Loves It or Hates It! 7.31.10: Super Mario Bros 2 (The Lost Levels)

Posted by Justin Weinblatt on 07.31.2010

This week, 411's Justin Weinblatt takes a look at the Mario that never was. Was this a worthy addition to the Mario canon, or should the Lost Levels have stayed lost?

Hello and welcome back to Loves It or HATES IT!!! You might have noticed that I took a brief hiatus. It's tough finding time to play through all these games and writing a decent article! But, I'm back and ready to pass judgment on another game. First though, lets see how you guys felt about Street Fighter IV.

[Reader Comments]

You should've added a WE HATES THE "DLC" Costume Packs (320 Microsoft points for 124 kilobytes each. Really?). I AM going to know when you're trying to double dip, Capcom.

By the way, what do you think of the Blazblue games?

Posted By: WadeMcG (Guest)  on July 15, 2010 at 11:53 PM
The way I see it, if you pay for the DLC you deserve to have your money stolen.  As for Blazblue, I haven't had a chance to try it, but I have played Guilty Gear.  My impression of Guilty Gear is that it's an interesting mix of the playstyles of SF2 and MvC2.  I probably won't get Blaz Blue, because the community is sooooo hardcore, and I don't have enough time to get good enough to play competitively online.  Character design is fantastic though.

Hates it

I've never liked the SF series and always get mad when every video game site in existence has a massive boner for it. To me, the series itself is not that great and this game isn't either. It's a fighting game, big whoop. It's never showed me anything interesting in comparison to other games. There's no point in buying it anyway since there'll most likely be about 239 re-hashes of it at the rip off price of 30 bucks if you've bought a previous one. I'll wait for MvC3 which looks much better before I ever play this game.

Posted By: SHADE (Guest)  on July 16, 2010 at 01:58 AM
Street Fighter 2 MADE the fighting game genre. Any other 2-D fighter (with the possible exception of Smash) is just running around in Street Fighter's playground.
Fighting games are relics from an arcade filled past. Joysticks are necessary. The d-pad of the dual shock is better than xbox's but it still isn't good enough for fighting games. Plus, your left thumb gets killed.

Posted By: Imploder (Guest)  on July 16, 2010 at 11:00 PM
You can just buy an arcade stick.  It's not that expensive compared to what you'd pay for a guitar, or any other specialized controller.
Loves It.

The fighting genre gets a bad rep for not innovating. Not sure how it gets bogged for this when video games themselves haven't evolved in the past ten years or so. SSFIV offers exactly what fans of the genre want; a mix of depth, balance, and variety with a faceplate of "pretty" to draw players in. Calling it SF2 Mach 2.0 is like calling Mario Galaxy "Super Mario 64 2.0." It's true, but so what? Evolution is a slow process, and no one is bashing every other game out there for failure to truly innovate.

Posted By: Weston Smith (Guest)  on July 18, 2010 at 12:49 AM
I get your point, but I think fighting games have evolved WAY slower than any other genre.  Since the time SF2 came out, we've gone from Doom to Rage.  From Final Fantasy 6 to Final Fantasy 13.  From Super Mario World, to Super Mario Galaxy.  It's hard to say that Street Fighter is keeping pace.
Loves it.

I agree that not every game has to be some monumental leap forward. You know what to expect from a Street Fighter game, and as long as it's well made, balanced, polished, and fun (to fighting game fans that is, no one gives a shit if someone who only plays FPS games or RPGs doesn't like it, it's not made for you anyway), than it's great. Mortal Kombat tried to "evolve" and it failed. Tekken has been the same for years, and so has Dead or Alive and Virtua Fighter. That's just how fighting games are, each new installment will throw in some new features, mechanics, modes and/or characters, and for a hardcore fighting game fan like me, that's fine. If it's not broken, don't fix it. And SHADE, if you "get mad" whenever a VIDEO GAME magazine covers a VIDEO GAME and gives it good reviews, then you need to chill. You must not have much going on in your life if that upsets you. Street Fighter is, and always will be, one of the most profitable, influential, and well-liked franchises in video game history, so you'd better just go ahead and get used to it. It will save you a lot of pathetic, wasted rage. Enjoy what you enjoy, and let others enjoy what they enjoy. You getting mad about it will change absolutely nothing.

