|
Super Mario Bros. 2: Vegetable Combat Systems and Other Joys
|
One Game Feature by Daniel Dujnic, 11/20/07
|
Super Mario Brothers 2 doesn't get enough credit. As the bastard mutant middle child of the NES Mario games, it got a lot of flak for being so different from SMB1 (see also: Zelda 2).
Two things you may not realize: Shiggy himself was involved in Doki Doki Panic (the game SMB2 is based on) so it's canon, and SMB2 is actually a really tight, subtle platformer. I'm not even talking about the fact that there are four playable characters with unique jumps and arm strength -- that's just a sideshow.
Levels having secret shortcuts, and a lot have a 'higher ground' that can be abused as an unintended shortcut, skipping you farther into a level. This is where the environment comes into play, because nearly anything in the game can be stood upon. SMB2 is a platformer where some of the platforms are your foes. With the addition of the charge jump (hold down until you flash), suddenly reaching the higher ground isn't so hard. Just pick up the hopping ninja, throw him under the ledge, stand on top of him and charge up.
The Vegetable Combat System is surprising too. A defeated enemy will bounce off the screen and is thus removed from play, but vegetables that are thrown can actually be recovered after use. You can go under the arc to catch them again or even jump on top of them as they fall to pick them up mid-air. These techniques are handy if the level is short on vegetables (or, better: for showboating).
SMB2 is simply pure and endearing. The player's ability to manipulate their environment and choose their own path (not to mention character) is a sandbox trait that is uncommon in such early games (let alone in platformers). It may not have been originally a Mario game, but it has the soul of one.
|
       
'Vegetable Combat Systems and Other Joys'
|
|
#&rendershop#
|
