Page semi-protected

Mario

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mario
Mario character
MarioNSMBUDeluxe.png
Mario, as depicted in promotional artwork for New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
First appearance
  • Donkey Kong
  • (1981)
Created byShigeru Miyamoto
Designed by
Portrayed by
  • Lou Albano (The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!)
  • Bob Hoskins (Super Mario Bros.)
Voiced by
In-universe information
Full nameMario Mario
OccupationPlumber
FamilyLuigi (twin brother)
OriginMushroom Kingdom
NationalityItalian

Mario[e] is a fictional character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the Mario video game franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation. Depicted as a short, pudgy, Italian plumber who resides in the Mushroom Kingdom, his adventures generally center on rescuing Princess Peach from the Koopa villain Bowser. Mario has access to a variety of power-ups that give him different abilities. Mario's fraternal twin brother and sidekick is Luigi.

Mario first appeared as the player character of Donkey Kong (1981), a platform game. Miyamoto wanted to use Popeye as the protagonist, but when he could not achieve the licensing rights, he created Mario instead. Miyamoto expected the character to be unpopular and planned to use him for cameo appearances; originally called "Mr. Video", he was renamed to Mario after Mario Segale. Mario's clothing and characteristics were themed after the setting of Donkey Kong. He then began to star in the Super Mario series of platform games, beginning with the critically acclaimed Super Mario Bros. in 1985. Mario has been voiced by Charles Martinet since 1992, starting with Mario's Game Gallery and later Super Mario 64.

After Super Mario Bros., Mario began to branch off to different genres. These include puzzle games such as Dr. Mario, role-playing games such as Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi, and sports games such as Mario Kart and Mario Tennis. He has appeared in other Nintendo properties, such as in the Super Smash Bros. series of crossover fighting games. Mario has also appeared in various animations, including three series produced by DIC Entertainment, and was portrayed by Bob Hoskins in the 1993 Super Mario Bros. film.

Mario is one of the most famous characters in the video game industry and an established pop culture icon. Mario's likeness has appeared in a variety of merchandise, such as clothing and collectible items, and people and places have been nicknamed after him. He has also inspired a considerable amount of unofficial media. With more than 600 million units sold worldwide, the overall Mario franchise is the bestselling video game franchise of all time.[16][17]

Concept and creation

Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of Mario

Shigeru Miyamoto created Mario while developing Donkey Kong in an attempt to produce a best-selling video game for Nintendo; previous games, such as Sheriff, had not achieved the success of games such as Namco's Pac-Man. Originally, Miyamoto wanted to create a game that used the characters Popeye, Bluto, and Olive Oyl.[18] At the time, however, as Miyamoto was unable to acquire a license to use the characters (and would not until 1982 with Popeye), he would end up creating an unnamed player character, along with Donkey Kong, and Lady (later known as Pauline).[18]

In the early stages of Donkey Kong, the focus of the game was to escape a maze, while Mario did not have the ability to jump. However, Miyamoto soon introduced jumping capabilities for the player character, reasoning that "[i]f you had a barrel rolling towards you, what would you do?"[19][20]

Name

Though the protagonist was unnamed in the Japanese release of Donkey Kong, he was named "Jumpman" in the game's English instructions[21] and Mario in the sales brochure.[22] Miyamoto envisioned a character to be used in every game developed by Miyamoto; a "go-to" character who could be placed into any game if needed, albeit in cameo appearances as Miyamoto did not, at the time, expect the character to become singularly popular.[23] To this end, he originally named the character "Mr. Video", comparing what he intended for the character's appearances in later games to the cameos that Alfred Hitchcock had done within his films.[24] In retrospect, Miyamoto commented that if he had named Mario "Mr. Video", Mario likely would have "disappeared off the face of the Earth."[20]

According to a widely circulated story, during the localization of Donkey Kong for American audiences, Nintendo of America's warehouse landlord Mario Segale confronted then-president Minoru Arakawa, demanding back rent. Following a heated argument in which the Nintendo employees eventually convinced Segale he would be paid, they opted to name the character in the game Mario after him.[25][26]

While it is implied by the title of the Mario Bros. series, in a 1989 interview his full name was stated not to be "Mario Mario".[27] The first notable use of "Mario Mario" was in the 1993 live-action film adaptation of the Super Mario series, and was further used in Prima's official video game strategy guides, in 2000 for Mario Party 2[28] and in 2003 for Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga.[29] In 2012, after Charles Martinet voiced Mario declaring himself "Mario Mario" at the San Diego Comic-Con,[30] the next month, Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata said he had no last name,[31] which Miyamoto agreed with the month after.[32] Two months after Iwata's death in July 2015, Miyamoto changed his stance, asserting at the Super Mario Bros. 30th Anniversary festival that Mario's full name was indeed "Mario Mario".[33][34]

Appearance and profession

Mario, as depicted for the first time in promotional artwork for Donkey Kong

By Miyamoto's own account, Mario's profession was chosen to fit with the game design: since Donkey Kong takes place on a construction site, Mario was made into a carpenter; and when he appeared again in Mario Bros., it was decided that he should be a plumber, because a lot of the game is situated in underground settings.[35] Mario's character design, particularly his large nose, draws on western influences; once he became a plumber, Miyamoto decided to "put him in New York" and make him Italian,[35] lightheartedly attributing Mario's nationality to his mustache.[36] Other sources have Mario's profession chosen to be carpenter in an effort to depict the character as an ordinary hard worker, making it easier for players to identify with him.[37] After a colleague suggested that Mario more closely resembled a plumber, Miyamoto changed Mario's profession accordingly and developed Mario Bros.,[18] featuring the character in the sewers of New York City.[38]

Due to the graphical limitations of arcade hardware at the time, Miyamoto clothed the character in red overalls and a blue shirt to contrast against each other and the background. A red cap was added to let Miyamoto avoid drawing the character's hairstyle, forehead, and eyebrows, as well as to circumvent the issue of animating his hair as he jumped.[18][35] To give distinctly human facial features with the limited graphical abilities, Miyamoto drew a large nose and a mustache, which avoided the need to draw a mouth and facial expressions.[39]

Over time, Mario's appearance has become more defined; blue eyes, white gloves, brown shoes, a red "M" in a white circle on the front of his hat and gold buttons on his overalls have been added. The colors of his shirt and overalls were also reversed from a blue shirt with red overalls to a red shirt with blue overalls. Miyamoto attributed this process to the different development teams and artists for each game as well as advances in technology.[37]

Voice acting

Charles Martinet, Mario's voice actor

Mario has been voiced by Charles Martinet since 1992. When he came in to audition for the role, the directors were preparing to close for the night, already packing up when he arrived. He was prompted with "an Italian plumber from Brooklyn; when he heard the phrase, he immediately thought of a stereotypical Italian American with a voice similar to that of a mobster. He then assumed the voice would be too harsh for children, so he planned on using a voice of an older figure.[40] However, according to Martinet, the audition for Mario was the only time where his thoughts crashed and he spoke complete nonsense. After he was prompted the character, he babbled the following in a soft and friendly voice instead:[41]

"Hello, ima Mario. Okey dokey, letsa make a pizza pie together, you go get somea spaghetti, you go geta some sausage, I getta some sauce, you gonna put some spaghetti on the sausage and the sausage on the pizza, then I'm gonna chasea you with the pizza, then you gonna chasea me with the pizza, and gonaa makea lasagne."[42]

Martinet kept speaking with the voice until the audition tape ran out; the clip was the only tape sent back to Nintendo. His first official voice role would be Mario's Game Gallery in 1995, although in an interview he confirmed he used the voice for a Super Mario Bros. pinball game, but he was neither paid nor credited.[43] His first major voice acting role was Super Mario 64. He received instructions on the types of sound clips needed from Miyamoto, and Martinet appreciated the fun tone to the game and called Miyamoto a genius. He has since also voiced other various Mario characters, such as Luigi, Wario, and Waluigi.[40] Martinet was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records for the most roles performed with the same character with, at the time one hundred, and is the most of any video game voice actor.[44]

Characteristics

Seen on his cap, Mario's emblem represents him in the interfaces of many of the games in which he has appeared.

