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''Super Mario Bros.'' is a Videogame produced by Nintendo in 1985 . Universally considered a classic of the medium, ''Super Mario Bros.'' was one of the first side-scrolling Platform Game s of its kind, introducing players to huge, bright, expansive worlds that changed the way video games were created. ''Super Mario Bros.'' is considered by The Guinness Book Of World Records as the best-selling video game of all time, and was largely responsible for the initial success of the Famicom and Nintendo Entertainment System . It has inspired countless imitators and was one of Shigeru Miyamoto 's most influential early successes. The game starred Mario , who eventually became Nintendo's mascot, and who was at one time more recognizable among American children than Mickey Mouse . GAMEPLAY The player takes the role of Mario , or in the case of a second player, Mario's brother Luigi . The ultimate object is to race through the Mushroom Kingdom , evade or eliminate Bowser 's forces, and save the Princess . Mario's primary attack is simply jumping on top of his enemies, which kills the mushroom traitors, known as Goomba s (''Kuribou'' in Japanese), and sends the turtle soldiers known as Koopa Troopa s (''Nokonoko'' in Japanese) into their shells. Mario can then kick these shells into other enemies, which will conveniently dispatch them; but conversely, kicked shells can bounce back off of walls or other vertical obstructions and hit him. Jumping on enough enemies in succession, or kicking a shell into enough enemies in succession (combos), results in double points earned with each enemy killed, eventually earning Mario a 1-up , an extra life and another chance to pass the level. Some enemies, though, such as spineys, can only be killed by fireballs or shell impact; stomping them will hurt Mario. Aiding him in his quest are several power-ups, including the Super Mushroom , which turns Mario into Super Mario , doubling his size; the Fire Flower , which turns Super Mario into Fiery Mario , allowing him to throw fireballs; Starman , which gives him temporary invincibility; and the 1-up Mushroom . Mario can be hurt if he touches an enemy. If he takes a hit from an enemy as Super Mario or Fiery Mario, he simply reverts back to regular Mario and the game continues. However, if he takes a hit as regular Mario, falls down a pit (regardless of status), or if the time clock runs out, he loses a life, and starts again. The point where Mario continues depends on how far he ran through the level before dying; either from the very beginning, or at an invisible "checkpoint" halfway through the level. There are no checkpoints in castles or in world 8. at the end of each world.]] The game consists of eight worlds with four levels in each. Though each world is substantially different, there are basic similarities: typically the first sub-world is a generic above-ground (overworld) level, the second is in an underground dungeon or underwater (or in the overworld with a unique challenge), the third is a series of platforms suspended high in the sky, and the fourth is always a fortress or castle. The third and sixth worlds take place at Night , and all other worlds take place during the Day . At the end of each castle level, Mario fights "Bowser" (who, until the final level, is actually a lesser enemy disguised as Bowser) across a bridge over a pool of Lava . In the later worlds, Bowser throws Hammer s as well as occasional fire breaths. Bowser may be defeated in one of two ways; either by touching the axe at the edge of the bridge (thereby dropping Bowser into the lava), or, as Fiery Mario, throwing fireballs at him to defeat him directly and reveals what enemy is in disguise. At the end of each world save the last, Mario is greeted with the words, "Thank you Mario, but our princess is in another castle!", which became a popular quote among gamers. After beating the game, the player is given the option to start the game again in "'Hard' Mode," where all Goombas are replaced by Buzzy Beetle s (Koopa Troopa-like enemies who cannot be killed by fireballs), and all enemies walk faster. In addition, the elevator-style lifts are about 60% their original size throughout, as opposed to the original size until world 5-3 and 60% after. POPULARITY The game sold approximately 40 million copies worldwide, which still stands as a Guinness World Record . It has been estimated that this game, next to '' Tetris '', is the Bestselling Game of all time. Although the game was popular enough on its own, mass distribution is attributable to the popularity of the