Nintendo To Kill Off Mario Character In Upcoming âSuper Marioâ Game
Iconic video game character Mario is going to die soon, and according to leaked reports coming out of Japanese gaming company Nintendo, he wonât be given an extra life. Executives at Nintendo have apparently decided to kill off the legendary character in an upcoming video game, partly as a publicity stunt to usher in their top-secret future console, which is currently in development. The game, tentatively titled âSuper Mario Finale,â will be what one Nintendo memo refers to as âa return to the roots of the franchise,â with gameplay focusing on Mario, his brother Luigi, and his pet dinosaur Yoshi in a side-scrolling adventureÂ title. Mario must rescue Princess Peach from the King of the Koopas, Bowser, who has set up an elaborate trap for the Italian plumber. But in the gameâs epic finale, Mario will apparently lose his life once and for all. One Japanese memo explained how Mario will meet his maker. âWeâre designing [the gameâs climax] with an epic battle, where players will need to replay Bowser battles throughout the years, from 1985âs Super Mario Brothers through the most recent games. But in the end, theyâll fight the `realâ Bowser, the modern one, and thereâs actually no way to defeat him just using Mario. Luigi and Peach will end up finishing the fight, because Mario will be defeated and perish in the battle.â Another memo attempted to brace Nintendoâs PR department for what would surely be a loud backlash from fans. âMario will definitely die in the game, and we donât want to bring him back to life later. We want this to be final, and so we need to prepare for that however we can, and convince fans that it was the right thing to do.â Not everyone at Nintendo is happy with the decision, however. In one leaked email, one executive goes to bat for Mario, saying that âwe canât kill him. We just canât. Mario built Nintendo, and Iâm not just talking about the pipes in the basement. To kill him off would be a tremendous blow to our countless millions of fans, who grew up with this beloved character, as I did. Why not kill Luigi, or even Peach? Mario cannot die.â Mario was first introduced in the 1981 platform game âDonkey Kong,â as the protagonist. Nintendo decided to make him the star of his very own game in 1985, with the release of their original Nintendo console. Since then, heâs risen up to be the companyâs most easily recognizable characters, and is considered by most to be one of the most famous video game figures of all time, alongside fellow Nintendo alumni Link, Atari star Pac Man, Sega legend Sonic the Hedgehog, Final Fantasy villain Sephiroth, and Tomb Raiderâs Lara Croft.