Mario (franchise) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Mario (series)

The video game series, alternatively called the series or simply the series, is a series of highly popular and critically acclaimed video games by Nintendo, featuring Nintendo's mascot Mario and, in many games, his brother Luigi. Gameplay in the series often centers around jumping on and...

video game franchise consists of platform games and other genres (including role-playing games and party games) published and produced by Nintendo

Nintendo

is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....

. The games have been developed by a variety of developers including Nintendo, Hudson Soft

Hudson Soft

, formally known as , is a majority-owned subsidiary of Konami Corporation is a Japanese electronic entertainment publisher headquartered in the Midtown Tower in Tokyo Midtown, Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, with an additional office in the Hudson Building in Sapporo. It was founded on May 18, 1973...

, and AlphaDream

AlphaDream

is a Japanese video game development company founded in 2000 by Tetsuo Mizuno in: Tokyo, Japan. It was formerly known as Alpha Star. In partnership with Nintendo, it has produced software for the Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, and Nintendo DS...

. Most Mario games have either been released for the arcade

Video arcade

An amusement arcade or video arcade is a venue where people play arcade games such as video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, merchandisers , or coin-operated billiards or air hockey tables...

or Nintendo video game consoles and handhelds dating from the Nintendo Entertainment System

Nintendo Entertainment System

The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...

to the current generation of video game consoles

History of video game consoles (seventh generation)

In the history of video games, the seventh generation of consoles is the current generation , and includes consoles released since late by Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony...

.

The main series in the franchise is the Super Mario platform

Platform game

A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...

series, which follow Mario's adventures in the fictional world of the Mushroom Kingdom. They typically rely on Mario's jumping ability to allow him to progress through levels. Mario

Mario

is a fictional character in his video game series, created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Serving as Nintendo's mascot and the main protagonist of the series, Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation...

has been featured in 200 games of various genres, and the Mario franchise is the best-selling video game franchise of all time with over 250 million games sold worldwide. The franchise was originally conceived by Shigeru Miyamoto

Shigeru Miyamoto

is a Japanese video game designer and producer. Miyamoto was born and raised in Kyoto Prefecture; the natural surroundings of Kyoto inspired much of Miyamoto's later work....

as a replacement for the failed Radarscope arcade game. For a full list of video games featuring Mario, see List of Mario video games.

Donkey Kong

After the commercial failure of Radar Scope

Radar Scope

is an early cabinet arcade game developed and published by Nintendo in November 1980. Some sources claim that Ikegami Tsushinki also did design work on Radar Scope. It is a shooter that can be viewed as a cross between Taito's Space Invaders and Namco's Galaxian...

, Nintendo's company president referred to Shigeru Miyamoto

Shigeru Miyamoto

is a Japanese video game designer and producer. Miyamoto was born and raised in Kyoto Prefecture; the natural surroundings of Kyoto inspired much of Miyamoto's later work....

to create an arcade game to save the company. Miyamoto came up with the idea of a game in which the playable character has to make his way through an obstacle course consisting of sloped platforms, ladders and rolling barrels. Miyamoto named the game Donkey Kong

Donkey Kong (video game)

is an arcade game released by Nintendo in 1981. It is an early example of the platform game genre, as the gameplay focuses on maneuvering the main character across a series of platforms while dodging and jumping over obstacles. In the game, Jumpman must rescue a damsel in distress, Lady, from a...

, and its main protagonist "Jumpman". Donkey Kong is an early example of the platform

Platform game

genre. In addition to presenting the goal of saving the Lady, the game also gives the player a score

Score (gaming)

In games, score refers to an abstract quantity associated with a player or team. Score is usually measured in the abstract unit of points, and events in the game can raise or lower the score of different parties...

. Points are awarded for finishing screens; leaping over obstacles; destroying objects with a hammer power-up

Power-up

In computer and video games, power-ups are objects that instantly benefit or add extra abilities to the game character as a game mechanic. This is in contrast to an item, which may or may not have a benefit and can be used at a time chosen by the player...

; collecting items such as hats, parasols, and purses (presumably belonging to the Lady/Pauline); and completing other tasks. The game was surprisingly successful. "Jumpman" was called "Mario" in certain promotional materials for the game's release overseas; his namesake was Mario Segale

Mario Segale

Mario A. Segale is an American businessman and real estate developer. He has been involved in various development projects in the Seattle area since the 1950s. He is widely known in popular culture as the source of the name of Nintendo's Mario character....

