 At Nintendo CEO Hiroshi <unk> 's request , Game Boy creator <unk> Yokoi 's Nintendo R & D1 developed a Mario game to sell the new console . It was the first portable version of Mario and the first to be made without Mario creator and Yokoi protégé Shigeru Miyamoto . Accordingly , the development team shrunk Mario gameplay elements for the device and used some elements <unk> from the series . Super Mario Land was expected to showcase the console until Nintendo of America <unk> Tetris with new Game Boys . The game launched alongside the Game Boy first in Japan ( April 1989 ) and later worldwide . Super Mario Land was later <unk> for the Nintendo 3DS via Virtual <unk> in 2011 again as a launch title , which featured some tweaks to the game 's presentation . 
