Super Mario Bros. Special

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The title of this article is official, but it comes from a Japanese source.
If an acceptable English name is found, then the article should be moved to the new title.

Not to be confused with Mario Bros. Special.
Super Mario Bros. Special
Front cover.
For alternate box art, see the game's gallery.
Developer Hudson Soft
Publisher Hudson Soft (Japan)
Static Soft (South Korea)[1]
Platform(s) NEC PC-8801
Sharp X1 / Samsung SPC-1500[1]
Release date Japan August 1986[?]
South Korea 1987[1]
Genre Platformer
Mode(s) Single player
Format 5.25-inch floppy, Tape

Super Mario Bros. Special (Japanese: スーパーマリオブラザーズ スペシャル, Sūpā Mario Burazāzu Supesharu) is a platform game that was developed by Hudson Soft and released in 1986 for the NEC PC-8801 and Sharp X1 series of Japanese computers, and later for the Samsung SPC-1500,[1] a South Korean clone of the X1. Super Mario Bros. Special was the second Nintendo-licensed follow-up to Super Mario Bros., released around two months after Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels.[2]

The game scrolls between scenes similarly to the Zelda games. The PC-8801 version handles this by turning the display black briefly while loading the next screen. The Sharp X1 handles it more smoothly by visually sliding to the next lock point, though the transition does have some overlap.

Super Mario Bros. Special has changes in difficulty similar to Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels. The jumping and dashing physics from the Family Computer release are different. The stage time also ticks slightly faster. There is also no multiplayer mode and not even the choice to play as Luigi like in Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels.

Super Mario Bros. Special has inferior graphics and audio in both the PC-8801 and X1 releases because both systems do not have as great of hardware specifications as the Family Computer, but still try to replicate the graphics of Super Mario Bros. nonetheless. The X1 version contains partial scrolling and slightly more colorful graphics, featuring all eight colors possible with 100% and 0% RGB, including lime-green, cyan, magenta and white. The PC-88 release of Super Mario Bros. Special uses only black, red, yellow, and blue, including dithered results with those four colors, and it does not use internal eight-color palette of the PC-88. Further, sprites exclude the use of blue to allow transparency in the sprites. This leads to yellow being used as a stand-in for white and swapping with red for recolored enemies, notably causing the "green" enemies to appear with red eyes.

Gameplay[edit]

See also: Super Mario Bros. § Gameplay

The object of the game is to get to the flagpole to advance to the next level. While on his way to the goal, Mario encounters many enemies and power-ups.

Power-ups[edit]

Name X1 image PC-88 image Points awarded Description
Magic Mushroom Magic Mushroom Magic Mushroom 1000 Grab this to change into Super Mario.
Fire Flower Fire Flower Fire Flower 1000 Grab this to change into Fiery Mario.
Starman Starman Starman 1000 Grab this to briefly change into Invincible Mario.
Hammer
(Hummer)
The Hammer as it appears in the Sharp X1 version of Super Mario Bros. Special. "Hummer" 1000 Mario rapidly swings a hammer in front of him, just like in Donkey Kong. Found in Worlds 3-4 and 5-1.
Wing The Wing from Super Mario Bros. Special. Wing 1000 Collecting this makes Mario fly in the air, but he looks like he is swimming. Found in Worlds 3-2 and 4-1.

Items[edit]

Name X1 image PC-88 image Points awarded Description
1 up Mushroom 1 up Mushroom 1 up Mushroom 0 If Mario collects one, he will get an extra life.
Coin Coin Coin 200 Collect 100 coins for a 1 up.
Hachisuke Hachisuke Hachisuke 8000 The bee from the Hudson Soft logo. If Mario finds this item, he will be awarded 8000 points. Found in World 1-1.
Clock Clock Clock from Super Mario Bros. Special (NEC PC-88). 1000 Upon picking this up, Mario will get an additional 100 seconds added to the timer. Found in World 8-3.
Lucky Star Lucky Star Lucky Star 1000 Resembles an atom. If Mario collects it, all the enemies on-screen will be defeated and award their normal point values as if hit by a Starman. It is similar to a POW Block except it also affects airborne foes, like a POW Block in Super Mario Bros. 35. Found in World 4-1.

