What you like about Mario

[Helmo]

in most of the games the designs never fail, and nothing feels out of place
it builds a really cohesive universe


also
paper mario TTYD WHO THE FUCK IS WITH ME

best mario game ever 11/10

[Gors]

The thing is that Mario isn't more about the character 'Mario'; as Zac said he is literally a 'good avatar' and the personification of a good person, and this 'blankness' allowed him to have games of many genres

Thus, you can relate to the game because you already know him, even if you don't like, for example, RPGs. I don't really like RPGs but I remember being interested in Mario & Luigi because.... it was Mario

Sure, the game (and if it's a RPG, plot) is more important than a name, but the fact that Mario is in the title and there is kind of a visual association gives us the "proof" that it's Nintendo's top stuff. Of course, that is not 100% true, but putting a familiar face in the games helps increase acceptance to an extent

[Goemar]

I completely lost all love for Mario for a long time when NSMB came out. It looked ugly, it's music was awful and it was easy as hell.
Mario has always been a "kids" game - but well, you put a 6 year old in front of a NES and tell them to complete SMB 1 or 3...

Although I had played Mario games in the past I think the ones I really "played properly" was the gameboy titles. SML 2 was pretty intense back in the day trying not to panic when fighting Wario and losing all your coins. Wario Land was also just fantastic, even if technically it isn't a Mario game. I gave All-Stars a good bash on the SNES but beating SMB 3 at that age was just out of my league (and we mostly just played Vs... like, a lot).

I played Mario 64 when I was 10. It's a shame Mario seems to have moved away from the "open course" design lately (not that Super Mario 3D World or Land are bad games, I liked them both). I also thought Mario Galaxy 1 and 2 were good games (2 more so) even if the play style was a bit more arcadey/casual (I never felt I ever had to be that careful except with specific "Look out! Platforms!" bits).


I think my best "Mario" memory is beating SMW 2. It was the first game I completed what my older brother couldn't (he sucked at the final boss) and the music when taking down Bowser was just epic. Why the shitty GBA version of SMW 2 is available but not the 100 times better sounding and 38% better looking SNES version is just terrible.

Yoshi's Island is pretty much the perfect platformer, and it's only ever real contestant to the throne has been Rayman Origins.

[Duke of Gourmandizing]

Once upon a time a long long time ago (actually not that long ago) I happened to come across New Super Mario Bros., the first Mario game I encountered and played. That's where I first took an interest into Mario. Since then I've played Super Mario 64 DS, Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, Mario Party DS and Mario Kart DS just to name a few, as well as Super Mario RPG on the SNES, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga on the GBA and the classic original Super Mario Bros. on the internet.

In all honesty I think the best game I've played so far is Super Mario RPG, followed by Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga and Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story. They can be quite challenging at times, but also partly because the plot can be quite humorous (such as the cake that comes alive and attacks Mario and Co., Toad enters the bathroom in Mario's House and comes out in embarrassment and Luigi playable stuck in a Sockop for part-way of the game).

Finally my favorite character, regarding the main series, I'd have to pick Luigi with Peach being second. Luigi just has the habit of jumping higher than any other main playable character, including the ability to sort of 'hover' a bit like Peach. I prefer Luigi over Peach though - mainly because of the jump and fact he can walk on water for a while, secondly because he's more funnier than probably even all Mario, Peach and Toad combined (I award second place to Bowser - he deserves it for all the trouble all the heroes like Mario and villains like Fawful have caused him).

[Koopaul]

I think I love Mario's universe more than his games. I love his games too! But that colorful world. Those loveable characters. It's just something that gets me all choked up!

Then again I love most cartoony, lighthearted, and colorful video game series.

[Maxpphire]

Platforming. it's the best thing, mario does it so right

[Darky's Reincarnation]

i still think thousand year door is the best mario game - and one of the best games ever made

it's gameplay is fun and i can replay it everytime ( even make some different choices along the way. ) it isn't too hard but i ain't easy either. it's dialog is smart, funny and doesn't take itself too seriously ( super paper mario for example ), yet also still covers a dark part. ( there's a noose in the hubworld in plain sight )

it's music is intelligent and far ahead for it's time - just like earthbound was

[E-Man]

I think I love Mario's universe more than his games. I love his games too! But that colorful world. Those loveable characters. It's just something that gets me all choked up!

Then again I love most cartoony, lighthearted, and colorful video game series.

I can relate to that! As much as the Mario games are a blast to play, I'm more interested in the characters and story to the point where I write my own work about it. It's the reason why most of the Mario RPGs are able to connect to me.

When I was still starting out making a name for myself online, I had the enjoyable pleasure of reading many fan fictions and comics about Mario and his friends on Lemmy's Land. While the site seems a tad outdated compared to other sites out there and most of the fan works there are on the mediocre side, it was fun when I was hanging out there.

[Koopaul]

I remember Lemmy's Land. The new Mario online communities aren't as good as they used to be.

[E-Man]

You do, Koopaul? I'm actually ecstatic that you're familiar with that web site.

Back in the day, Lemmy's Land was very active with activity from a lot of users and I was around when most of the best users were still on it. Besides my interview show starring my character and Doopliss, I also wrote a story called Mario & Luigi: The Trip Across Nintendo Land. Maybe you heard of it?

[Koopaul]

I only poked around there sometimes. I was a part of an affiliated Mario Fan Site that hosted some crappy 8-Bit comics. It was called the Pipehouse.

[E-Man]

Gee, I feel sorry that you didn't experience the same Mario fan site I did, Koopaul, especially considering that you actually spent a good deal of your Mario fandom days on a fan site that makes Lemmy's Land look like the Tiffany jewelry store.

Anyway, the site no longer updates anymore after the web master disappeared to who knows where, but back in the day, it was great to write something good and have other authors acknowledge it. If you want to read something good, then the Chef Torte saga and Dark Koopa interviews are your best bit provided you haven't read those before. Of course, try reading something by a user by the name of P.T. Piranha. Even though his work on the site is nothing compared to what he writes now, his old work is pretty clever and is worth a chuckle or two.

[Kriven]

I wasn't a part of any Mario forum communities, but I did like to visit some old sites when I was eight or nineish. The Mario Monster Compendium was one of my favorites, and there were the death matches at Nintendo Land (which are a big part of what got me into writing). I used to browse around SMBHQ as well, but much less frequently than the other two. There was a period of time where a friend and I operated an AOL Hometown website called "Nintendo Rules", but it's been removed for some time now. I wrote a few Death Match styled stories there, and some sprite comics.

You guys, makin' me nostalgia about the days when everybody owned a GeoCities page for their favorite characters.

[E-Man]

If you like death match battles that much, Kriven, why not take a peek at the Roy Sports Hall section back on Lemmy's Land? While they are in script format, I think you will still find them enjoyable anyway.