So THIS is the Super Mario Bros. 2 game that was never brought to the states either because it was too tough or too much like SMB1, right? All I can technically say is… good move.
STORY: If you’ve played one Mario game, you’ve pretty much know the scenario; Bowser, the King of the Koopa, has once again kidnapped Princess Peach and it’s up to Mario (or Luigi) to save her and the Mushroom Kingdom… again. 5/10
GRAPHICS: Hey! I thought I was playing a sequel! This is just Super Mario Bros 1 with different-looking blocks! Actually, all things considered, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. After all, the early Mega Man games had the same Megaman sprites throughout the 6 NES and 5 Game Boy releases. So I guess this is where Capcom got that sprite recycling idea from. So in any case, it doesn’t matter if they look the same. SMB1 graphics are still good for their time. 8/10
SOUND: The typical SMB soundtrack. Archaic in modern days, but back then, they were decent enough and catchy enough. Of course, the sound effects are still classic that they are/were used in some capacity in later Mario games. 9/10
GAMEPLAY: The game plays well… like SMB1, which is good because control in that game was responsive. They added a couple of bells and whistles to differentiate the game from its predecessor, such as poison mushrooms, reverse warp zones, red pirahnas, and wind. While a 2-player mode is missing, you do have the option of playing as either Mario or Luigi, both with their own attributes that offers a unique challenge (Luigi jumps higher while Mario has better traction.) 10/10
CHALLENGE: The various worlds in this game range from moderately difficult to nigh impossible. There are times when I want to break every single piece of Mario merchandise I have (which fortunately is few) in sheer frustration of not being able to get past point A to point B. I generally don’t mind a hard game, but this is more than hard. That doesn’t necessarily explain to me why this game never got here. 10/10
REPLAY VALUE: The replay value is somewhat minimal… yes, I said minimal. You’ll probably want to quit if you’re frustrated with the challenge of SMB2 or you may never want to look back if you actually manage to beat the game. It really depends on opinion, but in my case, I would walk away from this game as far as possible. 5/10
OVERALL: This game is hard… real hard. But other than, it is essentially Super Mario Bros with new levels. These days, you’d be lucky to find a import copy or even a emulated version of this game. But if you do find it, give it a try. 8/10
dtm666 