Here’s another YouTube video I found based on Super Smash Bros., but this time Kirby is the star of the show. Enjoy.
May 242010
Before Bowser Jr. was part of the Super Mario Bros. franchise, King Koopa had seven other children from Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World who have recently made a comeback on New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Here’s what I remember most about them.
Larry Koopa: He’s one of the youngest Koopalings and the weakest fighter, but don’t underestimate Larry. On the cartoon series, his specialty was sneaky deviousness. I guess that’s why he was renamed Cheatsy.
Morton Koopa Jr.: His biggest asset is his big mouth and maybe that star tattoo over his left eye. At least I think it’s a tattoo. Morton (renamed Bigmouth) is a real chatterbox on the cartoon series. As for Morton’s fighting skills, he’s a bit slower than Larry, but quicker with his wand.
Wendy O. Koopa: She’s the only sister of the family. Wendy is a material girl and a spoiled brat like Princess Morbucks from The Powerpuff Girls. On the cartoon series, she was renamed Cutie Pie and her tantrums are what made her my least favorite Koopaling. On the video games she sure had a thing for throwing deadly rings and having large spiked pillars in her castles. I’m guessing that the “O” must stand for “Obnoxious”.
Iggy Koopa: At first I was under the impression that he was a wild and crazy Koopaling. However, he always held back in that area until recently on New Super Mario Bros. Wii when he got creative with that chain chomp chariot. On the cartoon series, Iggy was one of the youngest twins named Hop who is playful in a deadly way. He’s just not what you would expect.
Roy Koopa: He’s one of the first Koopalings to attack with the stomp method that the Sledge Brothers use. On the cartoon series, let’s just say that Roy (renamed Bully) is not the kind of Koopaling you’d want to face in a dark castle. Though I like his sunglasses. I wonder if Roy ever takes them off.
Lemmy Koopa: This Koopaling has a thing for bouncing balls, which makes him difficult to pounce on because he’s so high off the ground. That also makes him playful in a deadly way. On the cartoon series, he is Hip the other youngest twin.
Let me backtrack a little bit. You hardly ever see Hip and Hop apart. They’re so close that they even tend to finish each other’s sentences. The Koopaling twins are labeled to be six years old while the others are in their teens.
Ludwig Von Koopa: He’s the oldest Koopaling and one of the toughest with his fighting skill. On the cartoon series, Ludwig is a mad scientist and was renamed Kooky Von Koopa. He has brains and brawn. Now that’s a rarity with villains. In his first appearance on the Super Mario Bros. 3 NES game Ludwig had the same stomp method that Roy has, but he was described to have had all the fighting skills of his other siblings combined. No wonder Ludwig shows different skills on each of the later games. Too bad he never showed them on the cartoons.
Having these classic Koopalings return was definitely part of what made New Super Mario Bros. Wii a huge success. I wonder if their long absence was from brain trauma, considering how many times Mario and Luigi have jumped on their heads. And of course the lava baths some of them had from the Super Mario World game for Super NES.
At one point I thought that Bowser Jr. was a replacement to modernize the franchise, but I’m glad he wasn’t. Bowser Jr. is merely the eighth child to the Koopa family, and Bowser is still single? Dude, if the Mushroom Kingdom had reality TV, I can somehow see this leading to something like “Octo-Dad”.
I’ve been a fan of the Super Mario Bros. franchise for a long time. So I put together a character evolution post on one of the top damsels of the video game world.
1985: Princess Toadstool started out in the original Super Mario Bros. NES game as the damsel in distress Mario and Luigi head out to rescue from King Koopa. Although her look at the time was pretty shoddy as an 8-bit character, it was still exciting to see her in the game. Considering that you had to get through eight different castles to find her.
On a side note, 8-bit characters can be a little misleading. Would you believe I used to think that the Goombas were angry bird heads with feet?
1988: When the Super Mario Bros. 2 NES game came along, there was the option to play as the Princess. I find that as useful as it is interesting. The Princess may have been the slowest runner and the slowest at picking up items, but she could float in the air for long distances with her jumping skill. I wonder if it has something to do with that dress.
1989: In Super Mario Land for Game Boy, Mario rescues the Princess from an alien named Tatanga. It’s revealed that her first name is Daisy, but is it really the same princess? It only took four castles to find this one.
