Play Nintendo
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Play Nintendo is a division of Nintendo's official North American website. It promotes contemporary Nintendo systems and games, while maintaining a focus on appealing to a younger audience. It was established on October 5, 2014.[1] The icon used for the website appears to be a Power Star or Super Star.
The website's content is split into three sections: Friends, Explore, and News & Tips. A clickable ? Block appears throughout these sections, which random events occur when clicked, like 8-bit Super Mario walking across the webpage, or coins appear on the screen, which can be collected with the mouse cursor.
Friends
"Friends" consists of profile artworks and descriptions of various main Mario and other Nintendo characters. The following Mario characters are listed on the website, along with their respective descriptions.
| Character | Description |
|---|---|
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When he isn't rescuing princesses, you'll find him doing... pretty much anything you can think of. Mario is always ready to help a friend, take on a new challenge, or jump on a Koopa's head. He can also smoke the competition on a rainbow race track and swat a golf ball underwater. |
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Ghosts and Goombas alike better not underestimate this hero. Talk about spirit! Luigi keeps his Poltergust 5000 set to "Awesome". He may not always be at the center of the action, but when Mario needs him, Luigi jumps right into harm's way. |
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Don't let the dainty crown and the parasol fool you. Peach is powerful in pink. She spent her fair share of time stuck in Bowser's castle and didn't care for it—Princess Peach prefers to be the one doing the rescuing, racing, and competing. |
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Hey, that isn't a walking mushroom—it's Toad, Mario's loyal friend! In a kingdom full of Toads, there is only one "Toad"—and he’ll point you to the right castle. He's small in stature under that polka dot cap, but he has a huge heart and extremely speedy feet! |
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From tracking treasure to crafting paper, tiny Toadette is always ready to face a challenge. She's a lightweight on the kart track, but Toadette really knows her stuff when it comes to fun and adventure. This pink-and-white member of the Toad species gets really pumped up when she's out to save the day! |
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This spiny shelled menace may be strong, but his breath isn't everything. Bowser isn’t exactly a "friend," but where would Mario be without a troublesome giant Koopa who keeps snatching Princess Peach? The world would certainly be a lot less fun. |
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Interstellar observer, protector of the Lumas, and friend to Mario. From her Comet observatory, Rosalina scans the cosmos for adorable Lumas to adopt. From behind the wheel of a kart, she scans the track for rivals to pelt with green shells. |
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The Mushroom Kingdom's most fearful foe is... not the Goomba. But don’t tell them that. It's pretty easy to take on a Goomba—they can usually be defeated with a well-timed jump. But these Mushroom Kingdom creatures are still part of Bowser's army, so beware! |
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Don't tell one of these minions to come out of its shell (unless you plan to throw its shell right back at it). These members of Bowser's Koopa Troop wear their homes—and their weapons—on their backs. You can usually find them marching through the Mushroom Kingdom and looking for trouble. |
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This rude and crude fellow likes to toot... his own horn. Wario is stubborn, sneaky, and every bit as crooked as his mustache—the complete opposite of his rival, Mario. But he's got a head for business, and despite his greedy nature, he's been known to lend the occasional helping hand. |
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She's got a gown and a crown, but this friendly princess is totally down to earth. Daisy’s always ready for a challenge, whether she's smashing tennis balls or jumping over hurdles. The ruler of Sarasaland loves the thrill of the chase, too—especially when she's zooming around on a kart. |
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Who are these masked rascals that cause so much trouble for Yoshi and Mario? It seems like Shy Guys are always around, whether you're driving a kart, hitting a tennis ball, having a party, or rescuing a baby from a bespectacled Magikoopa. |
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What does Yoshi do to beat up baddies? It's right on the tip of his tongue... When trouble comes a-calling, this sticky-tongued, egg-laying wonder will flutter jump to the rescue. So who does Yoshi count on to have his back? Mario, of course! |
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Think you're tough? Try going on adventures in a diaper. While other babies roll aimlessly on the floor and cry for milk, Baby Mario rides like a boss on the back of a Yoshi... and hungers for justice. |
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There's no napping for this beleaguered baby when enemies abound. Baby Mario's brother has spent a lot of time in Kamek’s clutches, but Baby Luigi also gets plenty of outdoor time driving a kart. |
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This sneaky Magikoopa keeps trying (and failing) to stop the future Super Mario Bros. You could argue that Kamek is just trying to make life easier for his fellow Koopas, but his airborne schemes always end up making a mess for everyone. |
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This friendly Kong goes absolutely bananas when it comes to jumping and pounding. Donkey Kong has changed a lot since he got a game named after him way back when. He has a nice family and wears a tie, but he still likes to crash through branches and boxes in the jungle. |
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He might look harmless to jungle baddies, but this small Kong is a peanut-popping powerhouse! You'll often find him riding on Donkey Kong's back, but Diddy Kong is no burden—he can blast his big buddy to new heights with his Rocket Barrel Boost! |
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Look in the sky! It's an itty-bitty blonde whirlybird Kong! It would be easy to underestimate this tiny Kong with a smiling face and a pony tail tucked under her pink beret, but Dixie Kong can more than carry her own weight for the Kong clan. |
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He'll throw enemies out of the jungle—as soon as he puts in his dentures. Stooped in stature, but sizable in spirit, the curmudgeonly Cranky Kong springs out of his rocking chair—and into the action—with his spike-proof, bouncing cane. |
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These frigid foes froze Donkey Kong Island. That's so cold! The Snowmads are an invasion force of walruses, seals, penguins and other beasties who bring cold temperatures, thievery, and wacky boss battles to a peaceful tropical island. |
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Ride in style on the back of this rambunctious rhino. Donkey Kong can smash his way through a box or two, but he needs his horned helper to power through stone blocks... and the occasional enemy. |
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This troublesome tribe can’t mask their thieving nature. With a little bit of hocus pocus, these musical hypnotists can turn the gentle beasts of the jungle into fearsome foes. |
Explore
This section of the website contains Nintendo-related activities, videos, quizzes, polls, image galleries and downloadable content (such as wallpapers and printable door hangers).
