Nintendo games have been around for so long and are often very beloved, so it's really no surprise that many of the company's classic games (like Super Mario 64) get ROM-hacks and remakes made by fans. Recently a new fan remake has popped up online: New Super Mario Land, a recreation of Super Mario Land to be played on Super Nintendo emulators.
For those unfamiliar with the spin-off game, Super Mario Land was a launch title for the Game Boy back in 1989. Like the main line Super Mario titles, the game is a 2D platformer in which Mario makes his way across 12 levels, avoiding enemies and pitfalls. Unlike the other titles, Super Mario Land is set in Sarasaland, with environments depicted in line art as opposed to the traditional blocky pixels, and even features two Gradius-style shooter levels.
Super Mario Land was very popular and got two sequels, but has been overall ignored by Nintendo after the end of the Game Boy. Despite being a hit Super Mario game with plenty of fans, Nintendo has never once hinted at the possibility of giving it a remake or remaster. So after waiting for so long, one fan has finally decided to do it themselves.
As the name suggests, New Super Mario Land is a remake of the Game Boy classic using assets either pulled from or inspired by New Super Mario Bros, which really makes the whole game look like a bonus level of the DS title. Like any good modded Super Mario game, the developer decided to add a new feature: a 4-player option, which is definitely pushing the capabilities of the Super Nintendo. The level of detail in this fan game is also very impressive. Everything from the 3D models converted to 2D sprites, to the faithfulness to the original game's admittedly wonky physics, to even having the enemies dance to the beat of the music makes this almost feel like an official Nintendo release.
Given Nintendo's track record with fan games like Mario Royale, though, the developer has decided to remain anonymous and hasn't even released the game in any official way. Fans may remember shortly after the release of AM2R (Another Metroid 2 Remake) Nintendo sent DMCA notices to websites hosting the unofficial remake. Pokemon Uranium received a similar fate. After being in development for nine years, the download links were taken down from the official website in about a week due to receiving multiple DMCA takedown notices from Nintendo's legal team.
Though New Super Mario Land hasn't been officially released, fans have noticed the SNES fan remake popping up on various forums and ROM sites.