1989: Later that year, Princess Toadstool’s look really started to change when The Super Mario Bros. Super Show premiered. As she travels with Mario, Luigi, and Toad, it’s revealed that she’s not spoiled. (Thank goodness.) The Princess is a fighter and good ruler. She just can’t help getting kidnapped by King Koopa so frequently.
1990: Next up in the Super Mario Bros. 3 NES game, Princess Toadstool provides special items for the Mario Bros. after defeating a Koopaling like magic P-wings and happy faced clouds that let you skip levels. Unfortunately, after getting through World 7, King Koopa kidnaps the Princess again. At least we know where to find her this time.
1991: Then we have Super Mario World for the Super NES. King Koopa kidnaps the Princess yet again. This time it’s in a clown copter. I admit, she sure looks good when she peeks out and screams for help.
1992: At around this time, “Nintendo Power” magazine started having comics based on Nintendo characters in Manga style animation. One of my favorites was Super Mario Adventures. Throughout this story, the Princess can be pretty fierce when she’s angry. Was King Koopa trying to turn her people into statues again?
1993: When Super Mario All Stars was released for the Super NES, Princess Toadstool had a more graphic look as both a heroine and a damsel.
1993: Samantha Mathis plays the Princess in the Super Mario Bros. movie and is one of several damsels in distress. Her name is Daisy, so maybe the princess in Super Mario Land is the same girl.
1996: After Mario saves the Princess and her kingdom in Super Mario 64, Princess Toadstool decides to prepare a cake for him as a reward. That’s nice. It sure beats a second quest.
1999: I stand corrected on the Princess’s name. On Super Mario Bros. Deluxe for Game Boy Color, Princess Toadstool’s first name is now revealed as Peach. In a perfected version of the original Super Mario Bros. game, along with some newer challenges and extra courses, Princess Peach awards Mario and Luigi with medals for completing their quests. Come on now, Peach. Is this supposed to be a competition based on a nostalgic rescue mission, or something?
2006: When Super Princess Peach came out for the Nintendo DS, things got turned around. Peach has to rescue Mario from King Koopa. On this quest, she’s armed with a talking parasol and vibe power. I never realized how emotional Peach could really get.
2006: Not to worry. Princess Peach goes back to her damsel roots in New Super Mario Bros. DS as Bowser Jr. quickly drags her from tower to castle to tower and so on. I wonder how she manages to keep her dress clean through all that fast dragging.
2007: It wasn’t until the Mario Party games, like Mario Party DS, when we find out that there are two princesses in the Mushroom Kingdom, Peach and Daisy. The difference between them is that Peach is noble and graceful while Daisy is spunky and sassy. I’ll tell ya. Daisy would’ve made a great character on the Super Mario Bros. cartoons as well. Frankly, so would Wario and Waluigi, but that’s beside the point.
2008: Here’s where things really get interesting. On Mario Kart Wii not only is there an option to be either princess, but also either baby princess. They’re both adorable and wild in those vehicles. I wonder if that’s what they were like during their childhood.
2009: Last, but definitely not least, we have New Super Mario Bros. Wii when Princess Peach gets kidnapped by all eight Koopalings and the Mario Bros. chase them while she sits helpless in the airship before getting dragged into King Koopa’s castle. Fighting Bowser is easy. The hard part is dodging those waves of lava as you cross the platforms to where Peach is.
Whether a damsel in distress or a fierce fighter like on Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo Wii, Princess Peach has come a long way as a fan favorite. King Koopa must really have a thing for Peach if he keeps kidnapping her all the time. I can only think of three possible reasons for it. He either wants something from Peach, use her as bait to get to the heroes, or just personal pleasure. It’s hard to say what King Koopa’s motivation really is. There were times when Bowser wanted to marry Peach. Ewe! Apparently, Bowser also wants her kingdom. But he ain’t getting it as long as Mario and Luigi are around.
Jan 272010
Mario Kart Wii with Wii Wheel
The routes that I think are the most difficult are the ones without barriers. That’s right. In stages like “Wario’s Gold Mine” and “Rainbow Road” it’s easy to fall in a hole. It won’t kill ya, but you will fall behind.
