Punch Ball Mario Bros.

n/a

PC-8801 PC-8001 mkII PC-6001 mkII PC-6601
Punch Ball Mario Bros.
System(s): PC-8001 mkII, PC-6001 mkII, PC-6601, PC-8801
Publisher: Hudson Soft
Developer: Hudson Soft
Licensor: Nintendo
Genre: Action
Number of players: 1-2
Release Date RRP Code JP 1984 ¥3,6003,600 YB-5010 JP 1984 ¥3,6003,600 S2-2010 JP 1984 ¥5,8005,800 S3-2010 JP 1984 ¥3,6003,600 YA-1060
Non-NEC versions FM-7 MZ series S1 series X1

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Punch Ball Mario Bros. (パンチボール マリオブラザーズ) is a take on the 1983 Nintendo arcade game Mario Bros. by Hudson Soft. It was released for the PC-6001 mkII, PC-8001 mkII and PC-8801 in 1984.

An alternative Mario Bros. game from Hudson Soft exists as Mario Bros. Special.

Story

Although humanity has improved their use of tools over the ages by harnessing fire, wind and even atomic energy, some humans, including Mario and Luigi, have not learned about sophisticated culture and must use stone balls and their jumping abilities to defend themselves.

Gameplay

Two-player gameplay from the PC-8801 version.

The premise and gameplay of Punch Ball Mario Bros. is much like the original game in that Mario and Luigi must go through a sewer and remove creatures across multiple phases, however the game differs from the original in that they cannot flip creatures over by hitting the floor from underneath and instead must take care of them by throwing Punch Balls at them to flip them over, then kick them before they get back up. Throwing the Punch Ball is mapped to the same key as jumping, so players must be standing still in order to throw it. Once thrown, the Punch Ball will remain on the ground and so must be picked up in order to use it again. Like in the original game, enemies can also be flipped over by hitting the POW Block in the middle of the screen, which can be done three times per phase.

The stage design differs from the original game in that there are only four main platforms above the ground - in later phases these platforms can also move, and may also be frozen, which will make players slide. Instead of two pipes at the bottom corners of the screen, there is a single pipe in the middle of the floor that acts as a pit - enemies will respawn from the top pipes if they fall into this pipe, however players will lose a life if they fall in. If a Punch Ball falls into this pipe, it will respawn above the POW Block. Bonus phases also appear in this game, in which the player(s) must collect all 10 coins before time runs out, and collecting them all in time awards a perfect bonus.

Like the original game, the game can be played in single player as Mario alone, or in simultaneous two-player as Mario and Luigi together. Mario moves using  Numpad 4  /  Numpad 6  and jumps/throws with  Space , while Luigi moves using  D  /  G  and jumps/throws using  Tab . The game also offers two difficulty modes named A and B, with game B being slightly harder than game A.

Enemies

Most of the enemy types from Mario Bros. are present, however Freezies do not appear in this game.

	Shellcreeper
	First appearance: Phase 01
	Simply walks along the floors like in the original game. They will turn red if allowed to get back up.
	Sidestepper
	First appearance: Phase 04
	Unlike in the original game, Sidesteppers only take one hit to flip over instead of two. They will turn green and display their angry face if allowed to get back up.
	Fighter Fly
	First appearance: Phase 06
	Like in the original game, Fighter Flies hop about and must be flipped when grounded. They will turn green if allowed to get back up.
	Fireball
	First appearance: Phase 04
	An invincible enemy. Only red fireballs appear in this game, however they function like the green fireballs from the original game in that they fly across the screen until they reach the other side.

Production credits

• Written by: Kiku

Source:

In-game credits

Physical scans

PC-8001 mkII version

PC-8001 mkII, JP
Cover

PC-6001 mkII version

PC-6001 mkII, JP
Cover

PC-6601 version

PC-6001 mkII, JP
Cover

PC-8801 version

PC-8801, JP (cassette)
Cover

PC-8801, JP (disk)
Cover