The Japanese Super Mario Bros. 2 is basically the first Super Mario Bros. game, but with the difficulty cranked to 11. The expanded space provided by the disk format allowed for upgraded graphics, longer and more complex levels (some taken from VS. Super Mario Bros.), several new gimmicks, and 5 new worlds (for a total of 13 worlds)... but overall, its graphics and music don't do it favors in distinguishing it from its predecessor.
That, factored in with its extreme difficulty, gave Nintendo of America cold feet, so they opted to have another FDS game modified to present a completely different Super Mario Bros. 2 to other regions. While they would later toy with the idea of giving this game out as a bonus to Nintendo Power subscribers, even going so far as to produce a cartridge version of it, those plans also fell through, this time due to concerns over brand confusion. Players outside of Japan would eventually end up discovering it several years later through Super Mario All-Stars, albeit in a remade form. An unlockable version was also included with Super Mario Bros. Deluxe, although it did not have the unique graphics of the original release, unique abilities for Mario and Luigi, or anything normally accessible past World 8-4.
Overseas players did not get a chance to play the original, completely unaltered game until it was released internationally on the Wii Virtual Console, and it has since been brought over to the Wii U, 3DS, and the Nintendo Switch OnlineNintendo Classics library. In most of these overseas re-releases, the game is referred to as Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels, though the title screen is left unchanged in said unaltered ports.
Two unused ground tiles and a cactus can be found at the very end of the SM2CHAR1 graphics file. The last tile, a more natural-looking variation of the original Super Mario Bros. ground tile, actually appears in every screenshot in this game's manual, suggesting that it was changed very late in development.
In World 3-1, a Red Koopa Troopa is placed directly above a pit. It's normally impossible to see this enemy in-game, as by the time the player reaches the screen in question it's already fallen into the pit. The only way to see it without hacks is to glitch Mario's position to the furthest right side of the screen, then take damage, which causes the screen to scroll to the right and give the player a glimpse of the Koopa as it falls into oblivion.
In 2004, Super Mario Bros. 2 was re-released as part of Japan's Famicom Mini series for the Game Boy Advance as "Famicom Mini Vol. 21". The most significant change in this version is that pressing A + Start allows you to, after getting a Game Over, immediately go back to the start of the world where you lost all your lives in (barring Worlds 9 and A-D), just like in Super Mario Bros.. This not only renders the "Continue" option redundant, but has some other effects:
Using the emulator's menu (accessible by pressing L + R) to save your high score will also save the last world you died on, meaning the A + Start combo still works even after the game is turned off, which makes it possible to complete the game in multiple sessions.
It is possible to switch between Mario and Luigi mid-game without having to start over, which was not possible in the FDS version.
After beating 8-4 eight times, the player must press B + Start at the title screen to access World A-1 rather than the FDS version's A + Start.
While none of these specific changes were carried over to future rereleases, the version included in Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros. features a rather similar set of changes. Speaking of...
Due to the device's lack of Select and Start buttons, the controls have been modified so the player can press Up and Down to switch between options at the title screen (similar to what was done for many of the NES games in Animal Crossing) and A to select them.
Holding A for a few seconds on the title screen now starts the game with infinite lives enabled, with the lives counter displaying a new infinity symbol.
The world select feature from the original Super Mario Bros. has been added and received the same overhaul as in the device's version of said game, always being enabled and allowing you to select any world up to the furthest one you've reached (meaning Warp Zone usage also unlocks the worlds you warped past as well). Your highest world is also saved and retained even if the device is powered off. Using it to start from any world past the first one counts as using a Warp Zone, meaning access to World 9 is barred (though beating World 8-4 while using it does still add a star to the title screen, making accessing Worlds A-D much more bearable than in the original game). World 9 itself is also unable to be selected from it.
Rather than having to press A + Start to access World A-1, the world is now able to be selected in the aforementioned world select after beating World 8-4 eight times.
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