Throughout the races, you will find question blocks that will give you items to throw at your fellow racers as well as booster items to help you gain the lead. The items are always random, which makes it unreliable. But usually it depends on where you are in the race. If you were in last, you’d get a bullet bill that gets you back near the lead. If you’re first, all you get is a banana peel. Seriously, do banana peels in the road actually cause car accidents?
One route I get concerned with is “Moonview Highway”, where you have to go through a busy city street. Really. What kind of idiot would put a race route there during rush hour?
It’s great that nobody gets killed in this game, but with all that goes on I’m surprised that nobody even gets hurt. Even after falling into lava pits. Makes you wonder about the health insurance in the Mushroom Kingdom.
As you win more races and get gold medals, more characters and cars are unlocked. Sometimes the task requires winning WFC ghost races. That sounds simple. To me, the hard part is finding that mode. The strategy guide provides the details on how to unlock each character/car. Some tasks may appear very difficult. Especially the ones that require a Star rank or completing race routes in the 150 mode. On the bright side, the alternative is to play a certain number of games. Like at least a thousand or so. As Waluigi would say, “Everybody cheats. Next time I cheat.”
It’s usually best to stick with characters you’re comfortable with. One of my favorites is Baby Peach. She’s a hilariously adorable wild child. No wonder Princess Peach keeps getting in trouble. Even as an adult.
After getting gold medals in the 50, 100, and 150 modes, you unlock Mirror mode. There, all of the race routes are in reverse. That may seem awkward after being used to the regular race routes, especially with the difficulty level of the 150 mode, but it’s real creative.
Normally I never was into racing games, because it’s so difficult to stay on the road. Let alone keep up. In fact, as a kid, the only part of auto racing I ever liked was that the cars were all numbered. None of the cars in this game are numbered, but Mario Kart Wii turned out to be a great Wii game to play. Hooray for Mario!
Jan 152010
Just when you thought the Super Mario Bros. franchise couldn’t get any better, it does with New Super Mario Bros
The story begins with Princess Peach and the Mario Bros. celebrating her birthday at the castle. When the cake arrives, it turns out to be a trap from King Koopa. Not only does Bowser Jr. pop out, but also the other seven Koopalings. They all capture Princess Peach and take her away in an airship. Mario, Luigi, and two Toad-like characters (whose names are never mentioned) go after them through all kinds of levels.
There are many types of enemies, old and new. If you are highly familiar with New Super Mario Bros.
Sometimes you have to rescue Toad in a random level by carrying him all the way to the goal. That’s right, carry. And without getting hit by an enemy or an obstacle. Can’t that Toad ever stay out of trouble?
Surely, you remember Larry Koopa, Roy Koopa, Lemmy Koopa, Wendy O. Koopa, Iggy Koopa, Morton Koopa Jr., and Ludwig Von Koopa. I admit, we haven’t seen any of them since Super Mario World back in 1991. At that time, three of the Koopalings had stretched out and shrank into nothing and the others were plunged into lava pits. I guess they did survive after all.
The tactics to fighting these bosses are basically the same, but with a new modern twist. In worlds 1-7 you fight a Koopaling and defeat him/her with three stomps to the head. After defeating the Koopaling in a tower, you have to fight him/her again in a castle. But there, Magikoopa uses his magic to add an extra obstacle to the one on one boss battle. Each Koopaling has a different obstacle, so you’ll never know what to expect. Game tip: If there are any holes in the room, don’t bother trying to lure a Koopaling into them. They never fall for it. On occasion, you’ll have to fight Bowser Jr. in an airship level in a flying clown copter. More oldies, but goodies. If only the tactics to defeating Bowser Jr. were more simple.
Then comes world 8. After defeating Magikoopa in the tower and Bowser Jr. on the airship… again, it all comes down to the final confrontation with King Koopa. It starts out simple with the “bridge out” method, but it’s not over yet. Thanks to Magikoopa, King Koopa becomes bigger and scarier than ever. You can’t fight him. You have to work your way to Princess Peach as King Koopa comes after you.
This is definitely one of the greatest Super Mario Bros. games to date. Now as for how the story ends. Well, I’ll just let you discover that.