Mario is depicted as a portly plumber who lives in the fictional land of the Mushroom Kingdom with Luigi, his younger, taller brother.[18][45][46] The television series and film depict Mario and Luigi as originating from Brooklyn, New York.[45] Mario's infancy, in which he was transported by a stork to the Mushroom Kingdom, was first depicted in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. In a 2005 interview, Miyamoto stated that Mario's physical age was about 24–25 years old.[47]

He wears a long-sleeved red shirt, a pair of blue overalls with yellow buttons, brown shoes, white gloves and a red cap with a red "M" printed on a white circle. In Donkey Kong, he wore a pair of red overalls, and a blue shirt. In Super Mario Bros., he wore a brown shirt with red overalls. He has blue eyes, and, like Luigi, has brown hair, and a dark brown or black mustache. This consistent difference in color is attributed to being a relic from designing the characters for their original platforms, wherein certain features were actively distinguished while others had to be curtailed due to technical limitations.[48]

Occupation and hobbies

Mario's occupation is plumbing, though in the original Donkey Kong games he is a carpenter.[49] Mario has also assumed several other occupations: in the Dr. Mario series of puzzle games, which debuted in 1990, Mario is portrayed as a medical physician named "Dr. Mario";[50] in the Game Boy game Mario's Picross, Mario is an archaeologist; in Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis, Mario is the president of a profitable toy-making company.[51] Mario is an athlete in Mario sports games in games such as tennis and golf, as well as a kart racer in the Mario Kart series. In September 2017, Nintendo confirmed on their official Japanese profile for the character that Mario was no longer considered a plumber,[52] but the statement was changed in March 2018.[53]

Relationships

Mario usually saves Princess Peach and the Mushroom Kingdom and purges antagonists, such as Bowser, from various areas; since his first game, Mario has usually had the role of saving the damsel in distress.[45] Originally, he had to rescue his girlfriend Pauline in Donkey Kong from Donkey Kong.[54] Pauline was soon replaced by Princess Peach in Super Mario Bros.,[18] although Pauline has reappeared in the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series and is considered "Mario's friend" instead.[55] Mario reprises his role of saving Peach in the Super Mario series,[45] but Mario himself was rescued by Peach in role-reversal in Super Princess Peach.[56] Mario rescued Princess Daisy of Sarasaraland in Super Mario Land,[57] but Luigi has since been more linked to her; in Super Smash Bros. Melee, the text explaining Daisy states that "after her appearance in Mario Golf, gossips portrayed her as Luigi's answer to Mario's Peach."[58]

Luigi is Mario's younger fraternal twin brother.[46] He is a companion in the Mario games,[46] and the character whom the second player controls in two-player sessions of many of the video games.[59] Luigi has also occasionally rescued Mario as seen in Mario Is Missing! and the Luigi's Mansion series.[60] Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins for the Game Boy saw the arrival of Wario, Mario's greedy counterpart, who sometimes assumes the role of Mario's antagonist or an antihero.[61] The dinosaur character Yoshi serves as Mario's steed in games such as Super Mario World.[62]

Abilities

During the development of Donkey Kong, Mario was known as 'Jumpman.'[18] Jumping—both to access places and as an offensive move—is a common gameplay element in Mario games, especially the Super Mario series. By the time Super Mario RPG was released, jumping became such a signature act of Mario that the player was often tasked with jumping to prove to non-player characters that he was Mario. Mario's most commonly portrayed form of attack is jumping to stomp on the heads of enemies, first used in Super Mario Bros. This jump-stomp move may entirely crush smaller enemies on the stage, and usually deals damage to larger ones, sometimes causing secondary effects.[18]

This attack often enables Mario to knock the turtle-like Koopa Troopas into or out of their shells, which can be used as weapons.[18] Subsequent games have elaborated on Mario's jumping-related abilities. Super Mario World added the ability to spin-jump, which allows Mario to break blocks beneath him. The Game Boy version of Donkey Kong allows Mario to jump higher with consecutive jumps, and perform a back-flip. In Super Mario 64, Mario gains new jumping abilities such as a sideways somersault; a ground pound, which is a high-impact downward thrusting motion; and the "Wall Kick", which propels him upwards by kicking off walls.

Power-ups

Mario using the Fire Flower in Super Mario Bros., a staple in the franchise.

Mario uses items, which give him various powers, and differ between the games he is in. The first power-up Mario used was the Hammer in Donkey Kong.[54]

Super Mario Bros. introduced the basic three power-ups that have become staples for the series, especially the 2D games — the Super Mushroom, which causes Mario to grow larger and be able to survive getting hit once; the Fire Flower, which allows Mario to throw fireballs; and the Starman (later named Super Star), which gives Mario temporary invincibility. These powers have appeared regularly throughout the series.[18] Throughout the series' history, there have been several kinds of Mushroom power-ups, including the 1-up Mushroom, which gives Mario an extra life; the Poison Mushroom, which causes Mario to take damage;[63] the Mega Mushroom, which causes Mario to grow very large and become invincible for a short period of time; and the Mini Mushroom, which causes Mario to shrink, and in some games, climb up walls.[64]

A reoccurring power-up throughout the series is an item that gives Mario the ability of flight. The first of this type was introduced in Super Mario Bros. 3: the first of which, the Super Leaf, gives Mario a raccoon (a transliteration of tanuki) tail and ears, and lets Mario swing his tail as an attack, float gently to the ground, and temporarily fly.[65] There is an alternate version of this power-up in the same game, the Raccoon Suit (or tanuki suit) and grants Mario the same abilities as the Super Leaf, but with the addition of being able to temporarily turn into a statue, granting him invincibility.[66] In Super Mario World, an item called the Cape Feather was introduced that gave Mario a cape, and in addition to being able to fly, let Mario spin and swing his cape as an attack.[67] In Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, a carrot was available that gave Mario rabbit ears that allowed him to glide,[66] and in Super Mario 64, Mario could acquire an item called the Wing Cap, which only let him fly temporarily, before disappearing.[68] Super Mario Sunshine introduces a pump-water spraying device named "F.L.U.D.D.", which abilities included spraying water and hovering.[69]

Super Mario Galaxy introduced new power-ups, including the Bee Mushroom, which turned Mario into a bee and allowed him to fly temporarily; the Boo Mushroom, which turned Mario into a ghost, allowing him to float and pass through some walls; the Spring Mushroom, which encased Mario in a spring, allowing him to jump higher; and the Ice Flower, which allowed the player to temporarily walk or skate on water and lava without sinking or taking damage.[70] Super Mario Galaxy 2 introduced more power ups, including the Cloud Flower which allows Mario to create platforms in midair, and Rock Mario, which transforms Mario into a boulder that could be used to break through barriers.[71]

New Super Mario Bros. Wii updated the Ice Flower, which allows Mario to shoot ice balls that temporally freeze enemies; and introduced the Propeller Mushroom, which allows him to fly; as well as the Penguin Suit, which allows Mario to easily traverse ice and swim through water in addition to shooting ice balls. Super Mario 3D Land introduced the Boomerang Flower, which allows Mario to throw boomerangs at nearby enemies; and the Statue Leaf, which allows Mario to turn to a statue. In New Super Mario Bros. U, the Super Acorn makes its debut. This transforms Mario to his new flying squirrel form where he can glide and stick on walls. Super Mario 3D World introduced the Super Bell, which transforms Mario into his cat form, as well as a Double Cherry to make multiple copies of himself.

Appearances and evolution

Super Mario series

Traditional 2D (left) and 3D (right) Super Mario gameplay. In 2D, Mario is confined to moving left and right while in 3D Mario is free to move around and explore as the player pleases.

Mario is the main protagonist and title character of the Super Mario series. Each game varies in its plot, but most of which have the ultimate goal of Mario rescuing Princess Peach after being kidnapped by Bowser. Mario explores a variety of locations, titled "worlds", and along the way, he can collect items and defeat enemies. Most levels have an end goal, such as stars or flagpoles, that he needs to reach in order to move onto the next. The series is divided by fans into two general sets of games: the 2D side-scrolling Super Mario games and the 3D Super Mario games.

2D games

The Super Mario series had Mario starring in platform games, beginning with Super Mario Bros. on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in 1985. In these games, Mario traverses worlds that contain a set number of levels for Mario to complete. In them, he traverses them from moving left to right, the screen scrolling in the direction he moves. Mario has the goal of reaching the end of the level to move onto the nest, typically marked with a flagpole. These games are less focused on plot and more on platforming; most commonly, Bowser kidnaps Peach, and Mario, with the help of Luigi and other characters, sets out to rescue her. Most worlds have mini boss battles which typically involve fighting Bowser Jr. or one of several Koopalings. The final level is a fight against Bowser.

Takashi Tezuka in 2015

His first appearance in the 2D variant of the series was Super Mario Bros. in 1985, which began with a 16x32 pixel rectangle prototype as the character; Takashi Tezuka suggested the character to be Mario after the success of one of his role prior, Mario Bros.[72] Certain other gameplay concepts were cut as well, such as how Mario could fly in a rocket ship and fire bullets.[73] Originally designed with a small Mario in mind with the intention of increasing his further in development, the developers implemented the feature of his size changes via power-ups as they considered it a fun addition.[74] The concept was influenced by Japanese folktales.[75]

Super Mario Bros. 2 was originally not going to be a sequel to Super Mario Bros., and was originally going to be a game called Doki Doki Panic; the game directed by Kensuke Tanabe.[76][77] After unsuccessful gameplay, development was shelved until he was requested to implement mascots from the Yume Kōjō festival. The game was redesigned with the help of Miyamoto and released exclusively in Japan in 1987. Minoru Arakawa, however, requested the game to be changed to a Mario game for its international release. Much of the original gameplay concepts were retained, with mainly graphical changes being made.[78][79] One of the changes included the retexturing of the four main playable characters of Doki Doki Panic, and since they varied in height it was the first instance where Mario was noticeably shorter than Luigi.[80]

Super Mario Bros. 3 experimented with Mario's looks with different power-ups that represented different creatures. An example included the raccoon tail, which was chosen over a power-up that represented a centaur.[81][82] The levels were created after power-ups were chosen, and were designed to take advantage of his varying abilities.[83] The raccoon tail power-up became a staple in the Mario franchise, being used as an ability in a variety of Mario games that even stretched outside of the Super Mario series such as Mario Kart 7.[81] The game's success led to an animated television series, The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3,[84] with Mario being portrayed by Walker Boone.

