Super Mario Bros. 2

Real men use Peach and just float over all the bullshit. Quick everyone duck before someone bring up Doki Doki Panic

Why the games where Mario transforms into a flying raccoon or Superman fit within the tight continuity of Mario's carefully constructed rational world whereas this one does not is a question beyond my abilities to answer. All I can say for certain is that Princess Peach's levitation ability is nifty.

In my best David Lynch voice: "There are secrets in the sand. I have found the dark universe, in a jar inside my dreams."

I'll always have a soft spot for this one because Mario 2 felt like more of an adventure than just a run to save a princess over and over. Neat enemies and it was fun to discover trips of the map, like where to use the potion door.

In the original Japanese it was called Luigi's Okey-Dokey Panic.

*whispering* this game is good

I like it more than most 2D mario games lol

This game was a major win for feminism.

A weird and unique platformer, where jumping onto things, holding them over your head, and tossing them around is the central mechanic. It's a super fun mechanic, ringed with other fun mechanics, like potions, quicksand, and the infamous Phanto. Sadly, the controls aren't quite as precise as the game wants them to be - Peach is the best character for almost every level, simply because she lets you fudge or avoid the trickiest parts. But it's still a wonderful and unique part of the Mario mythos.

Did you know that this was originally released as Sonic the Hedgehog 3 in Taiwan? srsly stop telling people the history of Mario 2 every time it's brought up. This is a fine game. A beautiful, easy to understand but difficult platformer.

Luigi with his fuckin' fluttery jump thing defined him for the rest of his life. You could tell there was never intended for a North American release.

In the Mario franchise, this one made very little sense. But I really enjoyed this game, the different variety of levels, and how the choice of character changed the way you played a level (based on their strengths in jumping). It was a challenging side-scroller, and a step up from the first game in the series.

I admit I was one of those punk kids that compared this to Mario 1 and 3 and was like "wtf this is too different." I actually never even beat it until, shit, I dunno, probably 2003 or something? But it's certainly not bad, still has that Nintendo polish compared to most other NES fare.

Great game. This one again is unique to many Mario games I have played. You control any 4 characters in this game from Mario, Luigi, Toad and Princess. Best Character in my opinion would be the Princess as she has the power to glide for a few sec in the air. Worst maybe Luigi because his controls are awkward. Mario is in a dream state in this game. Only negative and this is with all retro gaming the limited lives and Continues. Other than that awesome game.

strange

Underrated.

It's amazing how much Mario iconography comes from a reskined Doki Doki Panic. This isn't as good as the main Mario games but offers a different and solid experience either way.

Super Mario Bros. 2 loses the fast pace of the original and is very clearly a different game entirely. That being said, it's still an enjoyable platformer and the ability to play as characters other than Mario is a strong plus.