"Alleyway" marks one of the first appearances of Mario on the Game Boy system alongside "Super Mario Land", although its original box and cartridge art showed an unidentified character in a spacesuit piloting the paddle. The artwork was changed to show Mario at the controls on the game's international release, but neither the manual nor the back of the box refer to the Nintendo mascot's presence in the game. "Nintendo Power"s preview made no mention of Mario in the title other than note of the pattern of bricks in Mario's shape for the first bonus level. Official confirmation of the pilot being Mario only came about in 1990 with "Club Nintendo"s preview of the game's European release.