Super Mario Advance

🎮 Game Boy Advance ⏳ 6 hours ⭐⭐⭐ (3/5)

Enhanced GBA Remake #

This game was one of the GBA’s launch titles, and it served as both a nostalgia trip and a technical showcase for Nintendo’s new handheld. At its core, it is a remake of Super Mario Bros. 2 (the version originally released in North America), but it isn’t just a simple port, it’s a significantly enhanced reimagining designed to feel fresh while still honoring the original. Visually, the game shines with bright, colorful sprites that make excellent use of the GBA’s hardware. Characters and enemies are more expressive, with smooth animations and added personality, like Mario’s exaggerated jump poses or Birdo’s lively attacks. The environments also feel richer and more detailed than on the NES, breathing new life into familiar levels.

Faithful Yet Fresh Gameplay #

I played the original back in the day but couldn’t get past the first few levels since it was too complex for me as a kid to understand, not to mention it works a bit differently than traditional Mario titles. The gameplay remains faithful to SMB2’s unique identity. You choose from Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Toad, each with their distinct strengths, and progress through a mix of platforming and light puzzle-solving. The throwing mechanic, picking up enemies, vegetables, or objects, still gives the game a rhythm that sets it apart from traditional Mario titles. Controls are tighter than ever, and the GBA’s button layout makes the experience intuitive and responsive.

Refined and Accessible #

One of the most notable additions is the increased accessibility and refinement. The game offers more checkpoints, extra hearts, and improved enemy behavior, making it friendlier for newcomers without dumbing down the challenge. Your character has a number of hits it needs to take before dying, not just one or two like regular Mario, and you can also stack them if you play well enough. Whenever you actually die, you ca even switch characters on the fly, and play with the new one from the checkpoint forward. The newly added voice clips, sometimes amusing, sometimes repetitive, give the cast extra charm, even if they’re a bit campy. In my opinion this is the worst and best addition, by far, the voice-acting is so bad it is hilarious.

Weak Soundtrack, Strong Package #

As for the soundtrack, despite me being a fan of Nintendo on this regard, this game is by far one of the worst ones on this aspect. The OST is practically non-existent, it plays the same song over and over, on all levels, despite the character or boss that you are playing at the moment. Overall, this game is a warm, lively remake that successfully modernizes a classic while maintaining its quirky essence. Whether you’re revisiting SMB2 or discovering it for the first time, it remains a joyful and polished platformer that helped define the early GBA library. I recommend trying to 100% it since it is a fairly short play, it’ll help with this problem if you try to chase all secrets, not to mention playing as all the characters is also a fun addition, instead of focusing on just one.