Now that suggestions of parodies have died down, whatever I mentioned before won't make sense. In fact, I declare this topic to be about discussion on the general concept of Mario taking over a game, or other characters taking over a Mario game.
Thanks for reading.
Due to the changing course of this topic, I decided to also change the first post to accommodate that. If you want to see what I previously put as a topic starter, please refer to the spoiler below.
Anyway, this topic is now about Mario parodies of other titles or IPs, so if you have a bright idea to share, fire away! If you think your title is not quite well-known, then it would certainly be helpful to explain it.
Anyway, this topic is now about Mario parodies of other titles or IPs, so if you have a bright idea to share, fire away! If you think your title is not quite well-known, then it would certainly be helpful to explain it.
What are your thoughts on IPs that originally weren't Mario-related, or IPs that were originally going to be Mario-related?
To illustrate my point, I will show five examples of games that are initially not related to Mario, ranging from the obvious to the obscure.
The first example, and perhaps the most obvious, is Doki Doki Panic. This game became Super Mario Bros. 2, and eventually became another game called Super Mario USA in Japan. This is one of the examples where the original is also released, making it not exactly Mario-related. Still, its elements are strongly associated with Mario so they might as well be. Things like Birdo, Shy Guy and the attributes of the four playable characters (including Peach's hover) became elements in other Mario games.
The game's setup and mechanics are very different from Super Mario Bros. that it could very well be its own game (which it was at first). Certain people consider this to be a bad Mario game because of this, but personally, I thought it's fun, despite being very different from the usual Mario fare. Interestingly, Koji Kondo commented that if he knew the game were to be a Mario game, he would have composed the music differently.
The second example is not as obvious, but still something to take note of, is Tetris Attack. In the original version, it's called Panel de Pon, which is its own franchise instead of using Yoshi and Tetris' popularity to sell it. I suppose there is a certain degree of acceptable cuteness/strangeness for Westerners if Yoshi and Kirby (in Kirby's Avalanche) replaces the main characters in their respective original games (for Kirby, it's Puyo Puyo). It's entirely possible that Panel de Pon might not have garner attention if it remained as it is in the west, considering that Pokemon was used as a basis in the Nintendo 64 follow-up (it should be noted that Panel de Pon's Nintendo 64 game never released, but was included in Nintendo Puzzle Collection in Japan).
We're now into less obvious territory here. Dr. Mario hasn't always been about the titular character. Instead, the titular character were the villains! Yep, Dr. Mario used to be called Virus, which you can see in the prototype cartridge. It should be noted that "Dr. Mario" do appear in the game, just that the game isn't called a Mario game. Think Donkey Kong (Arcade): it stars Mario but it's considered a Donkey Kong game (though I do wish Mario's anniversary uses the 1981 game as the root of celebration).
If you want an obscure example, there's Yoshi's Cookie. There are actually little to no hints that this game wasn't a Yoshi game at first, because there are no prototypes of the original title. Instead, its original title is only known in the debug menu, and the game is only shown in the 1992 Consumer's Electronics Show before Nintendo bought the rights for the game. What's the original title of Yoshi's Cookie, you ask? It's Hermetica, so I am guessing that the original has Egyptian symbols instead of cookies, which might be less interesting to play. Perhaps this is Nintendo capitalising on Yoshi's popularity by implanting Yoshi in a game.
Finally, there is Super Mario Kart. It was going to be just a Kart game, but a Mario-lookalike caught the developers' eyes and became a favourite. And that's how the decision was made to make that kart game a Mario franchise. It's hard to say whether Mario Kart is its own franchise or if it is considered a Mario franchise because of Mario's involvement. Either way, it's a strong franchise, and that's what counts.
Now for the reverse: examples of games that were going to be Mario games, but were changed into another IP.
For one, there is Legend of Zelda. This was reportedly going to be a Mario game called Mario Adventure. Since Shigeru Miyamoto envisioned Mario as an everyman character, it's natural that he wanted him to be put into any game that he touches. After some development time, he changed it to something original because (I think) the elements doesn't feel like a Mario game. I believe that this decision ultimately turned out to be beneficial, because Legend of Zelda has fascinating elements that deserves praise.
A more recent example is Splatoon. If you have been following information of this game, you would no doubt know that this game was going to be a Mario-based shooter. I think this is mentioned during E3 2014, the Edge magazine and numerous interviews. Since this fact is known recently, where the internet is in full force, I'm sure this trivia will be brought up quite often, especially to those new to the series.
