Super Mario Bros. Special

The title of this article is official, but it comes from a Japanese source.
If an acceptable English name is found, then the article should be moved to the new title.

This article is about the game. For the 1990 album, see Super Mario Bros. Special (album).

Not to be confused with Mario Bros. Special.

Super Mario Bros. Special
For alternate box art, see the related gallery.
Developer	Hudson Soft
Publishers	Hudson Soft (Japan) Static Soft (South Korea)
Platforms	NEC PC-8801 Sharp X1 / Samsung SPC-1500
Release dates	September 1986 1987
Genre	Platformer
Mode	Single player
Format	5.25-inch floppy, Tape

Super Mario Bros. Special (Japanese: スーパーマリオブラザーズ スペシャル, Sūpā Mario Burazāzu Supesharu) is a platform game that was developed by Hudson Soft and released in 1986 for the NEC PC-8801 and Sharp X1 series of Japanese computers, and later for the Samsung SPC-1500, a South Korean clone of the X1. Super Mario Bros. Special was the second Nintendo-licensed follow-up to Super Mario Bros., released around three months after Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels.

The game scrolls between scenes similarly to The Legend of Zelda. The PC-8801 version handles this by turning the display black briefly while loading the next screen, while the Sharp X1 handles it more smoothly by visually sliding to the next lock point, though the transition does have some overlap.

Super Mario Bros. Special has changes in difficulty similar to Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels. The jumping and dashing physics from the Family Computer release are different. The stage time also ticks slightly faster. There is also no multiplayer mode and not even the choice to play as Luigi like in Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels.

Super Mario Bros. Special has inferior graphics and audio in both the PC-8801 and X1 releases because both systems do not have as great of hardware specifications as the Family Computer, but still try to replicate the graphics of Super Mario Bros. nonetheless. The X1 version contains partial scrolling and slightly more colorful graphics, featuring all eight colors possible with 100% and 0% RGB, including lime-green, cyan, magenta and white. The PC-88 release of Super Mario Bros. Special uses only black, red, yellow, and blue, including dithered results with those four colors, and it does not use internal eight-color palette of the PC-88. Further, sprites exclude the use of blue to allow transparency in the sprites. This leads to yellow being used as a stand-in for white and swapping with red for recolored enemies, notably causing the "green" enemies to appear with red eyes.

Gameplay

See also: Super Mario Bros. § Gameplay

Gameplay of Super Mario Bros. Special is structured similarly to the original Super Mario Bros. The object of the game is to get to the flagpole to advance to the next level. While on his way to the goal, Mario encounters many enemies and power-ups.

Controls

While the PC-88 release of the game can be controlled both with the computer's keyboard or with a joypad, the Sharp X1 version can only be played with a Sharp X1-compatible joypad.

Action(s)	Input (Keyboard)	Input (Joypad)
Move; enter sideways Warp Pipe	Number Pad (4, 6)	(left/right)
Duck; enter Warp Pipe	Number Pad (2)	(down)
Jump; swim upwards; start game	Z
Run; throw fireball; start game	X
Pause (PC-88 only)	Esc	N/A

Items and objects

Power-ups

Name	X1 image	PC-88 image	Points awarded	Description
Magic Mushroom			1000	Grab this to change into Super Mario.
Fire Flower			1000	Grab this to change into Fiery Mario.
Starman			1000	Grab this to briefly change into Invincible Mario.
Hammer (Hummer)			1000	Mario rapidly swings a hammer in front of him, just like in Donkey Kong. Found in Worlds 3-4 and 5-1.
Wing			1000	Collecting this makes Mario fly in the air, but he looks like he is swimming. Found in Worlds 3-2 and 4-1.

