The Next Mario Bros. Movie Wishlist

 

Like many folks I spent some time this weekend at the movies, watching the new Mario Bros. film. I really enjoyed the film, and despite what the critics think so did many others. The film bought in over $300 million globally, opening weekend.

With that kind of money bringing the Brinks truck to Universal. Any day now there will be an official announcement another one is on the way. Now, Galaxy did a good job of adapting many components of different Mario games over the years. So I'm gonna predict what games may be inspiration for the next major adventure.

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins

So far in the two films, Mario has been on a rescue mission. A new film taking cues from 1992's Super Mario Land 2, could provide a new adventure and direction. It may would need to blend elements with the first Super Mario Land to achieve this mission.

However, the concept of Mario looking to obtain six coins to defeat the villain, could open up a web of good storylines. In taking inspiration from the game, could also be the introduction for Wario into the film universe.

Super Mario Bros. Sunshine

This 2002 Nintendo GameCube game was kind of adapted in the new movie. Bowser Jr. was first introduced in Super Mario Sunshine, and makes his film debut in Galaxy Movie.

The plot of sunshine is perfect for an adaption. The Mario Bros. and crew finally decide to take a vacation at the tropical Isle Delfino. Well the story can go many different ways, but its guaranteed to not be a fun time on the island.

Wario Land

Wario is Mario's second most known antagonist, and depending on how long Universal and Illumination  make these films. He's bound to pop up in one. The next film could be that one.

Introducing Wario as the next big bad. His 1994 film followed him searching for treasure, to build his own castle. Not perfect material for a adaption, but the concept of Wario trying to take over something makes the name WarioLand credible. As the brothers try to stop him.

Super Mario Kart

Come on, everyone wants to see Mario and gang in go-karts on the big screen. While I would prefer a plot based around the bros driving go-karts throughout individual planets. I'll settle for a sequence at least being included in a film.

Blend some Fast & Furious style with Mario bros. and it'll be a fun ride.

Luigi Mansion

The Luigi Mansion games is probably the title in the game series, with the most hope for a adaption. Its honestly a pretty straightforward adaption, first released in 2001 on GameCube. The game followe Luigi on a quest to save Mario from a haunted house.

Luigi the more timid of the two has to confront some fears, navigating the mansion to save his brother. Thats the whole movie, make some silly but frightful ghosts. Add Professor E. Gadd into the mix.  Some crazy quests in a enormous mansion. And release the film between late summer and early fall to tie into spooky season. 

Thats money in the bank right there.

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5 Nintendo Video Games Ready For Hollywood

Nintendo is going full steam ahead on making movies for their IP's, after the success of Super Mario Bros. in 2023. A sequel is due next year with a Legend Of Zelda movie due in 2027. And Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa hinting at more movies on the horizon. 

Now news has leaked that a Donkey Kong movie is in the works. With three of Nintendo's biggest properties prime for movies. I decided to take a look at 5 other popular Nintendo characters/franchises that could warrant a movie.

F-Zero

F-Zero was a series of racing games, where the vehicles hovered instead of being on road tools. So throw in some cool well designed hover cars, and set the races across different planets like the game. There is a potential gold mine on the horizon.

Now racing movies can be very bland and feel unnecessary. So proper story and character development would have to be done. It could work though to revive the brand for a new generation.

Bowser aka King Koopa

The Donkey Kong movie will be a spin-off of Mario Bros. So it would only be right to continue the Mario Bros movie-verse, with a spin-off for Bowser. Hollywood loves a good origin story for villains, explaining how they got to be devious and diabolical. Let's see how Bowser became King Koopa.

Star Fox

I'll admit I don't remember hearing of StarFox until the game was released on Nintendo 64. Apparently the franchise dates back to Super Nintendo in 1993 with the last release in 2017. With a plot that's prime for a animated movie.

Following an anthropomorphic fox named Fox McCloud an fighter pilot in outer space. Alongside his team made up of different species they set out to save the Lylat galaxy and prevent a war.

Kirby

Kirby maybe considered the "cute" mascot of Nintendo characters. He's probably the companies second most known character behind the Mario Bros. Kirby can shape shift and express different emotions. Going from cuddly to fierce in a blink of a eye. 