, the landlord of Nintendo of America's office/warehouse, who barged in on a meeting to demand an overdue rent payment. Eventually Jumpman's name was internationally and permanently changed to Mario. The success of the game spawned several ports, and a sequel, Donkey Kong Jr., which is Mario's only appearance as an antagonist. Donkey Kong 3

Donkey Kong 3

is the third video game in the original Donkey Kong series by Nintendo. Released near simultaneously for the Family Computer and arcade, and later released in America on the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1986. The game was re-released on the Wii Virtual Console in North America on July 14, 2008...

did not feature Mario. Donkey Kong has established his own unique franchise outside the Mario universe, starting with Donkey Kong Country

Donkey Kong Country

Donkey Kong Country is a side-scrolling platformer video game developed by Rare, featuring the character Donkey Kong. It was released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1994. Following an intense marketing campaign, the original SNES version sold over 8 million copies worldwide, making...

and has spawned many sequels and spin-offs (such as Diddy Kong Racing

Diddy Kong Racing

Diddy Kong Racing is a 1997 racing game for the Nintendo 64 developed by Rareware. 800,000 copies were ordered in the two weeks before Christmas 1997, making it the fastest selling video game at the time, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. It is the first game to spin off from the...

Mario Bros.

A later arcade game, Mario Bros.

Mario Bros.

is an arcade game published and developed by Nintendo in 1983. It was developed by Shigeru Miyamoto. It has been commonly featured as a minigame in the Super Mario Advance series and other games...

, introduced Mario's brother, Luigi

Luigi

is a fictional character, featured in video games and related media released by Nintendo. Created by prominent game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, Luigi is portrayed as the slightly younger fraternal twin brother of Nintendo's mascot Mario, and appears in many games throughout the Mario series,...

. The objective of Mario Bros. is to defeat all of the enemies in each phase. The mechanics of Mario Bros. involve only running and jumping. Unlike future Mario titles, players cannot jump on enemies while they are invulnerable to attack. Each phase is a series of platforms with four pipes at each corner of the screen, and an object called a "POW" block in the center. Both sides of every phase feature a mechanism that allows the player to go off-screen to the left and appear on the right, and vice versa. The game has since reappeared in various forms, including as a minigame in Super Mario Bros. 3

Super Mario Bros. 3

, also referred to as Super Mario 3 and SMB3, is a platform video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System , and is the third game in the Super Mario series. The game was released in Japan in 1988, in the United States in 1990, and in Europe in 1991...

and the Super Mario Advance

Super Mario Advance

Super Mario Advance is a series of four platform games released for the Game Boy Advance. The games were enhanced remakes of Super Mario Bros. 2, Super Mario World, Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island and Super Mario Bros. 3 respectively...

series, and reimagined as Mario Clash

Mario Clash

is a game produced by Nintendo in 1995 for the Virtual Boy. It is the first stereoscopic 3D Mario game. It is heavily based on the original Mario Bros.. Mario Clash did not use polygons like Super Mario 64 did. Instead, it uses 2D sprites....

Mario Kart

The Mario Kart

Mario Kart

is a series of go-kart-style racing video games developed by Nintendo as a series of spin-offs from its trademark Mario series of platformer adventure-style video games...

franchise began in 1992 with Super Mario Kart

Super Mario Kart

is a go-kart racing video game developed by Nintendo EAD for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System . The first game of the Mario Kart series, it was launched in Japan on August 27, 1992, in North America on September 1, 1992, and in Europe on January 21, 1993. Selling eight million copies...

for the SNES

Super Nintendo Entertainment System

The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...

, and is currently the most successful and longest-running kart-racing franchise, having sold over 50 million copies worldwide.

Mario Party

In 1999, the Hudson game Mario Party

Mario Party

is a party video game for the Nintendo 64 game console, developed by Hudson Soft and published by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on December 14, 1998, in North America on February 8, 1999, and in Europe on March 9, 1999...

was released for the Nintendo 64. Seven numbered sequels have since been released, along with Mario Party Advance

Mario Party Advance

Mario Party Advance had generally mixed reviews. While the game contains a large number of minigames and unlockables, reviewers decried the game's tendency to punish players based on random chance, rebuked the game for lack of innovation in the minigames, and expressed concerns about the game's...

and Mario Party DS

Mario Party DS

is a party video game for the Nintendo DS. It is a title in the Mario Party series, and was released in Japan on November 8, 2007; 11 days later, it was released in North America on November 19, 2007; in Europe on November 23, 2007, in Australia on December 6, 2007, and in South Korea on May 22, 2008...

. Mario Party is a (multiplayer) party game featuring Mario series characters in which four human- or computer-controlled characters compete in a board game interspersed with minigame

Minigame

A minigame is a short video game often contained within another video game. A minigame is always smaller or more simplistic than the game in which it is contained. Minigames are sometimes also offered separately for free to promote the main game...

Dr. Mario

After the Game & Watch

Game & Watch

is a line of handheld electronic games produced by Nintendo from to . Created by game designer Gunpei Yokoi, each Game & Watch features a single game to be played on an LCD screen in addition to a clock and an alarm ....

game Mario Bombs Away, the first Mario non-platform game, Dr. Mario

Dr. Mario (video game)

is an action puzzle game designed by Gunpei Yokoi and produced by Takahiro Harada. It was developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System and Game Boy consoles and released in 1990 and 1991....

, was released in 1990. Dr. Mario is a Tetris

Tetris

Tetris is a puzzle video game originally designed and programmed by Alexey Pajitnov in the Soviet Union. It was released on June 6, 1984, while he was working for the Dorodnicyn Computing Centre of the Academy of Science of the USSR in Moscow, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic...

