Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins Game by Nintendo Reviewed by Philip Wesley Save: Battery Save, 3 Slots Released: 1992 Works with: Game Boy Pocket/Color/Advance/SP ESRB Rated: K-A or E Rating Descriptions: Kids & Adults/Everyone - Contains Comic Mischief Quick Opinion: Own **************************************************************************** Opening Snide Remarks: The sequel to Super Mario Land is finally here! The plot of this game takes place directly after the original Super Mario Land. It appears that Tatanga was a hired gun working for Wario. Who is Wario? Wario is a bit like an obese Mario who has been jealous of Mario's success since they were very young. So, Wario decided to take over Mario's castle on Mario Island, hypnotize all of Mario's Friends to attack Mario, hide the six golden coins that open the gates to Mario's castle around the island, and hire some nasty bosses to stop Mario from ever getting those coins. So, Mario must make it through about 32 levels in six different "zones" to recover his castle and kick Wario to the curb. **************************************************************************** Gameplay Description: Super Mario Land 2 plays a bit like Super Mario World but with a more eclectic variety of areas. When you start out, you go through a short "tutorial" level where you can learn a few basics about the game. The point of each level is to get from the start to finish door in each level. Some levels have bosses that require you to jump on their head three times. Mario has a few different powers in this game. The standard mushroom and fire flower are available, the extra life hearts from Super Mario Land makes an appearance, and you collect coins to play little mini games for extra lives. Collecting 100 coins gets you NOTHING. Killing 100 enemies gets you a star. When you have the star, killing 5 or more enemies gets you extra lives. There are a few new powers in this game as well. SPACE MARIO: Mario has a space suit for a few levels. You can jump really high or float in space. Nothing is said about what that does to Mario's fingernails. Bunny Mario: Get a carrot and Mario can hop repeatedly or float downwards. You also jump higher as Bunny Mario. Bubble Mario: If you see a Bubble Blowing Hippo, jump into the bubble and float onwards and upwards! Mario has some new tricks as well, when Mario is big or has fireballs, you can press down while jumping to spin jump. This is similar to the spin jump in Super Mario World and it can break blocks below you. In a few of the levels, there are hidden exits and those take you to bonus levels or shortcuts. There are bricks that can only be destroyed by fireballs and other such gimmicks. The areas you play through vary greatly from the previous Mario games. In this game you will travel in space, the belly of a whale, a giant tree, a giant bee hive, a level made entirely out of "Lego" bricks, and a bunch of Halloween themed levels. The game is actually a bit more forgiving than the previous Mario game in that lives are fairly easy to get in this game. You can spend the coins to play mini-games involving a crane game or a "guess where the electricity will go" game. The money games involve stopping a wheel to earn a prize. This is a much longer game than the previous Super Mario Land title and it is just as fun. It does feel a good deal easier than the first game though. Liked: Lots of variety and some interesting level design. Some pretty great new power ups Hated: It is a bit easier than the previous game. **************************************************************************** Graphics Description: Mario is HUGE in this game, and the level of detail has gone up dramatically in Super Mario Land 2. The enemies are pretty comical and the game just looks gorgeous compared to other GB games at the time. I have no complaints in this regard. You can even see a difference between the different forms of Mario. When you have a fire flower, Mario has a feather in his cap. In some levels, there are enemies themed for the level and only for that level. So we see Goombas with Jason masks, and strange enemies like Bees and swimming Cow Fishes. The map areas change depending on if you found the hidden areas or not. Overall, a great looking game. The enemies are hilarious and I love everything about the graphics in this game. The Cannon Pigs are my favorite enemies actually. The ones that show up in the Space Zone. Also, Evil Lord Tatanga's son shows up as a boss. Awesome. Liked: This is a great looking game! Everything is detailed and wonderful! Hated: I suppose that I could complain about something? The title screen is not very detailed. **************************************************************************** Sound/Music Description: Now, the music in Super Mario Land 2 is reasonably catchy; but pales in comparison to the previous game. In fact, the music in Super Mario Land 2 feels more annoying and out of place than anything else. This one is composed by Kazumi Totaka and some of the compositions feel like they should be in some other game. The sound effects match what is happening and the noises the bosses make is pretty cool. Nothing really to write home about in Super Mario Land 2. Liked: Some of the sound effects, a few of the compositions are catchy and great. In particular, the Pumpkin Zone one. Hated: A lot of the compositions are more annoying than anything else. **************************************************************************** Play Control/Game Design: The ability to push down while jumping to perform a spin jump is just GREAT. Pressing up while you jump lets you jump higher, the powers work well, the level designs are great, and the settings are interesting and entertaining. The only problem with the game is that it is remarkably easy until you get to the last level. Mario's Castle is actually where they ramp up the difficulty. The majority of the bosses are really easy to beat. One of them -the Tree Boss- can be beaten by standing in one corner and jumping, then moving to the other corner and jumping. Repeat that one more time and the boss is dead. The bosses do not really offer much challenge, especially if you have the Fire Flower. I would say that the Fire Flower is a bit overpowered. The game is pretty uneven in regards to the bosses and levels. If it was not easy enough, there is actually an Easy Mode included in the game by pressing SELECT at the file selection screen. I love the level design though and I just wish the game were a bit more challenging. Oh, the use of money to play mini-games was a bit weak. Liked: Creative level design, every Mario game should let you spin jump by pressing DOWN in mid jump while big. Seriously, it's a better idea than a seperate button to do a spin jump. Hated: Uneven challenge, pretty easy. Mini-Games come off as lazy additions to the game. **************************************************************************** Improve: Add a few more hidden levels that are harder. RIYL: Super Mario Land, or Kirby's Dreamland. **************************************************************************** Final Words: Super Mario Land 2 is a good game and a decent sequel to Super Mario Land 1. It really showcases the capabilities of the Nintendo Game Boy and is a testament to creative level design. Some of the areas in the game would be excellent in a new Super Mario Bros. game. I also appreciated the themed Goombas. I think that Super Mario Land 2 is worth buying and worth investing your time to play. The big problem that Super Mario Land 2 has is that it is rather easy, and the music compositions are more annoying than anything else. It does suffer for those flaws; but do not let those deter you from playing this game. **************************************************************************** Score Gameplay: **** Graphics: ***** Sound/Music: ** Play Control/Game Design: *** Value: *** Star Total: 51% Personal Opinion Merit: 21% Final Score: 72% Letter Grade: B ****************************************************************************