| Video Game History |
| This is where we'll tell you all about the history of Mario and Luigi in their games. |
| Donkey Kong: Vital Stats: System(s): Arcade, NES U.S. Release Date: 1981 Arcade, 1986 NES Current Price: $5.00 or less Save: None Size: 4 levels Players: 2 players alternating ESRB Rating: N/A In a nutshell: In his first appearence, Mario must over barrels and climb up a construction site to rescue Pauline from the evil Donkey Kong. Story: The Mario Bros. were working at a construction site one day when Pauline, Mario's girlfriend, came over. Mario was busy, so he told her (stupidly) to go wait on the roof. Donkey Kong, who had escaped from the zoo and was on a rampage, climbed to the top of the tower and took Pauline. Mario now must save his girlfriend from the runaway ape. Mario's Role: He's the main character. He jumps from site to site avoiding barrels to save the ugly Pauline. The Begining: This is where it all started. Donkey Kong was Nintendo's first video game hit, and the first game to feature on italien plumber. With the success of the game, Mario became very well known. By the time the NES came out, Mario was synonomous with Nintendo and with video games. And it all started with one barrel throwing monkey! Enemies: Donkey Kong is of course the main enemy, but you never touch him. The barrels and bouncy things he throws are the real enemies. The barrels turn into fireballs when they hit oil can, bringing the enemy count to three! Ending: When you finally desroy the construction site, and DK with it, Mario and Pauline are reunited. A heart appears over the pair and some romantic music plays. The game then repeats, only harder. |
| Donkey Kong Jr. Vital Stats: System(s): Arcade, NES U.S. Release date: 1983 Arcade, 1986 NES Current Street Price: $1.00 or less Save: None Size: 4 levels Players: 2 alternating ESRB Rating: N/A Story: Mario has captured Donkey Kong in the original Donkey Kong game. With him caged up, it's up to Donkey Kong Jr. to save his dad. The game takes place in a jungle setting. Mario's Role: Mairo doesn't do much in this game. The computer controls him and he just sends the enemys out toward DK Jr. In teh game only as a connection to DK. The Character: Donkey kong Jr. is a monkey about half the size of DK. He wears a shirt the says Jr. (I think) and nothing else!!!!!! He has limited jumping ability, but he can climb vines, which is essential in his quest. Enemies: I'm not going to get to detailed here. There are little muncher guys that can climb vines and chase Jr. There are birds that fly around and lay eggs that can kill. Jr. can also die from an electric current in a level of the NES version. There may be more, but they are rare. All in all, a good variety for a 4 screen game. Ending: DKJr. places four locks in palce in the last level and opens the cage that traps his dad. They then, assumedly, go off into the jungle to live happily ever after. |
| NES Games |
| Donkey Kong 3 Vital Stats: System(s): NES U.S. Release date: 1987 Current Street Price: $1.00 or less Save: None Size: 99+ levels Players: 2 alternating ESRB Rating: N/A Story: Umm, it's kind of unclear. As far as I can tell, Donkey kong is agering the bees in their hives and flies in their holes out into proples homes. Stanley the bugman (that's his name) tries to take out the Kong and the bugs before getting bit and, uh, dying. Mario's Role: Mario isn't even in this game. he's replaced by Stanely the bugman (see below). The Character: Stanely the bugman must be Mario's third twin. He looks exactly like Mario except in white overalls and blue shirt. He can move and jump and shoot his pesticide that pushes DK up the vines, and that's about it. Enemies: It's an exterminators nightmare. You've got your basic flies, then the bees that swoop violently at you, the wasps the BLOW UP at you, the caterpillars from the woodwork, and more. Ending: Unsure. May never end like Pac-Man. Still trying to find out. |
| Mario Bros. Vital Stats System(s): Arcade, NES U.S. Release Date: 1983 Arcade, 1986 NES Current street price: $5.00 or less Save: None Size: Infinite levels! Players: 2 simutaneously ESRB Rating: N/A In a nutshell Knock over turtles and other baddies that have caused a plumbing nightmare for the Bros. Story Mario and his brother Luigi are called to a site for their latest plumbing job. It seems no water is coming out of the pipes at a construction yard. When Mario and his bro go to check it out, turtles and other creatures start coming out of the pipes. Mario and Luigi then go into hero mode to save the site from these turtles. Gameplay Overview This is not a very complex game. You can run around and jump. To get rid of enemies, you first have to flip them over. This is done by hitting the ground under them with your head or using the POW block in the middle. Some enemies take more hits to flip over. Next, just jump up to their platform and touch them to kill them. If you touch an enemy that isn't flipped over, you lose a life. After you kill enough enemies, you go to the next level. There are also bonus levels that let you get more points. What's the big deal? The Brother: What would Mario Luigi Experience be without Luigi? It would be Mario Experience for one thing, but that's beside the point. The point is that this game introduced a second player into a Mario game for the first time. The multiplayer experience was to become was to become an integral-and-forth play of SMB, and later in great party games like Mario Party and Super Smash Bros. Many people, myself included, think this was one of the main reasons for Mario's success as a mascot. And it wouldn't have happened without Luigi, the brother, the brother that puts the Brothers in Super Mario Brothers. Notes of intrest Last one screen Mario Last infinite level Mario First Luigi appearance, first two player Mario Only two player simultaneous Mario ('till YI bonus games) First bonus levels in Mario game Mini-game similar to MB in SMB3 Quotes "Ba-ding (coin sound)" -Coin Ending One of the great things about this game is that there is no ending. It goes on forever if you want, and keeps getting harder. You could go at it all night, just don't lose all your lives!!! |
| Super Mario Bros. Vital Stats System(s): NEs, SNES (Super Mario All-stars) U.S. Release Date: Augest? 1985 Current street price: $1.00 or less Save: None Size: 32 levels Players: 2 alternating ESRB Rating: N/A In a nutshell Classic hop n' bop action as Mario and Luigi run and jump through the Mushroom Kingdom to rescue Princess "Peach" Toadstool Story Note: This story came directly from the SMB instruction book. On day the kingdom of the peaceful mushroom prople was invaded be the Koopa, a tribe of turtles famous for their black magic. The quite, peace-loving Mushroom Prople were turned into mere stones, bricks, and even field horse-hair plants, and the Mushroom Kingdom fell into ruin. The only onw who can undo the magic spell on the Mushroom People and return them to their normal selves is the Princess Toadstool, the daughter of the Mushroom King. Unfortunatly, she is presently in the hands of the great Koopa turtle king. Mario, the hero of this story (maby) hears about the Mushroom People's plight and sets out on a quest to free the Mushroom Princess from the evil Koopa and restore the fallen kingdom of the mushroom people. You are Mario! It's up to you to save the Mushroom People from the black power of the Koopa. Gameplay Overview The basis of gameplay is to get from one end of the level to the other. It sound simple, but many obstacles stand in your wat, such as enemy creatures and bottemless pits. Falling in a pit makes you lose a life and restart the level. Getting hit be an enemy does the same, unless you have gotten a super mushroom, which makes you bigger and resistant to one enemy hit. Most enemies can be defeated if you can jump on their head, while others can only be killed by a fireball, which you can shoot with the aid of a fire flower. Other items such as the starman or 1-up mushroom can make you invincebal and gain you a life respectively. There are a variety of types of levels in SMB including: -Outdoor levels. The basic type of level. Run and jump across floating blockes and platforms to get to the end. -Underground levels. Similar to outdoor levels, but usually with narrower corridors and more dangers. -Underwater levels. You swim through these levels inabitted by fish and octopi. You must avoid enemies insted og jumping on them (unless you have a fire flower) -Dungeon levels. The fourth level of every world where Bowser lurks. Full of fire and lava balls. These level types are replicated countless time throughout the Mari series as well as many other games. The game is divided into 8 worlds, each having four seperate levels. Warp zones hidden throughout the game allow you skip ahead to later levels. What's the big deal? The First: Super Mario Bros. was one of the first games of one of the most nifluential geners in gaming: the side scroller. Games like Pitfall! laid the groundwork, but SMB was the first one to expand the gameplay significantly. SMB drew people into it's world, and despite it's simple gameplay, it has endured. Nintendo's telephoe help line still gets calls about this game regularly. That shows you just how enduring it is. Endlesscopycats would follow (until recently, since everythings gone 3D) but SMB will always be know as that genre-busting title. Notes of interest First home game for the Mario Bros. One of the best-selling of all time. Introduced side-scrollinig fromat for Bros. First game with Super Mario and Fiery Mario, which lasted through the series. Intoduced power-up system to platform games. Warp Zones adapted by other series in later Mario's. All enemies in this game are in SMB2 (jap) Quote "We're sorry, but our primcess is in another castle" -Toad Ending At the end of every world, a mushroom retainer (Toad) appears and tells you "Thanks for saving us Mario, but our princess is in another castle". When you defeat Bowser in World 8, the princess herself thanks you, and then tells you that you can select any stage to play for fun now. |
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