 Super Mario Bros. (FDS Release)
(C) 1985 Nintendo |
Super Mario Bros. (FDS Release)
(C) 1985 Nintendo |
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The FDS Minus World.
Most everyone knows about the Minus World in Super Mario Bros.. To jog your memory, there's a bug at the end of level 1-2 wherein you can jump backwards and make Mario run through the wall. Once you do this, you can hop down the warp zone pipe leading to level four. Since the warp zone isn't fully loaded yet, instead of warping to level four you'll be dropped off at the mysterious Minus World, so-called because the world is listed as -1. If you've never been to the Minus World before, you'll find it to be rather disappointing. It's just a neverending water level, full of bloopers. And we all know that those are the worst kinds of water levels. Deliverance comes, however, in the FDS version of Super Mario Bros. You see, in the FDS version of Super Mario Bros. the level data is stored differently. If you perform the Minus World trick in the FDS version of the game, World -1 will actually be an underwater version of World 1-3. Better yet, the level actually ends, giving you access to worlds -2 and -3! Here, I'll take you on a guided tour! |
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This is the first thing you'll
see upon entering the FDS Minus World. You're greeted by the site
of a moldy green castle, Mario making underwater bubbles, and...
clouds in the sky? Well, you're underwater, so I guess they're
special underwater clouds. Pretend they're white seaweed.
Anyways. |
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Running (or swimming!) to the
right a ways, you'll come across Princess Toadstool. She just
happens to be floating over a pit, staring into space with a vacant
look in her eyes. You'll also notice that the usual brown and
green World 1-3
platforms are now neon green and pink. I remember trying out the
Minus World back on my regular SMB cartridge, and was disappointed with
how plain and boring it was. The sight of a floating undersea
princess and neon platforms alone makes up for that old disappointment! |
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Wherever you see Princess Toadstool, you can be sure that Bowser is lurking somewhere nearby, plotting to kidnap her. And here he is! He's, uh, slowly floating up and off the screen. And he doesn't shoot fire or anything, he just kind of runs back and forth while making his ascent upwards. Notice also that collecting coins leaves dark blue squares behind them, which makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. |
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Oh, hello Princess
Toadstool! You're back! And... you're...
looking creepier than before. And you're apparently eating a
cloud. Okay, just ignore her and continue onwards. If you
don't, she might eat you too. |
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Apparently, World -1 has been
underwater for so long that the steps leading up to the castle have
been completely covered by seaweed. That doesn't stop our
determined turtle friend from guarding them, however! |
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You'll soon find out that you
don't even need the steps, though, since you can just swim to the very
top of the flagpole. Usually, after you grab a flagpole Mario
grabs the flag and then scoots down to the bottom of it, but in the
Minus World that's not the case. There's no flag for Mario to
grab, so he just kind of turns around on the flagpole and then bounces
down to go into the castle. |
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If you grab the
flagpole at its highest point, Mario will swim on down to the very far
right of the screen and float in the air, running in place
furtively. Since grabbing the flagpole stops the timer, Mario
will just keep running, forever... there're no enemies to kill
him, and he won't ever run out of time! So don't grab the top of
the flagpole, however tempting it may be. Touch it at its lowest
point instead, and Mario will enter the castle, bringing you to the
next level. |
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Hooray! It's World
-2! Unfortunately, it's exactly the same as World 7-3.
Booooring. Bounce on through it, making your way to World
-3. Protip: If you run to the right nonstop, the flying
cheep-cheeps won't ever hit you. Usually. |
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World -3 takes place
underground, and it's a trendy makeover of the World 1-4 castle.
Remember those burning hot lava pits? Now they're cool,
refreshing pools of water. You'll still die if you fall into
them, but at least you'll die refreshed. |
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Guarding World -3 is a swarm of
Bloopers, here to nag you as you make your way towards its end.
They're a lot easier to dispatch aboveground than underwater however,
since you can just bounce off of their heads for a cool 1000 point
bonus. They thought they could catch you off-guard, but as it
turns out the joke's on them! |
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Okay, make sure you don't do
this. The maze component of this level isn't working, so you can
get stuck... forever! Or at least until your timer runs out. |
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Don't do this, either!
It's tempting and fun to do, but you'll just get stuck. I do like
Mario's sassy pose, though. It's as if he's saying "What now, Bowser?" but there's no
Bowser so he's really just talking to himself. |
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Okay, if you make your way to
Bowser's lair normally, you'll find it's guarded by nothing but a
solitary blooper. Just squash him and grab the axe. One fun
thing that'll happen after you grab the axe is that Mario will
automatically stomp a blooper on his way to rescue Toad, giving you a
1000 point bonus for no good reason whatsoever. |
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Where you'd normally expect to
find Toadstool, there's... nothing! Mario just kind of
stands there listening to nobody in particular speak. Maybe one
of the bloopers ate Toad, and you're speaking with his ghost.
Maybe Mario is just miming Toad's speech, hoping that you won't
notice. Whatever the case, the gratitude speech is green instead
of white. |
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Hey!
You're back at the title screen! The Minus World fun is over! But... you can
press B to choose which world you'd like to start at. That's not
much of a consolation prize, but hopefully you were satisfied with two
levels of zany quirkiness. |
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