help you, navigating through the mazes safely is a massive challenge to even the best players. The 'unofficial' Super Mario Bros 2 is a game that really tests your 'Mario' skills to the utmost. It brings a lot of frustration and joy to me whenever I try to complete all 36 stages of the game but it is definitely worth it in the end. This game is also a true antique - it is now not available anymore and you can't find it in any second hand stores. But the good news is that I've still got the cartridge with me, together with its guidebook that details every stage. If you are interested in borrowing the game, please contact Ah Heng via email. Rating: 8.5 (at its time), 7.5 (now) |
| Super Mario Bros. 2 |
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| This game is too rare. Apart from the title pic, I only have 2 other screen-shots here. The last one depicts the wind blowing and Luigi standing on a narrow platform. |
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