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Mario: The Face of the Gaming World
There are many game characters around the world that are popular and extremely well known, but none are as iconic as Mario. Mario is arguably the most well-known game character of all time. Other well-known game characters include Sonic the Hedgehog, Link and Pac-Man. But what makes Mario stand out from all the other game characters? Why is a fictional Italian plumber so popular and known by pretty much everybody? Well, let’s find out shall we?
One factor that makes Mario an iconic video game character, is that he has been around for a really long time. So long in fact, that your parents were probably around when the first Mario games came out! Mario made his first appearance in 1981 in the arcade game Donkey Kong as a carpenter named Jumpman. He was originally called Jumpman because he had to jump over various obstacles to get to the top of the construction site and save his girl. After Donkey Kong, Jumpman has been renamed to Mario (obviously) and has become the character he is today. As a result of the first Mario game being released way back in 1981, many people have had a chance to experience and play his games and have really been able to connect with Mario as his games have developed over time. As a result of the long period of time that Mario has been around, the Mario franchise has sold over 210 million titles worldwide and has become so popular with the public that he has become Nintendo’s mascot. Mario has stayed popular all this time because of the success that each and every game brings with its release as well as the fact that it is family friendly and not just aimed at kids.
Mario games generally stick to the same kind of theme, you play as Mario who has to rescue some sort of princess from the evil clutches of Bowser, the Koopa King. You do so by going through multiple levels, grabbing items along the way and reaching the flag at the end each level. Once you have cleared one world you then go to the next and complete more levels until you finally confront the Koopa King and save the princess. You’d expect this concept to get stale after a while don’t you think? Well no actually, in fact Mario games are constantly evolving to prevent the franchise from dying. Each game comes with new levels, items and bosses to keep the franchise alive and to suit what’s popular at the time. For example, Princess Peach, the famed damsel in distress, has always been, well a damsel in distress. Most of the Mario games revolve around saving her. But now as independent female characters are becoming more and more popular, the latest Super Mario Game (Super Mario 3D World) now offers Peach as a playable character! By changing and tweaking small details, Mario has continued to please the gaming world and continues to grow in popularity. Mario has also gained more attention due to him appearing in other popular games. The Super Smash Bros. franchise has been extremely popular among gamers and Mario has been one of the few characters that have been in the games since the very beginning. Mario has also appeared in other games such as the Mario and Sonic Olympic Games franchise, which with two iconic character names in the title and as well as a Olympic Game theme, of course this will grab people’s attention and increase Mario’s popularity and making him more famous than he already is. Did you know that Mario is so mainstream that he has even been mentioned in a Disney Movie? In Disney’s Wreck It Ralph, not only is Mario referenced/mentioned a couple of times but Mario’s main enemy Bowser makes an actual appearance in that movie. You can’t tell me that Mario isn’t iconic with that proof! On top of that, in Japan, Mario has been used to advertise cars! Not a gaming ad for the new Mario Kart, an actual commercial for Mercedes-Benz. (Which you can find at the bottom of the article)
With Mario being around for such a long time it’s not really that much of a surprise that he has been recognised by everyone and become super popular. I mean with all the games that have been released, all of the ads and all of the easter eggs and cameos that pop up here and there, I think it’s safe to say that Mario has indeed become the face of the Gaming World.
Game On!
Brian Tan
There are many game characters around the world that are popular and extremely well known, but none are as iconic as Mario. Mario is arguably the most well-known game character of all time. Other well-known game characters include Sonic the Hedgehog, Link and Pac-Man. But what makes Mario stand out from all the other game characters? Why is a fictional Italian plumber so popular and known by pretty much everybody? Well, let’s find out shall we?
One factor that makes Mario an iconic video game character, is that he has been around for a really long time. So long in fact, that your parents were probably around when the first Mario games came out! Mario made his first appearance in 1981 in the arcade game Donkey Kong as a carpenter named Jumpman. He was originally called Jumpman because he had to jump over various obstacles to get to the top of the construction site and save his girl. After Donkey Kong, Jumpman has been renamed to Mario (obviously) and has become the character he is today. As a result of the first Mario game being released way back in 1981, many people have had a chance to experience and play his games and have really been able to connect with Mario as his games have developed over time. As a result of the long period of time that Mario has been around, the Mario franchise has sold over 210 million titles worldwide and has become so popular with the public that he has become Nintendo’s mascot. Mario has stayed popular all this time because of the success that each and every game brings with its release as well as the fact that it is family friendly and not just aimed at kids.
Mario games generally stick to the same kind of theme, you play as Mario who has to rescue some sort of princess from the evil clutches of Bowser, the Koopa King. You do so by going through multiple levels, grabbing items along the way and reaching the flag at the end each level. Once you have cleared one world you then go to the next and complete more levels until you finally confront the Koopa King and save the princess. You’d expect this concept to get stale after a while don’t you think? Well no actually, in fact Mario games are constantly evolving to prevent the franchise from dying. Each game comes with new levels, items and bosses to keep the franchise alive and to suit what’s popular at the time. For example, Princess Peach, the famed damsel in distress, has always been, well a damsel in distress. Most of the Mario games revolve around saving her. But now as independent female characters are becoming more and more popular, the latest Super Mario Game (Super Mario 3D World) now offers Peach as a playable character! By changing and tweaking small details, Mario has continued to please the gaming world and continues to grow in popularity. Mario has also gained more attention due to him appearing in other popular games. The Super Smash Bros. franchise has been extremely popular among gamers and Mario has been one of the few characters that have been in the games since the very beginning. Mario has also appeared in other games such as the Mario and Sonic Olympic Games franchise, which with two iconic character names in the title and as well as a Olympic Game theme, of course this will grab people’s attention and increase Mario’s popularity and making him more famous than he already is. Did you know that Mario is so mainstream that he has even been mentioned in a Disney Movie? In Disney’s Wreck It Ralph, not only is Mario referenced/mentioned a couple of times but Mario’s main enemy Bowser makes an actual appearance in that movie. You can’t tell me that Mario isn’t iconic with that proof! On top of that, in Japan, Mario has been used to advertise cars! Not a gaming ad for the new Mario Kart, an actual commercial for Mercedes-Benz. (Which you can find at the bottom of the article)
With Mario being around for such a long time it’s not really that much of a surprise that he has been recognised by everyone and become super popular. I mean with all the games that have been released, all of the ads and all of the easter eggs and cameos that pop up here and there, I think it’s safe to say that Mario has indeed become the face of the Gaming World.
Game On!
Brian Tan