Enemies[edit]

Hudson Soft's staff brought over enemies from Super Mario Bros. as well as earlier Super Mario games. All are referred to by their Japanese names in-game, with a typo in one case (or called by new names in the case of the earlier games' enemies), and ordered per their listing in the cast and credits:

Name X1 image PC-88 image Origin Description
Little Goomba
(Kuribou)
Little Goomba Little Goomba Super Mario Bros. The most basic enemy, they can be defeated with a jump on top of them, bumping them from below, hitting them with a fireball, hammer, or shell, or running into them while invincible. Found in Worlds 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, 2-1, 2-3, 3-1, 3-2, 3-3, 4-1, 4-2, 4-3, 5-1, 5-2, and 8-1.
Koopa Troopa
(Nokonoko)
Koopa Troopa (green) Koopa Troopa (red) Koopa Troopa Koopa Troopa Super Mario Bros. Walking turtles, the green of which walk off ledges and the red of which turn at ledges. Jumps and bumps cause them to hide into their shells (which can be knocked around), and fire, a hammer, a shell, and invincibility defeats them instantly. Green found in Worlds 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, 2-1, 2-3, 3-2, 4-1, 4-2, 5-1, 5-2, 6-3, and 7-3. Red found in Worlds 1-2, 1-3, 3-3, 4-3, 5-2, 6-3, and 8-1.
Koopa Paratroopa
(Patapata)
Green Koopa Paratroopa Koopa Paratroopa (red) Koopa Paratroopa Koopa Paratroopa Super Mario Bros. Winged Koopa Troopas, the green of which jump and the red of which fly up and down. Stomping on them makes them lose their wings, and fire, a hammer, a shell, or invincibility defeats them instantly. Green found in Worlds 3-1, 3-2, 4-1, 5-1, 5-2, 7-1, 7-3, and 8-1. Red found in Worlds 1-3, 5-3, 7-3, 8-1, 8-3, and 8-4.
Buzzy Beetle
(Met)
Buzzy Beetle Buzzy Beetle Super Mario Bros. Hard-shelled turtles that act similar to Koopa Troopas. They can be knocked into their shells with a jump or bump, and can be defeated with invincibility or a hammer or shell. Found in Worlds 4-2, 5-2, 6-2, 7-1, 8-1, and 8-4.
Hammer Brother
(Hummer Bros)
Hammer Brother Hammer Brother Super Mario Bros. Turtles that jump and throw arcing hammers. They can be defeated with a stomp, fireball, shell, bump, or invincibility. Found in Worlds 5-2, 8-2, and 8-3.
Lakitu
(Jugemu)
Lakitu Lakitu Super Mario Bros. A cloud-riding turtle that drops Spiny's eggs. It can be defeated with a stomp, fireballs, or invincibility, after which it does not respawn. Found in Worlds 4-1 and 6-1.
Spiny
(Togezou)
Spiny Spiny Super Mario Bros. Spiked turtles that hatch from eggs dropped from Lakitus. They can be defeated with fireballs, invincibility, or being bumped.
Piranha Plant
(Pakkun Flower)
