The Mario universe is known far and wide for it’s large, strange, and loveable cast of characters. The thing about this cast though, is that they are in so many different games across many different spin offs and genres. There are characters specific to the Donkey Kong universe, Wario-Ware, Mario Party and a few others. It’s usually in these spin off games where they all get to meet up in order to work together, or compete in some really fun gameplay. There is however, quite the inconsistency with what characters appear in what games, as some spin-offs tend to have more characters to play as than others. Some characters from the Mario universe have never even been in some of the spin-off games. In the spirit of Super Mario Party coming out today, I thought it would be fun to talk about some characters I’d like as possible DLC in the new game. Let’s begin.
Toadsworth –
I get that the running joke is that this gentleman of a Toad is old, but if he can play baseball, he can still definitely party. Since his first appearance in Super Mario Sunshine, Toadsworth has been a real odd-ball in the Mario Universe . The only games where you can play as him are the two Mario Baseball games that exist on the Gamecube and Wii, but other than that he is just a side character or makes brief cameos. You’d think he would be playable in a sport that is a bit less physical like Kart racing? He’s one of the only Toads that has appeared in mainline Mario games that has his own personality, so I think it would be cool if he was playable in Super Mario Party. Plus he’s the only damn Toad that doesn’t have the most annoying voice in the entire Mario franchise.
Funky Kong –
I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again, Funky Kong is one of, if not the best Mario/Donkey Kong character ever. Well, maybe along with Waluigi, but Waluigi is in most Mario Spin-off games, including Super Mario Party. The Donkey Kong world has a lot of obscure characters like Swanky Kong, Lanky Kong, and Chunky Kong, but Funky Kong is perhaps the coolest and most useful of them all. He provides the Kong family with cool gadgets and vehicles, and even rides his own kickass surf board. In Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze, he uses this surf-board to glide and guard himself from spikes, and in Mario Baseball, he uses it for a bat. Do I really need to convince you that this funky monkey deserves more time in the spotlight? His friend Donkey Kong has had a weird relationship with the Mario Party franchise. In some games, he has been a playable character, while in others, he has been a side characters that is integrated into the board-game type gameplay. Diddy Kong has just become playable for the first time in the series, so maybe it wouldn’t be such a stretch to include Funky as well. Since the game has character specific dice, maybe Funky’s dice could be more utility based by giving him more coins instead high number rolls. Please just give me this surf-board riding, bandana wearing monkey in Super Mario Party.
The Babies –
If you have played many of the spin-off titles than you know that there are multiple baby character versions of the Mario cast. To date, there are 7 of them: baby Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Rosalina, Donkey Kong, and even Wario. Although some of them have only made a few appearances, they have been featured regularly in newer games. Since their introduction in Yoshi’s Island, baby Mario & Luigi have been in a number of spin-off titles, from playing golf, to traveling in time. For the sake of inclusion however, I’m going to say that baby Peach and Daisy should also be added to the new Super Mario Party so there aren’t too many male characters. Plus they’re all just cute as hell. Maybe they could have the same personal dice as their adult counterparts? I also thought that maybe a reason they haven’t been added before is because they are too small, but Nintendo put Goomba in Super Mario Party, and he’s just a small AND doesn’t have hands!
Pauline –
The original damsel in distress. Yes, Pauline was there even before Peach, as she appeared in the original arcade version of Donkey Kong. After that, she has really only made appearances in the Mario & Donkey Kong series. Fast forward to 2017, and she actually shows up in the biggest way possible. Pauline shows up in the newest 3D Mario game, Mario Odyssey. And no, she’s not the damsel in distress, she’s actually the mayor of a bustling city called New Donk City. Kinda ironic, isn’t it? But since her inclusion in the hit game, fans have been clambering for her inclusion in Mario Kart, Tennis, and the new Super Mario Party. She’s an old-school character that has a shiny new look and it would be cool to see her more in new games and spin-offs. Why doesn’t Nintendo understand that their side characters are incredibly popular? JUST MAKE A WALUIGI GAME ALREADY.
Professor E Gadd –
Since his introduction in the first Luigi’s Mansion, E Gadd has had a very strange relationship within the Mario Universe. Let me go on a small rant for a second because he is one strange dude. When you first meet him in Luigi’s Mansion, E Gadd takes you to his underground laboratory which is right beside the haunted Mansion. He mentions that the mansion had appeared a few days earlier, this means that his laboratory, and I’m assuming where he lives, is in the middle of absolutely nowhere, in the middle of a creepy forest. The Professor seems like quite the energetic and positive guy, and living in a desolate, creepy forest seems like more of a gothic, emo teenager thing to do. If you have played Mario & Luigi Partners in Time, you know that E Gadd has literally created time travel. How is one man allowed to have that much power? Is there no argument about ethics in the Mushroom Kingdom? The final thing is… the guy has no eyes! His glasses have swirls in them, but behind those transparent glasses, there are no eyes. What. The. Hell. Kind of creepy when you think about it. Back to the topic at hand though, E Gadd has made appearances in mainline Mario games, even getting mentioned in Super Mario Sunshine. But he’s never been playable in any of the sports games, Mario Kart games, nor Mario Party. I just want this weird, kooky scientist to have some time in the spotlight and to be included in Super Mario Party.
Mario Party is a series that is ripe for DLC if done properly, and look, I’m even giving Nintendo some options here people! They have a plethora of side characters to work with, and maybe they could even add some more game boards for the more classic style of play. Hopefully this game really reboots the series and builds upon the older games. Like many others, I’m hoping for multiple Mario Party games on the Switch. If you have any cool ideas that the franchise should try, tell me down in the comments, I’d love to talk about it! Thank you for reading!
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