If you're reading this site, you're probably pretty familiar with the general plot of almost every Mario game in existence. As Mario (and sometimes Luigi), you'll be heading off to rescue Princess Peach from the clutches of the Mushroom Kingdom's biggest baddie, Bowse– WRONG. Nope, apparently we've all been interpreting it wrong all these years.
We kid, of course, but the digital manual included in Arcade Archives VS. Super Mario Bros. on Switch tells a different story. The game, a rerelease of Super Mario Bros.' Nintendo VS.SYSTEM edition that launched back in 1986, was published on Switch by Hamster in 2017, along with the following text.
Check out that first line (with thanks to WayForward's James Montagna for the spot)...
So, hang on... Has Peach been tricking us all along? Is Bowser actually innocent in all of this?
What makes the whole situation even weirder is the fact that this error has presumably been present for almost four years now; the game launched in December 2017, so has no one spotted the mistake and thought to patch it? Perhaps someone at Hamster knows something we don't and is anonymously trying to get the truth out there.
We're on to you, Peach.
[source twitter.com]
Comments 41
Quite an elaborate article to explain one small error in the outsourced release version of the game.
Lol. I have made a few errors like that myself that the brain seems to just autocorrect for us.
Ha, but if you read the original instruction manual, I'm pretty sure it says that the inhabitants have been turned in to blocks. Therefore those blocks you smash up are the actual people of that world.
Quite funny how no one has spotted this for 4 years! Given that the internet takes everything apart that was published in the history of humanity it sure is a surprise.
Read all about it!!!
Princess Peach toadstool has Bob-ombed Browser's castle, massacred his minions, and bullied his own son!
He was quoted as saying: Mario act Super, save me from your 'girlfiend'!!!
Mario and Luigi Save The Koopa Kingdom
@PokemonDMG Inb4 Dorkly uploads a new video... Princess Peach goes berserk
A quick reverse image search to see if this was really "new" info lead me to a tweet from Jan 2018 showing the typo had been fixed. I don't own the game so I can't check but...?
@Natsura Peach, warrior princess! 😉
@BooJoh When NintendoLife gets a story, they run with it. There's no time for investigation or fact-checking in journalism!
Unfortunately I think poor sales of these games are the main reason for this mistake to have escaped the eyes of people. Because if it sold 20 digital copies, it's perfectly possible that none of the users has read the manual.
Would have been in some of all those digital best-sellers that are available in physical form too, the thing would be different.
I think they should make this canon - Peach has some unhealthy fixation issue with Bowser that causes her to constantly go after him, then get captured, then Mario has to go save her (or give her her meds or something). Fits with everything we know!
Well now, it would seem that the Wreck-it Ralph movie had it wrong and it was actually Peach who should have been in the villain meeting and not Bowser.
@Gwynbleidd Of course, this is what I meant: nobody reads it, but with poor sales that possibility is even smaller.
So this explains why I've still never beaten the SMB1. lol
@Moroboshi876 Except in this case it's just that Nintendo Life seems to have simply not looked beyond the tweet from a WayForward member today about it. With a very quick reverse image search you can see that the typo was spotted as early as 4 days after release and posted on reddit, and was patched less than a month after release with the corrected screenshot posted on twitter.
Just checked the game, and this is definitely not a thing. It was barely news (almost) 4 years ago, and it isn't news now.
@Moroboshi876 From memory, I think the sales were pretty high. It was the only way to (almost) play NES Super Mario Bros before Switch Online launched the NES games.
@Moroboshi876 I remember when I used to check the top digital downloads on the eShop and Vs.SMB was in the top 15 for over a year after release. I believe it was because of general SMB nostalgia and it was the only version to play on the Switch at the time, as @TryToBeHopeful pointed out.
Only goes to show that nobody reads the manual
@TryToBeHopeful @masterLEON You're right, but it was the only (or almost the only) exception. Hamster games or retro games in general are overlooked and rarely make the Top-put a number here digital sales ever.
@BooJoh Damn! LOL
I mean, the way the rooms are set up in the castles, Peach is in the boss room and Bowser is her minion defending her. Like, there no indication of a wall behind her on the right side of the screen. She could probably just leave whenever she wants.
Removed - unconstructive feedback
Removed - inappropriate language
i remember it and i remember it being fixed soon after release
Based on Super Princess Peach (along with other titles), Peach is absolutely NOT helpless and could rescue herself. It all seems to be some sort of role play kink between the three of them.
I had my suspicions, they have but been confirmed now.
Mario and Bowser are in cahoots to steal Peach’s throne.
Bowser and Peach have a toxic relationship. Mario is actually Bowser's good friend and has been doing his best to keep them apart so he can heal, even if it means Bowser has come to resent him. This is my new head canon.
Yes. Dunking Bowser into lava saves him apparently? Or is peach in a Bowser costume and vice versa? Or is the Bowser we know actually called peach?
after river city girls zero's announcement, i don't wanna hear any wayforward people dunking on translation errors
I'm embarrassed at how long it took for me to find out what was wrong.
Yes, I've known the error since someone pointed it out after launch.
It took me awhile for brain to not auto-correct it.
Did they patch the game? I thought it used to have more input delay..
You find lots of funny typos in Arcade Archives games. There was one in Fatal Fury Special about a flashing flashing flash of light on the flicker settings or something.
That's a pretty funny little error. Not gonna lie, I would totally play a game like that. Shake it up a bit, you know?
Now we know why Bowser is always so upset.
Peach has taken over Bowser's castle and Mario has to get her out of there for Bowser's sake.
Bowser really has some disguises in his closet, doesn't he. He can fool anybody.
They did this so nintendolife will publish this free advertisement for them
Marketing team putting in more effort than we know.
There are quite a few errors in the Arcade Archives manuals.
Hey everyone!!!
It’s not true. It doesn’t say that on Vs. Super Mario Bros. It correctly says “Peach from Bowser”.
I’ve loaded it up and I’m looking directly at it now!!
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