Items

Name	X1 image	PC-88 image	Points awarded	Description
1 up Mushroom			0	If Mario collects one, he will get an extra life.
Coin			200	Collect 100 coins for an extra life.
Hachisuke			8000	The bee from the Hudson Soft logo. If Mario finds this item, he will be awarded 8000 points. Found in World 1-1.
Clock			1000	Upon picking this up, Mario will get an additional 100 seconds added to the timer. Found in World 8-3.
Lucky Star			1000	Resembles an atom. If Mario collects it, all the enemies on-screen will be defeated and award their normal point values as if hit by a Starman. It is similar to a POW Block except it also affects airborne foes, like a POW Block in Super Mario Bros. 35. Found in World 4-1.

Objects

Objects are interactable elements of the environment that cannot be picked up or collected. Unlike items and enemies, which are sourced from multiple games, every object is from the original Super Mario Bros.

Name	X1 image		PC-88 image		Description
Blocks
? Block					Floating blocks which contain items and power-ups, which releases its contents when Mario hits it from below. Some ? Blocks are invisible, and must be jumped into can reveal both the blocks themselves as well as their contents. These blocks can be struck by regular Mario.
Brick Block					Floating blocks that can be broken by Super Mario or Fiery Mario if struck from below, and may occasionally hide items or other power-ups.
Bridge					Thin, roped platforms that Mario can walk across, usually found in athletic stages.
Coral					Coral pillars of various sizes appear in water, blocking Mario's movement.
Small Cloud					Cloud-shaped blocks which primarily appear in Coin Heaven bonus areas, or over large pits.
Stairblock					Unbreakable blocks that can be found either on the ground or floating over pits, forming climbable staircases or other bumpy formations.
Platforms
Island					Platforms usually situated above pits or in athletic courses, which can be stood on top of. Unlike in the original Super Mario Bros., however, Islands can appear in standard courses, on top of ordinary ground, such as in Worlds 5-2 or 6-1.
Jumping board					Jumping boards that Mario can use to launch himself into the air. Found exclusively in Worlds 2-1 and 7-1.
Lift					Floating, moving platforms which commonly appear in athletic stages and fortresses. Some lifts move side-to-side, others move as part of an elevator, some falling if stood on, and some coming in pairs, balancing on one another.
Pipe					Pipes that can serve as columns with differing heights, occasionally housing Piranha Plants, or can be entered either from the top or from entrances on their sides, entered by Mario either crouching on top of or pressing against them.
Super mushroom					Tall, mushroom-shaped platforms with wide caps that Mario can stand on top of, commonly found in athletic stages above pits.
Goals
Axe					Large axes that function as the goal for castle levels. Upon touching the Axe, Bowser is immediately defeated, and Mario automatically moves to the following chamber. Unlike Super Mario Bros., there is no animation of the Bridge collapsing behind the Axe.
Flagpole					Tall flagpoles that function as the goal for most ordinary levels. When Mario touches one, he slides to the bottom before finishing the level. The higher Mario lands on the pole, the more points he obtains.
Miscellaneous
Beanstalk					Tall beanstalks that can occasionally emerge from ? Blocks, leading to secret areas.
Horsehair plant					Tall, stalk-like plants that grow in the backgrounds of some stages. Occasionally, the tips of shorter Horsehair plants will be used for other pieces of scenery, such as in a secret area in World 2-2.

Enemies and obstacles

Enemies

Hudson Soft's staff brought over enemies from Super Mario Bros. as well as earlier Super Mario games. All are referred to by their Japanese names in-game, with a typo in one case (or called by new names in the case of the earlier games' enemies), and ordered per their listing in the cast and credits:

Name	X1 image	PC-88 image	Origin	Description
Little Goomba (Kuribou)			Super Mario Bros.	The most basic enemy, they can be defeated by stomping on them from above, bumping them from below, hitting them with a fireball, hammer, or kicked shell, or running into them while invincible. Found in Worlds 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, 2-1, 2-3, 3-1, 3-2, 3-3, 4-1, 4-2, 4-3, 5-1, 5-2, and 8-1.
Koopa Troopa (Nokonoko)			Super Mario Bros.	Walking turtles that continue forward until they run into an enemy or obstacle. Red koopa troopas will also turn around at the end of a ledge, but green koopa troops will continue and fall. A stomp or bump will cause them to hide in their shell (which can be kicked); fire, hammers, kicked shells, and invincibility defeats them instantly. Green found in Worlds 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, 2-1, 2-3, 3-2, 4-1, 4-2, 5-1, 5-2, 6-3, and 7-3. Red found in Worlds 1-2, 1-3, 3-3, 4-3, 5-2, 6-3, and 8-1.
Koopa Paratroopa (Patapata)			Super Mario Bros.	Winged Koopa Troopas. Green ones will hop on the ground while continuing forward, and red ones stay in the air, flying up and down in a straight line. Stomping on them makes them lose their wings; fire, hammers, kicked shells, and invincibility defeats them instantly. Green found in Worlds 3-1, 3-2, 4-1, 5-1, 5-2, 7-1, 7-3, and 8-1. Red found in Worlds 1-3, 5-3, 7-3, 8-1, 8-3, and 8-4.
Buzzy Beetle (Met)			Super Mario Bros.	Hard-shelled turtle-like enemies that act similar to Koopa Troopas. Fireballs don't harm them. They can be knocked into their shells with a stomp or bump, and can be defeated with a hammer, kicked shell, or invincibility. Found in Worlds 4-2, 5-2, 6-2, 7-1, 8-1, and 8-4.
Hammer Brother (Hummer Bros)			Super Mario Bros.	Turtles that jump and throw arcing hammers. They can be defeated with a stomp, bump, fireball, kicked shell, or invincibility. Found in Worlds 5-2, 8-2, and 8-3.
Lakitu (Jugemu)			Super Mario Bros.	A cloud-riding turtle that drops Spiny eggs. It can be defeated with a stomp, fireballs, the Lucky Star, or invincibility, after which it does not respawn. Found in Worlds 4-1 and 6-1.
Spiny (Togezou)			Super Mario Bros.	Spiked turtles that hatch from eggs dropped from Lakitus. They can be defeated with fireballs, the Lucky Star, invincibility, or being bumped from below.
Piranha Plant (Pakkun Flower)			Super Mario Bros.	Biting plants that go up and down in pipes. They can be defeated through fireballs or invincibility. Found in Worlds 2-1, 2-4, 3-1, 4-1, 4-3, 5-1, 5-2, 5-3, 6-1, 6-2, 6-4, 7-1, 7-4, and 8-4.
Spiny's egg (Paipo)			Super Mario Bros.	Eggs dropped by Lakitu that hatch into Spiny when they land. They can be defeated with fireballs, invincibility, and the Lucky Star. Found in Worlds 4-1 and 6-1.
Bullet Bill (Killer)			Super Mario Bros.	Bullets shot from cannons in infinite amounts. They can be defeated with a stomp or invincibility. Found in Worlds 5-2, 5-3, and 7-1.
Cheep-cheep (Pukupuku)			Super Mario Bros.	Fish that swim in groups at the same speed regardless of color, with a few at a time bobbing slightly. Red ones also hop from the water in land levels. When underwater, they can only be defeated with fireballs or invincibility, but in the air they can also be stomped or hit with a shell. Green found in Worlds 2-2, 3-1, 7-2, and 8-2. Red found in Worlds 2-2, 2-3, 3-1, 5-3, 7-2, 7-3, and 8-2.
Bloober (Gesso)			Super Mario Bros.	Bobbing squid found underwater. They can be defeated with a fireball or invincibility. Found in Worlds 2-2, 3-1, 5-1, 5-2, 7-2, and 8-2.
Podoboo (Bubble)			Super Mario Bros.	Hopping lava balls that can only be defeated with invincibility or a hammer. Found in Worlds 2-4, 3-4, 5-4, 7-4, and 8-4.
Sidestepper (Chokichoki)			Mario Bros.	Crabs that walk in a straight line and can be defeated with a fireball, invincibility, or a bump. Found in Worlds 4-2, 5-2, 7-3, 8-1, and 8-3.
Fighterfly (Nakaji)			Mario Bros.	Flies that move by taking small hops, pausing in between and able to change directions whenever on the ground. Can be defeated with a fireball, hammer, invincibility, or a bump. Found in Worlds 5-1, 5-2, 8-1, 8-2, and 8-3.
Barrel (Tarusar)			Donkey Kong	These barrels roll down ledges and can be defeated with a hammer or a bump. Found in Worlds 3-4, 4-3, 6-2, 6-4, 7-1, and 8-2.
Fireball (Sigebou)			Donkey Kong	Fireballs that move horizontally, tumbling down ledges the same as barrels. Found in Worlds 7-4 and 8-2.
Icicle (Tsurara)			Mario Bros.	Falling icicles that can be defeated with a fireball. Found in Worlds 4-2, 4-4, 5-3, 6-4, 7-4, 8-3, and 8-4.
Bowser (Kuppa)			Super Mario Bros.	The villain, he appears in every castle level (those ending in -4). In Worlds 1-5 he only breathes fire, in Worlds 6 and 7 he only throws hammers, and in World 8 he does both. He can be hitting him with five fireballs, a hammer, or by breaking the bridge with the axe. None of the Bowsers are Impostor Bowsers; in each world, when defeated with fireballs, Bowser simply disappears.