-like game, featuring a grid that starts out partially filled with viruses of three colors that Dr. Mario must destroy with falling pills. Dr. Mario has been re-released/remade for nearly all Nintendo game consoles.

Dr. Mario (video game)
Dr. Mario (video game)
is an action puzzle game designed by Gunpei Yokoi and produced by Takahiro Harada. It was developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System and Game Boy consoles and released in 1990 and 1991....
Dr. Mario 64
Dr. Mario 64
Dr. Mario 64 is a puzzle game based on the original Dr. Mario. It was developed and published by Nintendo, released for the Nintendo 64 in 2001, and is an enhanced remake of the original Dr. Mario, which was released for the NES and Game Boy in 1990.Originally, it was released only in North America...
Dr. Mario Express
Dr. Mario Express
Dr. Mario Express, known in Japan and PAL regions as , is a puzzle video game developed by Arika and published by Nintendo exclusively for DSiWare on the Nintendo DSi platform. The game was first released as a launch title for the DSiWare service in Japan on December 24, 2008, and was released in...
Dr. Mario Online Rx
Dr. Mario Online Rx
Dr. Mario Online Rx, released as in Japan and as Dr. Mario & Germ Buster in Europe and Australia, is a puzzle video game starring Dr. Mario. It was one of the WiiWare launch games in Japan, Europe, and Australia, and was released on March 25, 2008 and May 20, 2008 . It was released in North...

Mario's Picross

This series is a collection of nonogram logic puzzles involving a grid with numbers for every row and column, which refer to the amount of marked squares within the grid. The games features Mario as an archaeologist who chisels away to form images on the grid.

Mario's Picross
Mario's Picross
is the first in a series of Mario themed Picross titles released in the 1990s. It is a collection of nonogram logic puzzles involving a grid with numbers for every row and column, which refer to the amount of marked squares within the grid. The game features Mario as an archaeologist who chisels...
Picross 2
Mario's Super Picross
Mario's Super Picross
is a Super Famicom sequel to Mario's Picross. It is erroneously named as Mario's Picross 2, which is actually the name of the Game Boy sequel to Mario's Picross. The game is compatible with the Super Famicom Mouse....

Mario vs. Donkey Kong

Sports Games

Throughout its life, Nintendo

Nintendo

has released many titles in various Mario sports series.

Mario Golf

Mario Tennis

Mario Strikers

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games

In 2008, Mario and his friends appeared alongside characters from the Sonic the Hedgehog series in the sports game, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, known in Japan as , is a sports video game developed by the Sega Sports R&D Department of Sega Japan. It was published by Nintendo for Japan and by Sega for North America, Europe and all other regions. The game is officially licensed by the International Olympic...

, developed by Sega

Sega

, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...

. A follow-up, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games

is a 2009 sports video game developed by Sega. It was published by Nintendo for Japan and by Sega for North America and Europe. The game is officially licensed by the International Olympic Committee through exclusive license International Sports Multimedia...

was released in 2009, and Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games

Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games

is a 2011 sports video game developed by Sega Japan. It was published by Nintendo for Japan and by Sega for North America, Europe, and all other regions. The game is officially licensed by the International Olympic Committee through exclusive licensee International Sports Multimedia...

was released between November 2011 and February 2012.

Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars

Paper Mario

The Paper Mario series began when Paper Mario

Paper Mario

Paper Mario, known in Japan as , is a role-playing video game developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64 game console. It was first released in Japan on August 11, 2000, in North America on February 5, 2001, and in Europe and Australia on October 5, 2001...

was released for the Nintendo 64 in 2000.

Paper Mario
Paper Mario
Paper Mario, known in Japan as , is a role-playing video game developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64 game console. It was first released in Japan on August 11, 2000, in North America on February 5, 2001, and in Europe and Australia on October 5, 2001...
Super Paper Mario
Super Paper Mario
is a platform style console role-playing game developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo. Originally developed for the Nintendo GameCube, it was released for the Wii in 2007. The style of gameplay is a combination of the previous Paper Mario titles and Super Mario Bros. titles...
Paper Mario 3DS
Paper Mario (Nintendo 3DS)
Paper Mario (Nintendo 3DS)
is an upcoming role-playing video game in development for the Nintendo 3DS, and is the fourth installment of the Paper Mario series as well as the first game in the series to be on a handheld console...

Mario and Luigi

The Mario & Luigi series began with the release of Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, known in Japan as , is a role-playing game developed by AlphaDream and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance in 2003...

for the Game Boy Advance in 2003.

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, known in Japan as , is a role-playing game developed by AlphaDream and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance in 2003...
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, known in Japan as , is a role-playing game developed by AlphaDream and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS handheld game console in 2005. It is the second game in the Mario and Luigi RPG series, and is the sequel to Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga for the Game...
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story

LCD games

Nintendo

has released several Mario and Donkey Kong LCD video games for the Game & Watch

Game & Watch

console. Eleven were released between 1982 and 1994. Nintendo also licensed the release of six LCD games for Nelsonic's Game Watch line between 1989 and 1994.