Hiroshi Yamauchi wanted a launch title for the Game Boy that prominently featured Mario, as he believed in the statement "fun games sold consoles".[85][86] Super Mario Land was designed without the help of Miyamoto, a first for the series.[86] The game uses completely different elements to pair with the small screen due to the Game Boy's portability. For example, instead of rescuing Princess Peach from Bowser in the Mushroom Kingdom, Mario is instead rescuing Princess Daisy from Tatanga in Sarassaland. Mario was designed with line art.[87][88]

Super Mario World was the first video game to feature Yoshi as a companion to Mario. Miyamoto had always wanted a dinosaur-like companion ever since the original Super Mario Bros., but the concept was never achievable due to limited hardware. Since Super Mario World took place in a land of dinosaurs, Takashi Tezuka requested Shigefumi Hino to draw a character based on Miyamoto's concepts and sketches which he drew during development of Super Mario Bros. 3.[89][90] Yoshi's rideability was inspired by Miyamoto's love for horseback riding.[91] Super Mario World released during a console war between Nintendo and Sega; Sega's mascot, Sonic the Hedgehog, was considered a "cooler" alternative to Mario, to which Miyamoto apologized for.[92][93]

The plot for Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins has Mario pursue something for his own benefit rather than for someone else, his goal trying to reclaim ownership of his island, Mario Land, from Wario. The game was developed by Nintendo Research & Development 1 (R&D1); the company was unmotivated by the Super Mario series, and when they were tasked with creating a Super Mario game without Miyamoto they created Wario to emphasize the frustration of working with a character they didn't make. The name "Wario" is word play of "Mario" and "Warui", the latter meaning "bad" in Japanese to mean "bad Mario".[94]

The character's models and backgrounds in New Super Mario Bros. were 3D, but still only allowed for left and right movement and is considered 2.5D.[95][96] With the 2D series of Super Mario games being absent for 14 years, the previous installment being released in 1992, game mechanics improved drastically. Since the characters were no longer sprites and the backdrops weren't tile-based, the developers were nearly restrictionless; new game mechanics, such as Mario teetering off of trees and swinging on ropes, were implemented.[97] New Super Mario Bros. was the first 2D Super Mario game to use voice acting, with Charles Martinet voicing Mario and Luigi.[98] It was followed by three games similar to New Super Mario Bros., namely New Super Mario Bros. Wii, New Super Mario Bros. 2, and New Super Mario Bros. U, the latter of which being the first game to feature Mario in high-definition graphics (HD).[99]

3D games

Super Mario 64 featured Mario's first 3D rendering (left). Due to 3D graphics being new at the time, Yoshiaki Koizumi (right) had trouble programming movement with no frame of reference.[100]

Most Super Mario games in 3D feature open world gameplay; instead of being confined to only allow moving left and right, Mario can move in any direction and the player can complete the level how they please. The player chooses from one of the multiple objectives before entering a level, and Mario is tasked with completing that goal which ultimately ends with an obtainable item such as a star. These games feature a more complex narrative, but most still have Mario rescuing a kidnapped Princess Peach from Bowser. Early into most of the games, Mario befriends an ally which helps Mario on his journey and gives him a unique ability to obtain his goal.

Mario's debut 3D role was Super Mario 64; since the concept of 3D video games was still new at the time, the developers knew they were helping to pave the way for future games, and they weren't restricted on what the standard game was like. However, when Yoshiaki Koizumi had to create a 3D model and animation of Mario, he had no frame of reference and struggled on the task. Koizumi stated how the whole concept was "arguably tough", but was overtaken by the enjoyment of innovating in a new field.[100] Mario's movement was among the top priority in the game's development, with his animation being tested long before the basic layout of the game's locations were in place. Super Mario 64 was one of the first games voiced by Charles Martinet,[101] and Mario's character model was made with the N-World toolkit.[102]

Super Mario Sunshine was the first Nintendo with Satoru Iwata as the CEO of Nintendo who succeeded Hiroshi Yamauchi. The game's original concept did not feature Mario, as the developers believed the role was too out of the ordinary for such a character. Later on, when they used a generic man for the role instead, they believed having a realistic person alongside a character like Mario would cause "incongruity", and was ultimately changed to Mario instead. Mario's ally, F.L.U.D.D., was one of ten design options but was chosen because it fit the game's theme, although it wasn't their favorite option in looks.[103]

Super Mario Galaxy had Mario exploring a number of spherical planets, which the developers at the time knew simply jumping on enemies would be difficult to perform. They instead took advantage of the Wii Remote and Nunchuk having motion controls, and gave Mario a "spin" attack where he knocks over the enemies via spinning.[104][105] To also balance the game's difficulty, Mario was given less hitpoints.[106] With the amount of creative freedom the space-themed setting gave, many power-ups and transformations were implemented based on the worker's suggestions.[107]

In order to create a sense of familiarity for Super Mario Odyssey, various references to the Super Mario series were put in the game's environment. For example, Pauline was chosen to be a major aspect of the "Metro Kingdom" due to the kingdom representing the core of the game. Mario was also given a variety of costumes to represent other smaller games, such as the Mario's Picross series.[108][109] The development team found the most fun way to use the JoyCon controllers' motion controls was throwing a hat, and the gameplay was centered around Mario throwing his cap.[110]

64, Sunshine, and Galaxy were re-released on the Nintendo Switch in 2020 as part of the 35th anniversary of Super Mario Bros. in a collection pack titled Super Mario 3D All-Stars.[111] While the games were kept generally the same as their original counterparts, there were some minor changes. All three of the games were given HD graphics,[112] and there were also a couple of changes to Mario in Super Mario 64; a glitch where Mario could move at super high speeds with a glitch was removed;[113] one of Mario's voice clips in which he says "so long King Bowser", which unintentionally sounded like "so long, gay Bowser", was also replaced.[114]

Other Super Mario games

There have also been a variety of Super Mario games starring Mario that don't have standard typical 2D or 3D platforming. The Super Mario 3D series does have 3D gameplay, but the stages are linear and do not allow for open-world movement. The Super Mario Maker games are a series of game creation systems where the player can create their own 2D Super Mario levels and play ones created by others. Super Mario Run is a 2D platforming mobile game with other unnatural gameplay aspects.

The main aspect of Super Mario 3D Land was bridging the aspects of 2D and 3D Super Mario games.[115][116] One of the issues brought up was how Mario looked too small in comparison to the large terrain and the small, portable screen of the Nintendo 3DS, so the game's camera system needed to be fixed to one position in certain occasions.[117] The game brought with it the "Tanooki tail" power-up, which was originally introduced in Super Mario Bros. 3, and its existence was teased by the developers to the fans prior to its official announcement.[118][119] Concepts for Mario, which included a skater outfit and a power-up that would make Mario grow to a large size, were cut.[116]

Super Mario 3D World on the Wii U included the "Cat Mario" power-up, which was implemented to help newcomers play the game and add new gameplay features such as climbing up walls. Another power-up was the "Double Cherry", which was added accidentally; one of the developers added a second Mario into the game in error, and found it humorous when both Mario's were somehow controllable at the same time.[120] In 2020, also as part of the Super Mario Bros. 35th anniversary, Nintendo re-released Super Mario 3D World on the Nintendo Switch with the additional mode titled Bowser's Fury.[121]

The developers of Super Mario Run were mainly inspired by speedrunners during development, as they took note of how when they would try to beat a 2D Super Mario game as fast as possible they would never let go of the run button. With this, they made the core gameplay concept revolve around how Mario does not stop moving forward.[122][123]

Other Mario games

While the most prominent use of Mario has been directed toward the Super Mario series, various spinoff series that split into numerous games covering various genres have also been released. This includes genres such as role-playing games (RPGs), puzzle games, sports games, and even educational games in the 1990s.

