Super Mario Land

Super Mario Land is a Mario game belonging to the main series released on April 21, 1989 as a launch game for the Game Boy. This game is the 3rd best-selling game for the original Game Boy and generally the 3rd best-selling Mario game on handheld consoles, only beaten by New Super Mario Bros. and Mario Kart DS. Additionally it's the 5th best-selling game in the Super Mario series, selling over 18 million units. It was Princess Daisy's debut appearance and her only appearance in a Super Mario game for now (with the exception of Super Mario Maker, which doesn't have a story). Super Mario Land was also playable on the Game Boy Color and the Game Boy Advance due to backwards compatibility. Interestingly, colors were added.

Super Mario Land was available on the Nintendo eShop for 3DS since November, 2011.

Synopsis
The scenery is not in the Mushroom Kingdom as usual, but in the great territory of Sarasaland, ruled by Princess Daisy. Tatanga, an evil extraterrestrial, invaded Sarasaland and hypnotized the inhabitants of the kingdom in order to kidnap and marry the land's ruler, Princess Daisy. Mario would have to travel throughout the four kingdoms of Sarasaland ( Birabuto, Muda, Easton and Chai) in order to find and defeat him. Daisy has the damsel in distress role, a role usually reserved for Princess Peach.

Story from the instruction booklet
Once upon a time, there was a peaceful world called Sarasaland. In this world there were 4 kingdoms named Birabuto, Muda, Easton and Chai. One day, the skies of Sarasaland were suddenly covered by a huge black cloud. From a crack in this cloud, the unknown space monster Tatanga emerged to try to conquer Sarasaland. Tatanga hypnotized the people of all the kingdoms so that he could control them in any way he liked. In this way he took over Sarasaland. Now, he wants to marry Princess Daisy of Sarasaland and make her his queen. Mario came to know of these events, and he has started on a journey to the Chai Kingdom where Princess Daisy is held captive, in order to restore peace to Sarasaland. Can Mario defeat Tatanga, release people from his interstellar hypnosis, and rescue Princess Daisy? It's all up to you and Mario's skill. Go for it Mario!

The game's characteristics
This game has been edited on the Game Boy, and is Mario's first adventure on a handheld system. The screen is in black and white. The lives are depicted as hearts instead of 1-up mushrooms and the game doesn't allow the player to come back. There are only three power-ups: the mushroom, which transforms Mario into Super Mario, the Superball Flower, which allows Mario to launch metallic balls towards enemies, similar to the Fire Flower, but the Superball Flower allows Mario to reach coins too, and the Superstar of course which has the same effect as in the other Super Mario games. We can notice that there aren't any physical differences between Super Mario and Superball Mario. However, when Superball Mario is attacked by an enemy or a fire ball, he becomes Mario directly and not Super Mario. The game presents the generic classic blocks too: coin blocks, 10-coins block, unbreakable blocks, and item blocks.

Every region is separated into three levels and one of these three is a boss stage (5000 points are awarded when the boss is defeated). Every simple level ends with a big tower instead of a castle. If Mario reaches the upper door, he will participate to a bonus mini-game which can give him one, two or three lives or a Superball Flower. If Mario reaches the lower door, the next level will start automatically.

At the end of Birabuto, Muda and Easton boss level, Mario finds Daisy but she turns into an enemy met during the stage (a Fly in Birabuto, a Gunion in Muda and a Kumo in Easton). It's only a diversion likely created by Tatanga.

Additionally, it's the only Super Mario game in which Mario uses the Marine Pop and the first Super Mario game in which he uses the Sky Pop.

After the player has completed the game, they may play through again on a harder mode, in which the levels are the same apart from enemies being more numerous; if the player completes the harder mode, the game allows the player to start another play on any level in the game.

Layouts
Birabuto 1-1 1-2  1-3 There is a hidden elevator at the half of the level which allows the player to reach a 0-enemy path and gain coins. You'll have to be Super Mario or Superball Mario in order to break the block under the secret elevator.

Muda

2-1 2-2  2-3 Mario can reach the end of the level using one of two methods: He has to defeat Dragonsamazu while launching bullets towards him, or he can destroy the blocks at the bottom of the level, behind the boss.

Easton

3-1 3-2  3-3

Chai

4-1 4-2  4-3

Music
Super Mario Land OST

The Super Mario Land Original Soundtrack was released on September 1, 1989. It contained ten tracks with a total playing time of 34:54 minutes. The tracks are arranged versions of the original game music, performed by Mario Freaks Orchestra. All of the songs can be listened to here.

