Where Did You Go, Ms. Pac-Man?
We lost the female counterpart to Pac-Man in 2020, but Namco had been plotting her demise years beforehand.
Princess Peach Can’t Get a Break
Princess Peach: Showtime! makes it seem like Nintendo didn’t learn the right lesson from her first solo adventure.
The Legend of Bowser’s Dead Wife
Was Nintendo punking Mario diehards into thinking Bowser’s long missing missus had been revealed?
Since When Is There a Simpsons Character Named Nina Skalka?
A girl with blond pigtails underscores the problem with fandom wikis.
Is Valentina from Super Mario RPG a Jimmy Buffett Reference or Not?
Sometimes a woman with a parrot on her head is just that, margarita or no margarita.
Localization Strangeness in the Super Mario RPG Remake
It’s less what got changed from the original so much as what stayed the same.
Hard Hats in the Mushroom Kingdom
The Mets of Mega Man are a lot like Buzzy Beetle… which isn’t actually a beetle at all.
Christmas Eve on Shooting Star Summit
Are Star Hill from Super Mario RPG and Shooting Star Summit in Paper Mario one and the same?
Bowser vs. Koopa
Nintendo standardized Peach’s name in all territories. Why didn’t they do the same with Bowser?
Is WarioWare Hiding an Homage to a Forgotten Nintendo Heroine?
Alice from Balloon Kid (and Balloon Fight in general) lives on in Lulu from WarioWare.
Mallow’s Name Is a Better Pun in the Japanese Version of Super Mario RPG
He’s a marshmallow, obviously, but there’s a lot more wordplay going on involving Mario and mushrooms.
Localization Drift and Hidden History in Castlevania: Nocturne
The Netflix series features two vamp villains, Olrox and Drolta, that are inspired by sources from outside the Castlevania canon.
Princess Daisy’s Long Road to Being Playable in Super Mario Bros. Wonder
“Hi, I’m Daisy — and I’m no longer a B-tier Super Mario character.”
Sci-fi Stripteases in Barbarella, Metroid and Mach Rider
Metroid’s connection to the 1968 sci-fi classic may help answer a question about Mach Rider’s gender.
Is Super Mario Wonder’s Prince Florian a Nod to the Mario Anime?
Surely all these nods to the Mario anime can’t be a coincidence, right? Well…
Secrets of the Super Mario RPG Shaman
One minor Super Mario RPG character actually did make the transition to Paper Mario.
Nintendo’s First Playable Female Protagonist Isn’t Female in Japan
Clu Clu Land’s Bubbles the Bubblefish is female in English-speaking territories — and she may or may not be a fish?
Why Did Nintendo Change Foreman Spike’s Name?
This might be the first instance of the movie’s success affecting the games that inspired it.
Foreman Spike Was the Original Wario
If you saw the Super Mario Bros. movie and wondered who Spike guy was, this is the post for you.