Mario

Mario (マリオ, Mario^?), also known as Super Mario and originally Jumpman (ジャンプマン, Janpuman^?) in Japan, is a video game character created by Shigeru Miyamoto for Nintendo. He is Nintendo's mascot, and he is almost certainly the best known video game icon in history, appearing in hundreds of games, many of them bestsellers. Mario first appeared in Donkey Kong, while Mario's brother Luigi first appeared in Mario Bros. As of September 2005, the Mario franchise has sold 184 million games, making it by far the best selling franchise in the history of video games.

Mario's full name is believed to be Mario Mario, while his brother's full name is believed to be Luigi Mario, making them literally the "Mario Bros." According to Shigeru Miyamoto, the movie, and the television series, their surname is indeed Mario, but this issue is rarely dealt with in official Nintendo materials.

Mario was named after Mario Segali, the landlord of Nintendo of America's Seattle home in 1981. When a Japanese copy of the new Donkey Kong game arrived, the NOA staff had to translate the story and character names into English. The lead character, known in Japan as "Jumpman" needed an English name. After interrupting a meeting discussing this issue, Segali blasted the president of NOA, Minoru Arakawa, because the firm's rent was overdue. By the time of Donkey Kong Junior's production, Jumpman had officially become Mario.

In the games, the current voice actor for Mario is Charles Martinet. Ronald B. Ruben voiced him in the PC game Mario Teaches Typing. In cartoons, he has been voiced by Walker Boone, Captain Lou Albano, Peter Cullen and Tōru Furuya.

Biography

Despite his lengthy history, Mario is in many ways an undeveloped character with many details of his accepted biography having been created through a complex lore spawned from the imaginations of comic book artists, cartoon writers, and fans.

Officially, Nintendo producers have stated that Mario's biography is kept simple in order to make the character versatile, and reusable in many different games and situations. Mario is one of the most underdeveloped characters in the Mario universe however, with characters such as Bowser and Princess Peach having more complex, consistent, and unique back stories.

In his first appearance in Donkey Kong, all that was stated was that he was a carpenter who had to save Pauline from Donkey Kong. His third appearance in Mario Bros. changed his profession to plumber, which was more fitting with the pipe theme of that game. Here, Mario and his brother Luigi cleaned out the sewers of Brooklyn. This fact, in addition to both the cartoon series and the movie, led many to believe that Brooklyn was Mario's original home. Newer games and manuals, however, state that he grew up in the fictional Mushroom Kingdom. Some have suggested that the brothers were taken to the "Real World" at an early age, while others disagreed this because it contradicts the other games and the Super Mario 64 guide which was written after Yoshi's Island.

Over the course of his many games, Mario has rescued a number of women from captivity (including Pauline, Princess Peach, and Princess Daisy) and has become regarded as a great hero in the Mushroom Kingdom. There is no definitive timeline for the events in the various games, most of which could be placed in nearly any order.

Baby Mario

Baby Mario is the infant version of Mario, although he has appeared alongside his older self in Nintendo sports titles such as Mario Golf, Mario Tennis, Mario Superstar Baseball and Mario Kart: Double Dash!!. However, it is generally accepted that these games are outside the continuity of the main Mario series, and therefore do not suggest that Mario and Baby Mario are separate characters in the main storyline. Like the older Mario, he is voiced by Charles Martinet.

He first appeared in the Super NES game Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island where with the help of the Yoshis he saved his brother Luigi from Kamek the Magikoopa. In Yoshi's Island, Baby Mario has a rather passive role, essentially being carried around by different Yoshis for most of the game. However, in some levels, a power-up resembling a star allows him to transform into Super Baby Mario, giving him very high speed, relative invincibility, and the ability to float for short distances. Other than this, Baby Mario is remembered for his boisterous and annoying sobs, which he did whenever Yoshi ran into an enemy. Here, Baby Mario would float within a bubble while bawling loudly, and the player controlling Yoshi would have between 1-30 seconds to recover Baby Mario and hitch him safely on Yoshi's back. If the time ran out, Mario would be kidnapped by Kamek's Toadies and Yoshi would lose a life.

More recently, Baby Mario appeared in Yoshi Touch & Go and Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time for the Nintendo DS. In Yoshi Touch & Go he reclaims the role he held in Yoshi's Island; Baby Mario falls from the sky, this time held up by balloons, as the player guides him by drawing clouds down to the ground where Yoshi waits to catch him. He then rides on Yoshi's back for the rest of that level of the game. In some game modes, Baby Mario can again find the power-up that turns him into Super Baby Mario, making him temporarily invincible.

