What started out as a guy simply trying to rescue his whiny girlfriend from an angry ape twenty-six years ago has since grown into one of the most recognizable faces in video gaming to date. Mario’s been through a lot over the years, doing everything from saving Princess Peach countless times from an evil creature in a turtle shell (Bowser), to participating in party games,and taking part in a number of sporting events to show off his athletic prowess, proving that he’s not just about plumbing.

So, in honor of our big, explosive preview of his forthcoming Wii game Super Mario Galaxy, we thought we’d take a brief (yet detailed) look back at his gaming history, which breaks down into five categories- platforming, role-playing, sports, driving, and other. Platforming, as you may have guessed, breaks down his adventuresome spirit in straight-up coin collecting and item using; role-playing takes a different spin on the gameplay and has him actually completing quests and using items in a different fashion of battle; sports has him, friends, and even some enemies taking part in sporting achievements; driving is strictly a look at the Mario Kart games; and other covers the remaining games/appearances that don’t fit into these four categories.

LINK via Joystiq

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