GuestLog in

Because the description doesn't really explain this, i'm going to say it here - this hack is essentially a lightning round of early levels from later Mario games (SMB2 USA, SMB3, and SMW) recreated in SMB1. Additionally, the hack includes a new power-up and behavior modifications for almost all of the enemies, so 'GP' should definitely be listed in the "Mods" category but surprisingly isn't.

I must also point out that this hack seems to suffer from compatibility issues. It worked fine on FCEUX for me, but freezes after getting a powerup in Nestopia, and wouldn't load up at all on Higan.

Anyway, this hack is only four levels long and feels like a demo - a very good demo.

Graphics - The graphical changes here are very striking, and manage to combine elements from a handful of Mario titles - and other games.. i'll get to that - smoothly while still looking very much like its own thing. The animated waterfall and plants lifted from the American SMB2 look particularly nice here, as does the death sprite lifted from the Mario Bros. Arcade game - which was an unexpected touch. Graphics from the Japanese SMB2 are also very prominent here, as the ground texture and castle bricks from that game appear frequently. It's also worth noting that Mario's palette is changed to match his current look, and his "small" sprite is redrawn to look more like a squished version of his "big" sprite.. not immediately necessary, but different, and i really like it.

Level Design - Not much to say here, as these are recreations of already classic levels from later games. They are made a tad more difficult here, however, as the poison mushroom appears frequently, and some enemies are tougher to get by. Particularly cool is the recreation of SMB2 USA's first level, which is done very, very well! The rest of the levels aren't quite is neat, but still fun to see in this style. The only major flaw here is that 1-4 has a 'Cheep Cheep' that is impossible to pass without taking a hit unless you have the firing power-up.

Gameplay Modifications - Honestly, this is what stood out the most for me when playing this hack, so i was surprised to see none of this listed. I'll start out by saying the power-up that replaces the Fire Flower is just awesome. Essentially, Mario gets the power to fire like Mega Man! This power-up is often hard to keep, but makes you feel OP when you have it. And for the record, this power-up lets Mario fire in a perfect straight line. I've seen a handful of hacks try to do this, and they always fall short of it (the projectile still slopes downward a bit), but this one accomplished it perfectly, so props for that!

As previously stated, nearly all of the enemies are changed as well. And while some of them seem to be changed just for the sake of being different, it's still very refreshing to see a hacker play around with the enemy behavior.

• Goombas are replaced with Castlevania Ghouls that function like Dry Bones - coming back to life a few seconds after being stomped. I love seeing this mechanic here, but as a player who isn't a big fan of hacks adding crossover enemies, i can't help but wonder why the hacker didn't just use Dry Bone.
• Piranha Plants are replaced with Cheep Cheeps that pop out of the pipes, and behave the same except they can be stomped. After being defeated by the player, these Cheep Cheeps glitchy 'corpses' remain because of the way the Piranha Plant was coded, which is a minor flaw. This is also the kind of Cheep Cheep that plagues a tight spot in 1-4.
• Bloopers are replaced with Metroids, with the big difference being that they now aren't harmed by fire. Again, not a fan of using enemies from other games for the heck of it, but i like the behavioral change.
• Spinies are replaced with the flat, disc-like enemy from Mega Man. Only one of them appears (in 1-4) unless you can trigger Lakitu's appearance (i got him to show up once, but most of the time he didn't. Not sure how that works). This enemy appears in a tight space and can mess you up if you don't jump at exactly the right time. Unfortunately, the hit box is unchanged, so the flat look can fool you as well.
• Another Spiny-like enemy appears in the hack in the form of a tiny dragon that can't be stomped by the player. This enemy is almost a surefire beginner's trap because there is nothing to insinuate that you can't jump on it, and the hit box can also be deceiving.

And last but not least is the enemy that's going to plague this hack for you...

• A Snifit from SMB2 replaces the Hammer Bro, and makes certain parts of levels a game of chance. This Snifit fires rapidly, and the projectile is aimed /directly at the player/. If you get two of these together, it's game over. The firing mechanic here is incredibly cheap, and brings the quality of the whole hack down, if you ask me.

~~~

In conclusion, this hack is a nice, refreshing demo, and it would be great to see other hackers take inspiration from its graphical style and a few of its gameplay modifications, but there are still a few flaws that make it just short of being a classic.

This hack ends at 1-4, but it's still a fantastic journey. When you start off, you're in the first level of Super Mario Bros. 2 (USA), but in the Super Mario Bros. engine, which is interesting, and cleverly designed. From there, you go through all sorts of different kinds of places, some of which were familiar to me; some of which were not. You'll face Snifits that actually shoot bullets at you, flying Hard Hats from Mega Man, Metroids, Castlevania zombies, and all sorts of other creatures from all over the NES, some even not. 1-4 is my favorite area, since you go from castle to underwater area with a psychedelic waterfall to a showdown with Bowser that calls back to Super Mario Bros. 3, but is a wholly new experience, and quite a challenge. You may want to use states with this one, but you might not have to.