Piranha Plant Piranha Plant Super Mario Bros. Biting plants that go up and down in pipes. They can be defeated through fireballs or invincibility. Found in Worlds 2-1, 2-4, 3-1, 4-1, 4-3, 5-1, 5-2, 5-3, 6-1, 6-2, 6-4, 7-1, 7-4, and 8-4.
Spiny's egg
(Paipo)
Spiny's egg Spiny's egg Super Mario Bros. Eggs dropped by Lakitu that hatch into Spiny when they land.
Bullet Bill
(Killer)
Bullet Bill Bullet Bill Super Mario Bros. Bullets shot from cannons in infinite amounts. They can be defeated with a stomp or invincibility. Found in Worlds 5-2, 5-3, and 7-1.
Cheep-cheep
(Pukupuku)
Green Cheep-cheep Red Cheep-cheep Cheep-cheep (green) Cheep-cheep (red) Super Mario Bros. Fish that swim in groups at the same speed regardless of color, with a few at a time bobbing slightly. Red ones also hop from the water in land levels. When underwater, they can only be defeated with fireballs or invincibility, but on land they can also be stomped or hit with a shell. Green found in Worlds 2-2, 3-1, 7-2, and 8-2. Red found in Worlds 2-2, 2-3, 3-1, 5-3, 7-2, 7-3, and 8-2.
Bloober
(Gesso)
Bloober Bloober Super Mario Bros. Bobbing squid found underwater. They can be defeated with a fireball or invincibility. Found in Worlds 2-2, 3-1, 5-1, 5-2, 7-2, and 8-2.
Podoboo
(Bubble)
Podoboo Podoboo Super Mario Bros. Hopping lava balls that can only be defeated with invincibility. Found in Worlds 2-4, 3-4, 5-4, 7-4, and 8-4.
Sidestepper
(Chokichoki)
Chokichoki Chokichoki in Super Mario Bros. Special (NEC PC-8801) Mario Bros. Crabs that walk in a straight line and can be defeated with a fireball, invincibility, or a bump. Found in Worlds 4-2, 5-2, 7-3, 8-1, and 8-3.
Fighterfly
(Nakaji)
Nakaji Nakaji Mario Bros. Flies that move by taking small hops, pausing in between and able to change directions whenever on the ground. Can be defeated with a fireball, hammer, invincibility, or a bump. Found in Worlds 5-1, 5-2, 8-1, 8-2, and 8-3.
Barrel
(Tarusar)
Tarusar Tarusar Donkey Kong These barrels roll down ledges and can be defeated with a hammer or a bump. Found in Worlds 3-4, 4-3, 6-2, 6-4, 7-1, and 8-2.
Fireball
(Sigebou)
Sigebou Sigebou Donkey Kong Fireballs that move horizontally, tumbling down ledges the same as barrels. Found in Worlds 7-4 and 8-2.
Icicle
(Tsurara)
Tsurara Tsurara Mario Bros. Falling icicles that can be defeated with a fireball. Found in Worlds 4-2, 4-4, 5-3, 6-4, 7-4, 8-3, and 8-4.
Bowser
(Kuppa)
King Koopa King Koopa Super Mario Bros. The villain, he appears in every castle level (as in, the ones ending in -4). For the first five worlds, he breaths fire, and for the next two, he throws hammers, and for the final, he does both. He can be defeated by touching the nearby ax or by hitting him with five fireballs.