Finally, there is Wii Sports. The initial idea was to use Mario characters as a basis for the sports game, but since playtesters liked the customisable Miis, they were ultimately used in this game. Wii's titular games are subject to debate when it comes to calling it an IP since they don't have a strong sense of character and place, but I think its generic-looking place and simplistic Miis have their own charm, so I think they count as an IP.
Again, what are your thoughts on IPs that originally weren't Mario-related, or IPs that were originally going to be Mario-related?
To illustrate my point, I will show five examples of games that are initially not related to Mario, ranging from the obvious to the obscure.
The first example, and perhaps the most obvious, is Doki Doki Panic. This game became Super Mario Bros. 2, and eventually became another game called Super Mario USA in Japan. This is one of the examples where the original is also released, making it not exactly Mario-related. Still, its elements are strongly associated with Mario so they might as well be. Things like Birdo, Shy Guy and the attributes of the four playable characters (including Peach's hover) became elements in other Mario games.
The game's setup and mechanics are very different from Super Mario Bros. that it could very well be its own game (which it was at first). Certain people consider this to be a bad Mario game because of this, but personally, I thought it's fun, despite being very different from the usual Mario fare. Interestingly, Koji Kondo commented that if he knew the game were to be a Mario game, he would have composed the music differently.
The second example is not as obvious, but still something to take note of, is Tetris Attack. In the original version, it's called Panel de Pon, which is its own franchise instead of using Yoshi and Tetris' popularity to sell it. I suppose there is a certain degree of acceptable cuteness/strangeness for Westerners if Yoshi and Kirby (in Kirby's Avalanche) replaces the main characters in their respective original games (for Kirby, it's Puyo Puyo). It's entirely possible that Panel de Pon might not have garner attention if it remained as it is in the west, considering that Pokemon was used as a basis in the Nintendo 64 follow-up (it should be noted that Panel de Pon's Nintendo 64 game never released, but was included in Nintendo Puzzle Collection in Japan).
We're now into less obvious territory here. Dr. Mario hasn't always been about the titular character. Instead, the titular character were the villains! Yep, Dr. Mario used to be called Virus, which you can see in the prototype cartridge. It should be noted that "Dr. Mario" do appear in the game, just that the game isn't called a Mario game. Think Donkey Kong (Arcade): it stars Mario but it's considered a Donkey Kong game (though I do wish Mario's anniversary uses the 1981 game as the root of celebration).
If you want an obscure example, there's Yoshi's Cookie. There are actually little to no hints that this game wasn't a Yoshi game at first, because there are no prototypes of the original title. Instead, its original title is only known in the debug menu, and the game is only shown in the 1992 Consumer's Electronics Show before Nintendo bought the rights for the game. What's the original title of Yoshi's Cookie, you ask? It's Hermetica, so I am guessing that the original has Egyptian symbols instead of cookies, which might be less interesting to play. Perhaps this is Nintendo capitalising on Yoshi's popularity by implanting Yoshi in a game.
Finally, there is Super Mario Kart. It was going to be just a Kart game, but a Mario-lookalike caught the developers' eyes and became a favourite. And that's how the decision was made to make that kart game a Mario franchise. It's hard to say whether Mario Kart is its own franchise or if it is considered a Mario franchise because of Mario's involvement. Either way, it's a strong franchise, and that's what counts.
Now for the reverse: examples of games that were going to be Mario games, but were changed into another IP.
For one, there is Legend of Zelda. This was reportedly going to be a Mario game called Mario Adventure. Since Shigeru Miyamoto envisioned Mario as an everyman character, it's natural that he wanted him to be put into any game that he touches. After some development time, he changed it to something original because (I think) the elements doesn't feel like a Mario game. I believe that this decision ultimately turned out to be beneficial, because Legend of Zelda has fascinating elements that deserves praise.
A more recent example is Splatoon. If you have been following information of this game, you would no doubt know that this game was going to be a Mario-based shooter. I think this is mentioned during E3 2014, the Edge magazine and numerous interviews. Since this fact is known recently, where the internet is in full force, I'm sure this trivia will be brought up quite often, especially to those new to the series.
Finally, there is Wii Sports. The initial idea was to use Mario characters as a basis for the sports game, but since playtesters liked the customisable Miis, they were ultimately used in this game. Wii's titular games are subject to debate when it comes to calling it an IP since they don't have a strong sense of character and place, but I think its generic-looking place and simplistic Miis have their own charm, so I think they count as an IP.
Again, what are your thoughts on IPs that originally weren't Mario-related, or IPs that were originally going to be Mario-related?
Thanks for reading.
