If you’re a gamer who lived outside of Japan during the 16-bit era, then you may be familiar with a game called Super Mario All Stars. This game was a compilation eventually bundled with most Super Nintendo systems, and what a great inclusion it was featuring four or five Mario platformers in one. The included games were Super Mario Brothers, SMB 2, SMB 3, Super Mario World and Super Mario Brothers: The Lost Levels. Have you ever wondered what the Lost Levels referred to?

Super Mario Brothers: The Lost Levels is, in reality, the real Super Mario Brothers 2. The game was originally released in Japan in 1986 as a direct follow-up to the highly successful SMB, however there was a problem with the game. It was much harder than the original. So difficult in fact, that Nintendo felt it wouldn’t succeed outside of Japan. Nintendo decided then to take another game, Doki Doki Panic, change the graphics and a few gameplay dynamics (bosses, levels) to Mario universe and release Super Mario Brothers 2 (known in Japan as Super Mario USA).

At this point I could keep typing, having completed both Doki Doki Panic and Super Mario USA and doing my own research many years ago, but since I just don’t have the time here’s a few choice links:

• Doki Doki Panic (Wikipedia)
• Super Mario Brothers: The Lost Levels (Wikipedia)
• Super Mario Brothers 2 Madness (The Mushroom Kingdom)
• Retro Review: Doki Doki Panic (Loot Ninja)