The most famous video game character ever has a very long history. Mario and Luigi, in fact, made their debut in the first half of the '80s
If there is a video game character who has made history, it is certainly Mario, the hero of a long and (almost always) successful series of titles that has changed the economic fortunes, in a positive way, of what is now a giant of entertainment: Nintendo.
The story of Mario, and his brother Luigi, begins in the distant 1981: the first appearance of the two plumbers, who were then, however, two carpenters, dates back to the first game of the series Donkey Kong created by the genius of Shigeru Miyamoto. Mario (who takes the name of an Italian-American entrepreneur, Mario Segale) and Luigi must save a beautiful girl prisoner of an evil ape who throws barrels towards them to block their path. At the time, Mario was called "Jumpman," and he wasn't yet a star. But very little time would pass before his global explosion.
History of an icon
Of the various characters that dot the history of the gaming world, Mario (and his brother Luigi, of course) is the most long-lived. As mentioned, his debut on the video game scene dates back to 1981: 40 years of honorable career, spent jumping on pipes, mushrooms, turtles and other mysterious creatures. Over the years, the history and the "life" of Mario and Luigi have been inextricably linked to that of Nintendo.
At the launch of each new console, the Japanese company combined a new chapter in the saga of Mario and Luigi, to which new characters were added from time to time. Thus came Princess Peach and Bowser, Yoshi and Wario and many others. Mario has also come out of his "universe" to land in other adventures: the plumber mustache has dressed the role of the pilot (in Mario Kart), the tennis player (in Mario Tennis) or the golfer (in Mario Golf).
In short, a versatile character who, in recent years, has also landed on smartphones. Nintendo has released, both for Android and iPhone, Mario Run, Mario Kart and Dr. Mario World, the first three "mobile" chapters of the historic video game saga.