RPG games

Mario has been the protagonist of various role-playing video games (RPGs), beginning with Super Mario RPG on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). The developer of Super Mario RPG, Yoshio Hongo for Square, liked the character Mario and believed he would fit well in an RPG format. When he discussed the idea with Miyamoto, the meeting went well.[124] The game was a critical and commercial success, and led to two other spinoff RPG series starring the character, Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi. Of the two series, the Paper Mario is the only one still currently running with Paper Mario: The Origami King in 2020, as the company behind the Mario & Luigi series, AlphaDream, went bankrupt in 2019.[125]

Super Mario RPG was originally going to have a sequel, titled Super Mario RPG 2, and was going to release for the Nintendo 64. The original developer, Square, had signed a deal with Sony to release Final Fantasy VII for the PlayStation, so Nintendo had Intelligent Systems develop the game instead. The new art designer, Naohiko Aoyama, proceeded to change every character to two-dimensional in order to bring out "cuter" graphics compared to low-polygon three-dimensional graphics on the console. In the Paper Mario games, Mario is often aided by numerous allies who progress the story while Mario remains silent.[126]

Unlike Paper Mario, both Mario and Luigi have voices in the Mario & Luigi series and are voiced by Charles Martinet.[127] According to the developers, the early titles in the series began with character sprites; the developers were generally inexperienced and didn't know much about hardware at the time. once the Nintendo 3DS was released, the developers had the chance to switch to 3-dimensional graphics. They decided to change the background and world design but chose to keep the characters as 2D renderings of 3D characters as they believed it made it easier to convey comedic expressions. In 2013, they believed Mario took too much of the spotlight in the Mario franchise, and they made Luigi the more story-focused character in Mario & Luigi: Dream Team.[128]

Sports games

Nintendo has explored a variety of sports games featuring Super Mario property, which include tennis, golf, baseball, soccer, kart racing, and other miscellaneous. Of which, the only four that were defined to be official series and are still currently running are Mario Tennis, Mario Golf, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, and Mario Kart. The Mario Kart series is the most successful, selling over 150 million games in its entirety.[129]

In the 1984 video game Golf, although one of the two playable characters looks similar to that of him, wearing red clothes and black pants,[130] he is never directly referred to be Mario;[131] In 1997, his look was changed in the re-release of the Famicon Disk System to that more like the character, and Nintendo later confirmed the character was Mario in a guide book of the game in 1991, marking his first sports video game appearance.[132] He then directly appeared in NES Open Tournament Golf in 1991 as one of two playable characters, the other being Luigi with a variety of other Mario characters with supporting roles. The character sprites were designed by Eiji Aonuma, his first project in graphical art design.[131]

After the unsuccessful attempt on the Virtual Boy with Mario's Tennis, the first tennis game featuring Mario, Nintendo gave licensing rights to Camelot Software Planning to develop a second Mario-themed tennis game for the Nintendo 64.[131] Each character had a unique ability, with Mario having an all-around average set of skills to pair with his type of character.[133] This ideology was later continued into Mario Power Tennis.[134]

The Mario Kart franchise began with Super Mario Kart for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1992; early in development, the game did not have any Mario-themed elements. A few months into the process, the designers were testing how one character would look at another they had just passed. They implemented Mario, simply to see how he would look inside a kart, and the original concept was scrapped entirely after they decided he looked better than the previous non-defined characters.[135] Similar to the Mario & Luigi series, he appears as a sprite that turns in 16 different angles.[136]

Puzzle games

Mario has also starred in a variety of multiple puzzle games, but sometimes only makes an appearance and is not playable. The first of which to release was Wrecking Crew, designed by Yoshio Sakamoto. After which, three main series and a variety of spin-offs were released starring him, including Dr. Mario, Mario vs. Donkey Kong, and Mario Picross, the latter of which inactive.

The original game in the Dr. Mario series, also titled Dr. Mario, was designed by Takahiro Harada and had Mario assuming the role of a doctor instead of a plumber.[137][138] His appearance and role has generally remained the same; to celebrate his 30th anniversary in the series an 8-bit rendering of his original appearance was made unlockable in the most recent game, Dr. Mario World.[139] Mario vs. Donkey Kong is centered around "Mini Marios", wind-up toys that resemble Mario.[140] The Mario's Picross series was an attempt by Nintendo to capitalize on the popularity of Mario and the success of puzzle games in Japan at the time.[141][142] Released in 1995, the game was popular and followed by two sequals, Super Mario Picross and Picross 2, but the first game was only made available to American audiences in 2020.[142]

Due to the abandonment of the SNES-CD hardware in the 1990s, a project developed by Nintendo and Phillips, as part of Nintendo's dissolving agreement with Philips they gave the licensing rights to Mario and The Legend of Zelda property to release games on the CD-i.[143][144] Multiple games were developed by the inexperienced Fantasy Factory, which included the puzzle game Hotel Mario in 1994.[145][146] Via Animation Magic, Hotel Mario had various cutscenes of Mario and Luigi which borrowed animation elements from Disney and J. R. R. Tolkien. Mario was voiced by Marc Graue as the game was released prior to Charles Martinet receiving the role for voicing the character.[147]

Educational games

Due to the popularity of the Super Mario series, various educational games starring the character were released and appealed to younger audiences. These games had little involvement from Nintendo, with the games releasing for the NES, Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), and personal computers. The last of which in the genre to release was Mario Teaches Typing 2 in 1997 before the production of such games was discontinued.[148]

Mario is Missing! is one of the only occasions where Mario himself was kidnapped and is rescued by another character. In the game, Mario and Luigi approach Bowser to stop his plans, but Mario is then captured; Luigi traverses real-world locations to follow after him, solving trivia along the way. A similar game was released without the help of Miyamoto, Mario's Time Machine, which starred Mario against Bowser instead.[148]

Mario's Game Gallery has the player competing against various card and board games against Mario. The game was Charles Martinet's first official voice acting role for Mario, one year prior to Super Mario 64.[148]

"So I thought, 'Well, a teacher... What's more interesting than a teacher but Mario?' So I went to Nintendo and pitched them and they loved it and it was a huge success."

Former head of Interplay Productions Brian Fargo, 2017 IGN interview[149]

For Mario Teaches Typing, the head of Interplay Productions Brian Fargo saw the success of the typing game Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing, and knew a character like Mario as the teacher would be appealing.[149] Pre-dating Mario's Game Gallery, Martinet did not voice Mario. After release, the concept was so successful, it began a negative relationship between Fargo Les Crane, the creator of Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing. Mario Teaches Typing 2 was released in 1997, which Martinet voiced Mario for.[148] When they were approved of creating Mario's Game Gallery, another Mario-themed education game also released that was of poor quality, so Miyamoto met with Fargo and halted production of any further education games using the character.[149]

Cameos

A photo of Lou Albano
A photo of Bob Hoskins
Lou Albano and Bob Hoskins have both portrayed Mario in live-action performances.

Apart from his platformer and spin-off game appearances, Mario has made guest appearances in non-Mario games, such as Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!, where Mario is a referee,[150] and Pac-Man Vs., where he is the in-game announcer.[151] Mario appears as a playable character in NBA Street V3[152] and SSX on Tour.[153] He makes countless cameo appearances in many forms in many games, such as portraits and statues in The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, and Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes.[154]

In other media

The first appearance of Mario in media other than games was Saturday Supercade, an animated television series produced by Ruby-Spears Productions in 1983.[citation needed] The 1986 original video animation Super Mario Bros.: Peach-Hime Kyushutsu Dai Sakusen! features Mario (voiced by Toru Furuya) as the protagonist.[155] The animated series The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! features a live-action series of skits which stars former WWF manager "Captain" Lou Albano as Mario and Danny Wells as Luigi. Mario appeared in a book series, the Nintendo Adventure Books.

Mario is portrayed by Bob Hoskins in the 1993 film loosely based on the Super Mario series, titled Super Mario Bros.. In the film, he is the cynical older brother who takes great pride in being a plumber and is a parental figure to Luigi. At first he holds no belief in unusual things happening, but meeting Daisy and a trip to Dinohattan soon changes his mind. Hoskins was ultimately cast to play the character after other choices falling out such as Dustin Hoffman and Danny DeVito.[156][157][158] Hoskins had previously done multiple roles in children's films and kept suggesting changes to the script before he agreed to portray the character.[159] According to one of the films' directors, Annabel Jankel, Hoskins was mainly considered due to his physical appearances.[160] In a 2007 interview, Hoskins considered the role his worst choice in his acting career and admitted to constantly drinking before and during filming.[161][162] A second Japanese animated film predating the live-action film by seven years,[163]

Reception

Statue of Mario in front of the offices of Nintendo's Nordic distributor Bergsala in Kungsbacka, Sweden

As Nintendo's primary mascot, Mario is widely considered to be the most famous video game character in history, and has been called an icon of the gaming industry.[16][19][164] The Mario series of video games has sold more than 510 million copies, making it the best-selling video game franchise.[18] Mario was one of the first video game character inductees at the Walk of Game in 2005, alongside Link and Sonic the Hedgehog.[165] Mario was the first video game character to be honored with a wax figure in the Hollywood Wax Museum in 2003. In 1990, a national survey found that Mario was more recognizable to American children than Mickey Mouse.[166][167] Mario has also been called the "most recognisable" figure in the gaming industry.[168]

Creator Shigeru Miyamoto has stated that Mario is his favorite out of all characters that he has created.[169] Electronic Gaming Monthly gave Mario their "Coolest Mascot" award for 1996, calling him "an age-old friend."[170] Nintendo Power listed Mario as their favorite hero, citing his defining characteristics as his mustache, red cap, plumbing prowess, and his mushrooms.[171] In a poll conducted in 2008 by Oricon, Mario was voted the most popular video game character in Japan.[172]