Educational games

In the early 1990s, many educational game

Educational game

Educational games are games that have been designed to teach people about a certain subject, expand concepts, reinforce development, understand an historical event or culture, or assist them in learning a skill as they play...

s were released in the Mario series. Few of these games were platformers; most sought to teach skills such as typing, mathematics or history. They are not officially recognized by Nintendo, despite being officially licensed. The games were developed independently by Software Toolworks, Interplay and Brainstorm. Nine educational games were released from 1991 to 1996.

Recurring Characters

Several characters from the Mario series have gone on to spawn their own franchises including Luigi, Wario, and Yoshi among others.

Luigi

Luigi's Mansion

Luigi had the lead role in Luigi's Mansion

Luigi's Mansion

Luigi's Mansion, known as in Japan, is an action-adventure game published by Nintendo for the Nintendo GameCube. It was released in Japan on September 14, 2001, in North America on November 18, 2001, and in Europe on May 3, 2002. The game was a launch title for the GameCube...

, an action-adventure game in which Luigi searches for Mario in a haunted mansion. A sequel, Luigi's Mansion 2

Luigi's Mansion 2

Luigi's Mansion 2, known as in Japan, is an upcoming video game currently being developed by Next Level Games for the Nintendo 3DS, and is the sequel to the 2001 game Luigi's Mansion...

, was announced for the Nintendo 3DS

Nintendo 3DS

The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo. The autostereoscopic device is able to project stereoscopic 3D effects without the use of 3D glasses or any additional accessories. The Nintendo 3DS features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS series software, including Nintendo DSi software...

handheld system on June 7, 2011 at E3.

Peach

Super Princess Peach

In 2006, Princess Peach

Princess Peach

is a character in Nintendo's Mario series of video games. She is the Princess of the fictitious Mushroom Kingdom, and often plays the damsel in distress role within the adventure series. In 2007, Princess Peach landed on Forbes magazine's Wealthiest Fictional People list, with a fortune upwards of...

starred in her first solo game in which Peach must save Mario, Luigi, and several Toads. Super Princess Peach

Super Princess Peach

is a platform video game published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS handheld game console. It was released in Japan in October 2005, the United States in February 2006, Australia in March 2006, and Europe in May 2006....

was released for the Nintendo DS

Nintendo DS

The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...

and introduced the new character Perry featured later in Nintendo's Super Smash Bros.

Super Smash Bros.

Super Smash Bros., known in Japan as , is a fighting game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It was released in Japan on January 21, 1999, in North America on April 26, 1999, and in Europe on November 19, 1999. Super Smash Bros. is the first game in the Super...

series.

Wario

WarioWare

Wario Land

Yoshi

Yoshi's debut was in Super Mario World

Super Mario World

, subtitled Super Mario Bros. 4 for its original Japanese release, is a platform video game developed and published by Nintendo as a pack-in launch title for the Super Famicom/Super Nintendo Entertainment System , and is the fourth game in the Super Mario series...

(1991) on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System

Super Nintendo Entertainment System

as Mario

Mario

and Luigi

Luigi

's sidekick (a role he has often reprised), and he later established his own series with several platform

Platform game

and puzzle

Computer puzzle game

Puzzle video games are a genre of video games that emphasize puzzle solving. The types of puzzles to be solved can test many problem solving skills including logic, strategy, pattern recognition, sequence solving, and word completion....

games, including Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island

Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island

Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, originally released as in Japan, is a platform video game developed and published by Nintendo for the SNES console. Despite its title, this game serves as a prequel to all other games within the established Mario Bros timeline...

. He has also appeared in many of the spin-off Mario games

Mario (series)

including the Mario Party, the Mario Kart

Mario Kart

is a series of go-kart-style racing video games developed by Nintendo as a series of spin-offs from its trademark Mario series of platformer adventure-style video games...

, and the Super Smash Bros. series, as well as in other various Mario sports titles. Yoshi also appears in New Super Mario Bros. Wii

New Super Mario Bros. Wii

is a 2009 side-scrolling platform video game published and developed by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. The game was released on November 12, 2009 in Australia, November 15, 2009 in North America, November 20, 2009 in Europe and December 3, 2009 in Japan...

(2009) as the characters' companion and steed, similar to his original debut role in Super Mario World.

Separate from Nintendo consoles

This is a section of games developed by other companies without Nintendo involvement. These games are not officially recognized by Nintendo despite being officially licensed.

Hudson

Hudson Soft

released two games based on Mario Bros.

Mario Bros.

is an arcade game published and developed by Nintendo in 1983. It was developed by Shigeru Miyamoto. It has been commonly featured as a minigame in the Super Mario Advance series and other games...

and another similar to Super Mario Bros.

Super Mario Bros.

is a 1985 platform video game developed by Nintendo, published for the Nintendo Entertainment System as a sequel to the 1983 game Mario Bros. In Super Mario Bros., the player controls Mario as he travels through the Mushroom Kingdom in order to rescue Princess Toadstool from the antagonist...

