Super Mario Land

Super Mario Land was created not by Miyamoto but by Gunpei Yokoi, and was the most 'different' Mario: set in Sarasaland (inspired by Egypt and China, not the Mushroom Kingdom), with Princess Daisy replacing Peach, and submarine and airplane levels turning the platformer into a shoot 'em up. Sprites were tiny on the Game Boy's green screen, but gameplay was pure Nintendo. Sold 18 million copies as launch title. Its brevity (12 levels, completable in 30 minutes) was perfect for portable format — a concept the mobile games market would rediscover twenty years later.