Baby Mario also stars in Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time with his brother, his older self, and his brother's older self. His abilities in battle appear to be identical to those of his older self. The game explains the co-existence of the two sets of brothers in this game by saying that Mario and Luigi are sent back in time to a period when they were still babies. The pair of brothers team up in order to save Princess Peach (the grown-up version) from a group of alien invaders known as the Shroobs.

Character development

Mario first appeared in the video game Donkey Kong, despite being developed as a concept character before-hand in the mid-1970s. During this time, Mario was thrown about from comic book to comic book, while his debut was pending. The game, however, was surprisingly successful, and when the Nintendo Entertainment System was released, Mario was given the starring role in the revolutionary Super Mario Bros. game.

Mario's distinctive look is due to technology restrictions in the mid-'80s: with a limited number of pixels and colors, the programmers could not animate Mario's movement without making his arms "disappear" if his shirt was a solid color; they did not have the space to give him a mouth or ears; and they could not animate hair, so Mario got overalls, a moustache, sideburns, and a cap to bypass these problems. Mario's creator Shigeru Miyamoto has also stated when interviewed that Mario wears a cap because he finds it difficult to draw hair.

When Mario was first conceived, he looked, more or less, as he does today: a short, plump man with the trademark hat, brown hair, black mustache and overalls. He normally wears blue overalls on top of a red shirt, but such was not always the case. Originally, he wore red overalls on top of a blue shirt — almost exactly opposite what he wears now. The American Super Mario Bros. 2 was the first appearance of his modern outfit (the box had the red overalls-on-blue shirt, but the game itself had a blue overalls-on-red shirt); however, it was Super Mario Bros. 3 that standardized today's blue overalls-on-red shirt outfit. (Incidentally, the original Super Mario Bros. has neither in-game; Mario wears a brown shirt with red overalls).

Mario's outfit rarely changes, though he's known to change it on occasion if the situation calls for it. For example, in Super Mario Strikers, Mario wears an Association Football (soccer) outfit as opposed to overalls. Also, in some Mario games, Mario can transform into different forms, each with a different costume, such as Tanooki Mario, Fire Mario, Frog Mario, and Hammer Mario. He also flashes different colors when utilizing a star, which gives him temporary invincibility.

Miyamoto created many of the elements in the Mario world from ideas he had seen in other media. One of his most recognizable contributions to his Mario universe is the Super Mushroom, which would enlarge Mario until he got damaged by an enemy. There is also a Poison Mushroom, which is slightly different color in most games, and when Mario eats it (Or whatever he does) it makes him a lot smaller for a short period of time. These ideas was derived from the "Eat me" cakes and "Drink me" potions in the Lewis Carroll story, Alice in Wonderland, after he was forced to shrink the original sketches of Mario because they were too big. [1] The concept behind warp pipes, colored tubes which sometimes transport Mario to another area, was inspired by Star Trek.

The surname "Mario" (which would make his full name Mario Mario) was first used in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show, and then in the 1993 feature film Super Mario Bros. This was meant to explain how both Mario and his brother Luigi could be known as the "Mario brothers".

Mario has taken on the role of mascot of Nintendo and has since been extensively merchandised. Mario's major rival was Sega mascot Sonic the Hedgehog who debuted in the early 1990s; the two mascots competed head-to-head for nearly a decade afterward, until around 2001 when a Sonic game showed up on a Nintendo console due to Sega's new third party status, ending a lengthy rivalry. Fans have wanted the two characters to appear in a game together for so long, the concept has become something of a cliché within the gamer community.

Personality

Mario is generally kind hearted and heroic. In Mario vs. Donkey Kong, it is shown that he tends to speak his native Italian tongue when he's angry. It is generally agreed that Mario is braver than Luigi; Luigi is the more cautious brother. Also, Mario may be the more unintelligent brother, as is shown in some games.

Abilities and techniques

Despite his apparently chubby appearance, Mario's most prominent feature is his athletic jumping ability. At first, that was the extent of it — just jumping — but more abilities were built on top of this. When he runs fast, he jumps higher than normal, which, given the right power-up, is required to fly; in such games, he would stick his arms out at his sides when at maximum speed to signify the proper jumping time. Super Mario Bros. 3 secretly gives little Mario (before a Super Mushroom) the ability to jump off of a wall to attain even more height, notably in the sixth world. Super Mario World added the ability to spin-jump, which allows Mario to break blocks beneath him if he is of sufficient size to do so, without the requirement for another power-up or a Koopa Shell. Later, Super Mario 64 added the ability to jump higher with consecutive jumps, as well as a long jump, a back-flip, and a ground pound. It also made jumping off of walls much simpler to accomplish. Super Mario Sunshine then re-introduced the spin jump, which makes Mario fall slower than a normal jump (though he jumps no higher).