Mario Bros. Special is a video game released in 1984 for the Japanese computers NEC PC-6001

NEC PC-6001

The NEC PC-6001 was the first of the NEC Corporation personal computer line. There were several versions of the PC-6001, including the PC-6001 MK2, the PC-6001 MK2 SR, and the PC-6801. There was also an American version, called the NEC TREK, or NEC PC-6001A...

mkII, NEC PC-6601

NEC PC-6601

The NEC PC-6601 was a personal computer created by the NEC Corporation in 1985. It was essentially a PC-6001 MK2 with a built-in 3.5" floppy disk drive.- References :*...

, NEC PC-8801

NEC PC-8801

The NEC PC-8801 was an early Zilog Z80-based computer exclusively released in Japan, where it became very popular, by NEC Corporation in 1981. It was informally called the "PC-88"....

, FM-7

FM-7

FM-7 is a home computer released in 1982 in Japan.The Fujitsu FM-7 was Fujitsu's first entry into the Japanese home computer market, and for their debut computer, they chose to come out with a 6809-based personal computer very similar to Radio Shack's Color Computer.-Hardware:*Two MC 68B09 CPUs @...

and Sharp X1

Sharp X1

The X1 is a series of home computer released by Sharp Corporation from 1982 to 1988. It was based on a Z80 CPU.Despite the fact that the Computer Division of Sharp Corporation had released the MZ series, suddenly the Television Division released a new computer series called the X1...

. It is a remake of the original Mario Bros.

Mario Bros.

is an arcade game published and developed by Nintendo in 1983. It was developed by Shigeru Miyamoto. It has been commonly featured as a minigame in the Super Mario Advance series and other games...

, with new stages, mechanics and gameplay.

Punch Ball Mario Bros. is a video game released in 1984 for the Japanese computers NEC PC-6001mkII, NEC PC-6601, NEC PC-8801, FM-7 and Sharp X1. It is similar to the original Mario Bros., but featured a new gameplay mechanic of "punch balls", small balls which Mario

Mario

and Luigi

Luigi

can kick into enemies to stun them, instead of hitting them from below, as in the original.

Super Mario Bros. Special is a video game released by Hudson Soft in spring 1986 for the Japanese NEC PC-8801.

Currently, Hudson has been responsible for developing the Mario Party series.

Philips

Two games were planned for development by Philips Interactive Media for use on its CD-i

CD-i

CD-i, or Compact Disc Interactive, is the name of an interactive multimedia CD player developed and marketed by Royal Philips Electronics N.V. CD-i also refers to the multimedia Compact Disc standard used by the CD-i console, also known as Green Book, which was developed by Philips and Sony...

machine: Super Mario's Wacky Worlds

Super Mario's Wacky Worlds

Super Mario's Wacky Worlds is a cancelled video game planned for the Philips CD-i, and was in development by NovaLogic.-Gameplay:The game attempted to duplicate the gameplay of Super Mario World for the SNES...

and Hotel Mario

Hotel Mario

Hotel Mario is a puzzle game developed by Fantasy Factory and published by Philips Interactive Media and Nintendo for the CD-i in 1994. The primary character of the game is Mario, who must find Princess Toadstool by going through seven Koopa hotels in the Mushroom Kingdom. Every hotel is divided...

. Only Hotel Mario was released; Super Mario's Wacky Worlds was eventually cancelled. Philips was given permission to use Nintendo

Nintendo

characters in CD-i games due to their taking part in developing an unreleased add-on

Video game accessory

A video game accessory is a distinct piece of hardware that is required to use a video game console, or one that enriches the video game's play experience. Essentially, video game accessories are everything except the console itself, such as controllers, memory, power adapters , and audio/visual...

for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System

Super Nintendo Entertainment System

(SNES). Hotel Mario did not gain much success, with Nintendo rarely acknowledging it as part of the Mario series.

Super Mario's Wacky Worlds

Super Mario's Wacky Worlds

is a cancelled video game planned for the CD-i

CD-i

, developed by NovaLogic

NovaLogic

NovaLogic is a software developer and publisher established in 1985 and based in Calabasas, California. The company was founded by current CEO John A. Garcia....

, which attempted to duplicate the gameplay of Super Mario World

Super Mario World

. Though the game sprites

Sprite (computer graphics)

In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...

are based on those in Super Mario World, the level design is based on Earth locations rather than Dinosaur Land. Due to the limitations of the CD-i, several features could not be included in the game, such as large numbers of sprites on the screen, Mode 7

Mode 7

Mode 7 is a graphics mode on the Super NES video game console that allows a background layer to be rotated and scaled on a scanline-by-scanline basis to create many different effects. The most famous of these effects this can create is the application of a perspective effect on a background layer...

and many visual effects. The nature of the pointing device controller also provides difficult controls for Mario, as the game has the default controls of running and jumping.

