Super Mario Bros. 2 : le Mario le plus étrange

Super Mario Bros. 2: The Strangest Mario

1347 mots | Temps de lecture : 6 minute(s)

Super Mario Bros. 2 — the title remained the same in Europe and the United States — is arguably the most baffling installment in the entire plumber saga. Released on NES, it's unlike any other Mario game: you don't jump on enemies; instead, you lift them, throw them, and pull up vegetables as ammunition.

Its secret? It wasn't originally a Mario game. The game is an adaptation of Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic, a Japanese title completely re-skinned with Mushroom Kingdom characters for the West.

Summary

A Mario game that wasn't a Mario game

To understand the game's strangeness, we need to go back to 1987. That year saw the release in Japan of Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic, a title developed by Nintendo but conceived as an advertising campaign for the "Yume Kōjō '87" multimedia exhibition by Fuji Television.

It was released on Famicom Disk System, the Japanese console's floppy disk peripheral. Its four heroes were the mascots of the exhibition: a family of characters with no connection to the plumber. When Nintendo sought an exportable sequel to Super Mario Bros., they reskinned this game with Mario's imagery — new sprites, adjusted décors, re-clothed enemies — to make it the Western Super Mario Bros. 2.

This sleight of hand explains many of the oddities: the vertical-scrolling levels, the absence of old-fashioned coin collecting, or those doors to a parallel world. Nothing was originally designed for Mario; everything was grafted on afterward.

Why the West ended up with a different game

The true Japanese second installment, however, never disappeared. Released in 1986 in Japan, it reused the engine from the first Super Mario Bros. but pushed the difficulty to the point of frustration: pixel-perfect jumps, poisoned mushrooms, and headwinds trapped the player on every screen.

Nintendo of America deemed it too difficult and too similar to the first game for an American audience still new to the NES. Rather than jeopardize a market in full recovery, the publisher chose to convert Doki Doki Panic. The Japanese number 2 would not arrive in the West until 1993.

The pitfall to avoid: there are indeed two "Super Mario Bros. 2" games. The one Europe knew in 1989 is the former Doki Doki Panic; the "real" Japanese number 2 corresponds to The Lost Levels, re-released in the Super Mario All-Stars compilation.

Counter-current gameplay

With a controller in hand, the contrast is striking. The foundational mechanic of the series — stomping on enemies with a jump — no longer works: you land on their back, lift them above your head, then throw them at another adversary or into the void.

  • You pull up vegetables from the ground to throw them as projectiles.
  • The game lacks both Goombas and the end-level flag, two founding symbols of the first opus.
  • Magic potions open a door to the Subspace, an inverted world where you can gather coins and life-extending mushrooms.
  • Cherries and the key pursued by the ghost Phanto also make their debut here, while the famous POW Block is inherited from the arcade game Mario Bros. (1983).
  • Levels combine horizontal and vertical scrolling, a freedom of movement previously unseen in the series.

Four heroes with distinct abilities

A first for the series: you choose your hero from four characters, each with a unique profile that changes how you approach a level.

  • Mario: the most versatile, a good compromise in all circumstances.
  • Luigi: the highest jumper, perfect for distant platforms, at the cost of slippery braking.
  • Peach — then named Princess Toadstool in the West — can briefly float in the air.
  • Toad: the fastest and strongest at pulling up vegetables and enemies, but with the most limited jump.

A bestiary that became iconic

Despite its diverted origins, Super Mario Bros. 2 has significantly enriched the Mario universe. Several of its creatures, new at its release, have since become pillars of the series.

  • Birdo: the pink egg-spitting dinosaur, promoted to a recurring mini-boss.
  • Shy Guy (Maskass in French): the small masked figure in a toga, now omnipresent in spin-offs.
  • Ninji and Pokey: the bouncing black ninja and the articulated cactus, reappearing in numerous installments.
  • The ostrich Ostro and the frog Wart, tyrant of the land of Subcon, who serves as the final boss.

A dream, then a 16-bit legacy

The conclusion offers one last twist: once Wart is defeated, Mario opens his eyes in his bed. The entire adventure was just a dream, a plot device that retroactively justifies the dreamlike quality of the world traversed.

Long considered a "fake" Mario, the episode was eventually fully integrated into the series' canon. Its 16-bit re-release in Super Mario All-Stars (SNES, 1993), with revamped graphics and soundtrack, introduced it to a new generation of players.

The paradox is delightful: this Mario, born from a commercial misunderstanding, is among the most influential of the saga, leaving behind characters and mechanics that are still alive today.

Super Mario Bros. 2 in brief

Original game Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic (1987, Famicom Disk System)
NES Release (USA) October 9, 1988
European Release April 28, 1989
Developer / Publisher Nintendo
Playable characters Mario, Luigi, Peach, Toad
Final boss Wart, tyrant of Subcon
Special feature Pulling up vegetables, lifting and throwing enemies
16-bit re-release Super Mario All-Stars (SNES, 1993)

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FAQ

  • Is Super Mario Bros. 2 the true second Japanese Mario game?
    No. The SMB2 released in the West is an adaptation of Doki Doki Panic. The 1986 Japanese second installment, deemed too difficult, arrived later under the name The Lost Levels.
  • What game is Super Mario Bros. 2 based on?
    Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic, a 1987 Famicom Disk System game created for Fuji Television's Yume Kōjō exhibition, whose characters Nintendo re-skinned with Mario's colors.
  • Who are the four playable characters?
    Mario (balanced), Luigi (highest jump), Peach who can float, and Toad, the fastest and strongest at lifting enemies but with a limited jump.
  • Who is the game's final boss?
    Wart, a tyrant frog who rules the dream world of Subcon. He is defeated by throwing vegetables he hates at him, before Mario wakes up.
  • Where can I play Super Mario Bros. 2 today?
    Via the Super Mario All-Stars (SNES, 1993) compilation in its 16-bit version, or through the NES catalog of the Nintendo Switch Online subscription.
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