When Mario obtains a Super Mushroom, he becomes Super Mario. In this form Mario has the ability to break bricks with his fist, at the cost of possibly being unable to maneuver in small gaps. If an enemy hits him, he turns back into normal Mario again. This is one of the most common power ups in the series; although the 3D games have not used them (the remake of Super Mario 64, Super Mario 64 DS, adds this powerup).

Mario's second-most popular move is a move that most video game characters have- the punch. This is generally a move that Mario has in adventure games with no set battle system and is his weakest move. If Mario punches twice, the third blow will be a kick.

Originally, there were few powerups for Mario to collect. The first game to feature a powerup was Donkey Kong arcade game. It has a hammer in most levels that can be used to hit barrels. The later Super Mario Bros. includes the Super Mushroom, the Fire Flower and the Starman. The Fire Flower either transforms regular Mario (doubling his size), or changes Super Mario into Fire Mario. It gives him the ability to throw fireballs from his hands, and in later games, he is able to throw fireballs in a circle when he spins.

In Super Mario Land, instead of fireballs, Mario throws superballs, which bounce off walls. Like the Super Mushroom, it has since disappeared from the newer games. In most games, Mario in a special form will be transformed into Super Mario instead of shrinking to regular Mario when hit.

The Starman gives Mario invincibility for ten seconds, also allowing Mario to defeat enemies just by touching them. It has not disappeared from the games entirely, in Super Mario 64 and Super Mario 64 DS, Mario (with help from Yoshi, Luigi and Wario in SM64DS) has to collect enough power stars to free the princess.

Super Mario Bros. 2 (the Japanese version) did not introduce new powerups, other than the Poison Mushroom (which is the opposite of the Super Mushroom, shrinking or killing Mario), making this the first game to add on to the list of powerups. (Or in this case, power-downs).

Super Mario Bros. 3 introduced several new powerups. It features the classic Super Mushroom, Fire Flower and Starman, and introduces several others, such as the Super Leaf, which gives Mario the ability to fly, and swing a raccoon tail. Other popular powerups are the Tanooki Suit, the Hammer Bros. Suit and the Frog Suit. Super Mario Bros. 3 also featured the rare Kuribo's Shoe, which only appears in one level. Later the Kuribo's Shoe is replaced with the Goomba's shoe in Super Mario Advance 4, which Peach mentions in one of her letters.

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins features the Fire Flower and introduced the Power Carrot, which causes bunny ears to appear on Mario's cap. When Mario flaps these ears, he is able to descend after a jump much slower than normal, and float over long distances.

Super Mario 64 eliminated the original powerups altogether. Mario has three different powerups to choose from; the Wing Cap, the Vanish Cap and the Metal Cap. The Wing Cap allows Mario to fly, the Vanish Cap allows him to go through certain walls, and the Metal Cap makes him sink in water. Additionally, this game also lets Mario ride on the shells of defeated Koopa Troopas, allowing him to quickly traverse large levels and defeat minor enemies. Super Mario 64 DS made some changes, making it so that only Mario can use the Wing Cap. Luigi gained the exclusive ability to use the Vanish Cap, and Wario gained the exclusive ability to use the Metal Cap. Additionally, two new power-ups were introduced for the DS remake; the Balloon powerup (from Super Mario World), which can only be used by Mario, and a flame, which, if eaten by Yoshi, can be spit onto certain things.

Mario also has the ability to kick shells around to knock over enemies and break bricks. In Super Mario Bros. 2, he had to pick various objects from the ground and toss them at his enemies to defeat them, ranging from vegetables to his enemies themselves. Keys were also present for opening locked doors, but were also handy as a weapon or platform. Super Mario Bros. 3 implemented this act of picking things up, but instead of being on top of them to pick them up, Mario must come at them from the side with the pick-up button held, and release the pick-up button to kick it. Super Mario World extended this ability to include vertical kicking, as well as keys that could be picked up and put into keyholes to open secret levels.

