In the year 1992, after saving the Mushroom Kingdom several times and Sarasaland once (Sa-ra-sa-land, I sometimes have trouble remembering how it’s pronounced), Mario returned for another Gameboy adventure. This time however, Mario had to save his own Land from the clutches of the evil ~. If you’ve played the game, you know who I am referring to when I say ~ (Hint: Wario). Also, since Mario is so self-reliant, he once again decides to forget about Luigi and go into the adventure all by himself. So welcome to Mario Land and welcome to Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins. Let the review be-gin!

Gameplay

The gameplay in this game is similar to Super Mario World and Super Mario Bros. 3. The mechanics are the same as from a traditional Mario game: jump, hit blocks, collect coins, power-ups, etc. The power-ups in this game are the Fire Flower and the newly introduced Carrot, which gives Mario bunny ears and allows him to glide. Movement is not as stiff as in Super Mario Land, so that’s a plus. Some returning features from Super Mario World are hidden exits, secret levels, and the ability to carry shells and the spin jump. The boss fights are also like Super Mario World and Super Mario Bros. 3: You need to jump on the boss 3 times in order to win. 

There is now much more freedom in clearing the game. You can move around in an over world map and choose from 6 zones, which you can play in any order you want. The stages have more paths within them and there is also back-tracking. If you get tired of a zone you can exit it and go to another one. The optional bonus’ at the end of the stages have been improved from Super Mario Land. There are 2 types of bonus’ that let you win power-ups or lives. A casino can also be accessed any time via the map. You can wager coins in the casino for power-ups and lives, and the more you wager, the better the prizes are. A different feature is that you can collect up to 999 coins but the coins can only be used for the casino. There is also an enemy counter and when it reaches 100, a Starman appears from the top of the screen.

9/10

Graphics

The graphics are grey-scale and are based mostly on Super Mario World. The game is 4MB, which permitted a huge improvement in the quality of the game itself. There is more detail, textures, and even movement in objects. The stages also don’t look as empty as in Super Mario Land. There are also some nice illumination effects caused by the contrast between the white and grey in some buildings. A bad point however, would be that the contrast between the Super Mario World sprites and the new sprites can be kind of evident at times.

The game’s overall image is definitely a lot more cartoony than Super Mario Land, and the enemies are also less weird but still funny. There are also many more familiar enemies such as Boos, Cheep Cheeps, Goombas, Piranha Plants, and Bullet Bills (The latter 3 conserve their original name).

Another difference is that when Mario gets the Fire Flower power-up, he gets a feather in his cap. This is most likely because of the grey-scale graphics.

8.5/10

Sound

Like Super Mario Land, this game’s music was not composed by Koji Kondo. Unlike Super Mario Land, the composer for this game was not Hirokazu Tanaka, but Kazumi Totaka. The music however is still light-hearted and innocent and I definitely think it’s one of the game’s best features. The weird noises when you defeat enemies are gone, but there are still other funny noises. I find the noise that bosses make when you defeat them and they fall off the screen particularly funny . There are also a couple of little jingles that play at different times. The Starman theme and the polemic Can-Can are not present in this game either. You instead have an original new track which sounds good and does its job at representing invincibility. Some of the most memorable BGM’s for me are the Mario Zone track and track that plays outside Wario’s castle.

10/10

Difficulty

The game is definitely easier than Super Mario Land but it does have its challenges. The first feature that makes it easier is the ability to save. Finally, you can play the game with less physical and mental tension. There are 3 difficulties in which you can play the game:

Normal Mode: This is the default mode. The game in itself is not that hard and most bosses are fairly easy.

Easy Mode: If you press select in the file select screen, Mario will shrink and you can play in Easy Mode. It’s the same as Normal Mode but there are much fewer enemies in the levels. Some levels themselves also present little changes.

Extra Easy Mode:  Use the bunny ears every time you can. You can just glide through almost every level without difficulty. They are especially useful in the last level which is really the only one I consider difficult. As you guessed it, this is not really a game mode. It’s just a quick tip if you ever catch yourself in a frustrating situation and can’t pass a level. I admit that I resorted to it a couple of times… at the cost of some of my gamer pride.

9/10

Replay Value

Aside from playing the game in Easy mode, there really is no replay value in the game. However, if you want to give yourself an extra challenge, you can try to pass the game without the Bunny Cap. It’s really not that hard, you just need to time the jumps well. And with the hidden exits and different paths in the game, it is not uncommon if you find yourself playing a stage again.

8/10

Significance

This game was once again produced by Gunpei Yokoi and Shigeru Miyamoto had no role in this game. It did not sell as much as SML but it’s still one of Mario’s best-selling games. It was re-released on the 3DS Virtual Console in 2011 so it’s definitely a fan-favourite. It is also one of the top 10 best-selling games for the Gameboy (Gameboy Color included) and that is an impressive feature despite being released in the Gameboy’s early years. As mentioned above, this game also introduced Wario and helped spawn a sequel which would be the start of Wario’s video game adventures. And everyone knows how awesome Wario is.

9.5/10

Personal Issues

I have only 2 issues with this game… the first is the last level. You need to time your jumps really well in the last level and watch out for traps. There is also no mid-stage bell, which means that you need to pass the stage completely without losing. I get tense really easily, so I find it really frustrating to start all the way from the beginning after getting so far. My second issue is not a tension-inducing feature but it does bother me a bit when it happens. If you have the Fire Flower or Bunny Ears equipped and you win a Mushroom in a bonus, Mario will revert back to big Mario.

8/10

Overall verdict

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins feels a bit more like a Mario game than it’s predecessor. Music and aesthetic wise, it feels like a Mario game for children. Perhaps all Mario games are targeted to children, but I feel this one has an innocent tone that others lack, mainly because of its simplicity. The Gameboy’s limited memory and different producer helped the game have its own unique identity.