Super Mario Bros. 2 (Famicom Disk System)

This page details pre-release information and/or media for Super Mario Bros. 2 (Famicom Disk System).

Build Date#

According to the Super Mario All-Stars source code from the July 2020 Nintendo leak, the game was finished on May 6, 1986; just under a month before release.

Japanese Commercial#

Watch on YouTubeSome pre-release footage was featured in a Japanese commercial advertising the game alongside Nazo no Murasame Jou. At this point in development, the game seems to be little more than Vs. Super Mario Bros. with new graphics and rearranged levels.

Unknown Level#

Pre-release	(Vs.) Super Mario Bros (World 2-1)

This is part of World 2-1 from Super Mario Bros. and Vs. Super Mario Bros., but with free-roaming Poison Mushrooms instead of Goombas. The Poison Mushrooms move slowly and don't disappear when they hit Mario, so it's likely that Nintendo simply replaced the Goombas' graphics for this footage, perhaps as a quick and dirty way to show off the new item. We can't see what level this is at this point in development, as the camera is zoomed in too far to see the HUD.

The unused ground tile makes an appearance here, albeit in a slightly different form:

Pre-release	Mockup	Unused

Another clue that the Poison Mushrooms are reskinned Goombas can be found in their graphics: the left and right sides are identical, which would prevent the sprite from constantly horizontally flipping as it moves. Both the final game and its predecessor use four unique tiles for the various Mushroom varieties.

Pre-release	Mockup	Final

World 1-2#

Pre-release	Final (World 6-2)

This appears to be World 7-2 from Vs. Super Mario Bros., which was used as a basis for World 6-2 in the final game.

World 1-4#

Pre-release	Final (World 5-4)

This appears to be World 6-4 from Vs. Super Mario Bros., which was used as a basis for World 5-4 in the final game.

World 5-3#

Pre-release	Final (Worlds 4-3 and C-2)

Pre-release	Final (World 4-3)

This appears to be World 6-3 from Vs. Super Mario Bros., which was used as a basis for World 4-3 and part of World C-2 in the final game. The short hop off the Koopa at the beginning of the level reveals that Mario's new physics had not been implemented yet.

One odd thing to note in this section of the video is that the world number in the HUD seems to have been sloppily pasted over, as the number 5 is slightly below the number 3. Why this was done is anyone's guess.

World 8-1#

Pre-release	(Vs.) Super Mario Bros (World 8-1)

This level, from what we can see in the short footage of it, is the same as World 8-1 in Super Mario Bros. and VS. Super Mario Bros.

Famicom Tsūshin Issue #1 (June 20, 1986)#

World 1-2#

Pre-release	Final

In the finished game, the solid blocks were replaced with brick blocks, one of which contains a Star.

World 4-2#

Pre-release	Final

The ? Blocks are notably absent in this early version, and the brick and pipe placements were rearranged in the final.

World 5-1#

Pre-release	Final (World C-1)

Some minor layout and palette changes can be seen here. Most notably, the bricks above the upside-down pipes were replaced with solid blocks, and the palette for the trees and pipes was changed, as well as the sky being made nighttime.

Instruction Manual#

World 1-1#

Pre-release	Final

In the early version, the block above the second background mushroom contained a Star, and the multi-coin block to the right of the stairs was absent.