Super Paper Mario

Earlier this month Nintendo announced four new games for its budget-priced Selects line. Not long after, it sent copies of each newly packaged game to our doorstep – and today we wanna pass ‘em on to you!

What is it about stop motion that's so awesome? Maybe it's the amount of time it takes to do. The way you have to move everything in the scene 'just a tiny amount' in each frame. A talented Japanese game fan has gone to the trouble of animating a real-life Paper Mario around a school, with superb results.

It's safe to say that Mario is still the most famous game character in the world, and when a new game comes out, it will sell millions. But with the release of New Super Mario Bros Wii drawing fresh attention to Mario, we'd like to focus on the other, less-famous Mario brother and let you understand his virtual life. Though often featured in some of the greatest games of all time, Luigi mostly stands back while Mario takes all the credit.

Does having a moustache instantly put you in the category of Mario lookalike? That's today's burning question. And we're going to answer it. Right here. Right now. To find out, we took 20 images of famous real-life men with moustaches and stuck Mario's hat on them. But before we share the results of our Photoshop experiment, let's have a close look at the Nintendo mascot's trademark 'tache.

Mario has done it all, appearing in nearly every type of game imaginable. His (usual) success in every field is unparalleled in the realm of gaming mascots, but of all his spin-offs, our favorites have been Mario's forays into the world of role-playing games. Just like in every other genre, Mario made it his own while still keeping it fun for the level-grinding, loot-collectors.

Before we dunk our collective heads into the salty man-pool that is E3 2009, let’s take a moment to reflect on the events and images of E3 2004. Just five years ago Nintendo was struggling, Sony was unquestionably on top and Microsoft only had Halo 2 to keep fans attentive. Today… well, it’s a little different, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves

Earlier in the week, we published an article showing some 50 versions of Sonic the Hedgehog to see which one is the 'best' to play as. But you can't do one without the other, so here are nearly 70 versions of Mario for your eyes to boggle at.

It’s no surprise Nintendo would alter Mario and Bowser as time wears on, especially when their first appearances are crude sprites that barely convey what they’re supposed to be. If you study the duo’s evolution over the course of 23 years, it’s just plain funny how much Bowser has shifted sizes, from roughly comparable to Mario to Godzilla-sized beast of fury.