Super Mario World is one of my favorite games. It very likely holds the honor of my most-played single-player game, contending with Super Mario Bros. 3 and Yoshi’s Island (I don’t count taking turns as multiplayer). As I have played SMW more times that one would think possible, I think of myself as an expert in the arena. Now that it’s available in portable form, newer Mario fans will be able to experience the magic, but gurus will find that such familiarity really damages the experience.

Nintendo presents Mario Advance 2 as a wonderful recreation of the popular SNES title, and it retains the allure on the smaller screen quite well, though there are some issues. Level design still comes off as pure genius while the controls remain just as tight, despite the reassignment of the spin-jump to the R button. Mario Advance (1) had serious scrolling issues, so I feared similar visibility issues in Mario Advance 2. The game is designed for a taller screen, after all. But with the exception of a few later levels the game does a wonderful job of auto-scrolling (both horizontally and vertically) to keep the important information on-screen. Yes, some of the vertically-oriented levels will cause problems, but as long as you are standing still, pushing L + D-pad moves the screen orientation quite well. My other concern revolved around the graphics, which were not updated for this port. (Actually, Mario and Luigi look better and many pits now feature a black gradient, but that’s it.) It may disappoint a few, as it isn’t nearly as impressive as other GBA offerings, but there is a certain charm to the look and is in no way distracting. In fact, I was quite impressed with one graphical feature: Super Mario World is extremely vibrant. You’ll still need a fairly decent light source, but it is still among the brightest games, noticeably superior to Mario Advance. While the visuals and controls made the shift with minimal quarrels, the audio has been altered, mostly for the worse. The great compositions remain intact (overlooking one or two minor note changes), but the instruments often stray too far from the original. Though some sound better, a few of the frequently used samples are unexpectedly inaccurate: two or three sound very analog (like GBC) and are sometimes out of tune! Everything aural has gotten “smaller," though this is standard for GBA games. As always, external speakers or headphones are recommended: the internal one just can’t handle it all and will distort what is audible.

So far I have been focusing on the “direct port" details, but perhaps more important are the changes or lack of changes in gameplay. Unfortunately, most of this section will have a negative aura. There are two glaring issues that cannot be forgiven in this package. Firstly, Mario Advance 2’s Super Mario World has been “dumbed down." The most prominent change involves the power-ups: when hit in fiery or cape form, you will become Super instead of small. Those of you familiar with the Japanese to English conversion of SMB3 will recognize this tactic. If you prepare and play carefully you can new get hit four times without dying! Though SMW isn’t an easy game, it isn’t nearly as hard as SMB3 and doesn’t deserve the same treatment. In addition to this the game can now be saved anywhere, making the challenging goal of reaching the coveted Ghost House or Castle obsolete. It also saves the number of extra lives, not that it makes any difference thanks to the previous alteration. There are also other minor details, such as added midway points and a few more now-quickly-edible baddies. It is understandable that Nintendo would want to make things easier to compensate for a smaller screen, but all of these together go too far. It could be argued that the save-anywhere feature is needed for a portable system, but there is a sleep function (Select + R, Select + L to wake), and implementing a one-time save (a la Warioland series) would have completely solved the problem without making the game any easier. I get the impression Nintendo doesn’t think gamers are as skilled as they used to be, and I find that either insulting or depressing, depending on the statement’s validity. Believe it or not, all of that was my first gripe. The second complaint is even less controversial: they have included the EXACT SAME Mario Bros. mini-game, just as it was found in Mario Advance (1). The only change I’ve noticed is one slightly altered musical instrument... I’m serious. And though I haven’t actually played the multiplayer, it looks to be exactly the same, save for a different no-cart loading screen. I don’t know if the two Mario Advance games can link together, but if the dev. team wanted they could have made it so. I knew all about the Mario Bros. re-remake before I bought the game, but it is annoying nonetheless. For the vast number of people who played the first Mario port for GBA, this whole mini-game will have no value except as a replacement.

It isn’t all bad, though. Even if SMW’s difficulty has been subdued in some ways, the levels themselves retain their challenge, as only minor variances to accommodate new Yoshi coins (actually called Dragon coins in the original SMW manual for some reason) are present. SMW’s equivalent to Red coins, 5 Yoshi coins are now scattered within almost every level. There are sometimes more, but you only need five. The coins will provide the most replay value as you must find them AND clear the level without dying. Unfortunately, only some of the levels feature new/reallocated Yoshi coins, so veterans will not find the same level of challenge as found in Super Mario Bros. DX and Mario Advance. As far as I can tell there is no “Yoshi’s Challenge" (where you find the hidden eggs) upon game completion...a major disappointment. Of course everything is new for those who never played the original, and they will have a lot to accomplish.

Besides the added Yoshi coins, there is one other feature that will spark everyone’s interest: Luigi now has his own unique mechanics. Much like in SMB2, Luigi flies and jumps higher when running, generally staying in the air longer (thanks to his petal-leg action). To compensate for this advantage he tends to slide around a bit more. In addition his fireballs bounce slightly higher, and Yoshi will hold an enemy in his mouth a few seconds instead of gulping immediately, giving you time to spit it at a target. Despite all of these changes, Luigi’s control remains as tight as Mario’s, though he obviously feels slightly different. Unless you’re a stubborn Luigi fan like me or want to stay true to the original, choosing between the two plumbers for any given level yields some added strategy. When strong footing or a slurpfest is in order, Mario’s the better choice; When jumping high and far is vital and Yoshi’s coins are more important than his stomach, my namesake is more reliable. And besides, what’s more fun than watching Mario beg for “R" as Luigi gets all the action? :-p

There are a few other minor changes. One small yet convenient update involves the colored Yoshis: once initially discovered, adult versions will come out of standard Yoshi blocks. Which one comes out depends on Mario or Luigi's power-up status. Retrieving a colored Yoshi was more a chore than anything else in the past, so this change is quite welcome. Despite what one might expect, the adaptation does not further degrade the difficulty level. On a related note, Yoshi now has collision detection, so you’ll now push him instead of running “through" him. Another nice touch is the select menu, where you can see what levels you have cleared, etc. The Japanese makes things more difficult, but it’s still manageable. Other little extras include a few entertaining cut-scenes for clarification and voices, though now only heard when appropriate. Some are new clips while others are taken from Mario Advance, but they work very well. I’m still annoyed that the initial menu screen reeks of the first Mario Advance: not only does it feature the same music, but for SMW they just took the “Super Mario USA" audio and cut off “USA." Brilliant work!!! But that’s a silly little detail anyway ;-)

Ten + years have passed, and Super Mario World retains its charm. And though Mario Advance 2 will be a short and familiar romp for many, that doesn’t mean it’s a bad game. Younger gamers and people who just missed out the first time shouldn’t hesitate to buy this Mario game, though the lack of English direction will make importing unlikely for most.