Posted By: SeanAltly (Guest)  on July 18, 2010 at 04:53 PM
[/Reader Comments]

I understand that there is a sizable community that is content with a few alterations every few years. Until recently, I was part of that community, but after a while I got bored. I was hoping that SF4 would be more of an evolution than an update, and was disappointed. It seems 411 readers agree. By my count its 6-5 in favor of HATES.

WE HATES THE STREET FIGHTER 4

Remember, that in this column, I'll make my decision, and you guys vote. Since this is my column, I'm sort of like the President. This means that you're going to need a 2/3 majority to overturn my decision. With that in mind, here is the scorecards so far.

The Scorecard
We Loves...
Donkey Kong Country! (411reader override)
Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker

We Hates...
Street Fighter 4

Now, onto the next contestant.

This week we're going to take a look at Super Mario Brothers 2. I'm sure most of you know the saga of Super Mario Bros. 2, but for the unenlightened, here goes. Super Mario Brothers 2 was the sequel to Super Mario Brothers in Japan. Nintendo of America decided that the game was too hard, and too derivative for American audiences. Thus, a game called Doki Doki panic was slightly edited, and it became our Super Mario Bros 2. Most American gamers had no idea that they weren't playing the original Super Mario Bros. 2.

Years later, Super Mario All-Stars was released for the Super Nintendo. This compilation featured a game known as the Lost Levels. This was a remade version of the original (Japanese) Super Mario Bros 2, with updated visuals and decreased difficulty. Another version of Super Mario Bros 2 would be released as part of Super Mario Bros Deluxe on the Game Boy Color.

It was not until the release of the Wii that American (and European/Australian/South American etc) gamers would have a chance to play through the unaltered Super Mario Bros. 2. Was it worth the wait, or did Nintendo make the right choice in not releasing this game on our shores?

Loves It or HATES IT!
Super Mario Bros 2 (The Lost Levels)


We Loves the Super Mario Brotherses 2ssss... WE HATES THE LOST LEVELSSSSS!!!

We Loves the Lost Levels- Super Mario Brothers was years ahead of its time when it came out. The game sparked the revival of the gaming industry, which was thought to be on its last legs. People played the game, loved the game, and wanted more. Nintendo gave them more, at least in Japan.

Super Mario Brothers 2 is more of the Mario you know. The bricks are breakable, shells slide along the ground, and goombas are still squishy. There is nothing new here, but when the original game was so great to begin with, who cares?

WE HATES THE LOST LEVELS- The Lost Levels is essentially Mario Brothers, with the difficulty cranked to 11. The game constantly assaults you with nigh impossible jumps, power ups that hang just out of reach, squids that hover in midair to screw up your jumps, and so on.

Now, there is nothing wrong with a hard game. When they make the next Battletoads (it's coming) I'll be disappointed if it isn't insanely hard. However, the thing that made Super Mario Bros. great was its accessibility, and breezy fun. The increased difficulty of its sequel goes against this.



We Loves The Graphics- Like its predecessor, Super Mario Brothers 2 looks great. Nintendo went with the old, if it aint broke don't fix it philosophy. The various enemies looks as great as they did before, as does Starman, and the obnoxious toads.

WE HATES THE GRAPHICS- I seriously had to play the two games back to back several times before I noticed any differences between the two game. I have compiled a list of differences here.

1.Clouds have faces.
2.Bushes have faces.
3.Mushrooms have faces.

That's basically it. If anyone noticed something I didn't, feel free to let me know. This is just lazy. Pure and simple.


Not much has changed in the Mushroom Kingdom.