GameDaily listed the "unlikely hero" on its top 25 video game archetypes, and used Mario as an example of this. It stated that in spite of the fact that he should have run out of energy through the first level, he kept going.[173] Mario ranked fourth on GameDaily's top ten Smash Bros. characters list.[174] Mario was fourth on UGO's list of the "Top 100 Heroes of All Time".[175] They also listed Mario's hat twenty-first on their list of "The Coolest Helmets and Headgear in Video Games", stating "there's always somebody at your Halloween party wearing one."[176] CNET listed him first on its list of the "Top 5 video game characters".[177] He was voted 100th in IGN's Top 100 Villains for his appearance in Donkey Kong Junior, adding "This Mario is a total jerk, holding Donkey Kong Jr.'s dad hostage",[178] and he has also been elected by GamesRadar as the 90th "most dastardly ne'er-do-wells" villain in video games in their "top 100".[179]

Legacy

Japanese prime minister Shinzō Abe holding Mario's cap at the 2016 Summer Olympics closing ceremony

Mario has been established as a pop culture icon, and has appeared on lunch boxes, T-shirts, magazines, commercials (notably, in a Got Milk? commercial),[180] in candy form, on shampoo bottles, cereal, badges, board games, and as a plush toy.[16]

Mario has inspired unlicensed paintings,[181] performances on talent shows such as India's Got Talent,[182] and short films, which have been viewed hundreds of thousands of times.[183] The character has been present in a number of works created by third parties other than Nintendo, such as in the iOS and Android video game Platform Panic, in which one of the purchasable skins is a reference to him.[184]

Many people and places have been named or nicknamed after Mario. Bergsala, the distributor of Nintendo's products in the Nordic and the Baltic countries, is located at Marios Gata 21 (Mario's Street 21) in Kungsbacka, Sweden, named after Mario.[185] Many sports stars, including Bundesliga football players Mario Götze and Mario Gómez, National Hockey League player Mario Lemieux,[186] Italian footballer Mario Balotelli,[citation needed] and Italian cyclist Mario Cipollini have been given the nickname "Super Mario". In a suburb of the Spanish city of Zaragoza, streets were named after video games, including "Avenida de Super Mario Bros".[187][188]

Mario's legacy is recognized by Guinness World Records, who awarded the Nintendo mascot, and the series of platform games he has appeared in, seven world records in the Guinness World Records: Gamer's Edition 2008. These records include "Best Selling Video Game Series of All Time", "First Movie Based on an Existing Video Game", and "Most Prolific Video Game Character", with Mario appearing in 116 original games.[189] In 2011, readers of Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition voted Mario as the top video game character of all time.[190]

Mario appeared in the 2016 Summer Olympics closing ceremony to promote the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. In a pre-recorded video, the prime minister Shinzō Abe became Mario to use a Warp Pipe planted by Doraemon from Shibuya Crossing to Maracanã Stadium. Abe then appeared dressed as Mario in an oversized Warp Pipe in the middle of the stadium.[191][192][193]

Mario Day (previously known as National Mario Day) is celebrated on March 10,[194][195] as when that date is presented as Mar 10 it resembles the name MARIO.[196][197] Since 2016, the day was officially observed by Nintendo,[198] and celebrates this day annually by promoting Mario games and holding Mario-related events.[199]

Notes

  1. ^ Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach!, Amada Anime Series: Super Mario Bros., and Super Mario World: Mario & Yoshi's Adventure Land
  2. ^ Mario Paint, and Super Mario All-Stars
  3. ^ Super Mario Bros. Special Drama CD
  4. ^ Japanese dub of Super Mario Bros film
  5. ^ Japanese: マリオ, Hepburn: Mario, pronounced [maɾi.o]; English: /ˈmɑːri, ˈmær-/, Italian: [ˈmaːrjo]

