Welcome to Old Games That Don’t Suck Thursday (or Saturday, since we’re running late). Each week I’ll write about a game that somehow influenced by life as a game developer and which I can totally recommend to you because the game is flippin’ sweet. It also has to be old or at least forgotten about until recently.
(For the purists I am sorry I posted the SNES version youtube video and not the famicom or NES version).
Super Mario Bros 2 is the best game ever made. This is not a debatable fact and I not going to defend my argument because everyone knows its true or probably is on their way to realizing it is true.
SMB2 started it’s life as Doki Doki Panic on the Famicom in Japan many years before it released in North America on the NES and several more times on various systems. The game was not even Mario themed at the time and didn’t have any intention of being Mario. Once it hit the West it was reskinned as a Mario platformer which is one reason it is so different from the other Mario games.
And so tasty.
Unique game mechanics and object interaction is what makes this game flow. Picking up things is the name of the game and what you do with those objects are up to you. What’s significant here is that everything can be picked up, more or less. Bombs, enemies, and turnips all have an interaction. You can ride enemies, pick them up, and even hurl them at other enemies.
The worlds come in a handful of flavours and consist of a whole lot of running, jumping, and enemy puzzles. As you advance through the game the
What’s a distraction though is that Mario is traditionally just a tight platformer with a focus in great powerups and teaspooned-sized unique level design. On the otherhand SMB2 is very focused on those game mechanics and making use of large, sometimes maze-like levels with puzzle solving being a key focus. That’s a good reason why many (yes many, check the internet) HATE SMB2 which is shameful, of course. They expect the Mario lifestyle and instead get Mario in a new dimension.
On one hand I can tolerate this. Mario is all about being Mario. But on the otherhand it would be incredibly ignorant to toss aside this brilliant title. It’s a solid game and if you can get past the OMG MARIO factor it’s worth every penny and every minute of your time.
It’s such a unique title that shines in all of it’s glory. From the negative world to the clever bomb puzzles and the HUGE list if enemies… it’s incredible how overlooked it is.
So go ahead, scoff at my unrelenting love. But just know that this game means more to me than any other movie or book. This is the perfect game.