Commercial
This is the official Super Mario Land commercial:

Gallery
See the Super Mario Land: Gallery.

Daisy's Theme
This is Daisy's theme, played when Mario rescues her:

References in later games
Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins: This game is the sequel of Super Mario Land. The Underground theme has been reused in the third level of the Pumpkin Zone.

WarioWare, Inc: Mega Microminigame$!: The microgame Grow Wario Grow features Mario's sprite and background graphics from Super Mario Land. It is set in Birabuto-1:

Super Smash Bros Brawl: The Easton theme has been arranged for the underground version of the Mushroom Kingdom stage:

Super Mario Galaxy: The Easton theme has been remixed for the Mecha-Bowser battle theme:

Super Mario 3D Land: The title of this game is a tribute to the original Super Mario Land game.

Mario and Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympics Winter Games: Some of the music from Super Mario Land have been compiled and arranged in the "Super Mario Land Medley" in Figure Skating, It features the Birabuto theme, the Daisy theme, and the Rocket Ship Ride theme:

Mario Kart 8: At the beginning of Water Park in the building, a sign can be seen. On it is written that Mario used for the first time submarines in 1987. This could be a reference to the Marine Pop as Super Mario Land was the first (and the last) game to feature Mario driving a submarine, However, Super Mario Land wasn't released in 1987:

Super Smash Bros for Wii U: The Easton theme comes back for the Luigi's Mansion and Super Mario Maker stages.

Super Mario Maker: There's a costume which features the Sky Pop and Daisy's up sprite is a reference to her pose in Super Mario Land.

Paper Mario: Color Splash: The ending music of Super Mario Land has been rearranged and reused in this game:

Super Mario Run:  The music from Remix 10 mode features some of the Easton Kingdom's music:

Yoshi's Woolly World:  There's powerup in the game called "Sky Pop Yoshi" that's a reference to the Sky Pop from Super Mario Land



Poochy & Yoshi Woolly World: The Sky Pop Yoshi returns in the 2017 3DS port of Yoshi Wooly World!

WarioWare Gold: Released in 2018 on 3DS, the Chai kingdom appears in a mini game in which Mario has to crush Pakkun Flowers thanks to Superballs:

Splatoon 2: Released in 2018 on Nintendo Switch, some posters can be seen featuring Gunion sprites, Gunion being ennemies from Muda kingdom, Sarasaland:

Trivia
☀ This game has been very lately considered because it has been created by R&D1, led by Gunpei Yokoi, and not by Shigeru Miyamoto. For him it wasn't a priority and didn't want to make characters not created by him shining. But things seem to move, for example Super Mario Land has two references in Super Mario Maker (Daisy and the Sky Pop), whereas, for example, the beloved Super Mario Galaxy series has only one.

☀ This is the only "Super Mario" game not to feature enemies from the Mushroom Kingdom, also every enemies who have appeared in this game have not appeared in the Mario series since with one exception being Tatanga.

☀ Super Mario Land is the first Mario game to feature a world entierely based on true existing locations.

☀ Super Mario Land book instructions calls Daisy "Daisy Princess" at some point. It is due to the Japanese expression "Deiji-Hime" which places the word "princess" after Daisy.

☀ Super Mario Land is the first Super Mario to introduce the space theme with the alien Tatanga and his spaceship (followed by the Space Zone and its gravity playing from Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins).

☀ Despite the official artwork of the game showing Daisy with a crown, her in-game sprite shows her without it.

☀ The game contains several 10-coins blocks. However, if you hit them rapidly and continuously, you can earn 15 coins and not 10.

☀ In Muda-3 (2-3), some coins are arranged to spell "MARIO".

☀ Easton is the only territory to not feature the enemy Goombo.

☀ Super Mario Land is the only Super Mario game to not feature a menu and a level map.

☀ Dragonzamasu is the only boss to not being featured on the game box.
 * Super Mario Land is the only Nintendo game where Princess Daisy is kidnapped.
 * Tatanga the alien appears in this game and later appears in Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins working for Wario.

☀ Mario's artwork from the Super Mario Land cover has been reused for a promotional pin from an awareness campaign by Nintendo and Atlanta homebuilding company Beazer Homes to illustrate the dangers of wandering into building sites: