Super Mario Advance

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Super Mario Advance

Developer(s)	Nintendo
Publisher(s)	Nintendo
Designer(s)	Shigeru Miyamoto
Release date(s)	March 21, 2001 (Japan) June 10, 2001 (USA) June 22, 2001 (Europe)
Genre(s)	Platform game
Mode(s)	Single player, multiplayer
Rating(s)	ESRB: Everyone
Platform(s)	Game Boy Advance
Media	32-Megabit cartridge

Super Mario Advance is a remake of the 1988 NES/Famicom hit game Super Mario Bros. 2 ("Bros." being omitted in-game), known in Japan as Super Mario USA, and was released in 2001 for the Game Boy Advance. This version is ported from the Super Mario All-Stars version of Super Mario Brothers 2.

1 Background
2 Reception
3 Version differences
4 References

[edit] Background

Due to its unusual background, the game features gameplay that dramatically differs from other games in the series. The reason is because originally it was not a Mario game at all. Nintendo of America regarded Super Mario Brothers 2 (known internationally as The Lost Levels) as too difficult of a game that would not be popular. In response, Nintendo took Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic, made some graphical, sound, and storyline changes, and released it in the United States as Super Mario Bros. 2. The game was an enormous hit, although its gameplay differed drastically from Super Mario Bros.

[edit] Reception

Nintendo's decision to choose it as the Game Boy Advance launch game was seen by some as misguided; GameSpot in particular thought that Super Mario Bros. 3 or Super Mario World would have been a far better choice for as a launch title considering their popularity.^[1] (Both of those titles would eventually be remade as part of the Advance series.) However, IGN praised the choice, calling it "one of the most polished and creative platformers of the era." ^[2] Nonetheless, it was a best-selling launch game, showing that the game still appealed to Nintendo fans. Recently, the game has become part of the Player's Choice lineup for Game Boy Advance.

[edit] Version differences

While Super Mario All-Stars contained ports that almost identically corresponded to their NES counterparts with the only real change being an audio and graphical upgrade, Super Mario Advance contains numerous differences from its previous incarnations. Here are the primary differences from Super Mario Advance and the NES version. For the differences between Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic and the NES version of Super Mario Bros. 2, please refer to the respective article for each game.

In this version, it is possible to pick up Birdo's bow and carry it around. The player could either put it back on Birdo's head by throwing it at her, or simply throw it away. However, this will not work on pink Birdos or Robirdo.

Graphics for the GBA version are based off of Super Mario All-Stars, and between both versions, there are slight changes in the GBA version, such as the spot pattern on Toad's head.

All main bosses and the four playable characters now have voices.

Two bosses have been changed. In the NES version, Mouser appears at the end of 1-3, and 3-3. Tryclyde makes two appearances, one at the end of 2-3, and 6-3. In SMA, a new boss named Robirdo has replaced Mouser as the boss of 3-3. Robirdo is essentially a giant mechanical Birdo that rolls on wheels, shoots larger eggs, and can shake the ground. Mouser replaces the 6-3 Tryclyde. This is not the first time the bosses have been changed. In Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic, Mouser has three appearances, the already aforementioned 1-3 and 3-3 appearance, and also at the end of 5-3. When Nintendo was converting Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic to Super Mario Brothers 2, it replaced the third Mouser with a new crab boss, Clawgrip.

The character selection screen is now different. In the NES version, the player would select the four players (Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, and Toad) in a single row; now whichever one he selects is center focus, with the characters now being chosen like a revolving door. Also, the four characters now have star ratings (ratings are based on a one to five scale) for three categories: Power, Speed, and Jump. Note that none of the characters have stats with a one-star rating.

The very first opening segment of 1-1 has been changed to include a large Shyguy and a platform that springs when a player steps on it.

There are now what can be best described as super enemies and vegetables. These enemies and vegetables are giant-sized in compared to the rest of the game’s sprites.

In the original, a player could gain a floating heart that would restore a hit point of health by wiping out several enemies at once with a single vegetable. In the GBA version, they are much more plentiful, and can even be pulled up in vegetable patches and can be seen floating freely in the air.

The timing has been changed on the bonus chance game to win extra lives. The player can also bet more than one coin at a time and has the 7 icon which was present in the SNES version but not the NES.

There are now three mushrooms per level, which gives the player five hit points rather than four.

There are several new vases spread throughout the game that lead to new, single room screens not present in the original.

Points are awarded for every enemy wiped out, root upturned or coins collected.

The inside of a vase looks completely different and has new music.

Koopa shells are larger (and more pixelated). When they hit a wall, they bounce back now instead of disappearing. Also, when they defeat enemies, hearts always appear. Finally, shells can now hurt the player.

There are several places where additional enemies have been added to individual levels.

In the NES version, a player is bound to whichever character he choses to complete the level until that level is complete. In All-Stars, this was changed so when a player dies, he may select another character to try to complete the level with. This change was retained for the GBA version as well.

When a player dies and restarts a level, he starts fully small, and must gain heart pieces to grow in stature. In the NES/SNES version, when the player restarts a level after dying, his hit points are fully present.

Five red Ace Coins have been added to each level, and when all five are obtained the player gets a 1-UP and a red mark appears on the level map indicating that all coins were collected for that level.

Some 1-Ups’ locations have been changed, and some include a bubble which takes three strikes by either vegetables or enemies to make the 1-ups accessible. Also, 1-Ups are more plentiful.

After finishing Super Mario Bros. 2, a new mode called the Yoshi Challenge becomes available, where the goal is to collect two Yoshi eggs per level. There is also one Mushroom in each level that gives the player an extra hit point.

A save system has been added.

There is now a special item that looks like a basket. It can be found when pulling up a mushroom block. This basket releases one of three items- a heart, a star, or a bomb. These can be useful if timed to get the desired item

The Japanese version lists the cast exactly the same as the English version as in previous incarnations, except Princess is Peach, and Toad is Kinopio. The rest of the names are identical to the other releases, except Shyguy is now properly Shy Guy, and Sub Con is now Subcon. Ostro and Birdo's names have also been fixed. In the English release, Kinopio is restored to Toad, and a few additional touchups were done to this version's names, including changing Hoopstar to Hoopster, and Clawglip to Clawgrip (due to the interchangeable nature of the letters "l" and "r" in Japanese).

Like most other Mario games, now the enemies do not appear after being killed until the player exits and reenters the playing area, while they would reappear regardless after being killed in previous versions of the game.

Palette changes for some enemies: Hoopsters are yellow instead of red, Pidgets are purple instead of blue, their carpets are red instead of yellow, and Autobombs are grey instead of blue.