Super Mario World also features Mario's ally, Yoshi, quite prominently. When riding a Yoshi, Mario can clear spiky terrain and stomp foes that he otherwise cannot. Also, Yoshi can eat almost any foe; if he eats a Koopa Shell, he can spit it back out, or swallow it for a possible special power. (In the Game Boy Advance re-release, Luigi, when controlling Yoshi, has the option of spitting out any opponent that would otherwise be eaten). Blue shells make Yoshi fly for a short period of time, red shells make Yoshi spit fireballs, yellow shells make Yoshi conjure dust when he touches the ground from jumping, wiping out any close enemies, and a flashing shell allows for all of these abilities at once. Yoshi usually comes only in the color green, but in Star Road he can be found in blue, red, and yellow, which, when fully-grown, will have the corresponding special shell effect as a default when any shell is eaten. In some other cases, the food he consumes can turn into eggs which provide various powerups for Mario. Yoshi's basic abilities were expanded upon for Yoshi's Island. Super Mario World introduced two items that have never appeared since: a smiling crescent moon that gives Mario three extra lives, and the magic feather, an item that gives Mario a cape and allows him to fly. (The Feather was used as an item in the original Super Mario Kart, allowing a character to perform a large jump)

Mario wears the FLUDD in Super Mario Sunshine, which extends his jumping abilities further. Given enough water and the right nozzle, Mario can hover across large gaps (while going upward very slightly), propel himself upward with great force, or propel himself forward at phenomenal speeds. The game in question is centered heavily around this added jumping maneuverability, though it takes away the FLUDD for a few jumping-only segments. Also, Yoshi appears in SMS, as an egg. Mario has to find and carry the fruit that Yoshi wants to the egg, hatching it. When ridden, Yoshi has jumping abilities, the ability to eat all fruit and all enemies, and spray special juice, which turns enemies into platforms for a limited period. But, Yoshi has to eat fruit now and again, because if his juice tank empties, he will disappear. Also, if Yoshi goes into water that is deep enough for swimming, he will drown. Depending on what fruit he is fed, Yoshi can be pink, purple or orange.

In Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, as opposed to power-ups, Mario has "curses" placed on him by demons in black chests. These curses are actually helpful, giving him new abilities. The first curse gives the ability to turn into a paper airplane at certain points, allowing Mario to fly through the air. The second curse gives the ability to turn sideways, allowing Mario to go through small passageways. The third gives the ability to roll up into a paper tube in order to get under some obstacles, and with the final ability, Mario can turn into a paper boat at certain points, allowing him to traverse waters.

The prequel to this game, Paper Mario, gives Mario a new, wooden hammer that Mario can use to smash on enemies' heads.

In "Super Smash Bros. Melee", Mario gained a new ability, though not closely related to the original games. The cape, with the ability to deflect attacks, and the ability to use fire as a close ranged weapon. And, the tornado move, closely related to the spin he does in some earlier games. He also has an attack called the Super Jump Punch. This attack makes coins appear in midair when it connects, and it hits multiple times. It also is useful in order to get back onto the edge of the arena.

Finally, in Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga, Mario could use Fireballs once again, but kept them in the palm of his hand and simply touched enemies briefly with them. Mario also earned the ability to combine his powers with Luigi's. One move allowed him to jump on Luigi's head. Then Luigi would perform a spin jump, carrying his brother into the air. The duo would turn upside down and smash an enemy with their heads. Knockback Bros. let Luigi smash Mario with his hammer and then use him as a projectile by hitting him with his hammer once again.

The Super Mario games

Mario's first appearance was a prominent role in 1981's Donkey Kong. The game was so successful that he was given a starring role in the first game for Nintendo's Nintendo Entertainment System. Super Mario Bros. sold over 40 million copies (pack-in copies included) and overall, Mario games have sold over approximately 152 million copies worldwide, with Super Mario Bros. 3 holding the record for most copies of a non pack-in video game sold, with over seventeen million copies sold.

The Mario series has created or made popular many features seen in modern games, including multiple endings, minibosses, warp zones, etc. Many platformer games such as the Pac-Man World series also use the "jump on platforms and enemies" method for play created by Nintendo.

Super Mario 64 was one of the first games to feature an established 2D video game character in a 3D environment in 1996. (Mario's main rival, Sonic, had some cameos in Daytona USA and BUG! prior to Super Mario 64, but it would be a long time until his first truly-3D game). The premise was to collect the 120 Power Stars in fifteen worlds to free Princess Peach from Bowser. Since then, all console-based Mario games have been in 3D(Aside from the Paper Mario games, which are 2D).

In leaping from two to three dimensions, Super Mario 64 replaced the linear obstacle courses of traditional platform games with vast worlds set up with multiple and diverse missions, with an emphasis on exploration. While doing so, it managed nonetheless to preserve the feel of earlier Mario games, including many of their gameplay elements and characters. It is widely acclaimed by critics and players alike as one of the greatest games of all time.