NES itself. ''Super Mario Bros.'' was most often Packaged With The Console (usually in a dual cartridge with the shooting game '' Duck Hunt ''), just as '' Tetris '' was packaged with the Game Boy . '' Super Mario Bros. 3 '' is often cited as the best selling non-packaged game of all time. The game was turned into a live-action 1993 version of the film that was produced by Hollywood Pictures. ''Super Mario Bros.'' is often cited as the inspiration for many game designers; an example is the inspiration for the designers at Id Software when they developed '' Commander Keen ''. (''Commander Keen'' actually began as a PC Port of '' Super Mario Bros. 3 ''.) It has also been critically acclaimed in retrospect; IGN named it #1 on their top 100 video games list twice (both in 2003 and 2005 ), and it is one of only two games (along with '' Elite '') to receive a 10/10 score in their "retro reviews" retrospective series. In February 2006, '' (83). Sequels and spin-offs ese box art for ''Super Mario World'' with ''SMB4'' subtitle]]The success of ''Super Mario Bros.'' led Nintendo to choose Mario to be its mascot and eventually resulted in several TV Series and a Movie . Mario himself became more recognizable among American children than Mickey Mouse . The game's popularity eventually led to dozens of sequels and spinoffs. There are three direct sequels to this game on the NES platform:
In addition, there are further sequels bearing the term "Super Mario Bros." that weren't made for the NES:
Soundtrack The soundtrack, composed by long-time Nintendo composer Koji Kondo , is often Sampled . While many bands have sampled the ''Super Mario Bros.'' soundtrack or otherwise recorded songs inspired by the game and its soundtrack, a ''Super Mario Bros.''-inspired single by Japanese band The Tongari Kids , titled "B-Dash", reached as high as sixth place on the Japanese music charts. ALTERNATE VERSIONS As one of Nintendo's most popular games, ''Super Mario Bros.'' has been re-released and remade numerous times, ranging from an arcade version released soon before the original NES release, to its inclusion as an unlockable game in the GameCube game '' Animal Crossing ''. Vs. Super Mario Bros. The first of these alternate versions, ''Vs. Super Mario Bros.'', is nearly a separate game in its own right. This game, one of several games made for Nintendo's NES-based ''.) The player begins with only two lives rather than the standard three, and 256 coins are required to earn an extra life, as opposed to 100 in all other versions. These changes have a net effect of making ''Vs. Super Mario Bros.'' much more difficult than the original ''Super Mario Bros.'' As with many older arcade games, it isn't clear exactly when this game was released; while the arcade boards themselves are stamped " 1985 ," the Killer List of Video Games and the MAME game listing list the game as having been released in 1986 . All Night Nippon Super Mario Bros. ''All Night Nippon Super Mario Bros.'' is a version of Super Mario Bros. with graphics based upon a radio show, called ' All Night Nippon ', that was very popular in Japan in 1986 . It was released for the Famicom Disk System . The game, which was only released in Japan, was a special promotional version that was given away by the '' (Japanese version), and ''Vs. Super Mario Bros.'' The enemies and the mushroom retainers at the end of Bowser 's forts are replaced with Japanese music idols, famous recording artists, and DJs, as well as other people related to 'All Night Nippon.' It was published by Fuji TV , the same company that published '' Doki Doki Panic '' (which was later remade into ''Super Mario USA'', a.k.a. '' Super Mario Bros. 2 ''). Multicart versions While ''Super Mario Bros.'' is the best-selling video game of all time, one of the most common versions of the game is actually an alternate version, a Multicart including both ''Super Mario Bros.'' and '' Duck Hunt ''. This version, first released in North America in November 1988, was only available packed in with the "NES Action Set," a bundle including the NES, two controllers, the Zapper Lightgun , and the ''Super Mario Bros.''