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Mario Bros NES loose cartridge for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Nintendo’s 1983 arcade game reached the NES in North America in June 1986. Flip enemies from below, kick them away and use the POW block, alone or with a second player. Cartridge only, no box or manual. Ships within 2 business days.
| Platform | NES |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Nintendo |
| Condition | Loose Cartridge |
| Availability | In stock |
Mario Bros NES is the North American cartridge release of Nintendo's 1983 arcade game, starring Mario and Luigi. Nintendo brought it to the Nintendo Entertainment System in June 1986. This listing is a loose cartridge, and the game supports one or two players.
Mario Bros. first appeared in North American arcades in March 1983. The Famicom version came out in Japan on September 9, 1983. Nintendo R&D1 developed the home version together with Intelligent Systems, and Wikipedia lists it as the first game Intelligent Systems worked on. Nintendo published it.
Each round takes place on one screen of platforms. Enemies come in and go out through the pipes in the corners. You cannot stomp them. Instead, you hit the platform from below to flip an enemy onto its back, then kick it off the screen. Wait too long and the enemy flips back over and keeps coming.
The POW block in the middle of the screen flips every enemy touching a platform or the floor, but you can use it only three times. Touching an upright enemy, a fireball or a fully formed icicle costs a life.
The names are close, but they are different games. Mario Bros. came first, as a 1983 arcade game, and it has no scrolling worlds. Every round happens on a single screen, and the goal is to clear all the enemies. Super Mario Bros. is the later side-scrolling adventure. In Europe, Nintendo released this game again on the NES in 1993 as part of its Classic Series. The NES version has also appeared on Virtual Console and on Nintendo Switch, but this listing is the physical cartridge for your console.
Browse all NES games, or add Super Mario Bros. and Donkey Kong 3 to your order. Read more about Mario Bros. on Wikipedia.
When did Mario Bros. come out on the NES?
It was released for the NES in North America in June 1986. The arcade original came out in 1983.
How many players can play?
One or two players.
Does this Mario Bros Nintendo game come with a box or manual?
No. You get the loose cartridge only.
Will it work on my NES?
Yes. It is a Mario Bros NES cartridge for the Nintendo Entertainment System and plugs into an NES console.
Orders are dispatched within 2 business days. Standard US shipping is $4.99, and orders over $50 ship free. See our 30-day return policy.
Standard shipping is $4.99. Orders over $50 ship free.
Loose is the game cartridge only. Complete (CIB) includes the cartridge, the original box and the manual. Brand New is factory sealed. Choose one above; options shown in grey are not in stock right now.
Mike London –
Originally posted on Amazon.com · not a MarioShroomed purchase
Important by making Mario a plumber, but that’s about it
Mario Bros.
Two Stars – Important by making Mario a plumber, but that’s about it
“Mario Bros.” is far more important historically than it is fun to play. Developed and released in 1983, it introduces Mario the plumber to the world for the very first time
Nintendo developed “Mario Bros”. as a followup to their 1981 smash “Donkey Kong”. Shigeru Miyamoto and Gunpei Yokoi were the main developers of the title. Miyamoto is probably the most famous of all video game developrs. Gunpie, who was killed in 1997 due to a car accident, developed the Gameboy, the disastrous Virtual Boy, “Super Mario Land”, “Metroid” and “Kid Icarus”.
It was only in “Mario Bros.” that Mario became a plumber. During the “Donkey Kong” era, Mario had a different profession. Mario’s chosen profession was carpentry in “Donkey Kong”, which may explain all the scaffolding. For the follow up, Miyamoto and Yokio decided to make him a plumber. This was due to the subterranean setting as well as the enemies (turtles).
Originally the game mechanic was that when Mario hits the creatures that come out of the pipes they would die, but they found this too easy. Instead, Nintendo made it where after you hit the creature, you then had to kick them. Due to this, Miyamoto made the enemies turtles, which gave birth to the famous Koopa Troopas of “Super Mario” fame. Because Mario was now a plumber by profession, they made the setting subterranean, with the enemies crawling out of pipes rather than thin air as originally considered. “Mario Bros.” is also the first time we are introduced to Luigi. Like “Super Mario Bros.” and “The Lost Levels”, Luigi is simply a palette swap of Mario.
“Mario Bros.” has been released on over a dozen different gaming platforms as well as several non Nintendo consoles. The game would also make numerous appearance in other Nintendo titles, including “Super Mario Bros. 3”, the “Super Mario Advance” series, the Gamecube “Animal Crossing” (though it required a of work to unlock), and even in the recent “Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga” for the Nintendo Gameboy Advanced DS.
This title and “Donkey Kong” are the only Mario titles released on non Nintendo platforms: starting with “Super Mario Bros.”, Mario became exclusive to Nintendo consoles. The NES port is rather inferior to the arcade port. It is available on the Wii’s Virtual Console for 500 points.
I personally remember playing “Mario Bros.” on the Atari 2600. I remember growing up thinking “why would anyone want “Mario Bros.” when they can get “Super Mario Bros.'”?
Overall, the title is more important for the concepts and influence it introduced to the Mario series rather than the gameplay itself. This is the first time Mario is a plumber (which that part of Mario’s identity shaped the whole of “Super Mario Bros.”), it introduced Koopa Troopas and Luigi, gave us POWs as a powerup, and set the stage for bigger and better things to come.
The video game website IGN rated this title as the 91th greatest game on their top 100 NES games of all time.