Mario games have also been released in genres besides platform games. Mario starred in many educational games by Interplay in the mid-1990s (such as Mario is Missing!, which was Luigi's first starring role in a Mario-themed game), RPGs (Super Mario RPG, Paper Mario), sports games (Mario Golf, Mario Tennis, Super Mario Strikers, Mario Superstar Baseball), racing games (Mario Kart), puzzle games (Dr. Mario), party games (Mario Party series), Dance Dance Revolution Mario Mix and over 100 other games.

Special cameo appearances

Mario has appeared on his own television show, comic books, and in a feature film where he was played by Bob Hoskins. He has also appeared on lunchboxes, t-shirts, in candy form, and as a plush toy. There was even a book series, the Nintendo Adventure Books. In addition, a monthly comic based on Super Mario World was included as one of Nintendo Power magazine's first regular comic series.

In the earlier days of the NES and Game Boy, Mario did several cameos, usually in the early sports-titles on both systems. Often he was depicted as the referee, such as in Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! or Tennis, but was also the playable character in both versions of Nintendo's early Golf-title. However some of his other cameos were more bizarre, such as the one in the Breakout-clone Alleyway which featured Mario on the game's box-art and also at the beginning of each stage where Mario jumps "in to" the paddle. He was also featured on the Game Over screen for the Game Boy version of Qix dressed in Mexican clothes, playing a guitar in the desert next to a cactus with a vulture perched on it.

Mario made brief appearances in three games from Nintendo's other popular franchise, the Legend of Zelda series. In A Link to the Past, his picture hangs on the wall of a house in Kakariko Village. In Ocarina of Time, a picture of him (Along with Luigi, Princess Peach, Yoshi and Bowser) is visible through a window in the castle courtyard where Link meets Zelda. In Majora's Mask, one of the masks on the Happy Mask Salesman's pack depicted Mario's face.

In 1999, Mario was included in the cast for Nintendo's popular fighting game, Super Smash Bros., for the Nintendo 64. He returned with the cast from the original in the 2001 GameCube sequel, Super Smash Bros. Melee. He is considered a well-balanced character and is easy for most players to use. His brother Luigi appears in both games as a secret character.

In Metal Gear Solid: Twin Snakes, he has also appeared on Otacon's desk next to a Yoshi figurine. When you shoot the Mario figure, you regain HP.

In the GameCube version of NBA Street V3, Mario makes a cameo alongside Luigi and Peach as their own playable basketball team, along with their own exclusive Nintendo themed court. SSX On Tour also features the three and an exclusive Nintendo themed track.

Mario's popularity has been parodied and/or referenced in many television shows other than his own. For example, he appears in two episodes of The Simpsons: in "Marge Be Not Proud", he tries to convince Bart to steal a video game; and in "Homer and Ned's Hail Mary Pass", Mario is an Italian tourist that when visiting Homer (famous after an embarrasing video on the internet) gets trash cans thrown at him - just like Donkey Kong. He is also parodied in the Futurama episode "Anthology of Interest II", when Fry asks the What-If Machine what would life be like as a video game. In the sequence that follows, Mario is the Italian ambassador at the United Nations.

Though he has a voice, Mario has been Nintendo's silent protagonist in the role-playing games. He also speaks no dialogue in Mario Superstar Baseball.

Mario is the official video game mascot for Nintendo, and is almost synonymous with the Nintendo brand. Because of this, Mario only appears in Nintendo games on Nintendo systems.

Appearances on non-Nintendo platforms

Even though Nintendo holds the copyright to Mario in many nations, and they have almost invariably retained these rights for their own use to achieve competitive advantage, there are a few small exceptions. Mario appeared in several educational PC titles in the United States and in some very early games for non-Nintendo systems such as the Atari 2600 and the Philips CD-i. Philips made several games, such as Hotel Mario, featuring Nintendo characters for their Philips CD-i which was the result of a compromise with Nintendo over failing to release a joint CD-ROM product.

There are many PC Mario games distributed over the Internet. These have been produced by fans of the Mario series, not by Nintendo. They vary from clones of the original games to more novel games that merely incorporate the Mario characters. These games, which include Mario Forever and Super Mario: Blue Twilight DX [2], are available to download for free. Similarly, fans have produced and distributed simple games incorporating Mario on graphing calculators such as the TI-83. There have also been a number of fanmade games using the Super Mario World engine. [3]

References

• Super Mario Wiki
• Super Mario Bros. at GameFAQs