References

  1. ^ "Donkey Kong Cereal". Behind The Voice Actors. Archived from the original on May 30, 2018. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
  2. ^ "Donkey Kong – Donkey Kong (1983, Vinyl)". Discogs. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
  3. ^ "Donkey Kong (Kid Stuff Records, 1983) – Full Album". YouTube. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
  4. ^ "Super Mario: ABC no Utau Video". YouTube. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  5. ^ "Gerri Sorrells". The Japan Times. November 2003. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  6. ^ "英語ナレーターボイスサンプル:ジェリー・ソーレス Gerri Sorrells". Narrator.jp. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  7. ^ "Super Mario Bros Ice Capades". YouTube. Retrieved February 21, 2021. Mario's voiced by Henry Corden, who took over voicing Fred Flintstone after Alan Reed passed away.
  8. ^ "Mario Teaches Typing". Behind The Voice Actors. Archived from the original on April 15, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
  9. ^ "Real Time Mario at the 1992 SCES". YouTube. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b "Super Mario Wiki on Twitter: "LRT: We've got a name for the voice of that E3 Wario puppet: Dale Johannes"". Twitter. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
  11. ^ "Mario Is Missing!". Behind The Voice Actors. Archived from the original on February 6, 2021. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
  12. ^ "Revisiting Nintendo's novelty pop hit". Eurogamer.net. November 12, 2017. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  13. ^ "Random: Looking Back On That Time When Mario Gatecrashed The UK Music Charts". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on November 23, 2020. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  14. ^ "Hotel Mario". Behind The Voice Actors. Archived from the original on February 3, 2021. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
  15. ^ "Mario's Time Machine Deluxe". Behind The Voice Actors. Archived from the original on April 19, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
  16. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Nintendo's Shining Star: The History of Mario". Gamecubicle. Archived from the original on January 20, 2016. Retrieved August 23, 2008.
  17. ^ Fraser, Mick (December 26, 2016). "The 10 best-selling video game franchises ever". Archived from the original on July 17, 2018. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
  18. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k McLaughlin, Rus (September 13, 2010). "IGN Presents: The History of Super Mario Bros". IGN. Archived from the original on November 9, 2019. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  19. ^ Jump up to: a b Orlando, Greg (May 15, 2007). "Console Portraits: A 40-Year Pictorial History of Gaming". Wired News. Archived from the original on October 20, 2008. Retrieved August 23, 2008.
  20. ^ Jump up to: a b "Iwata Asks: New Super Mario Bros". Wii.com. Nintendo. p. 1. Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  21. ^ "Mario: Alive, Well, and Living in the Bronx?" Next Generation 26:46. Brisbane, CA: Imagine Media. February 1997.
  22. ^ "Donkey Kong". The Arcade Flyers Archive. Archived from the original on December 17, 2015. Retrieved January 25, 2017.
  23. ^ "Playback 93". Yahoo. December 2, 2009. Archived from the original on December 11, 2009. Retrieved December 24, 2009.
  24. ^ "Iwata Asks: New Super Mario Bros". Wii.com. Nintendo. p. 2. Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  25. ^ Edwards, Benj (April 25, 2010). "The True Face of Mario". Technologizer. Archived from the original on June 25, 2011. Retrieved June 30, 2011.
  26. ^ Eric Pryne (March 27, 2010). "Powerful Segale family has massive vision for Tukwila expanse". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on September 21, 2011. Retrieved June 30, 2011.
  27. ^ Loy, Joel (1989). "Inside Super Mario Bros". Inside Edition. CBS Television Distribution.
  28. ^ Tica, Don; Govia, Mario De; Pham, Tri (2000). Mario Party 2: Prima's Official Strategy Guide. ISBN 9780761527671. Archived from the original on May 16, 2020. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  29. ^ Stratton, Stephen; Buchanan, Levi (2003). Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga : Prima's Official Strategy Guide. p. 21. ISBN 9780761544234. Archived from the original on May 16, 2020. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  30. ^ "Mario reveals his last name & other tales – San Diego Comic Con 2012". July 16, 2012. Archived from the original on June 24, 2020. Retrieved May 25, 2016. What's my last name? That's a very good question. That's right, it's Mario! My name's-a Mario Mario. Of course, my brother's name, a-Luigi Mario. And of course, my mama's-a Mama Mia Mario; my papa Papa Pio Mario. Of course, my grandmama Grandmama Mia Mario and my greatpapa et cetera, et cetera. Yeah, first name Mario, last name Mario. Yahoo!
  31. ^ "Nintendo Chief: Mario Is Part Of Gamers' DNA". August 17, 2012. Archived from the original on June 14, 2016. Retrieved May 25, 2016. Could that mean that Mario's last name is "Video Game"? No, Iwata replied. "He does not have a last name."
  32. ^ "Mario's Creators Answer Burning Questions About The Series". September 24, 2012. Archived from the original on January 23, 2013. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  33. ^ "【衝撃事実】ついに任天堂公式のマリオの本名が判明!任天堂の代表取締役・宮本茂氏が明かす" [[Impact] fact finally found real name of Nintendo official of Mario! Reveal the representative director, Shigeru Miyamoto of Nintendo] (in Japanese). September 14, 2015. Archived from the original on June 16, 2016. Retrieved May 25, 2016.
  34. ^ "Miyamoto says Mario's full name is "Mario Mario"". September 14, 2015. Archived from the original on May 18, 2016. Retrieved May 25, 2016.
  35. ^ Jump up to: a b c Mike Snider (November 8, 2010). "Q&A: 'Mario' creator Shigeru Miyamoto". USA Today. Archived from the original on May 23, 2012. Retrieved November 9, 2010.
  36. ^ Kohler, Chris (June 27, 2008). "Q&A: 90 Minutes With Miyamoto, Nintendo's Master of Amusement". IGN.com. Archived from the original on July 27, 2010. Retrieved July 30, 2010.
  37. ^ Jump up to: a b Arakawa, Minoru, ed. 1991. "The Man Behind Mario." Pp. 30–32 in Mario Mania Archived April 1, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. Redmond, WA: Nintendo. ASIN B000BPL42C.
  38. ^ Grajqevci, Jeton (October 9, 2000). Profile: Shigeru Miyamoto Archived May 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. N-Sider. Retrieved May 6, 2009
  39. ^ Rao, Anjali (February 15, 2007). Sigeru Miyamao Talk Asia interview Archived April 1, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. CNN. Retrieved February 28, 2009
  40. ^ Jump up to: a b "It's a me Charles Martinet, the voice of Mario". Siliconera. July 26, 2006. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  41. ^ The Voice of Mario – Charles Martinet Interview on YouTube
  42. ^ Totilio, Stephen (September 17, 2009). "Mario's Voice Actor Recalls His Rambling Audition". Kotaku. Archived from the original on January 16, 2021. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  43. ^ "Nintendo/Pinball Mystery SOLVED - Voice of Mario in Super Mario Bros. | Gottlieb | Pinside.com". pinside.com. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
  44. ^ Barsanti, Sam (December 15, 2018). "Charles Martinet now holds a Guinness record for voicing Super Mario 100 times". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on December 16, 2018. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
  45. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Mario Biography". IGN. Archived from the original on December 20, 2009. Retrieved January 23, 2010.
  46. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Luigi Biography". IGN. Archived from the original on August 17, 2009. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  47. ^ Mendelsohn, Tom (September 30, 2016). "Mario is only 24 years old, according to creator Shigeru Miyamoto". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on August 6, 2018. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
  48. ^ "BeefJack – An alternative gaming website – Video game news, reviews and features, from a different perspective". archive.beefjack.com. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved November 2, 2017.
  49. ^ "History of Nintendo Worldwide 1980–1990". Nintendo of Europe. 2013. Archived from the original on September 4, 2012. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  50. ^ "Top Ten Mario Games". GameTrailers. July 24, 2007. Archived from the original on May 27, 2009. Retrieved January 30, 2010.
  51. ^ "Story and Characters". Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis Instruction Booklet. Nintendo of America. September 25, 2006.
  52. ^ Ashcraft, Brian (September 4, 2017). "Mario Is Officially No Longer A Plumber". Kotaku. Archived from the original on September 4, 2017. Retrieved September 4, 2017.
  53. ^ Schreier, Jason (March 6, 2018). "Mario Is Officially A Plumber Again". Kotaku. Archived from the original on March 19, 2018. Retrieved March 19, 2018.
  54. ^ Jump up to: a b Trueman, Doug. "GameSpot Presents: The History of Donkey Kong". GameSpot. Archived from the original on July 10, 2001. Retrieved January 1, 2010.
  55. ^ "Mario vs. DK 2: March of the Minis". Yahoo! Games. Archived from the original on September 27, 2011. Retrieved August 23, 2008.
  56. ^ Bozon, Mark (February 1, 2006). "Hands-On: Super Princess Peach". IGN. Archived from the original on October 7, 2008. Retrieved January 23, 2010.
  57. ^ "Princess Daisy Biography". IGN. Archived from the original on November 29, 2007. Retrieved January 27, 2009.
  58. ^ HAL Laboratory (December 3, 2001). Super Smash Bros. Melee (Nintendo GameCube). Nintendo.
  59. ^ "Luigi Profile". IGN. Archived from the original on February 25, 2009. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  60. ^ Buchanan, Levi (August 7, 2008). "The Other Mario Games, Vol. 2". IGN. Archived from the original on February 20, 2009. Retrieved January 23, 2010.
  61. ^ "Wario Biography". IGN. Archived from the original on July 12, 2009. Retrieved January 23, 2010.
  62. ^ "Yoshi Biography". IGN. Archived from the original on June 2, 2010. Retrieved January 23, 2009.
  63. ^ Suellentrop, Chris (November 5, 2007). "Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels". Slate. Archived from the original on April 10, 2009. Retrieved April 4, 2009.
  64. ^ Harris, Craig (May 18, 2012). "IGN: New Super Mario Bros. Review". IGN UK. Archived from the original on March 11, 2009. Retrieved April 4, 2009.
  65. ^ Provo, Frank (November 9, 2007). "Super Mario Bros. 3 Review for Wii". GameSpot UK. Archived from the original on March 10, 2009. Retrieved April 4, 2009.
  66. ^ Jump up to: a b IGN staff (November 16, 2009). "Top 10 Mario Suits". IGN. Archived from the original on March 9, 2010. Retrieved January 23, 2010.
  67. ^ Navarro, Alex (February 9, 2007). "Super Mario World for Wii Review – GameSpot". GameSpot UK. Archived from the original on July 14, 2007. Retrieved April 4, 2009.
