Hirokazu Tanaka - Super Mario Land 1 (1989)

Composer: Hirokazu Tanaka

Console: GB/C

Game Release Date: 1989-04-21

Ripper: n/a

Runtime: 34:56, 10 Tracks

I was actually going to bundle this post with the second Mario Land game as well but after seeing the length of the rips it does not seem right to pair them together.

As I stated back on the Noobow post when I was sick with the virus I did a bit of gaming outside on my DSi and 3DS. I wanted a Mario-style platformer. Now I could have just resumed one of the many SMW hacks I have unfinished (like Drama Mistery or Mario is Missing! Done Right!) but I wanted something slightly different. And, well I have never actually played the first Super Mario Land game before so I figured why not? It would be something to do while I absorbed vitamin D. 

Mario needs no introduction. This is the flagship Mario game that was released for the original Gameboy all the way back in 1989. One thing about it that I knew prior was that it was barely talked about. It is one of the most "obscure" Mario games (or as obscure a Mario game can even be). I had known about it for a while but I was holding out until Super Mario Land DX was released. It was a romhack of the original that added colour. Other than that I didn't have any major expectations. Completely unbeknownst to me it already released and soon as I saw it was already out I had to cop and start it. 

The first thing you will notice about this game is how unusual it is. Strange enemy designs, different fireball physics, weird locations and more. This doesn't look like the mushroom kingdom most people are used to. The game is a lot shorter than I anticipated. I expected 8 worlds with 4 levels each and instead got 4 worlds. They were enjoyable and each had their own quirks. The game also does not feature Bowser as an antagonist and Peach is never mentioned. There are no toads and instead we are presented with a new princess, Daisy and a new villain, Tatanga. There are tons of new enemies from Sphinx' to Easter Island heads and zombies. If anything I felt the game had a whole lot of mystery to it. It almost felt unofficial in parts. Other than the already strange antagonist Tatanga the game had other things that felt off. There were a whole number of completely unreachable spots (that I only later found you can get a platform that allows you to go through bricks). I can imagine that if this was a game I grew up on I would have found it very mysterious and challenging. 

The final world which is some kind of Japanese graveyard is tough. Even with the many checkpoints within the few levels it's still tough and the many piranha plants and zombies with the games stiff controls make things hard. The game also has a few shmup sections which aren't that bad. The final fight proved difficult though, even with all powerups on. Thankfully it relies on the "harder you mash, faster you shoot" mechanic so you are able to spam your way to victory. 

The music was composed by Hirokazu Tanaka who is far more notable for his work on the Earthbound games. He's been with Nintendo for a long time and has had the chance to score many classic games like Dr. Mario, Kid Icarus and Metroid. There are two versions of this games soundtrack. In 1989, Hirokazu Tanaka through Nippon Columbia Records released an "uncompressed" version of the soundtrack featuring the original instruments and no chiptune. These are arrangements of the songs that would have played on the game boy. The other version is a 2017 bootleg that is a rip from the actual game and features all the chiptune in its glory. I will link both below. 

For the sake of the main post the 1989 version is what I am most interested in. It's rare to see "uncompressed" soundtracks for games and the only type I have posted on this blog has been Robots so far. 

Download [Arranged]: aHR0cHM6Ly9tZWdhLm56L2ZpbGUvbUVSWDBDVEwjX09xSjJjdWlBTTh4QXM0clRLUWRYeWF0WHdqNlIyb09kXzJHY0ZUTnVyUQ==

p@ss: tatangaship