Here are 10 things you may not know about our favorite video game character:

• Mario was first seen in the video game Donkey Kong, but he was called “Jumpman.” He was also a carpenter then, not a plumber.
• Mario was named after Mario Segale, the landlord of Nintendo of America’s office, who barged in on a company meeting demanding an overdue rent.
• Shigeru Miyamoto drew Mario as wearing a cap because he found drawing hair difficult. He also drew in the moustache, because it was easier to see than a mouth in the crude video game screen resolution back then.
• Mario and his younger brother Luigi are known as the “Mario Brothers.” This means that Mario’s last name is also Mario, so his full name is Mario Mario.
• Mario is voice-acted by Charles Martinet, who crashed the audition for “an Italian plumber from Brooklyn” character. Here’s an interview with the man:

• Mario’s nemesis is Wario (a combination of “warui”, the Japanese word for bad, and Mario). Similarly, Luigi’s rival is Waluigi. Both are also voiced by Charles Martinet.
• Mario has appeared in over 200 video games so far, has sold over 193 million units of games (all of the Mario series) and even has his own TV cartoon show. Super Mario Bros. 3 alone grossed over $500 million in USA.

• TV Schmeve, you’re nothing till there’s an opera done on you. In 2003, Jonathan Mann of California Institute of Arts created The Mario Opera, a rock opera:

• Super Mario Bros. theme music (viewed over 4 million times on YouTube!), played by Jean Baudin on , written by Koji Kondo, is known worldwide. It has inspired countless fan-renditions, including one played by Zack Kim on two guitars, 11 string bass, beatboxed by Greg Patillo on the flute, and played by the Oregon Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra on the trombones. This one is played by Play! symphony orchestra:

• Mario is the most famous character in the history of video games, and perhaps is the most famous character ever. In a 1990 poll by Marketing Evaluations, Mario was found to be more popular (and recognizable) among children than Mickey Mouse.

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Well, it’s finally come to this…Snake is now choking our beloved Mario.  Oh well, this will just make it more fun to beat Snake up when the game finally releases in December

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Greetings people of Niwifi.net!! I just wanted to pop in and say a little hello from the great state of WV. I am up here doing some work, where there is no cable, cell phone coverage, and the only Internet connection is a small local library where i am at right now. Even though I am not doing much, if any, posting while I am up here, I am still working on a few things for you. Even if I don’t have my “normal” comforts of life, I do have my gaming systems!! So I decided, and have already been working on some game reviews. Some of the game reviews I have planned are: Sim City DS, revisit my Madden 08 review (not for the better), and the big one I have already started is My Metroid Prime 3 verses Bioshock. There has been great debate on which one is better. You can probably be expecting all of those sometime after I get back home, Oct 2. Until then have a good rest of the week and enjoy TGS.

Jahiggin

Nintendo is working on a major overhaul to Nintendo.com to support the continued success of Nintendo DS and Wii. As we prepare for this huge site update, Nintendo must unfortunately close the Nintendo NSider Forums message boards indefinitely beginning Sept. 17, 2007.

For more than four years, these NSider Forums have fostered engaging, robust debates, a strong community and friendships. While their future remains uncertain, in the interim we invite our fans to build on the spirit of community by starting their own Nintendo discussion sites. Remember also that the unique features available with Nintendo DS and Wii give Nintendo the opportunity to communicate directly with fans, while also enabling fans and friends around the world to communicate with each other.

Nintendo has the greatest fans in the world, and it is because of their support and passion that Nintendo DS and Wii have become so hugely successful around the world. We hope that the faithful Nintendo community members will look forward to the future games and website updates that will enhance Nintendo’s global community of Wii and Nintendo DS owners.

Starting Sept. 17, existing NSider Forums will be available in Read Only format for one week. Private Messages will be disabled. On Monday, Sept. 24, the forums will be removed from public view.

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I got these at the local Gamestop a few days ago. Not sure if other stores have these, but it’s worth a shot to see. Sorry the quality isn’t all that great, I took these with a camera phone. On a sidenote, I sure hope Nintendo decides to pick up Assasin’s Creed because that game looks amazing!

I thought this was kinda weird, but cool. As you can see, the word ‘yourself’ is misspelled, which happens in games, but these incidents are rare. This particular misspelling happens when you are playing single player mode and you beat Bowser’s minion in a board game.

GameStop Email

Ever since Nintendo announced they will be moving part of their headquarters from Redmond, Washington to San Francisco, there has been some discussion that some of the VP’s will resign from the company instead of making the move. Georgie Harrison, senior vice president of marketing and communications, has made it official.

I have confirmed to all employees that I will be leaving at the end of December and not making the move to California.

Thank you Mr. Harrison for all you work throughout the years with Nintendo.

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It may be no surprise that web-going gamers love the Wii, but research firm BrandIntel says it has the data to prove it nonetheless. BrandIntel tells Next-Gen how the Wii is beating Xbox 360 and PS3 in purchase intent, as analyst Michael Pachter likens Nintendo’s hit console to a tasty McDonald’s burger…

 

 

Read The Whole Article HERE