Mario turned 25 yesterday, though he doesn't look a day older than when he first started battling evil in 1985.
For a quarter of a century, Mario Brothers have captured the imagination of countless gamers and continues to be one of the most popular video games on the market.
Mario has lived through five different Nitendo consoles, and traveled through many different worlds and, now, even galaxies.
"I first played Mario on the original [Nitendo Entertainment System]. There were two controllers and I had two brothers, so it didn't work out very good," said Andrea Murphy, a sales associate at EB Games at Pine Centre Mall.
She said while it makes her feel old to realize she is older than Mario, but thinks it's cool that Mario is now one of her son's favourite games.
"It's really cool that he gets to experience the same thing as I did growing up. Times are changing, and you can't say that too much anymore," said Murphy.
Mario, or Jumpman, debuted in an arcade game in 1981, before appearing as a plumber with brother Luigi in another arcade game in 1983.
"I wanted to be a plumber when I found out Mario was one," said Edward Nelson, who's been playing Mario since he was four years old.
"Mario was the very first game I ever played and got addicted to. I just couldn't wait to jump on the turtles, go down the pipes and just get to the next world and discover all the different secret levels," said Nelson.
Nelson said is favourite games are still the earlier ones, but Mario on any system is always entertaining. The games have advanced with technology and has really moved with the times he said.
"I just love the way he talks, it gets me every time. You know, 'It's me! Marioooo!'"
