MARIO FOREVER LATEST PC GAMES

This article is about the video game franchise starring Mario. For information about the character himself, see Mario.
Mario
Super Mario.svg
First Installment Donkey Kong (1981)
Latest Installment Paper Mario: Color Splash / Mario Party: Star Rush (2016)
Number of Installments 250+
Sub-series Donkey Kong; Yoshi; Wario
Super Mario; Super Mario Land; Paper Mario; Mario & Luigi; Mario vs. Donkey Kong; Dr. Mario; Super Mario Advance; Mario Party; Mario Kart; Mario Golf; Mario Tennis; Mario Strikers; Mario Baseball; Mario Artist; Mario's Early Years!

“Super Mario is equivalent to the Big Bang of our gaming universe. If it were not for this blindingly spectacular creation, digital entertainment as we know it today would not exist.”
—Hideo Kojima, Nintendo Power Volume 230, November 2010

The Mario franchise is a media franchise consisting of video games published and produced by the Japanese company Nintendo. The title character is a fictional Italian-American plumber who serves as the hero of a realm called the Mushroom Kingdom. The franchise was created by game designer Shigeru Miyamoto and its first installment was the arcade game Donkey Kong, released on July 9, 1981. The games are primarily published and/or developed by Nintendo itself, with some games in the franchise being developed by other companies under Nintendo's supervision, such as Hudson Soft, Camelot Software Planning, Intelligent Systems, and AlphaDream. Most Mario games have been released for Nintendo's various video game consoles and handhelds, from the third generation onwards.

The main series in the franchise is the Super Mario series, consisting of platform games that typically involve Mario and his brother Luigi working to save the Mushroom Kingdom and its ruler, Princess Peach, from the villainous Bowser and his Koopa Troop. The two brothers use their trademark jumping ability to help them progress through levels, while also making use of power-ups of various kinds. Mario games of other genres include the Mario Kart racing series, sports games such as Mario Tennis and Mario Golf, role-playing games such as the Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi series, and several educational games. In total, over 200 video games are included in the franchise, which combined have sold over 500 million copies. The franchise has also been licensed into other media, such as television series, comics, children's books, and a critically lampooned feature film. Mario has gained massive critical acclaim and recognition throughout the world, and is the best-selling video game franchise of all time.