Activities features interactive Flash games. Mario-themed activities include:
- There's a Goomba on my desktop: A desktop or mobile phone wallpaper creator in the style of Super Mario Maker. Many classic Mario gameplay elements, such as Goombas and ? Blocks can be arranged into a downloadable wallpaper.
- Donkey Kong Match-Up: A card-matching game featuring Donkey Kong characters and items based on Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. There are three modes to play: Easy, Medium and Hard.
- Mushroom Kingdom Match-Up: Similar to Donkey Kong Match-Up, but featuring main series characters such as Yoshi and Princess Peach. The Super Mario Bros. overworld theme is heard while playing the game. The reverse of the cards show a picture of a ? Block.
- Yoshi's New Island Match-Up: A card matching game using imagery from Yoshi's New Island. The common overworld level theme is heard while playing the game.
- Mario Stargazer:
- Mario Kart 8 Party Starter:
Downloads contains the following printable Mario-related content:
- Door hangers featuring Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach and Daisy.
- Mario and Luigi masks.
- A Father's Day card featuring Bowser and Bowser Jr.
- Two Mother's Day cards. One features Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, and Baby Peach. The other features Rosalina and a Luma.
- To celebrate National Siblings day on April 10, four different Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U cards are available to download.
- A Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam-themed fortune teller featuring Mario, Luigi Princess Peach and Bowser.
- A group of six Valentines Day cards, featuring Mario characters and enemies such as Shy Guy, Rosalina and Boo. A pun is written on each card. A second group of Valentines Day cards also feature an artwork of Yoshi and Poochy.
- A Valentines day card pouch featuring Mario and Princess Peach, with the message "Happy Valentines Day" below.
News & Tips
The Play Nintendo Show
Play Nintendo also extends to YouTube audiences using an official channel containing gameplay videos of contemporary games, and other Nintendo-related videos. The Play Nintendo Show is a current series of YouTube videos featuring a Piranha Plant named Izzy as a co-host. The second host, named Andrew, begins the show by exiting a Warp Pipe. The show is set in a Mario-themed room with plush toys and pictures of Coins and other Mario-related pictures on the walls. Andrew calls the room "Casa de Nintendo", Spanish for "House of Nintendo".
- Episode 1: Coin Crazy with New Super Mario Bros. 2 – Andrew and Izzy rank the five greatest Mario Power-Ups. Later, New Super Mario Bros. 2 is reviewed. Andrew mentions that any coins that he collects will go towards Bowser's birthday.
- # 1 Super Leaf
- # 2 Gold Flower
- # 3 Mega Mushroom
- # 4 Mini Mushroom
- # 5 Super Star
- Episode 6: Mario Kart 7 Road Hog – For this episode, the duo ranks the five Mario Kart 7 items that will help them get to class on time.
- # 1 Lucky Seven
- # 2 Super Star
- # 3 Super Leaf
- # 4 Banana
- # 5 Lightning
- Episode 9: Paper Mario: Color Splash - Paint Palooza – For this episode, the duo ranks the five ways the Paint Hammer can be used to do chores in Paper Mario: Color Splash.
Gallery
Artwork
Promotional artwork of Mario and other characters at a beach.
Artwork for the Mushroom Kingdom Match-Up game.
The Play Nintendo logo.
The Play Nintendo Show logo.
A picture of Bowser's birthday, used for Episode 1 of the Play Nintendo Show.
Icons
Play Nintendo's website icon.
Block
? Block
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Printable downloads
Mother's Day card featuring Rosalina and Luma.
Door hanger featuring Mario and Luigi.
Door hanger featuring Princess Peach and Princess Daisy.
Father's Day card featuring Bowser and Bowser Jr..
Fortune teller based on Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam.
Valentines Day card featuring Mario.
Valentines Day card featuring Yoshi and Poochy, based on Yoshi's Woolly World.
Valentines Day card featuring Mario.
Valentines Day card featuring Princess Peach.
Valentines Day card featuring Shy Guy.
Valentines Day card featuring Toad.
Valentines Day card featuring Boo.
Valentines Day card featuring Rosalina.
Photographs
Website featuring Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
Photograph of Izzy the Piranha Plant.