We Loves The Gameplay- The Lost Levels adds a few new quirks to the classic formula. In this game, the two brothers have unique features. Luigi can jump higher, but has less traction, while Mario can't jump as high, but doesn't slide on the ground like his brother. These subtle differences helped add some variety to the gameplay. The two brothers would retain their unique attributes, even in the most recent Mario game, Super Mario Galaxy 2.

In addition the the differences between the brothers, the game makers made bouncing off enemies a larger part of the gameplay. Unlike the first game, gamers would now frequently need to bounce off the backs of turtles to progress through the game. Likewise, hidden blocks would gain a great deal of importance.

WE HATES THE GAMEPLAY- I hate to be a broken record, but there is really nothing new to be found here. The few new elements, such as backwards warp zones, random gusts of wind, and springs that catapult you far above the screen all detract from the game. The variation between the bros is nice, but very minor. Personally, I'd rather have the 2 player mode found in the original game.


Mario will need some hidden blocks to save the Princess.

We Loves the Difficulty- The main draw of Super Mario Bros 2, is its difficulty. This was a tough game that provided a challenge to even the most hardcore players. Gamers would have to make it past vast bottomless pits by hopping across piranha infested pipes, while avoiding flying turtles and squids. It's a challenge worthy of hardcore gamers.

WE HATES THE DIFFICULTY- As I said before, difficulty is great when appropriate. Ninja Gaiden games should be tough, Mario games should not be. But the real problem is not that the Lost Levels is tough. It's unfair.

Take for instance a situation I faced about halfway through the game. Gleefully, I discovered that I could travel over the end of level flagpole. I did so, and excitedly ran to see what secrets might await me. Eventually I came to a warp zone. Only problem was, the warp zone took you back to world one. My options were to take the warp, or throw myself into a bottomless pit. The game was punishing me for trying to explore. This is simply ridiculous and unfair.

Another problem is the game's continue system. You have three lives to complete a world. If you can't make it, you have to go back to the beginning of the world. There are 1-Up Mushrooms, but they are scarce, and hard to find. Coins are also less than plentiful. This makes situations like the backwards warp zone all the more frustrating.

One final note on the difficulty. To see all the game has to offer, you have to beat the game eight times. Pretty ridiculous.


The game that would become Super Mario Bros 2 in America.

We Loves The Remakes- Perhaps Super Mario Bros 2 did need a few tweaks to its difficulty. Fortunately, those tweaks were made. The SNES remake, as part of Super Mario All-Stars, allowed players to save at any point, allowing them to restart from the beginning of a level when they lost all of their lives, rather than having to restart a world. So, by the time the game reached American shores, the game had already been improved.

WE HATES THE REMAKES- When you take the difficulty of the game, what are you left with? The level design is weak, and the graphics/music are recycled. If you really want to play a Mario game, you're better off with any of the far superior entries in the series.



The Verdict
Super Mario Bros. 2 (AKA the Lost Levels) is a hard game to really judge. The difficulty makes the game very frustrating. Ironically, the difficulty is also the only reason to play this entry of the series.

If you've read everything up to this point, you've already figured out that there isn't anything new to be found in this game. Aside from creepy faces on clouds and Luigi's slippery shoes, there's almost nothing novel about this game. To make matters worse, the level design isn't very strong. It's nothing but a series of difficult jumps and inconveniently placed enemies strung together.

The game is challenging, but not very rewarding. In games like Mega Man or Battletoads, I was driven forward by a desire to see the next level, and (in the case of Mega Man) gain new powers. When playing the Lost Levels, my only motivation was to get through the game so I could write this column.

There are plenty of gamers that like hard games just because they're hard. For these gamers, there are plenty of more challenging and more rewarding games. For Mario fans, there are several far better entries in this series. Unless you happen to fall into both of those categories, there is no reason to play this game. So...


WE HATES THE LOST LEVELS!!!

Well, that's my take on the matter. Am I correct in my assessment, or am I just not man enough for the Lost Levels? Voice your own opinion by posting "Loves It" or "HATES IT" in the comments section.

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Till next week.