His ability to inhale enemies and objects creates opportunity to funny visuals. Perfect fodder for a movie that could cater to younger fans. 

Metroid

Metroid walked so Halo could run. The first game was released in 1986 on Nintendo. It follows a galactic bounty hunter named Samus Aran battling a destructive species called Metroids. At the same time fending off other forces who want to use the Metroids abilities to make weapons.

With elements like Mario Bros and Zelda, Metroid is prime for an action adventure film. Let's get to it.

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5 Celebrity Video Games You Don't Remember

 

One day I was aimlessly scrolling through instagram and found a reel referencing a Kris Kross Sega CD video game. I had never heard of it, so I asked some friends and they never heard of it, did a quick google search and sure enough it was an actual game. So me being me that sent me down the rabbit hole of video games featuring celebrities. We all remember 50 Cent's video game, or though not one celebrity but a whole record label in Def Jam Vendetta. And of course the arcade game that is Michael Jackson's Moonwalker or even his dancing game on Wii.

Here are 5 video games featuring celebrities you either never heard of or don't remember.

5. Power Factory: C+C Music Factory

It's very easy to see how this game has been forgotten to time, as C + C Music Factory is really a one-hit wonder group. However, in the early 1990's their song Gonna Make You Sweat was just about in every movie scene or commercial were folks were up and dancing. I guess it's not surprising they were tapped to lead an cutting edge game.

Released in 1993 on Sega CD, the game featured players editing videos to some of C + C Music Factory's games. Actually when you think about it, it was ahead of it's time as about 13 year's later the Nintendo Wii debuted which clearly took hints from this game.

4. Aerosmith-Revolution X

Aerosmith is a legendary rock band, and lead singer Steven Tyler has always had that enigmatic charisma about him. Which is typical with celebrities and the entertainment world someone thought it would be a good idea to make a video game and use the group's likeness for it. Thus we got Revolution X, an arcade game released in 1994.

The plot of the game is Aerosmith have been taken hostage by a group meant to evoke a new world order. The primary player's mission is to save all the members of the group through various levels. The game engine was similar to T2: Judgement Day arcade game and was a critical and fan success. Eventually making it's way to home consoles such as Nintendo and Sega.

3. Jet Li: Rise To Honor

Released in 2004 on Playstation 2, Jet Li: Rise To Honor is a bit of a odd game to be honest in the sense that while the name and likeness of Li grace the title and cover. As well as the fighting style and references to film's of his, the main character is not Jet Li rather a fictional character Jet Li plays. It's kind of confusing at least in my opinion why that decision was made.

The cut scenes of the game are even presented like a movie, and the plot is a bit more in depth than a traditional video game of that time. It received favorable reviews, but not enough to make a sequel.

2. Spice Girls-Spice World

Released in 1998 as the Spice Girls phenomenon was winding down due to Ginger Spice separating from the group. The game is another one that was ahead of it's time and displayed game play that would be perfected year's later with the Wii. In this game players are tasked with getting the Spice Girls ready for a live performance. This is done with choreography, picking which song out of 15 listed the group will perform and then "recording" the performance.

The game received a lot of criticism for the design of the group and the graphics. In addition to the lack of additional features to enhance the game play such as wardrobe changes. For all of the faults, I'm sure diehard Spice Girl fan's love the game regardless.

1. Wu Tang: Shaolin Style

If you know much about Wu-Tang, you know the group is heavily influenced by martial art's films of the 1970's. So it should be no surprise when a video game based on the group was created they followed the same path. Released in 1999 on Playstation, the plot focuses on Master Xin the last master of the Wu fighting style who is kidnapped in Staten Island. It is up to some of his last students coincidentally Wu-Tang to rescue him.

The game is mostly played in fighting tournaments inspired by games such as Mortal Kombat, Tekken, and Street Fighter. It was also known for being very gory and graphic with blood for a video game during that era. It also allowed four players to play at one time, quite revolutionary for Playstation at the time. 

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Iconic Black Video Game Characters

 

It's February, while Black History is 365 days a year. February is the month where it's highlighted and honored a bit more. I partake in the celebrations with my blogs trying to put my own little spin on things, this year I decided to focus on Black characters in video games.

