The large majority of early video games featured a multiplayer split-screen mode, probably due to the fact that the earliest analog games were mostly enjoyed in person with friends and family. While most gaming veterans’ first multiplayer memories will involve swapping a controller back and forth during classic titles such as the original Super Mario Bros, the modern generation’s lasting memories of multiplayer gaming will probably revolve around being called out on Xbox Live by someone halfway across the world. Nevertheless, despite the ever-changing nature of multiplayer games, they remain a staple of the industry due to the simple fact that it’s generally more fun to play with other people.

Is our beloved video game character telling the tale of a mid-life crisis? In the lead-up to the October 27 release of Super Mario Odyssey, it has been revealed that he is no longer a plumber, and not only has Mario taken up grooming moustaches, he seems to have abandoned his modesty, too, and is totally fine with revealing his beach body.

Mario without his shirt on is Nintendo telling us that he’s just a human like the rest of us. Besides, wouldn’t it have been weirder if the plucky plumber didn’t have any?

When I initially came across the rumour that Nintendo and Ubisoft had gotten together to make a Super Mario/Raving Rabbids crossover game I chose to ignore it.

The very idea of the letting the trite, irritating humour that defines the latter company’s screaming mascots into Mario’s Mushroom Kingdom just felt like a bad idea to me. I was wrong! Not only is Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle actually a pretty good game, the mascots I rejected before even seeing manage to steal the show!

An Italian plumber with a bushy moustache who jumps on the heads of his foes –strangely enough, that’s the description of one of the most beloved video game characters the world has ever seen! Over the years Mario has moved on and up, and his long history provides a heady number of games to compare. We’ve rounded up the best 5 Mario games ever, so take a look and see what titles are considered tops.

The world’s favourite moustachioed plumber is back, and this time he’s rewriting the rules of Monopoly.

Hasbro have teamed up with Nintendo to put together the ultimate revision to the classic board game, now 82 years of age and still going strong. Monopoly Gamer Edition is set to hit the shelves in August, but is available to order now from GameStop at the more than reasonable price of $24.99 if you can’t wait that long. And if you fancy splashing out for a bit extra, try the Collector’s Edition ($39.99) for a few more bells and whistles, including a Bowser token to play with.

Forget the Bermuda Triangle, Easter Island, and the Lizard Queen of Buckingham Palace, the biggest mystery of the modern world has to be the nearly unending appeal of one fat plumber – not a cute hedgehog or a crazed bandicoot but a portly pipe bender. It is, of course, Nintendo’s long-serving mascot Mario, who, with the October 2017 release of Super Mario Odyssey, will have appeared in more than 250 original titles since his inception in 1985. The character reportedly has a single grey hair in the latter game; with the mileage Nintendo have got from the moustachioed Italian, it’s no surprise.

IMAGE SOURCE: NintendoViewer on Facebook

If you’re a fan of video games and you’re familiar with Sega’s line of consoles, you’ve probably heard about Sonic the Hedgehog. This friendly character as been featured in countless video games on different consoles and is still popular to this day. In this article, I will give you a quick history of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise and some facts on this lovable character.

“Super Mario.” (CC BY 2.0) by Tom Newby Photography

The release of any new product means another chance for a classic to come back to life in a differnt form. With Nintendo Switch already beating its expected sales targets (2.7 million units shipped by the end of March 2017), Nintendo is prepping for the release of the last game in the Super Mario franchise.

Evidently, we all love our Mario games. Mario’s various adventures through Nintendo’s Mushroom Kingdom and beyond have delighted us since childhood, and have been doing so since 1985. He’s come a long way on his adventures since then, joined by his brother Luigi and many other notable figures from the cast (obviously, they need no introduction).