Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3

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Super Mario Advance 4:
Super Mario Bros. 3
Super Mario Advance 4 Box.png
American boxart.
Developer(s) Nintendo EAD
Publisher(s) Nintendo
Platform(s) Game Boy Advance
Release date Game Boy Advance
Japan July 11, 2003
Europe October 17, 2003
USA October 21, 2003
Australia October 24, 2003 [1]
Genre 2D Platformer
Rating(s)
ESRB:ESRB E.svg - Everyone
PEGI:PEGI 3.svg - Three years and older
CERO:CERO A.png - All ages
ACB:ACB G.svg - General
Mode(s) Single player, multiplayer
Media 32-megabit cartridge
Input
Game Boy Advance:

Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3, known in Japanese as スーパーマリオアドバンス４ (Sūpā Mario Adobansu 4) is a port of Super Mario Bros. 3. It is the fourth and final entry in the Super Mario Advance series of games on the Game Boy Advance. It boasted similar graphics and sound to the Super Mario All-Stars version, and made use of the e-Reader. A few e-cards came included with new copies of the game, while two sets (referred to as "series") of cards, were released and sold alongside the game. By scanning special cards into the e-Reader, players were able to upload items, videos, and most importantly, new levels into game. One notable item was the Cape Feather from Super Mario World, which allowed Mario to transform in Cape Mario. There were also two Switch cards that the player could activate (and deactivate) the effects of by scanning them; the Orange Switch and the Blue Green Switch. Scanning these switches triggered small functions in the game. The e-Reader feature is still available in the European version, but disabled by default and inaccessible. It is fully translated, probably because the e-Reader was planned to be released in Europe. It can be "unlocked" by having a corrupted save file.[2]

Contents

[edit] Story

The story, from the instruction booklet:

The Mushroom Kingdom has remained a peaceful place, thanks to the brave deeds of Mario and Luigi. However, the Mushroom Kingdom forms an entrance to the Mushroom World, a place where all is not well. Bowser sent his seven children to make mischief in this normally peaceful land. As their first order of business, they stole the royal magic wands from each country in the Mushroom World and used them to turn the Mushroom Kings into animals. Mario and Luigi must recover the royal magic wands from Bowser's seven kids to return the kings to their true forms. As Mario and Luigi set off on their journey deep into the Mushroom World, Princess Peach and Toad have but one thing to say: "Good-bye, and good luck!"

[edit] List of changes

There are many changes between the original Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario Advance 4.

  • Some events were changed:
    • Mushroom Kings have slightly different speeches. They start out with "Oh, splendid! Splendid!" rather than "Oh, thank heavens!"; "I'm" was changed to "I am"; and the word "Princess" no longer has improper capitalization.
    • If the player warps to World 8, Bowser's letter will appear on screen like if the player completed World 7.
    • When entering part 2 of the World 8 map, Princess Peach is shown above the second pipe. She yells "Mario!" if the player is Mario or simply screams if the player is Luigi before disappearing.
    • After Mario/Luigi defeats Bowser, he automatically triggers the ending cutscene instead of manually moving him to the door leading to Peach's room to view the ending, probably because of the potential risk of accidentally falling into the void Bowser created by slamming the floor and therefore losing a life.
    • Princess Peach says her new thank-you message instead of the previous versions like in NES and SNES.
  • Staff credits are shown at the end along with the cutscenes and world names.
  • Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach and Boos feature voices.
  • Some aspects of the game's soundtrack was changed:
    • New music plays when in a Bonus Area.
    • The short tune heard after defeating Bowser was changed from the same one heard after saving a Mushroom King to the tune heard after defeating him in Super Mario Bros..
    • An alternate ending song, which features the Super Mario Bros. ending theme remixed, is played when the player finishes all the game's levels. The original ending song is only heard if the player beats Bowser without finishing all the levels.

[edit] Gameplay changes

  • Getting a Fire Flower or Raccoon Leaf when Mario is small will change him to that state instead of changing him to only Super Mario.
  • Koopa Troopas can now be stomped underwater.
  • Upside-down Spiny shells can be safely touched, stomped or kicked from above without taking damage; in previous versions, even an immobile, upside-down Spiny shell would hurt Mario if he landed on top of it.
  • Giant Brick Blocks can be broken with a tail swipe as Raccoon or Tanooki Mario/Luigi.
  • Spade Panels can produce different variants in response to completing one. The order is: Spade > Heart > Club > Diamond. Each one allows the player the chance to earn more lives.
  • Mario or Luigi can have up to 999 lives.
  • Hammer Mario can slide down hills.
  • Pressing the R button brings up the e-Reader menu.
  • Like in Super Mario World and newer games, each enemy defeated by Invincible Mario will be worth double the points as the last, eventually leading to extra lives.
  • Just like in Super Mario World, SMA4 lets the player carry shells through pipes to new areas.
  • In SMA4, tail swiping a Muncher won't turn it into a Used Block.
  • Kicked shells and ice blocks can collect coins. Coins collected this way are worth double.
  • Based on one of Cape Mario's moves, if Raccoon/Tanooki Mario or Luigi tail swipes a Super Mushroom, it will move away from him.
  • A new game over message appears before the Continue/Quit menu, and it is impossible to save after a game over in SMA4.
  • The P-Meter lasts longer.
  • Brick blocks that contain something don't turn into a "fake" coin after a P-Switch is activated.
  • The inventory window is much larger.

