Lost and Found: Missing Mario game shows up on Wii

Here's a bit of Nintendo lore for you: Back in 1986, Nintendo of Japan released a follow-up to the smash hit NES game Super Mario Bros. Unfortunately, the game was deemed too difficult for the U.S. audience by the powers-that-were and was never officially released in America.

Until now. On Monday, Nintendo released Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels through its Wii Virtual Console downloadable service. For the slightly increased price of 600 Wii Points ($6), gamers can finally taste the forbidden fruit of Mario's toughest challenge.

The game looks and feels very similar to the original Super Mario Bros., but with a few notable changes. Instead of a two-player mode, gamers can play as either Mario or Luigi in the single-player game. Each character has different traits; Mario is a bit faster, but Luigi can jump higher. A few new enemies like Poison Mushrooms and red Piranha Plants pose greater threats, while odd gusts of wind and high-powered green trampolines make the jumps trickier.

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The Lost Levels joins a healthy range of other classic Mario games already available on the Wii Virtual Console, including Mario Bros., Paper Mario, and Mario Kart 64.