Mario is one of the biggest franchises in the video game industry. Such a big franchise is bound to have various characters. Here we look at some of the memorable characters that appeared in the Mario series apart from Mario.
Luigi
Luigi is the younger brother of Mario and is dressed in a green shirt with dark blue overalls. Just like his elder brother, Luigi is also a plumber. Miyamoto was inspired by the game called Joust and wanted to create a two-player option for Mario. Luigi was thus created. Luigi was named after the pizza parlor near Nintendo’s headquarters in America called ‘Mario & Luigi’s,’ and the Japanese word ‘ruigi’ means ‘similar.’ Luigi is similar to Mario, and hence the name was decided.
Princess Peach
Princess Peach (most talked about characters) is the princess of the mushroom kingdom who is often kidnapped by Bowser. She is portrayed as the love interest of Mario. She is the lead female of the series and saving her wins the game. Princess Peach has blue eyes, a rosy complexion, blonde hair, and has an hourglass figure. She usually wears a pink evening gown, with short puffy sleeves and a pannier-style overskirt. She wears red heels, white gloves, cyan brooch, cyan earrings, and a gold crown with red and gold jewels. She is called as Princess Peach in the Japanese version but is renamed as Princess Toadstool in the American version of the game.
Toad
Toad is a citizen of the mushroom kingdom and is one of the loyal assistants of the Princess. He is mostly a non-playable character but helps Mario in his quest. Toad belongs to a species called ‘Kinoko-zoku,’ which means ‘Mushroom people.’ The appearance of Toad resembles a mushroom’s shape and color. Although it’s been speculated that the Toad wears a mushroom hat, Yoshiaki Koizumi, the designer of the game ruled it out.
Yoshi
Yoshi is an anthropomorphic dinosaur that appears in the Super Mario franchise. Miyamoto always wanted a dinosaur to accompany Mario in his quest but was unable to achieve it due to the limitations of the Nintendo Entertainment System. But as soon as the Super Nintendo Entertainment System was released, Miyamoto achieved his dream and introduced the dinosaur into the franchise. Yoshi is known for its extendable tongue which captures an object. Yoshi then swallows the object or throws the object away. Yoshi also has a powerful nose that allows it to identify hidden objects.