Graphics - The (almost) Identical Clone

For the most part, the graphics are the same as they are in SMB2. We have the same structures, the same enemies...but wait? What's this? Some of the graphics are actually different! Instead of koopa shells, you pick up and throw disembodied pitch-black heads at enemies! Instead of magic potions, you throw genie lamps to open doors to Subspace! Instead of looking menacing, Phanto just looks really bored of his job! The waterfalls flow stupidly fast! You get the picture.

+The graphics still look quite good.

-Most of the graphical changes from this version were for the better



Sound - Japan gets extra equipment and they still can't get it right!

For the most part, the music is also the same, though there are some differences. The Subspace music took on an Arabian feel in this version. But there are also extra notes added to the music, and totally different sound effects! Why does nobody mention them? Because they're AWFUL. The Subspace door-creation sound sounds more like a car horn, and that's not even the worst of it. You will dread fighting Birdo in this version, not because it's harder to fight, but because it makes noises when you hit it that are comparable to scraping at the insides of your ear with a rusty icepick.

+SOME of the music is still good

-The sounds for the Japan-exclusive sound chip are AWFUL



Gameplay - How did they screw it up so badly?

For the most part, the gameplay is almost exactly the same as it is in the US SMB2 - you run and jump around the magical dream world of Subcon, picking up and throwing enemies and items along the way. Even the level design is exactly the same as it is in the Mario version! But, unfortunately, there are some key differences that totally break the game, which were all fixed in SMB2.



For starters, though they are responsive, the controls just don't feel right. It's not like the characters slip and slide around like they have axle grease on their feet. It's the fact that they move so slowly and jump so poorly that it's a complete and utter chore to play. And to add insult to injury, none of the characters move any faster or jump any higher - they just have a few minor differences between each other. Let's see, the pink girl can float in the air for a short time, the blue wizard has a floaty jump, the fat guy can pluck things out of the ground instantly, and the skinny guy is basically useless. It's like they barely tested their game before they released it!



Even the LEVEL PROGRESSION is totally screwed up. The levels progress in a perfectly normal way...until you want to switch characters. Each character has their own "chapter progress" meter, and they have to work their way through each level individually. Oh, wait, the character you've been playing as is almost impossible to play this level late in the game as! Too bad you can't change characters without playing through all of the stages up to that point as the character you want to switch to!



I'd like to think that some guys who didn't know what they were doing made this game, but then I remembered that NINTENDO THEMSELVES made this game. Did they not know how to use their own sound chip properly? Did they fire all of their talented employees and hire them right back on after finishing this game? The questions are endless!

-Poor controls

-Unbalanced characters

-Terribad level progression system

+The level design is still the same as it is in SMB2, which wasn't bad



Addictiveness - Do you enjoy pain or something?

From all these problems with the game, I'm sure you can guess that the addictiveness is almost nonexistent. It just isn't fun to play like SMB2 is - it feels like some kind of cheap Chinese clone...

-It just isn't fun.



Storyline - The only book more evil than Twilight

The storyline is pretty basic, and it establishes the game's setting pretty well. Essentially, two children read a book and are pulled into it by a giant green claw, and the heroes jump into the book to save them. It does explain why things in the game are so weird...

+The story works pretty well for what it is



Depth - Actually pretty deep

Regardless of all the changes from version to version, most of the basics are still the same. There are still seven full worlds worth of levels to explore, secret warps to get you through the game that much quicker, and secrets in every single level. Now, if only the meat of the game held together...

+There's a lot of depth to the game, despite how basic it is

-It's hampered by the poor gameplay



Difficulty - Harder than it looks

Even though you can find extra health containers in each level, and you can restore your health just by killing a certain number of enemies, it's still quite difficult, mostly because the characters are so slow and ineffective. When they start throwing moving, jumping enemies that spit volleys of fireballs at you, you start to appreciate the Mario clone more and more. At least that game gave you the chance to dodge things!

+It does have enough difficulty to last any player a decent amount of time

-It's mostly fake difficulty imposed by the controls



Overall - Just play the Mario game instead

Playing this game, overall, is like rubbing a zit with sandpaper - it technically works, but it really, really hurts. Personally, if you really want to play this game, just go for SMB2 - it's ten times better than this mess.



Let's recap:



Pros -

+The graphics still look quite good.

+SOME of the music is still good

+The level design is as good as it was in SMB2

+The storyline works pretty well for what it is

+There's a lot of depth to the game, despite how basic it is

+It does have enough difficulty to last any player a decent amount of time



Cons -

-Most of the graphical changes from this version were for the better

-The sounds for the Japan-exclusive sound chip are AWFUL

-Poor controls

-Unbalanced characters

-Terribad level progression system

-It just isn't fun.

-The depth is hampered by the poor gameplay

-Most of the difficulty is fake difficulty imposed by the controls



Final Scores -



Graphics - 6/10

Sound - 4/10

Addictiveness - 2/10

Story - 6/10

Depth - 6/10

Difficulty - 9/10



FINAL SCORE - 5/10 (Even Nintendo has their screwups from time to time...)

It's an okay review in my opinion there's nothing that i can see that bugs me.. apart from two very minor things..

Which is the overall score you gave it. I know it's based solely on opinion but out of the 5 things you rated the score on.. 3 of them are nearly double the overall score you gave it.... It just annoys me personally that's all x3...

In some parts of the review it seems as your saying that Doki Doki Panic isn't the original.

e.g "For the most part, the gameplay is almost exactly the same as it is in the original game - you run and jump around the magical dream world of Subcon, picking up and throwing enemies and items along the way. Even the level design is exactly the same as it is in the Mario version!"

Apart from those two things it's pretty good 

Fixed the mistake in the wording that you mentioned, and adjusted the ratings a bit. Thank you for letting me know about that problem...

I remember first playing this game, when I suddenly got bored and wanted to see how the original game was compared to mario bros two.(us)


Oh god..

I couldn't even beat level 1, without dieing a crud ton,


and After a lot of frustration: I was like bah forget this I'm going back to mario brothers two.


Mario brothers two has by fair the better pshyics and more memorable characters.


Very nice review, it sums this junky famicom game just right.

This was a pretty good review! It had a bit of detail, and it was a moderate length. It was not that long, but it was also not that short. Good job with this!

I think that this is a good review you have here, it was a nice solid length and you summed up the game quite nicely. So awesome job on this, I think that this review is professionally made, and 1,200 words indicates that you put a lot of effort, time and detail into your review which is awesome.


Aside from that, your review is also organized, clear and easy to read which a lot of people do not have in their reviews. So i am glad you have that. Overall, fantastic job, I think this is an amazing review and I look forward to reading your next one! I know it will be very good! Keep up the great work! 

This is a pretty good review, got a good amount of words and got quite a bit of details in it, iyou put a lot of effort into it and a lot of good things as well, pretty nice looking.