[edit] Level design changes

Racoon Mario on Larry Koopa's Airship in Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3.
  • The bonus area in World 1-2 now has far more coins.
  • In several levels of Big Island, just before the Goal Panel, there is a coin bonus in the sky.
  • In The Sky, some brick blocks that otherwise make Pipes and Bullet Bill cannons float in the air contain coins.
  • In Iced Land, the path to the Mushroom House was altered so the player does not have to do 6-5 to access it.
  • Some enemies are changed. For example, the first pipe in level 1-1 contains a normal Piranha Plant instead of a Venus Fire Trap.
  • One cannon was removed from the World 8 Battleship level.
  • The first tank level in World 8 is shorter, with the removal of the first two tanks after the first ? block. Similar things were done in the World 8 Airship.
  • Several platforms throughout the game were made longer.
  • As this is Super Mario Advance 4, one of the two "3's" made of blue coins in 5-1 was changed to a "4".
  • Before facing Boom-Boom, steel blocks will block the entrance.

[edit] Graphical changes

  • A few sprites were slightly improved. For example Mario and Luigi wear their gloves. Previous versions had the two with no visible gloves, the NES version due to color limitations and the All-Stars version for unknown reasons
    • Sprites have a slightly brighter color, but not as noticeable as the other Super Mario Advance games.
    • Princess Peach received a new sprite for this version.
    • Pile Driver Micro-Goombas are coloured differently and don't shine like actual brick blocks.
    • In World 4, the map icon for the Sledge Bro. got modified to make it look more like an actual Sledge Brother. Their SNES map icon was merely a green Hammer Brother.
  • Some effects were added:
    • Shooting a fireball at Bowser or Boom-Boom causes him to turn red for an instant.
    • Using a Warp Whistle in SMA4 causes the screen to blur out.
    • After a P-Switch is activated in SMA4, it disappears in a puff of smoke after one game second.
    • In SMA4, the "1UP" icon grows bigger before it disappears.
  • World 8's name was changed from "Castle of Koopa" to "Bowser's Castle".
  • In World 5, the map of the ground seen from the sky was moved up and right hiding the little mistake they made on the "Ground Map" on the NES and SNES versions.
  • Spade Panels (whic were called "cards" in the SNES original, rather than panels) get a major design change. Also, they no longer show a zoomed-in view, a drumroll starts when two-thirds of an item are lined up, and a different music plays after an item is lined up.
  • Many levels are given more fitting backgrounds, like the All-Stars version. However, during most overworld levels (except for underground levels, airships, and fortresses) there is no horizontal parallax scrolling in the background although this did appear in the All-Stars version and a beta trailer shown at E3. There is still, however, vertical parallax scrolling which can be seen as Mario flies upward.

[edit] e-Cards

For a complete listing of the cards themselves, see Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 e-Cards. The list of features added to Super Mario Advance 4 by the cards is as follows:

[edit] Exclusive features

[edit] Features and enemies from past titles

[edit] Beta elements

Main article: List of Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 beta elements

[edit] Glitches

These glitches only occur in Super Mario Advance. For glitches also or exclusively found in the original Super Mario Bros. 2 or the version of the game included in Super Mario All-Stars, see here.

[edit] Icon Color Change

To do this glitch, Mario or Luigi must have completed World 2-Pyramid. It will have a "completed" white icon, however, if Mario goes to the left, so that the level is off-screen and back, the icon will turn yellow.

[edit] Washed-Out Mario

Washed Out Mario.png

This only works in Super Mario Advance 4. If a Starman runs out in this version, Mario will have a slightly washed-out color palette. This will be fixed if he takes a warp pipe or door, takes damage, beats a level, or gets a power-up (other than a Starman).

[edit] Reception

The game received very positive reviews, considered one of the best Game Boy Advance games ever made.

[edit] Box art

  • Japanese Boxart

  • European Boxart

  • American Boxart

[edit] References

  1. ^ Date info for GBA from TMK, retrieved 6-30-2008
  2. ^ Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 - The Cutting Room Floor
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