A review by gengelcox
Super Mario Bros. 2 by Jon Irwin

informative medium-paced

4.0

Another game I missed playing because it came out in that time between the early consoles (Intellivision, Atari) and the later consoles. Most of my formative gaming was on the PC, so I missed the love so many people have for the Nintendo, and I find it basically impossible to go back to these games now with their pixelated characters and worlds and basic controls. Not totally impossible, as I understand that some have and do replay these games with enjoyment; I just find I’d rather spend the time with something a bit newer.

That said, I find reading about the history of these games fascinating. In particular, how this game was the Japanese concession of creating a sequel to the widely popular Super Mario Bros. but not wanting to send the actual sequel which was viewed as too hard for the American market—possibly correctly. The details about the interaction between the Japanese company and its American subsidiary and how these decisions were made was fascinating, as well as the history of the short-lived gaming magazines supporting these consoles.