Mario Pinball Land

Mario Pinball Land (known as Super Mario Ball in Japan and Europe) is a video game that was developed by Fuse Games and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance and released in 2004. It was re-released on the Wii U's Virtual Console in Europe and Australia on September 11, 2014, Japan on September 17, 2014, and in North America on November 27, 2014.

General
The story takes place in an amusement park called The Fun Fair. Mario, some Toads and Princess Peach are waiting in line to try a ride called the Air Cannon. To ride it, the rider must be turned into a ball first via the Spherasizer, after which they are shot out of the cannon. The Toad who tries it first has fun. As Peach is about to take her turn, two Goombas appear and change the direction the cannon is aiming toward Bowser's Castle. Mario then uses the Spherasizer to turn into a ball himself to go save Peach.

At the end of the game, Mario confronts Bowser inside his castle. When Bowser is defeated, he is launched out of the castle. Mario and Peach, after returning to normal, are riding the roller coaster on the final screen.

From the instruction booklet
Princess in Peril!? During the unveiling ceremony for the new “Sky Cannon” at the Fun Fair, Princess Peach was accidentally blasted off to Bowser’s castle! The Sky Cannon, an amazing new transportation device that launches people to new destinations, got off to a rocky start because of this shocking turn of events. According to eyewitnesses, the mishap occurred when a pair of shady Goombas altered the cannon’s direction. Within moments, they had locked up the castle, with Princess Peach trapped inside! Mario to the rescue! Without a moment’s hesitation, Mario leapt into a cannon to rescue Princess Peach. If Mario collects four Star Keys, he’ll be able to get into Bowser’s Castle. To do that, he’ll need to confront many challenges and defeat the bosses who hold those keys! Will he be able to rescue Princess Peach? How does it work? Before you can ride the Sky Cannon, a special “Pinballer” squeezes you into a ball, so that you can fit into the cannon’s barrel. The Pinballer also makes you surprisingly rubbery, so that you bounce harmlessly when you land!

Gameplay
Mario Pinball Land is a pinball game featuring several Mario-related elements. The player controls Mario in the form of a pinball. The left and right flippers are used to hit Mario. He can earn points by hitting obstacles and enemies. There are five worlds, each with a boss at the end. To proceed, Mario must collect Power Stars to open doors, a gameplay element borrowed from Super Mario 64. There are a total of 35 stars to collect. A few of the bosses can only be accessed if Mario opens certain paths or clear certain obstacles. Each boss yields a Star Key which Mario must collect in order to access Bowser's castle and face Bowser.

There are two modes: Adventure, which is the main mode, and "Time Attack", in which Mario has to complete a stage as fast as he can. The Sky Cannon is used to enable Mario to travel to other areas.

Controls

 * (up and down): select menu options
 * Launch ball, confirm
 * Use item, cancel
 * (or left): Use left flipper, select left on target screen and shops
 * (or ): Use right flipper, select right on target screen and shops
 * Pause game

The player can press, , , and simultaneously to reset the game.

Stages

 * The Fun Fair (Haunted House)
 * Frosty Frontier Stage (Shipwreck)
 * Grassy Greens Stage
 * Shifting Sands Stage
 * Fiery Stage (Bowser's Castle)

Protagonists

 * Mario
 * Peach
 * Toad

Enemies

 * 1-Up Moles
 * Armored Koopas
 * Bob-omb
 * Boos
 * Bullet Bill
 * Bumbler
 * Chain Chomp
 * Cheep-Cheep
 * Flying Shy Guys
 * Freezie
 * Goombas
 * Klepto
 * Koopas
 * Lakitu
 * Mr. Blizzard
 * Penguin
 * Pokeys
 * Shy Guy
 * Shy Guy on Skates
 * Snakes
 * Spikeys
 * Spiny Cheep-Cheep
 * Thwomp

Items
The following items can be bought from Toad or Mario can find them in ? Blocks.


 * Coin - The currency; allows Mario to buy items.
 * Blue Coin - Allows Mario to play special minigames to earn Stars.
 * 1-UP Mushroom - Gives the player an extra ball.
 * Pipe - Puts a blue pipe on the bottom of the screen, preventing Mario from falling.
 * Yoshi Egg - Gives the player a Yoshi Egg as a second ball.
 * Mega Mushroom - Temporarily grows Mario to a larger size.
 * Invincibility Star - Makes Mario invincible, allowing him to instantly defeat any enemies.
 * Mini Mushroom - Temporarily shrinks Mario, allowing him to enter small passages.
 * Lightning - Deals a hit to all enemies on-screen.
 * Special Egg - A red egg with white stars and the rarest item in the game (only 4 can be found); gives the combined effects of Mega Mushroom, Invincibility Star, Yoshi Egg, and Pipe.

Development
After Adrian Barritt and Richard Horrocks founded Fuse Games, they wanted to pitch a pinball game to Nintendo. Figuring that they needed to make an impact before Nintendo would speak to them, Barritt and Horrocks made a demo consisting of what they figured would be the first and last areas of the game. Afterward, they went to Seattle to pitch the game to Nintendo of America and were approved. The game was developed for the Game Boy Advance rather than the Nintendo GameCube due to Fuse Games' limited resources and due to the system's similarities to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.

Mario Pinball Land was developed over the course of eighteen months, from September of 2002 when the company was founded to its completion in June 2004, and by a team of five people total. At an earlier point in development the game was simply titled "Mario Pinball" before the name was changed.

Reception
Mario Pinball Land received mixed reviews at launch. While most reviewers praised the game's graphics at release, the game was mostly criticized for its difficulty and overall gameplay. It was also criticized for its short length and relative lack of replay value.

Staff
Mario Pinball Land was developed by Fuse Games, who would later go on to develop more pinball-based games for Nintendo. The entirety of the game was developed by a team of five people : Adrian Barritt, Richard Horrokcs, Cai Remrod, Keith Ainslie, and Kevin Ayre. Shigeru Miyamoto was the game's main producer.