Hotel Mario

Hotel Mario

is a puzzle game developed by Fantasy Factory and published by Philips Interactive Media for the CD-i in 1994. The primary characters of the game are Mario

Mario

and Luigi

Luigi

, who must find Princess Peach

Princess Peach

by going through seven Koopa Hotels in the Mushroom Kingdom. Every hotel is divided into multiple stages, and the objective is to close all doors on each stage. The game has been criticised as one the worst Mario-centred games, mainly because of its cut scenes and simple gameplay.

In other media

The Mario franchise includes many comics, manga and TV series based on the games. Most were released in the late 1980s to early 1990s, and have since become obscure. Mario, Luigi and Peach have made cameo appearances in two sports games, one being NBA Street Vol. 3. The series also launched two films, the anime

Anime

is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

Super Mario Bros.: Peach-Hime Kyushutsu Dai Sakusen

Super Mario Bros.: Peach-hime Kyushutsu Dai Sakusen

is a 1986 Japanese anime film. Directed by Masami Hata and produced by Masakatsu Suzuki and Tsunemasa Hatano, the plot centers around Nintendo characters Mario and Luigi, who get stuck in a Famicom video game and must save Princess Peach from Bowser....

released in 1986 and the live-action film Super Mario Bros.

Super Mario Bros. (film)

Super Mario Bros. is a 1993 American action film directed by Rocky Morton and Annabel Jankel. Based on the Super Mario Bros.video game and its entire franchise, the film features Bob Hoskins, John Leguizamo, Dennis Hopper and Samantha Mathis. It tells the story of the Mario brothers, Mario and...

in 1993. The latter was widely considered to be a flop

Box office bomb

The phrase box office bomb refers to a film for which the production and marketing costs greatly exceeded the revenue regained by the movie studio. This should not be confused with Hollywood accounting when official figures show large losses, yet the movie is a financial success.A film's financial...

; it lost a large amount of money at the box office.

Television

thumb

Saturday Supercade

Saturday Supercade

Saturday Supercade is an animated television series produced for Saturday mornings by Ruby-Spears Productions. It ran for two seasons on CBS beginning in 1983...

was an animated television series produced for Saturday mornings

Saturday morning cartoon

A Saturday morning cartoon is the colloquial term for the animated television programming that has typically been scheduled on Saturday mornings on the major American television networks from the 1960s to the present; the genre's peak in popularity mostly ended in the 1990s while the popularity of...

by Ruby-Spears Productions

Ruby-Spears Productions

Ruby-Spears Productions is a Burbank, California-based entertainment production company that specializes in animation...

. It ran for two seasons on CBS

CBS

CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

, beginning in 1983. Each episode comprised several shorter segments featuring video game characters from the Golden Age of Arcade Games

Golden Age of Arcade Games

The golden age of video arcade games was a peak era of video arcade game popularity, innovation, and earnings. Although there is no consensus as to its exact time period, most sources place it around the early 1980s.-Overview:...

. Donkey Kong, Mario

Mario

and Pauline (from the Donkey Kong arcade game) were featured in the show.

The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!

The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!

The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! is an American television series based upon Nintendo's Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros. 2 video games. It was originally broadcast via first-run syndication to mostly independent or Fox television stations from September 4, 1989, to December 1, 1989, with...

is the first American TV series based on the Mario NES and SNES games. It was broadcast in syndication from September 4 to December 1, 1989. The show was produced by DiC Entertainment

DiC Entertainment

DIC Entertainment was an international film and television production company. In addition to animated television shows such as Ulysses 31 , Inspector Gadget , The Littles , The Real Ghostbusters , Captain Planet and the Planeteers , and the first two seasons of the English adaptation of...

and was distributed for syndicated television by Viacom Enterprises

Viacom Enterprises

Viacom Enterprises was a television distribution company formed in 1971 as the successor to CBS Enterprises, and spun off in 1973 due to now-repealed FCC bylaws prohibiting networks from syndicating their own shows....

(full rights have since reverted to DiC through Nintendo

Nintendo

).

King Koopa's Kool Kartoons

King Koopa's Kool Kartoons

King Koopa's Kool Kartoons is a local, American live-action children's television show broadcast in Southern California during the holiday season of 1989-'90. The show stars King Koopa, the central arch-villain from the Mario video game series...

was a live action

Live action

In filmmaking, video production, and other media, the term live action refers to cinematography, videography not produced using animation...

children's television show

Television program

A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...

broadcast in Southern California

Southern California

Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...

during the holiday season of 1989/1990. The show starred King Koopa (also known as Bowser), the main antagonist of the Mario series. The 30-minute program was originally broadcast during the after-school afternoon time-slots on Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

-based KTTV Fox 11

KTTV

KTTV, channel 11, is an owned-and-operated television station of the News Corporation-owned Fox Broadcasting Company, located in Los Angeles, California. Serving the vast Los Angeles metropolitan area, KTTV is a sister station to KCOP , Los Angeles' MyNetworkTV station...

.

