• Play Super Mario Bros. 2, the hit NES game from way back!

• Play as Mario, Luigi, Toad, or the Princess, and play through 20 levels of adventure as you try to stop the Dream Machine

• You can also play Mario Bros., the classic arcade hit

• Link up with friends and play using the GameLink cable, for added fun & adventure

The world's favorite plumber makes his first appearance (along with playable characters Luigi, Peach, and Toad) on the Game Boy Advance, and, for the most part, Mario's arrival is welcome indeed. Super Mario Advance is primarily a slightly tweaked port of Super Mario Bros. 2, the (still) very popular side scroller from the days of the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). So expect plenty of running, jumping, and hurling of items at many a foe. The game's graphics and sound have been a given a nice overhaul from the original game, and are clear and bright enough to please old-school and new fans alike. While Nintendo did a good job shrinking the visuals down to handheld size, the tiny GBA screen can get very busy at times, making accidental death due to sometimes less-than-precise controls frustratingly frequent--at least in the beginning. Most gamers should overcome such mishaps with a little patience. Also included is the still fun, if forgettable, original Mario Bros. game from many eons ago. Up to four players can engage in a coin-collecting battle mode or the classic mode. Super Mario Advance isn't the game to show off the power of the GBA, but it is a long, fun title that will satisfy today's gamers with a taste from the best of Mario's past. --Mark Brooks Pros: One of the best NES games is faithfully ported Upgraded sound and graphics Gameplay is easy to get into Cons: Somewhat loose controls Neither fresh nor original for those who've played the NES version

SMA is classic Mario Bros. 2 and the original Mario Bros. and I can tell you, it's a helluva lot of fun. I always loved MB2, and this update adds a couple of new gameplay elements to make things a bit more interesting. And while it doesn't really push the GBA's technical limits, it does make use of the nice graphics engine in the handheld, for some cute special effects.

The original Mario Bros. that's included is great as well, especially in multiplayer. It gets a bit old in single player mode, but it's still fun nevertheless.

Anyway, it comes down to this - Super Mario Advance is a good game to add to your collection. It's nothing really new, but it doesn't change the fact that the games inside it are just as fun as the day they came out so many years ago, on their original platforms. Ignore the whining complaints about it, and check it out for yourself. I'm sure you'll like it.

12 of 13 found the following review helpful:


Video Games Reviewer  Nov 08, 2001 By Mr. De Moss
Super Mario Advance for the GBA is an excellent port of the NES classic Super Mario Brothers 2 game. In Super Mario Advance, gamers get to choose from four characters: Mario, Peach, Luigi, and Toad. Each of the characters has their own special strengths and weaknesses. Players get to battle it out through 7 levels and 20 screens in an attempt to get rid of Wart at the end of the game. What makes this game shine are the additions that Nintendo has added to the game. Five special coins have been added to each of the levels that players have to find in order to get a red star for that level. Once all the coins are collected a new challenge of finding two yoshi eggs on each level becomes an option and only then can a player ultimately master the game. Another added feature to this cartridge is a second game, the original Mario Brothers for the Arcade. This is really an added bonus where a single player for up to 4 people can hack it out on the arcade style classic. The added features to each level and the ability to play this game with up to 3 friends is what makes this game a must have in everyone's GBA library.

12 of 13 found the following review helpful:


Super mario Advance is GREAT!  Apr 29, 2001
Super Mario Advance is totally COOL! I played it at Toys R Us, and it was great! You can play the Original Super Mario Bros.the battle mode(hook up to four players for this, only using one game console,you can do this by downloading the game to other linked systems), or the new and improved Super Mario Advance.The new one has added baddies,or baddies in other places.And,to beat bosses(not all bosses are Bowser)and baddies,you don't just bop 'em on their head(as is in Super Nintendo),but throw items at them!This game is definatly a harder version than the original one as we know it on the Super Nintendo. Super Mario Advance is a good launch title for the Game Boy Advance.I give it a 10/10 in rating(ten being the best).If you get a Game Boy Advance,your first game has to be Super Mario Advance.It's GREAT!

18 of 21 found the following review helpful:


Hours of Fun!  May 30, 2001
For those of you who still remember the Super NES version, this should be very familiar to you - essentially the same version, but with some additions (I'm still trying to find them), and of course, for the GameBoy Advance! Just got my hand on the Japanese version, and I can't get my hands off it!

This version of Mario is the one that's probably the most unique, in that unlike the other versions of Mario, you don't actually jump on mushrooms to get rid of them, but instead, you pull out radish, bombs, and throw at them at the bad guys. You also get to choose the 4 different characters, Mario, Luigi, Toad and Princess Peach - all with different abilities..

Sound's great too on the GBA - amazing for such a small machine - and yes, each character has his/her own voice too!

One more thing - SMA comes with a pumped-up version of Mario Classic, but what REALLY rocks is that the multi-player function for Mario Classic. Up to 4 GBAs can be linked to play one single game, and it's amazing that you need only 1 cartridge to play with 3 other people!

This is probably THE game to get with GBA - and no worries, I don't think anybody will regret buying this one!

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