  68. ^ "Super Mario 64 at Nintendo :: Wii :: Virtual Console :: Games". Nintendo.com. Archived from the original on June 24, 2013. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  69. ^ Gerstmann, Jeff (October 4, 2002). "Super Mario Sunshine Review for GameCube – GameSpot". GameSpot UK. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved April 4, 2009.
  70. ^ "Mario's Special Moves". Super Mario Galaxy Instruction Booklet. Nintendo of America. 2007.
  71. ^ "Mario's Special Moves". Super Mario Galaxy 2 Instruction Booklet. Nintendo of America. 2010.
  72. ^ Iwata, Satoru (2009). "Iwata Asks: New Super Mario Bros (Volume 2- It Started With a Square Object Moving)". Archived from the original on December 15, 2009. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
  73. ^ Gantayat, Anoop (October 25, 2010). "Super Mario Bros. Originally Had Beam Guns and Rocket Packs". Andriasang. Archived from the original on January 26, 2014. Retrieved January 24, 2014.
  74. ^ "Letting Everyone Know It Was A Good Mushroom". Iwata Asks: New Super Mario Bros Wii. Nintendo. Archived from the original on September 27, 2016. Retrieved December 5, 2012.
  75. ^ "Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros. 3 developer interviews- NES Classic Edition". Nintendo.com. Nintendo of America. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved November 18, 2017.
  76. ^ Tanabe, Kensuke (May 18, 2004). "Interview – Kensuke Tanabe Talks Metroid Prime 2: Echoes" (Interview). Interviewed by Jonathan Metts; Daniel Bloodworth; Matt Cassamassina. Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on November 5, 2013. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  77. ^ "クリエイターズファイル 第101回". Gpara.com. February 10, 2003. Retrieved January 11, 2011.
  78. ^ Mike (January 24, 2003). "Doki Doki Panic: The strange truth behind Super Mario Bros. 2". Progressive Boink. Archived from the original on June 22, 2007. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  79. ^ "From Doki Doki Panic to Super Mario Bros. 2". The Mushroom Kingdom. Retrieved August 1, 2014.
  80. ^ McLaughlin, Rus (September 14, 2010). "IGN Presents The History of Super Mario Bros". IGN. Retrieved April 9, 2014.
  81. ^ Jump up to: a b "IGN Top 100 Games 2007: 39 Super Mario Bros. 3". IGN. 2007. Archived from the original on April 9, 2017. Retrieved January 25, 2009.
  82. ^ Nintendo Power Staff (January–February 1990). "The Making of Super Mario Bros. 3". Nintendo Power. Nintendo (10): 20–23.
  83. ^ McLaughlin, Rus (November 8, 2007). "The History of the Super Mario Bros". IGN. Archived from the original on February 17, 2012. Retrieved January 26, 2009.
  84. ^ Nintendo Power Staff (September–October 1990). "On the Air: SMB3". Nintendo Power. Nintendo (16): 89.
  85. ^ McLaughlin, Rus (September 13, 2010). "IGN Presents: The History of Super Mario Bros.". IGN. p. 1. Archived from the original on April 12, 2015. Retrieved April 11, 2015.
  86. ^ Jump up to: a b McLaughlin, Rus (September 13, 2010). "IGN Presents: The History of Super Mario Bros.". IGN. p. 3. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved April 11, 2015.
  87. ^ Thomas, Lucas M. (June 1, 2012). "Building to New Super Mario Bros.". IGN. Archived from the original on April 11, 2015. Retrieved April 11, 2015.
  88. ^ Thomas, Lucas M. (June 15, 2011). "Super Mario Land Review". IGN. Archived from the original on April 24, 2015. Retrieved April 10, 2015.
  89. ^ Nintendo Power staff (August 1991). Mario Mania. Bath: Future plc. p. 32.
  90. ^ Corrigan, Hope (September 28, 2017). "Super Mario World: Mario Was Originally Punching Yoshi in The Head". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on September 30, 2017. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
  91. ^ East, Thomas (March 2012). "A brief history of ... Yoshi". Official Nintendo Magazine. Bath: Future plc (49): 42.
  92. ^ Kent, Steven (2001). The Ultimate History of Video Games: The Story Behind the Craze that Touched our Lives and Changed the World. Roseville: Prima Publishing. ISBN 0-7615-3643-4.
  93. ^ Sao, Akinori. "Developer Interview: Super Mario World & Yoshi's Island – Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition". Nintendo. Archived from the original on October 3, 2017. Retrieved October 23, 2017.
  94. ^ Schilling, Chris (September 3, 2015). "There's far more to Wario than being Mario's fatter arch nemesis". GamesRadar+. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  95. ^ Hollingshead, Anise (February 21, 2006). "Two New Titles Announced For Nintendo DS". GameZone. Retrieved December 28, 2008.
  96. ^ Martino, Chris (May 19, 2005). "New Super Mario Bros. preview". Nintendo World Report. Retrieved January 3, 2009.
  97. ^ "E3 2005: New Super Mario Bros. Impressions". IGN. May 18, 2005. Retrieved December 28, 2008.
  98. ^ Thomason, Steve. "Sizing Up Mario". Nintendo Power (202): 41–42.
  99. ^ "Review: New Super Mario Bros. U". Destructoid. Archived from the original on September 20, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  100. ^ Jump up to: a b Park, Gene (September 14, 2020). "Mario makers reflect on 35 years and the evolution of gaming's most iconic jump". The Washington Post. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  101. ^ "Super Mario 64". Nintendo Power. No. 89. Nintendo. October 1996. p. 67.
  102. ^ Andretti (August 5, 1997). "ACCL Message Board – Msg: 1910481". Silicon Investor. Knight Sac Media. Archived from the original on September 9, 2017. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
  103. ^ Anthony JC (August 2007). "The Making of The Game – Super Mario Sunshine". Nintendo Online Magazine. N-Sider. Archived from the original on October 13, 2007. Retrieved August 7, 2007.
  104. ^ "A Mario Even Beginners Can Play". Nintendo. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 19, 2009.
  105. ^ Casamassina, Matt (November 29, 2007). "Interview: Super Mario Galaxy". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on October 24, 2014. Retrieved September 2, 2016.
  106. ^ "From 5 to 95". Iwata Asks. Nintendo. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  107. ^ "Inspired by a Note from a Female Staff Member". Iwata Asks. Nintendo. Archived from the original on September 27, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  108. ^ Plunkett, Luke (June 13, 2017). "Super Mario Odyssey's Outfits Are A Nice Throwback". Kotaku. Archived from the original on June 14, 2017. Retrieved June 14, 2017.
  109. ^ McCarthy, Caty (June 14, 2017). "Super Mario Odyssey Celebrates All the Spin-Offs of Mario's Past Through Costumes". USgamer. Archived from the original on June 18, 2017. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  110. ^ Schreier, Jason (June 13, 2017). "I Played 30 Minutes Of Super Mario Odyssey And It Sure Is Impressive". Kotaku. Archived from the original on June 15, 2017. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
  111. ^ Naudus, Kris (March 30, 2021). "'Super Mario 3D All-Stars' goes away forever on March 31st". Engadget. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  112. ^ Robinson, Martin (September 17, 2020). "Super Mario 3D All-Stars review – three great games in one lacklustre compilation". Eurogamer. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  113. ^ Medina, Mark (September 16, 2020). "Super Mario 3D All-Stars: Mario 64 Speedruns Won't Be Nearly As Fast". IGN. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  114. ^ Hernandez, Patrick (September 18, 2020). "Internet pours one out for Super Mario 64's 'Gay Bowser,' who is dead now". Polygon. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  115. ^ Drake, Audrey (November 30, 2011). "Bridging the Gap Between 2D and 3D Mario". IGN. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  116. ^ Jump up to: a b Gilbert, Henry (March 7, 2012). "An inspiring development to find joy in the face of national tragedy". GamesRadar. Future Publishing. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
  117. ^ Drake, Audrey (November 30, 2011). "The Creation of Super Mario 3D Land". IGN. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
  118. ^ Gilbert, Henry (March 2, 2011). "Nintendo reveals new Super Mario for 3DS". GamesRadar+. Retrieved November 16, 2011.
  119. ^ Moriarty, Colin (June 7, 2011). "E3 2011: You'll Play Super Mario 3DS This Year". IGN. Retrieved November 16, 2011.
  120. ^ "Why double Mario forced Nintendo to change Super Mario 3D World". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on October 24, 2017. Retrieved October 24, 2017.
  121. ^ Watts, Steve (February 10, 2021). "Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury Review – Switch Release Reinvigorates A Classic". GameSpot. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
  122. ^ Bernstein, Joseph (December 7, 2016). "Shigeru Miyamoto Explains Why Nintendo Finally Brought Mario To The iPhone". Buzzfeed. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
  123. ^ Kohler, Chris (December 15, 2016). "7 Surprising Insights Into Super Mario Run, Straight From Shigeru Miyamoto". Wired. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  124. ^ "Nintendo Ultra 64: The Launch of the Decade?". Maximum: The Video Game Magazine. Emap International Limited (2): 107–8. November 1995.
  125. ^ Ashcraft, Brian (October 2, 2019). "Mario & Luigi RPG Developer AlphaDream Has Gone Bankrupt". Kotaku. Archived from the original on April 9, 2020. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  126. ^ "Nintendo and AlphaDream Talk Mario, RPGs, And More". Game Informer. February 7, 2016. Retrieved March 19, 2021.[permanent dead link]
  127. ^ Harris, Craig (September 17, 2003). "Mario & Luigi". IGN. Archived from the original on February 24, 2009. Retrieved January 26, 2008.
  128. ^ Khaw, Cassandra (August 6, 2013). "USGamer Interviews the Developers of Mario & Luigi : Dream Team". USGamer. Archived from the original on September 14, 2019. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  129. ^ Futter, Mike (June 2, 2014). "Mario Kart 8 Speeds To Over 1.2 Million Sales In Opening Weekend". Game Informer. GameStop. Archived from the original on June 4, 2014. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  130. ^ Nix, Marc (October 11, 2012). "Mario's Love of Golf". IGN. Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  131. ^ Jump up to: a b c Bertoli, Ben (June 22, 2018). "The Ups And Downs Of Mario Sports Games". Kotaku. Archived from the original on January 27, 2021. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  132. ^ Mario Mania: Nintendo Player's Guide. Redmond, WA: Nintendo of America. 1991. p. 9. OCLC 299240250.
  133. ^ Whitehead, Thomas (August 28, 2015). "Mario History: Mario Tennis – 2000". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on April 24, 2019. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  134. ^ IGN staff (December 2, 2004). "Camelot Talks Mario Power Tennis". IGN. Archived from the original on February 26, 2015. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  135. ^ "It Started With A Guy In Overalls". Wii.com. Archived from the original on April 28, 2012. Retrieved December 28, 2008.