The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3

The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3

The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 is an American animated television series based on the video game Super Mario Bros. 3. It aired on NBC with Captain N: The Game Master in a programming block titled Captain N & The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 from September 8, 1990 through December 1,...

is the second TV series based on the Mario NES and SNES games. It aired on NBC

NBC

The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...

from September 8 to December 1, 1990. Based on the Super Mario Bros. 3

Super Mario Bros. 3

video game, the cartoon shows Mario, Luigi, Princess Toadstool and Toad fighting against Bowser Koopa and his Koopalings, who went by different names on the show. Like the previous Mario cartoon series, the animation was done by Sei Young Animation Co. Ltd, however this show was co-produced by Reteitalia S.P.A., hence the slight differences in character design.

Super Mario Challenge was a show which aired on The Children's Channel

The Children's Channel

The Children's Channel, also known as TCC, was a television station in the United Kingdom, Benelux and Scandinavia, which was owned by Flextech . It began broadcasting on 1 September 1984, and was closed on 3 April 1998...

. It ran from 1990 to 1991 and aired at 4:30 p.m. every weekday. The presenter, John Lenahan

John Lenahan

For the pianist, see John LenehanJohn Lenahan is an American illusionist and entertainer resident in the UK since 1984...

, was a lookalike of Mario

Mario

, and dressed in his clothes. Two guest players had to do tasks, all of which involved playing the Mario video games Super Mario Bros.

Super Mario Bros.

, Super Mario Bros. 2

Super Mario Bros. 2

Super Mario Bros. 2, often abbreviated SMB2, is a platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System as a sequel to the 1985 game Super Mario Bros. The game was also remade as part of the Super Mario All-Stars collection for the Super Nintendo Entertainment...

and, after its release in 1991, Super Mario Bros. 3

Super Mario Bros. 3

. Rounds included challenges to see which player could complete a level in the fastest time and who could collect the most gold coins on a certain level.

Super Mario World

Super Mario World (TV series)

Super Mario World was a short-lived animated television series loosely based on the Super NES video game of the same name. It was the third and thus far last Saturday morning cartoon based on the Super Mario Bros. NES and Super NES series of video games...

is an animated television series loosely based on the SNES video game of the same name

Super Mario World

. It is the third and currently last Saturday morning cartoon based on the Mario series. The show was originally aired on Saturday mornings on NBC

NBC

in the 1991–92 season. It was featured in a half-hour time slot with a shortened version of Captain N: The Game Master

Captain N: The Game Master

Captain N: The Game Master was an American animated television series that aired on television from 1989 to 1991 as part of the Saturday morning cartoon lineup on NBC. The show incorporated elements from many of the most popular Nintendo games of the time...

. Episodes of Super Mario World were later shown as part of the syndication

Television syndication

In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...

package Captain N and the Video Game Masters. Afterwards, the series was split from Captain N altogether and shown in time-compressed reruns on Mario All-Stars.

Anime

is a Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese anime

Anime

film released on July 20, 1986. Directed by Masami Hata and produced by Masakatsu Suzuki and Tsunemasa Hatano, it stars Mario

Mario

and Luigi

Luigi

, who get stuck in a Famicom

Nintendo Entertainment System

The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...

video game, in which they must save Princess Peach

Princess Peach

from Koopa. A manga

Manga

Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

adaptation of the film was published in Japan around the same time as the film's release.

Three OVAs

Original video animation

, abbreviated as media , are animated films and series made specially for release in home-video formats. The term originated in relation to Japanese animation...

, based on Momotaro

Momotaro

is a popular hero from Japanese folklore. His name literally means Peach Tarō; as Tarō is a common Japanese boy's name, it is often translated as Peach Boy...

, Issun-bōshi and Snow White

Snow White

"Snow White" is a fairy tale known from many countries in Europe, the best known version being the German one collected by the Brothers Grimm...

, were released in 1989. These generally featured Mario as the hero, Peach as the damsel and Bowser as the villain, with other Mario characters playing supporting roles.

Film

Super Mario Bros. is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

and Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

1993 adventure

Adventure film

Adventure films are a genre of film.Unlike pure, low-budget action films they often use their action scenes preferably to display and explore exotic locations in an energetic way....

family

Family film

A family film is a film genre that is designed to appeal to a variety of age groups and, thus, families.In December 2005, Steven Spielberg's 1982 film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial came first in a poll of the 100 Greatest Family Films. The genre today generates billions of dollars per annum.Family...

comedy

Comedy film

Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...

incredibly loosely based on the video game of the same name. The film follows the exploits of Mario

Mario

(Bob Hoskins

Bob Hoskins

Robert William "Bob" Hoskins, Jr. is an English actor known for playing Cockney rough diamonds, psychopaths and gangsters, in films such as The Long Good Friday , and Mona Lisa , and lighter roles in family films such as Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Hook .- Early life :Hoskins was born in Bury St...

) and Luigi

Luigi

(John Leguizamo

John Leguizamo

Jonathan Alberto "John" Leguizamo is an Colombian-American actor, producer, voice artist, and comedian.-Early life:...