Much like other genres, Black main characters in video games are still a work in progress. There are some instrumental Black characters in the medium. However, that is still few and far between. I've compiled five Black main characters from video games, who many may consider legendary video game characters. This list isn't a ranking per say, just a list.

Alyx Vance

                                

Alyx Vance debuted in 2004's Half-Life 2 as a Non-Playable Character (NPC). She appears in subsequent games in the franchise such as Half-Life Episode One and Episode Two. She was the main character in the virtual reality game, Half-Life: Alyx. The funny thing is other than the latter game she is a supporting character in the series helping main character Gordon Freeman in his missions, but is well-revered. 

Alyx is a very tech savvy prominent figure in the fight against The Combine, the alien empire ruling over humans. Computer skills aren't her only traits as she can fight and use weapons with the best of them. She is also an outgoing wise-cracking personality, which in the world of video games is not common for a Black female character. Which makes her so special in the medium. 

Jax

The Character of Jax Briggs debuted in 1993's Mortal Kombat II searching for his partner Sonya Blade. Jax is a U.S. Special Forces soldier, identified by his bionic arms which give him super strength that maybe only matched by the likes of a Superman or Thor. Besides his brute strength granted to him by his arms he also fights in the styles of Judo and Muy Thai. He has appeared in eleven Mortal Kombat game series of course with redesigns throughout the years. He has been a fan favorite over the years when it comes to selecting a fighter in the games.

Outside of the game realm, he has been portrayed in all three live action Mortal Kombat films. Mortal Kombat (1995), Mortal Kombat Annihilation (1997) played by Lynn Red Williams. Michael Jai White played him in the short-film Mortal Kombat: Rebirth (2010) and the follow up series Mortal Kombat: Legacy (2011). He most recently was played by Mechad Brooks in 2021's Mortal Kombat film.

CJ 

Carl Johnson also known as CJ, just a kid from the mean streets of Los Santos and a member of the Grove Street gang. Coming back home to Los Santos from Liberty City, after the death of his mother. CJ finds a brand new world from the one he left. CJ partook in criminal elements, but he was a good guy who at times displayed a conscience and confliction about his deeds. But make no mistake he wasn't a pushover. 

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was a game changer on PS2 for it's vast open world expansion across the great state of San Andreas, and the ability to customize CJ's wardrobe and look throughout the game. I distinctly remember dressing CJ in all black with a gold chain and a bucket hat cruising around in his black and gold low rider. 

As is customary in the GTA world CJ quickly was sprung from his neighborhood all across the glitz of Las Venturas and the quirks of San Fiero. CJ came across all facets of the criminal underworld and defeated them all to make a good life for himself outside of Los Santos and the criminal element. 

Lincoln Clay 

Lincoln Clay is the protagonist in Mafia III (which by the way I think it's time for another game in the Mafia series). Lincoln is a Vietnam War vet who returns to his home of New Bordeaux (based on New Orleans). Much like depictions of heroes in movies, Lincoln just trying to find steady work get's caught up in the underworld. Soon he sets out to avenge some close friends and family lost to the mob, while building his own empire and dealing with racism.

Props to the creators of the game, because while Lincoln is a very calm but strong minded man. Who uses strategy and rationalizes things, he is also a conflicted man. Violent and suffering from ptsd which plays a part in his characterization while also shedding light on the struggles many military vets go through. Lincoln was not afraid to spring into action and bust some heads, while still having visions and flashbacks of the world he left behind overseas. Which should be examined more, but this isn't the blog for that.

Adam Hunter

The first Black character I can recall that was depicted in a video game. Adam Hunter was a former cop in the world of Streets Of Rage which was released in 1991, and one of the primary characters.  The older brother of Eddie "Skate" Hunter, Adam was all muscle in the world of the game.

Since this was an early 90's property, characterization wasn't really a huge deal back then. Much isn't known about Adam except his history as a cop, relation to Skate, and he could gorilla press slam an opponent like the best of them. In Streets Of Rage 4 he's been given a bit more character, he's honorable and he too is calm and collected but has no time for games.

Adam Hunter is one dude you would not want to mess with, if he was a real character. 

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