Dr. Mario

Dr. Mario, M.D., is the physician alter-ego of Mario, perhaps his most important one of all of them. Trading in his plumber's overalls for a doctor's lab coat, Dr. Mario is a force to be reckoned with in the medical community. Just as Mario assumes the role of the good doctor, Princess Peach assumes the role of the attentive nurse.

Day and night, Dr. Mario works hard in his laboratory developing cures to the new Viruses that have appeared throughout the years. The good doctor has developed special Megavitamins to destroy these Viruses and cure the sick. Dr. Mario's work has provided incredible health benefits to the people of Mushroom World. However, one cure has constantly eluded him - the cure for the common cold.

''Dr. Mario
The very first game that featured Dr. Mario was indeed entitled Dr. Mario, and was on the Nintendo Entertainment System. The game introduced the typical gameplay of Dr. Mario games, where the player simply controlled the Megavitamins to land on the Viruses. If Dr. Mario stacked three halves of Megavitamins (at least) on a Virus that was the same color as it, it would be terminated. As such, yellow Viruses were eliminated with yellow Megavitamins, red Viruses were eliminated with red Megavitamins, and blue Viruses were eliminated with blue Megavitamins. Once all Viruses were destroyed, Dr. Mario would move on to the next level.

The classic gameplay of the game was carried on in each of the next Dr. Mario games.

''Vs. Dr. Mario
As the name may imply, Dr. Mario Vs. was a game that was made for Vs. matches of Dr. Mario's Virus-busting. It was on the Nintendo Vs. System. The gameplay was the same as the original, with minimal differences.

''Dr. Mario 64
Dr. Mario 64 was a game on the Nintendo 64. It was the first game in the Dr. Mario series to feature a storyline. In it, Mad Scienstein robs Dr. Mario of his Megavitamins, and brings them to his master, Rudy the Clown. Dr. Mario, as well as Wario, who wants to sell the Megavitamins for money, set off to defeat the two. As it turns out, Rudy was sick and Scienstein was ordered to get the magical healing pills.

Story Mode of Dr. Mario 64 would pit Dr. Mario (or Wario) against various villains in Vs. matches of Virus busting. It also featured the original game, known as Classic Mode.

''Dr. Mario & Germ Buster
Though not an actual game, Dr. Mario Virus Buster is a WiiWare game (and therefore is on the Wii). Alongside the doctor to bust Viruses are Miis - players can choose to play as any Mii on their Mii Channel. The game features Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, allowing Vs. matches to take place around the world.

Remakes & Compilations
Many of Dr. Mario's games have been remade or featured in compilations of puzzle games.

''Classic NES Series: Dr. Mario
One of many NES games that were remade for the Classic NES Series on the Game Boy Advance. The game had the exact same gameplay as the original Dr. Mario, meaning that, of course, Dr. Mario himself appeared.

''Nintendo Puzzle Collection
Featured on the Nintendo GameCube and only released in Japan. This game featured many different past Nintendo puzzle games (such as Tetris and Yoshi's Cookie), and Dr. Mario 64 was only one of them.

''Dr. Mario & Puzzle League
For the Game Boy Advance, this game featured Dr. Mario alongside an unrelated game, Puzzle League.

Super Smash Bros. series
Dr. Mario is a hidden playable character in Super Smash Bros. Melee. He is unlocked by beating Classic mode with Mario, without losing any lives, and then beating Dr. Mario. Although dressed differently, Dr. Mario fights exactly like his normal self, Mario, though a little slower in speed. However, instead of fireballs, Dr. Mario shoots Megavitamins at his opponents, his smash attack uses electricity instead of fire, and his regular yellow cape is replaced by his doctor's cloak. Dr. Mario is slower than his red counterpart, but he is more powerful. This more than makes up for his lack of good running and jumping skills. He was removed in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Dr. Mario's Super Smash Bros. Melee theme can be one of the songs that play in the PictoChat and custom stages, however. Hacked data for Dr. Mario was found, confirming that he was supposed to have another role in the game.

Megavitamin
In Super Smash Bros. Melee, Dr. Mario's neutral B attack makes him shoot Megavitamins. They act the same as Mario's Fireball move, except that the Megavitamins are more powerful. In fact, they are one of the strongest fast-moving projectile in the game. They also bounce in a different pat, and make a different noise when it hits. There's also a trophy of Dr. Mario shooting Megavitamins and one of the vitamins themselves. Kirby is also able to use the Megavitamins if he copies Dr. Mario's powers.

Super Sheet
Super Sheet is a move used by Dr. Mario in the game Super Smash Bros. Melee. It is executed by pressing Side+B. The attack is almost the same as Mario's Cape attack, except that Super Sheet is longer, and does more damage. It is actually one of Dr. Mario's doctor cloaks. Like the Cape, it can change the directions of projectile-based attacks, and can also change the position the foe is facing. The Super Sheet will usually do around 10% of damage. The attack can also be used to shift the direction of a player who is trying to get back on the field. In this case, they will be turned around, and will instead jump back on air, rather than jump on the field.

Super Jump Punch
The Super Jump Punch is a jumping move Mario, Luigi, and Dr. Mario can perform in the Super Smash Bros. series. It is executed by pressing B while holding the control stick upwards at the same time. When Dr. Mario performs the attack, coins fly out of the enemy, and the foe receives about 10% damage. Dr. Mario's version of the attack is the exact same as Mario's, but it's more powerful. Also, the sound effect is different than the usual sound made when Mario grabs a coin.

Dr. Tornado
Dr. Tornado is one of Dr. Mario's special attacks in the game Super Smash Bros. Melee. The attack is executed by pressing Down + B. Dr. Tornado has the same effect as the Mario Tornado, except that it is a little stronger. The special attack traps the victim into a tornado, punches them constantly, and then smashes them up into the air when the move is done. The attack can also very lightly pull someone near into the Tornado. Unlike Mario Tornado, Dr. Tornado throws them in a random direction, rather than straight up. Dr. Mario is able to hover in the air when using this attack, by holding the B Button while using it.

Other Appearances
Ironically, before even the first version of Dr. Mario was released, Mario and Luigi referred to each other as "Dr. Mario" and "Dr. Luigi" at one point on The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, during the live-action segment "Defective Gadgetry".

Dr. Mario also appears in Nintendo Comics System's adaptation of Dr. Mario, which was entitled "The Doctor Is In... Over His Head".

One part of the Super Mario Adventures comic has Mario dressing up as a doctor. However, in this case, Mario is pretending to be psychiatrist instead of actually becoming a medical physician.

Also, in the Super Mario World TV show episode "King Scoopa Koopa", Mario finishes off his healthy-eating request to a group of cavepeople with the line "Dr. Mario's orders!". Dr. Mario was given a similar reference in Paper Mario when the thankful Whale told Mario that he should be addressed by the title of "Dr. Mario" after Mario and his partners expelled the Fuzzipede from the Whale's body, thus ending his stomachache.

In the Nintendo Monopoly, Dr. Mario only makes a small cameo in one of the ? Block Cards.

Dr. Mario also appears in the Club Nintendo comic "Süße Weihnachten" where he helps Bowser who suffers from stomachache.