) in a dystopia

Dystopia

A dystopia is the idea of a society in a repressive and controlled state, often under the guise of being utopian, as characterized in books like Brave New World and Nineteen Eighty-Four...

ruled by King Koopa (Dennis Hopper

Dennis Hopper

Dennis Lee Hopper was an American actor, filmmaker and artist. As a young man, Hopper became interested in acting and eventually became a student of the Actors' Studio. He made his first television appearance in 1954 and appeared in two films featuring James Dean, Rebel Without a Cause and Giant...

). It was the first live-action major motion picture to be based on a video game. The film's plot features Mario and Luigi as the main protagonists, Mario leading the team with Luigi developing a romance with Princess Daisy.

The film is widely considered to be a flop

Box office bomb

, losing a lot of money. The film received negative reviews from critics and fans alike and was denounced by critics as "cheesy" and lacking any sort of coherent plot. On the television show Siskel & Ebert, the film received two thumbs down. This is the second least successful Nintendo

Nintendo

video game film adaptation, behind Pokémon Heroes

Pokémon Heroes

Pokémon Heroes: Latios and Latias, originally released in Japan as , is a 2002 Japanese animated film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama. It is the fifth film in the Pokémon series, complimenting Pokémon: Master Quest...

Comics and manga

The Mario franchise has spawned several comic books and manga since its creation.

is a manga

Manga

series written by Yukio Sawada (沢田ユキオ) and published by Shogakukan. It is serialized in CoroCoro Comic

CoroCoro Comic

is a Japanese monthly manga magazine published by Shogakukan, starting on May 15, 1977. Its main target is elementary school aged boys, younger than the readers of shōnen manga...

. It contains many characters and scenarios from Mario games, such as Super Mario World

Super Mario World

and Paper Mario

Paper Mario

. Having just hit its 41st volume, Super Mario-kun is the longest-running Mario-series manga to date. It continues to release new volumes to date. Another consistent manga series based on various Mario games is a work written and drawn by Hiroshi Takase

Hiroshi Takase

was a Japanese cinematographer and visual effects editor for films. His works included:* Asobi no Jikan wa Owaranai * Sotsugyō Ryokō: Nihon Kara Kimashita * Haru * Fuhō-taizai * Zero Woman: Kesenai Kioku...

(嵩瀬ひろし) and published by PikkaPika Comics that is, somewhat confusedly, also called . It is currently at five volumes and stopped due to the author's death in 2006

The Nintendo Comics System

Nintendo Comics System

The Nintendo Comics System was a series of comic books published by Valiant Comics in 1990 and 1991. It was part of a licensing deal with Nintendo, featuring characters from their video games and the cartoons based on them.- The comics :...

was a series of comic book

Comic book

A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...

s published by Valiant Comics

Valiant Comics

Valiant Comics is a comic book imprint published by various publishers since its inception with Voyager Communications, Inc. in 1989, later Acclaim Comics, Inc. Its assets were purchased from the bankruptcy of the Acclaim Entertaintment by Valiant Entertainment, Inc. in 2007.-Voyager...

in 1990 and 1991. It was part of a licensing deal with Nintendo

Nintendo

, featuring characters from their video games and the cartoon

Cartoon

A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...

s based on them. Valiant's Super Mario Bros. comic books were based on the three main Mario games on the Nintendo Entertainment System

Nintendo Entertainment System

The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...

, as well as The Super Mario Bros. Super Show. The Mario line was renewed for 1991 with two different books—Super Mario Bros. and Adventures of the Super Mario Bros.

is an anthology

Anthology

An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...

of comics, drawn in a Japanese manga

Manga

style, that ran in Nintendo Power

Nintendo Power

Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...

magazine throughout 1992, featuring the characters from Nintendo's Mario

Mario

series and based loosely on Super Mario World

Super Mario World

.

Immediately following the end of Super Mario Adventures, Nintendo Power concluded the epic with a ten-page story based on Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins

is a platforming video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy. It was released in Japan on October 21, 1992, in North America on November 2, 1992, and in Europe on January 28, 1993...

titled Mario VS Wario, which ran in their January 1993 issue and was later reprinted in the graphic novel.

Merchandise

Mario has appeared on lunch boxes, t-shirts, magazines, commercials (notably, in a Got Milk?

Got Milk?

Got Milk? is an American advertising campaign encouraging the consumption of cow's milk, which was created by the advertising agency Goodby Silverstein & Partners for the California Milk Processor Board in 1993 and later licensed for use by milk processors and dairy farmers. It has been running...

commercial), in candy form, on shampoo bottles, cereal, badges, and as a plush toy.

Concerts and performances

The Super Mario Bros. theme has been featured in many concerts, including "PLAY! Chicago", the Columbus Symphony, the Mario & Zelda Big Band Live, Play! A Video Game Symphony, and others.

The Video Games Live

Video Games Live

Video Games Live is a concert series created and produced by industry veterans and video game composers Tommy Tallarico and Jack Wall. The concerts consist of segments of video game music performed by a live orchestra with video footage and synchronized lighting and effects, as well as several...

concert featured the theme performed by Koji Kondo.

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