  136. ^ Heckel, Nathan. "Reviews – Super Mario Kart". Nintendojo. Archived from the original on November 14, 2006. Retrieved December 28, 2008.
  137. ^ "Hirokazu Tanaka's Works" (in Japanese). Sporadic Vacuum. Archived from the original on January 19, 2011. Retrieved November 21, 2011.
  138. ^ Denzer, TJ (March 10, 2021). "Mario Day special: The complete evolution of Mario Bros". Shacknews. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  139. ^ Craddock, Ryan (July 27, 2020). "Dr. Mario World Celebrates The Character's 30th Anniversary With 8-Bit Dr. Mario". Nintendo Life. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  140. ^ Lane, Gavin (March 23, 2021). "Feature: Best Donkey Kong Games Of All Time". Nintendo Life. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  141. ^ Delgado, Tony (December 4, 2006). "Column: Beyond Tetris – Mario's Picross". GameSetWatch. Archived from the original on April 11, 2018. Retrieved February 23, 2018.
  142. ^ Jump up to: a b Craddock, Ryan (September 16, 2020). "Nintendo Shares Mario's Super Picross Tutorial As The Game Arrives On Switch". Nintendo Life. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  143. ^ GameSpy Staff (January 1, 2008). "Nintendo: From Hero to Zero". GameSpy. Archived from the original on April 4, 2008. Retrieved April 7, 2008.
  144. ^ Buchanan, Levi (August 14, 2008). "The Other Mario Games, Vol. 3". IGN. Archived from the original on July 27, 2012. Retrieved September 16, 2008.
  145. ^ Cowan, Danny (April 25, 2006). "CDi Retrospective from 1Up.com". 1Up.com. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on June 29, 2015. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  146. ^ Fletcher, J. C. (August 7, 2008). "Virtually Overlooked: Hotel Mario". Engadget. AOL. Archived from the original on June 29, 2018. Retrieved September 13, 2008.
  147. ^ Devin (September 16, 2007). "Interview with Trici Venola". The Black Moon Project. GameSpy. Archived from the original on December 18, 2007. Retrieved June 21, 2008.
  148. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Bailey, Dustin (June 11, 2020). "Let's remember Nintendo's official – and terrible – Mario PC games". PCGamesN. Archived from the original on November 5, 2020. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
  149. ^ Jump up to: a b c Osborn, Alex (June 17, 2017). "Interplay Founder on Working With Nintendo on Mario Teaches Typing — IGN Unfiltered". IGN. Archived from the original on July 14, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
  150. ^ Pigna, Kris (August 9, 2009). "Mario Included in NES Punch-Out!! Without Miyamoto's Permission". 1UP.com. Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Retrieved January 28, 2009.
  151. ^ Harris, Craig (December 9, 2003). "Pac-Man Vs. – GameCube Review". IGN. pp. 1–2. Archived from the original on January 23, 2012. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  152. ^ "Mario to hoop it up in NBA Street V3". GameSpot. Archived from the original on January 12, 2005. Retrieved May 4, 2009.
  153. ^ "SSX On Tour Character Spotlight: Mario, Luigi, and Peach". GameSpot. Archived from the original on January 14, 2006. Retrieved May 4, 2009.
  154. ^ Obias, Rubie. "9 Hidden Mario Cameos and References in Videogames". Archived from the original on August 8, 2018. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  155. ^ Plunkett, Luke (April 19, 2012). "There was a Good Super Mario Bros. Movie. Let's Watch it!". Kotaku. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
  156. ^ Lussier, Germain (September 2, 2014). "The Making of the 'Super Mario Bros.' Movie, From the Book 'Console Wars'". Slash Film. Archived from the original on December 15, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2018.
  157. ^ Stayton, Richard (August 16, 1992). "The Bros. Mario Get Super Large". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on August 8, 2019. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
  158. ^ Staff Writer (January 11, 1991). "Mario: The Movie". The Times-News. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
  159. ^ Goodson Jr., William Wilson (June 1993). Nintendo Meets Bladerunner, Cinemafantastique
  160. ^ Owen, Luke (2017). Lights, Camera GAME OVER!: How Video Game Movies Get Made. Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 9780764353178. Archived from the original on June 13, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  161. ^ Hattenstone, Simon (August 3, 2007). "The Method? Living it out? Cobblers!". The Guardian. Archived from the original on December 16, 2016. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
  162. ^ Greenstreet, Rosanna (June 17, 2011). "Q&A: Bob Hoskins". The Guardian. Archived from the original on November 10, 2013. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
  163. ^ Guinness World Records 2016: Gamer's Edition. Guinness World Records. 2015. p. 155. ISBN 978-1910561096. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
  164. ^ Buchanan, Levi (February 13, 2009). "Is There a Bad Mario Game?". IGN. Archived from the original on February 17, 2012. Retrieved January 23, 2010.
  165. ^ "Past Inductees 2005 Games / Characters". Walk of Game. Archived from the original on January 21, 2008. Retrieved February 21, 2008.
  166. ^ Iwabuchi, Koichi (November 8, 2002). "1. Taking Japanization seriously: Cultural globalization reconsidered". Recentering globalization: Popular culture and Japanese transnationalism. Duke University Press. p. 30. ISBN 978-0-8223-2891-9. Archived from the original on July 9, 2010. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
  167. ^ Coates, James (May 18, 1993). "How Super Mario conquered America". Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on January 4, 2019. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
  168. ^ Plunkett, Luke (September 13, 2010). "Happy 25th Birthday, Super Mario Bros". Kotaku. Archived from the original on September 21, 2010. Retrieved October 18, 2010.
  169. ^ "Exclusive Interview With Nintendo Gaming Mastermind Shigeru Miyamoto". Popular Mechanics. October 19, 2009. Archived from the original on April 13, 2010. Retrieved October 21, 2009.
  170. ^ "The Best of '96". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 92. Ziff Davis. March 1997. p. 90.
  171. ^ Nintendo Power 250th issue!. South San Francisco, California: Future US. 2010. pp. 40, 41.
  172. ^ Brian Ashcraft (August 23, 2008). "And Japan's Favorite Video Game Characters Are...?". Kotaku. Archived from the original on January 26, 2013. Retrieved August 23, 2008.
  173. ^ Buffa, Chris (January 23, 2009). "Top 25 Game Archetypes". GameDaily. Archived from the original on November 6, 2018. Retrieved January 1, 2010.
  174. ^ "Top 10 Smash Bros. Characters – Page 7". GameDaily. Archived from the original on October 23, 2009. Retrieved August 7, 2009.
  175. ^ Staff (September 24, 2007). "Best Heroes of All Time: Mario". UGO Networks. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved November 8, 2009.
  176. ^ Marissa Meli (March 4, 2011). "The Coolest Helmets and Headgear in Video Games". UGO.com. Archived from the original on March 11, 2011. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  177. ^ Tom Merritt (December 7, 2009). "Top 5 video game characters". CNET. Archived from the original on April 19, 2010. Retrieved April 25, 2010.
  178. ^ "Top 100 Villains". IGN. Archived from the original on January 6, 2012. Retrieved May 13, 2010.
  179. ^ "100 best villains in video games". GamesRadar. May 17, 2013. Archived from the original on June 24, 2013. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  180. ^ Weiss, Jodi & Kahn, Russell (2004). In 145 Things to Be When You Grow Up Archived June 13, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. Princeton Review Publishing. p. 25. ISBN 0-375-76369-4. Google Book Search. Retrieved November 6, 2009.
  181. ^ "10 Works of Art Inspired By Super Mario Bros.". Pixelated Geek. Archived from the original on May 2, 2009. Retrieved May 5, 2009.
  182. ^ Ashcraft, Brian (July 13, 2009). "India's Got Mario Talent". Kotaku. Archived from the original on May 9, 2013. Retrieved May 17, 2012.
  183. ^ Totilo, Stephen (December 23, 2011). "32 Nintendo Fans made these 8 Short Movies in 24 Hours". Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2015.
  184. ^ Spencer, Spanner (December 30, 2014). "Platform Panic Review: Infinite Platforms, Infinite Pleasure". Gamezebo. Archived from the original on August 8, 2016. Retrieved July 4, 2016.
  185. ^ "Bergsala AB, Contact page". Archived from the original on August 17, 2010. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  186. ^ "ESPN.com: Mario was super despite the obstacles". ESPN. Archived from the original on February 5, 2009. Retrieved April 4, 2009.
  187. ^ Shoichet, Catherine E. (November 8, 2010). "Spanish neighborhood unveils 'Super Mario' street". CNN. Archived from the original on August 31, 2018. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
  188. ^ Brian Crecente. "What Were Your Greatest Gaming Moments of 2010?". Kotaku. Archived from the original on July 13, 2011.
  189. ^ Craig Glenday, ed. (March 11, 2008). Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition 2008. Guinness World Records. Guinness. ISBN 978-1-904994-21-3.
  190. ^ Marchiafava, Jeff (February 16, 2011). "Guinness Names Top 50 Video Game Characters Of All Time". Game Informer. Archived from the original on February 13, 2012. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  191. ^ Palazzo, Chiara (August 22, 2016). "Shinzo Abe emerges from a green pipe disguised as Super Mario during Rio Closing Ceremony". Archived from the original on August 22, 2016. Retrieved August 22, 2016.
  192. ^ Samuelson, Kate (August 22, 2016). "Shinzo Abe Dresses as Super Mario for Rio Closing Ceremony". Time. Archived from the original on August 22, 2016. Retrieved August 22, 2016.
  193. ^ Palazzo, Chiara (August 22, 2016). "Shinzo Abe emerges from a green pipe disguised as Super Mario during Rio Closing Ceremony". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on August 22, 2016. Retrieved August 22, 2016.
  194. ^ Kim, Dan (March 10, 2020). "It's-A Mario Day! 4 Deals to Save Your Ninten-dough". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 10, 2021. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  195. ^ Burkhardt, Kai (March 10, 2020). "Wa-hoo! Celebrate Mario Day with deals on games, toys and more". CNN Underscored. Archived from the original on April 13, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  196. ^ "Fun Holiday – Mario Day". Timeanddate.com. Archived from the original on March 12, 2017. Retrieved March 9, 2017.
  197. ^ Dani Werner (March 7, 2016), "Jump-start your week with some items of interest", Star Tribune, archived from the original on March 12, 2017, retrieved March 9, 2017
  198. ^ Webb, Jack (March 10, 2020). "Happy Mario Day 2020 – Everything you need to know". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on April 20, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  199. ^ Burch, Jennifer (March 9, 2018). "Nintendo celebrates Mario Day with panache". Nintendo Wire. Archived from the original on March 14, 2018. Retrieved March 13, 2018.

External links

Retrieved from ""