Game Review: Super Mario Brothers 2 for NES

Part two of our three part review on the Super Mario Brothers Trilogy for NES!

The Vintage Game Spot Rating: 73 out of 100

Super Mario Brothers 2 is the 1988 sequel to the hugely popular Super Mario Brothers. It is actually based on a retooled non-Mario game from Japan called Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panikku, which is why it bears so little resemblence to Super Marios 1 or 3.

There are a few extra characters compared to its predecessor, namely Toad and Princess Peach.  Each character has its own special ability (e.g. the Princess can fly and Luigi can jump higher) and there is much less emphasis on shooting the bad guys. Instead you pick them up, or pick up turnips or bombs planted in the ground, and throw them at other bad guys, bricks, or the main enemy at the end.

This game was listed as #18 on the 100 Best NES Games by IGN.

Paul’s Review: 75 out of 100

I didn’t like this version as much as the first or third Super Mario Brothers but it is still a very good game. The graphics were somewhat lackluster, but still a huge improvement over Super Mario Brothers. The music was also a lot better.

I did like that you had more characters to choose from, but wished there was more shooting. The things you picked up were slightly hard to aim when throwing and there was no scoring system.

It is, however, a very fun game to play, and being a member of the Super Mario Trilogy for NES gives it instant fame and credibility. Game play is easy to pick up on, even without a manual. The game as a whole is challenging and engaging.

Aaron’s Review: 70 out of 100

Good game also a classic. Wasn’t as popular as the first and third games but that’s pretty much how it goes with any trilogy. But still a lot of fun.Mario was a good character couldn’t jump very high but still all right. He’s just the classic character in all these games. Luigi is one of the better characters. He can jump a lot higher than any of the others but when jumping he’s a little harder to control. Toad was alright about the same as Mario in the game: nothing to special. The princess was in my opinion was the best character because she could float and was a lot easer to control when she is in the air than Luigi.

This was a great game over all. the graphics are a lot better than the first Super Mario Brothers but not as good as Super Mario Bros. 3. One thing I really had fun with in this game is when you have to battle the Yoshi looking creatures at the end of each world but I never really understood the eagle head that you have to go through after killing him, but that’s the Japanese for you thinking they know how Americans think and what we want to see.