/''Duck Hunt'' double cartridge. In December of that year, Nintendo also released a three-game multicart, including ''Super Mario Bros.'', ''Duck Hunt'', and ''World Class Track Meet''. This three-game multicart was only included in the "NES Power Set," a bundle including everything in the "Action Set" above, but with the Power Pad and the triple-game cartridge in place of the double-game cartridge. Super Mario All-Stars See Also: Super Mario All-Stars In 1993, Nintendo released an enhanced SNES compilation titled ''Super Mario All-Stars''. It includes all of the ''Super Mario'' games released for the NES / Famicom . The version of ''Super Mario Bros.'' included in the compilation had improved graphics, redrawn to match the SNES's greater graphical capabilities and a save game feature. Several glitches from the original NES release were also fixed. This compilation also includes later ''Super Mario'' games, including '', also includes '' Super Mario World ''. Super Mario Bros. Deluxe See Also: Super Mario Bros. Deluxe In 1999, ''Super Mario Bros.'' was released on the '') as an unlockable. It also was compatible with the Game Boy Printer . However, the game did not feature any upgraded visuals, and since the screen resolution of the Game Boy Color was smaller than the NES, the view distance of the player is reduced. To compensate, players can press up and down to see above and below the player. Pressing select during the game also places Mario/Luigi in the middle or off to the left of the screen so that player can see well. Classic NES Series .]] See Also: Classic NES Series In early 2004, Nintendo re-released the game on the Game Boy Advance in Japan as part of their Famicom Minis collection and in the U.S. as part of the Classic NES Series . Unlike previous re-releases, these versions contain no graphical updates; indeed, they are running in Emulation . ''Super Mario Bros.'' was one of the best-selling of these rereleases; according to the NPD Group (which tracks game sales in North America), this re-released version of ''Super Mario Bros.'' was the best-selling Game Boy Advance game in June 2004, and the GBA's sixth-best-selling game overall. Differences between this and the original are that the screen images appear a bit squashed, due to the widescreen format of the GBA screen, and the high score is saved to the Cartridge . In 2005, Nintendo released this game again for the GBA as part of its 20th Anniversary with a special edition, which sold approximately 876,000 units. Other versions ''Super Mario Bros.'' is one of the NES games featured in the Gamecube game '' Animal Crossing ''. Nintendo released an official way of unlocking the original game, Mario Bros. in 2004 by the series 4 e-reader Animal Crossing set. Currently the only known way to unlock the game is by use of a game modification ("cheating") device. THE MINUS WORLD See Also: Minus world Minus World is an infinite water level (with a layout similar to that of Levels 2-2 and 7-2). Most likely the result of a glitch rather than intentionally created, this level is sometimes claimed to be a myth. It does exist, although it can be difficult to reach. It is accessible in the world 1-2. You need to reach the pipe that brings you to the surface, but not entering it. Instead, jump on it and destroy some blocks above you, but don't destroy the rightmost block. Now, go to the leftmost part of the pipe, without falling off of it. Now look to the left side of the screen, crouch, and jump while ducking. Hook this jump to right. If done correctly, it allows Mario to move through the wall to where the level's warp zone is located. There, the first and third pipe lead to the Minus World. (Incidentally, the second pipe leads to World 5) Once Minus World is reached, it is impossible to escape, and Mario is destined to die by running out of time (assuming he survives the standard water-level obstacles as well). The reason for this is because the pipe at the end of the level leads to the very beginning, instead of dry land, and therefore, the level loops, or repeats itself. The name was created by a glitch, and since it is not a normal level, the name is literally ''(nothing)''-1, creating the effect of -1. Technically speaking, the Minus World is world 36-1. World 36-1 in the Japanese Famicom Disk System version of the game is considerably different and has three levels, after which the player is returned to the title screen as though he or she completed the game. This glitch has been fixed in the ''Super Mario All-Stars'' remake as well as in ''Super Mario Bros. Deluxe''. Super Mario All-Stars changes the default pipe layout to remove the Minus World pipe. The game's default pipe layout includes one pipe, pointing to world 5. This pipe layout is used in a warp zone located in World 4-2. Therefore the first and third pipes point to nothing, resulting in world 36. World 36 was chosen because in warp zones with this warp pipe layout, 36 would be a blank tile and no number would be shown above the non-existent pipes. NOTES AND REFERENCES |
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