Tatanga, the alien you defeated in Super Mario Land, is back to exact his revenge. He was also entrusted by Wario to keep one of the golden coins, and it is rumored that Wario ordered him to kidnap Princess Daisy so that he can take over Mario's castle while he was off to Sarasaland. He resides in Space Zone, which is inaccessible normally. In fact, Mario must attempt to reach there with the help of a huge bubble blowing hippo, which will let him float into outer space.
Space Zone is much shorter than the other zones, having only two main levels. In this zone, gravity is reduced, so that you can jump higher, but move slower through the air. That doesn't mean that it makes the levels any easier. You'll have to make your way across the treacherous surface of the moon to reach a nearby star where Tatanga has set up his base. You will still have to navigate a dangerous maze of Angry Stars to reach him. While Space Zone might not have a lot of levels, you can expect each level to be full of secrets and clever tricks that require you to make full use of your improved jump.
Level 0: The hippo on the hill[edit]
On a tall hill north of Tree Zone lies a giant hippo, which is the key to reaching Space Zone. The level is split into two, the sky and the vast sea below, and also has two seperate exits. To get to Space Zone, you have to exit the level through the top exit, as the bottom exit will only dump you on the map next to the Macro Zone. Luckily, there are two massive hippos That will blow huge bubbles to encase you. When you're inside a bubble, you can float as high as you want, but it will pop if you touch any enemy or the surface of the water. Enemies you should watch out for are the flying fish called Toruio and floating urchins called Unibos. There are also Blurps, which swim around in the sea below.
This level contains a couple of secrets, but most of them can only be reached if you're in a bubble. From the start, jump into the water and swim to the left to reach a secret area containing a money bag. Then get into a bubble and float to the left to reach a block high above the ground that will give you a 1-Up. Later on, you might notice the clouds in the background forming an arrow. Float up to the small cloud pointed by the arrow to reveal a hidden block containing another hidden block! The bell is simple enough to reach, since you need the bubble just to reach the exit it hangs from, which you can use to let you float up to the bell and ring it.
Level 1: On the moon[edit]
The level starts out pretty simple, so you can take your time to get used to the reduced gravity. You will need the increased jump height to move across chasms, make giant leaps and reveal secrets. You will meet some unique enemies. The Bomubomu are living cannons that can spit projectiles at you. The Poro are spaceships that orbit blocks, and can hint to the location of a hidden block if you see them orbiting nothing. There's also the mechanical No. 48 that attacks by throwing explosive stars at you. However, your biggest enemy might be the stationary spikes across the moon's surface. You must make the most out of the reduced gravity to make it across large pits of these, and a mistake will cost you a power-up or a life.
At the first Poro you encounter, jump onto the block it was orbiting, then jump from that block to the right until you see a block with a 1-Up, and try to land on it. On this block, you can reveal a hidden block containing a money bag, and another hidden block containing another money bag from that block, for a total of 100 coins and an extra life. After that, on a large rock platform, you can reveal another set of hidden blocks that lead to a 1-Up. To reach the bell at the end, you need to jump from the very top of the pyramid of moon platforms.
There is an alternate exit to this level. To find out about its location, check the spoiler below.
Secret Level: A shooting star[edit]
For adventurers that find a hidden exit on the lunar surface, they get to witness a shooting star crash on to the moon, which happens to contain its own level. The majority of the level requires you to hop from tiny platform to tiny platform while collecting coins. You need to stay on top of these small platforms to get all the coins and bonuses. If you fall, you'll be left in a tunnel blocked off from the entire upper section, making you miss out on most of the coins in the level. However, there are certain gaps in the level where you can fall into for coins and climb back up, as long as there is a thicker platform beside it. One of these gaps contain two 1-Ups. You can also get another 1-Up by leaping over the angry star and on to a ledge above the exit. From here, you can reveal a bunch of hidden blocks that will eventually lead to a 1-Up.
Level 2: A galactic minefield[edit]
This autoscrolling level will have you maneuvering around a field of Angry Stars, which will hurt you if you touch them. Luckily, you can jump infinitely high and control your movement in the air. You will still need a fair amount of dexterity to make it to the end. You will sometimes be forced to move in a narrow path surrounded by Angry Stars, which will require very good control of your height. To add to this deadly obstacle course, there are Tosenbos that are harmful when they are inflated, but become harmless and invincible when deflated. It will take a few tries to beat the level, but you still need to face the boss of the zone. Get the power-up from the last question mark block, and enter the pipe to begin the battle against what is arguably the hardest boss out of the 6 coin holders.
Boss: Tatanga[edit]
Tatanga has returned with a brand new spaceship, though this time, you don't have an airplane to do a dogfight with him, so you'll have to fight him normally. You still retain your infinite jump, but Tatanga won't make your victory easy to get. He will regularly fire off projectiles at one of the top corners of the screen, one that travels across the top border and one that drops down near the ground and flies in your direction, stopping just short of you and firing straight up. This combination of projectiles makes it very difficult to dodge both in the air, so the best way to avoid this attack is to simply crouch. He will also swoop down at you to attack you directly, which is your chance to stomp him or throw fireballs at him. Three stomps or 6 fireballs will finish him off, and net you a well-earned golden coin!
With Space Zone out of the way and the alien invader bested once again, we can continue on to the next zone. Just below where Space Zone is lies a giant house. Explorers that venture there will find themselves shrunken down. Prepare to conquer the Macro Zone!