Nintendo’s First Playable Female Protagonist Isn’t Female in Japan
Clu Clu Land’s Bubbles the Bubblefish is female in English-speaking territories — and she may or may not be a fish?
Why Did Nintendo Change Foreman Spike’s Name?
This might be the first instance of the movie’s success affecting the games that inspired it.
Foreman Spike Was the Original Wario
If you saw the Super Mario Bros. movie and wondered who Spike guy was, this is the post for you.
A History of Toad’s Gender… One Way or Another
The most famous mushroom in video games wasn't supposed to be male or female.
Did Super Mario Bros. 3 Change Our Understanding of the Tanuki?
Tanuki don’t fly and don’t have ringed tails… until Mario told the world they did.
The Indie Pop Legacy of Super Mario Land 2
And the very curious way that pop music interacts with VGM… but doesn’t usually acknowledge it.
Yoshi vs. the Loch Ness Monster
The legacy of Nessie looms weirdly large in the Super Mario games.
How Final Fantasy Taught Me the Word ‘Jihad’
From censorship to sensitivity, there’s a lot to unpack in the story behind FFVI’s Crusader summon.
Bahamut and Behemoth: One and the Same?
Final Fantasy’s king of dragons has a special link to one of the game’s recurring enemies.
Sea Hag or Sagahin? A Quick History of an RPG Water Monster
Final Fantasy’s resident mermen come from D&D but draw on a richer and weirder variety of sources.
Meet Mega Man’s Brother, Bruce
It’s GamePro’s fault that I was technically wrong about Mega Man III on the playground back in 1990.
The Story Behind Super Mario RPG’s Valentina
Originally, Valentina was planned for a different storyline, but no worries — she always had a parrot on her head.
A Parade of Princess Peach Prototypes
The benevolent Mushroom Kingdom monarch wasn’t always what she is today.
What Is the Etymology of ‘Goomba’?
And when did Nintendo decide that Mario was Italian-American?
The Extended Capcom Darkstalkers Universe
Celebrating Halloween with Darkstalkers and the various other horror-adjacent Capcom monsters.
Dogs, Popeye and the Super Mario Bros. Anime
A story about jeeps and Japanese dumplings and the canine members of the Mario universe.
Is There a John Candy Joke in the Ending to Castlevania?
Joke credits like Boris Karloffice namecheck the game’s horror movie inspirations, but not all of them are quite so obvious.
The Many Mysteries of Castlevania’s Sypha Belnades
Is she actually supposed to be Cipher Fernandez?
What’s With the Equals Signs in Golden Axe?
A story about swinging blades, ripping muscles and… punctuation.
How Popeye Changed Video Games
Popeye lives, just not so much in the medium that made him famous.