Levels[edit]

World Level Setting Enemies found
Hachisuke as seen in the Sharp X1 version of Super Mario Bros. Special.
World 1
World 1-1 Overworld Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa
World 1-2 Underground/Overworld Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa
World 1-3 Athletic Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa, Koopa Paratroopa
World 1-4 Castle Fire-Bar, Bowser
Screenshot of World 2-3 from Super Mario Bros. Special.
World 2
World 2-1 Overworld Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa
World 2-2 Underwater/Underground Bloober, Cheep-cheep, Little Goomba
World 2-3 Athletic Cheep-cheep
World 2-4 Castle Fire-Bar, Podoboo, Piranha Plant, Bowser
Screenshot of World 3-2 from Super Mario Bros. Special.
World 3
World 3-1 Underwater/Overworld Bloober, Cheep-cheep, Koopa Paratroopa, Piranha Plant, Little Goomba
World 3-2 Overworld Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa, Koopa Paratroopa
World 3-3 Athletic Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa
World 3-4 Castle Fire-Bar, barrel, Podoboo, Bowser
Screenshot of World 4-3 from Super Mario Bros. Special.
World 4
World 4-1 Overworld Piranha Plant, Lakitu, Spiny, Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa, Koopa Paratroopa
World 4-2 Underground Icicle, Little Goomba, Koopa Troopa, Buzzy Beetle, Sidestepper
World 4-3 Athletic Koopa Troopa, Koopa Paratroopa, Piranha Plant, barrel
World 4-4 Castle Icicle, Bowser
Screenshot of World 5-2 from Super Mario Bros. Special.
World 5
World 5-1 Overworld Piranha Plant, Koopa Troopa, Little Goomba, Bloober, Fighterfly
World 5-2 Overworld Piranha Plant, Koopa Troopa, Fighterfly, Buzzy Beetle, Bullet Bill, Sidestepper, Bloober, Little Goomba, Hammer Brother
World 5-3 Athletic Cheep-cheep, Koopa Paratroopa, Bullet Bill, Piranha Plant, icicle
World 5-4 Castle Fire-Bar, Podoboo, Bowser
Screenshot of World 6-1 from Super Mario Bros. Special.
World 6
World 6-1 Overworld Lakitu, Spiny, Piranha Plant
World 6-2 Overworld Piranha Plant, Buzzy Beetle, Lakitu, Spiny, barrel
World 6-3 Athletic Piranha Plant, Koopa Troopa
World 6-4 Castle Fire-Bar, icicle, barrel, Piranha Plant, Bowser
Screenshot of World 7-3 from Super Mario Bros. Special.
World 7
World 7-1 Overworld Bullet Bill, Buzzy Beetle, Piranha Plant, Little Goomba, Koopa Paratroopa, Hammer Brother, Koopa Troopa, barrel
World 7-2 Underwater/Overworld Bloober, Cheep-cheep, Fire-Bar
World 7-3 Athletic Cheep-cheep, Koopa Paratroopa, Sidestepper, Piranha Plant, Hammer Brother
World 7-4 Castle Piranha Plant, Podoboo, Koopa Paratroopa, icicle, Fireball, Bowser
Screenshot of World 8-2 from Super Mario Bros. Special.
World 8
World 8-1 Athletic Koopa Troopa, Little Goomba, Koopa Paratroopa, Fire-Bar, Sidestepper, Fighterfly, Buzzy Beetle
World 8-2 Underwater/Overworld Bloober, Cheep-cheep, barrel, Fireball, Hammer Brother
World 8-3 Underground/Overworld Icicle, Fire-Bar, Fighterfly, Koopa Paratroopa, Sidestepper, Hammer Brother
World 8-4 Castle Fire-Bar, Koopa Paratroopa, Buzzy Beetle, Piranha Plant, Bowser

Glitches[edit]

Main article: List of Super Mario Bros. Special glitches

Due to both the PC-88 and X1 being weaker compared to the NES/Famicom, as well as working off a largely different engine, some glitches and tricks that were previously not present in the original appear here.

AWOL objects[edit]

On occasion, failing to either defeat select enemies or otherwise despawn objects will cause other enemies or objects later in the stage to not appear. This glitch occurs in both versions of the game, and is wildly unpredictable. Most notably, the second Flimsy Lift in the wide pit in World 4-3 will fail to load if the second Scale Lift is not destroyed, causing the pit to become impossible to cross and requiring Mario to lose a life.[3]

References to earlier games[edit]

Staff[edit]

Main article: List of Super Mario Bros. Special staff
Programmed By
  • Yukio-Takeoka
Course-Designed By
  • Ichirou-Sakurada
Sound Effected By
Produced By
  • Takashi-Takebe

Gallery[edit]

For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Super Mario Bros. Special.

Multimedia[edit]

For a complete list of media files for this subject, see Multimedia:Super Mario Bros. Special.
Help:MediaHaving trouble playing?

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Hudson Mario Trilogy. Hardcore Gaming 101 (English). Archived from the original via Wayback Machine. Retrieved June 29, 2024.
  2. ^ [1][dead link]
  3. ^ Tori of the Star Palace (March 26, 2025). Super Mario Bros. Special (Sharp X1) - AWOL 4-3 Flimsy Lift Glitch(?) (0:00). Youtube (English). Retrieved March 26, 2025.

External links[edit]