Obstacles

Obstacles, unlike Enemies, are not given names in the Cast list in the game's ending.

Name	X1 image	PC-88 image	Origin	Description
Fire-Bar			Super Mario Bros.	Bars made of stacked fireballs, rotating around a central block, damaging Mario on contact. Found in Worlds 1-4, 2-4, 3-4, 5-4, 6-4, 7-2, 7-4, 8-1, 8-3, and 8-4.
Lava			Super Mario Bros.	Pools of molten rock, killing Mario if he falls into them. Found in Worlds 1-4, 2-4, 3-4, 4-4, 5-4, 6-4, 7-4, 8-3, and 8-4.
Turtle Cannon			Super Mario Bros.	Cannons that fire Bullet Bills (Killers) from a distance. If Mario stands next to them, they will stop firing. Found in Worlds 5-2, 5-3, and 7-1.

Levels

World	Level	Setting	Enemies found
World 1	World 1-1	Overworld	Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa
	World 1-2	Underground, Overworld	Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa
	World 1-3	Athletic	Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa, Koopa Paratroopa
	World 1-4	Castle	Fire-Bar, Bowser
World 2	World 2-1	Overworld	Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa
	World 2-2	Underwater, Underground	Bloober, Cheep-cheep, Little Goomba
	World 2-3	Athletic	Cheep-cheep
	World 2-4	Castle	Fire-Bar, Podoboo, Piranha Plant, Bowser
World 3	World 3-1	Underwater, Overworld	Bloober, Cheep-cheep, Koopa Paratroopa, Piranha Plant, Little Goomba
	World 3-2	Overworld	Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa, Koopa Paratroopa
	World 3-3	Athletic	Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa
	World 3-4	Castle	Fire-Bar, barrel, Podoboo, Bowser
World 4	World 4-1	Overworld	Piranha Plant, Lakitu, Spiny, Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa, Koopa Paratroopa
	World 4-2	Underground	Icicle, Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa, Buzzy Beetle, Sidestepper
	World 4-3	Athletic	Koopa Troopa, Koopa Paratroopa, Piranha Plant, barrel
	World 4-4	Castle	Icicle, Bowser
World 5	World 5-1	Overworld	Piranha Plant, Koopa Troopa, Little Goomba, Bloober, Fighterfly
	World 5-2	Overworld	Piranha Plant, Koopa Troopa, Fighterfly, Buzzy Beetle, Bullet Bill, Sidestepper, Bloober, Little Goomba, Hammer Brother
	World 5-3	Athletic	Cheep-cheep, Koopa Paratroopa, Bullet Bill, Piranha Plant, icicle
	World 5-4	Castle	Fire-Bar, Podoboo, Bowser
World 6	World 6-1	Overworld	Lakitu, Spiny, Piranha Plant
	World 6-2	Overworld	Piranha Plant, Buzzy Beetle, Lakitu, Spiny, barrel
	World 6-3	Athletic	Piranha Plant, Koopa Troopa
	World 6-4	Castle	Fire-Bar, Icicle, Barrel, Piranha Plant, Bowser
World 7	World 7-1	Overworld	Bullet Bill, Buzzy Beetle, Piranha Plant, Little Goomba, Koopa Paratroopa, Hammer Brother, Koopa Troopa, barrel
	World 7-2	Underwater, Overworld	Bloober, Cheep-cheep, Fire-Bar
	World 7-3	Athletic	Cheep-cheep, Koopa Paratroopa, Sidestepper, Piranha Plant, Hammer Brother
	World 7-4	Castle	Piranha Plant, Podoboo, Koopa Paratroopa, icicle, Fireball, Bowser
World 8	World 8-1	Athletic	Koopa Troopa, Little Goomba, Koopa Paratroopa, Fire-Bar, Sidestepper, Fighterfly, Buzzy Beetle
	World 8-2	Underwater, Overworld	Bloober, Cheep-cheep, barrel, Fireball, Hammer Brother
	World 8-3	Underground, Overworld	Icicle, Fire-Bar, Fighterfly, Koopa Paratroopa, Sidestepper, Hammer Brother
	World 8-4	Castle	Fire-Bar, Koopa Paratroopa, Buzzy Beetle, Piranha Plant, Bowser

Staff

Main article: List of Super Mario Bros. Special staff

Programmed By

• Yukio-Takeoka

Course-Designed By

• Ichirou-Sakurada

Sound Effected By

• Fumihiko-Itagaki
• Megumi-Kawamata

Produced By

• Takashi-Takebe

Pre-release and unused content

The Mycom BASIC Magazine flyer ad.

In a full-page magazine advertisement from Mycom BASIC Magazine, the screenshots depict level segments not seen in the final game, including a version of World 1-1 from the original Super Mario Bros. with additional coins and a Brick Block wall to the right, an underwater stage with Mario able to jump, an underground stage with pillars of Hard Blocks staircasing downwards leading to two Little Goombas with one being embedded in a pipe, and a flagpole next to a hill.

Gallery

For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Super Mario Bros. Special.

• 

  Hachisuke

• 

  Wing

• 

  Hammer and barrels

• 

  Lucky Star

• 

  Icicles and Sidesteppers

• 

  Fighterflies

• 

  Fireball

• 

  Clock

Multimedia

For the complete list of media files for this subject, see Multimedia:Super Mario Bros. Special.

Ground Theme

File info 0:30

Underwater BGM

File info 0:30

Starman

File info 0:30

Castle BGM

File info 0:20

Lost a Life

File info 0:03

Help:Media file • Having trouble playing?

Glitches

Main article: List of Super Mario Bros. Special glitches

Due to both the PC-88 and X1 being weaker compared to the NES/Famicom, as well as working off a largely different engine, some glitches and tricks that were previously not present in the original appear here.

AWOL objects

On occasion, failing to either defeat select enemies or otherwise despawn objects will cause other enemies or objects later in the stage to not appear. This glitch occurs in both versions of the game, and is very unpredictable. Most notably, the second Flimsy Lift in the wide pit in World 4-3 will fail to load if the second Scale Lift is not destroyed, causing the pit to become impossible to cross and requiring Mario to lose a life.

References to earlier games

Donkey Kong

• The hammer is a power-up item, and Barrels and Fireballs return as enemies.

Mario Bros.

• Several enemies like Fighter Flys and Sidesteppers are from this game.

External links

• Bad Games Hall of Fame (various Hudson Soft Mario games and the South Korean Samsung SPC-1500 ad)
• Universal Game List entry for Super Mario Bros. Special
• More information on the X1 version
• Instruction manual