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Tag: Fictional turtles

  • Super Mario Bros. Wonder’s Goombas Actually Bite, Just Like Miyamoto Always Wanted

    Super Mario Bros. Wonder’s Goombas Actually Bite, Just Like Miyamoto Always Wanted

    Back in the day, you might have wondered: Hey, why does Mario take damage when he bumps into a Goomba in the original Super Mario Bros.? Turns out, Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto had an answer: The enemies were biting you. We just never actually saw that happen. Well, that changes in the soon-to-be-released Super Mario Bros. Wonder. 

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    In the latest installment of Nintendo’s ongoing web series, Ask the Developer, the folks behind Wonder answered some wide-ranging questions about the upcoming Switch-exclusive platformer. They revealed that it wasn’t really influenced by the movie, that it was developed differently than past Mario games, and the strange work that goes into making 3D models look good in a precise 2D side-scroller. It’s really interesting stuff! But perhaps my favorite bit to come out of the first two parts of this long Ask the Developer is the backstory on why Goombas bite Mario and other characters when they get close.

    According to Wonder’s art director, Masanobu Sato, he once heard someone explain that when Miyamoto was asked why Mario takes damage after bumping into a Goomba in the original game, he answered, “It’s because the Goombas bite him.”

    Screenshot: Nintendo / Kotaku

    However, as pointed out by Wonder’s director, Shiro Mouri, even if that was what was happening, due to “hardware limitations” back then the game couldn’t show that detail. Super Mario Bros. Wonder producer Takashi Tezuka, who has been working on Mario games for nearly four decades, further explained that was why Koopa Troopas turned around to face Mario when you bumped into them in the NES classic.

    “We tried to express them biting the player by making them turn around,” said Tezuka.

    “But now we are able to show those expressions,” said Sato.

    The devs say that in Wonder, the moment a Goomba does damage to Mario a small animation is triggered that shows the iconic enemy biting the plumber (or whichever other character the player is using.)

    “Yes, and when they bite you, they’ll do it with a smile on their face!” added Sato.

    I highly recommend reading the full interview as it reveals more behind-the-scenes information about how the game was developed and where all its wacky ideas come from.

    Super Mario Bros. Wonder hits the Nintendo Switch on October 20, though copies have leaked out into the wild, so be careful of spoilers.

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    Zack Zwiezen

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  • Seth Rogen Loves TMNT So Much He Busted His Head Open With Nunchucks

    Seth Rogen Loves TMNT So Much He Busted His Head Open With Nunchucks

    During a press junket interview for the upcoming animated film, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, actor and co-writer Seth Rogen revealed that he’s been enamored with the heroes in a half shell for so long that he’s got the battle scars to prove it. More precisely, Rogen cracked his dome open playing with nunchucks like Michelangelo, as many of us have.

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    TMNT: Mutant Mayhem follows younger versions of the turtle quartet as they try to gain popularity among their fellow New Yorkers by putting a stop to the villainous Superfly’s crime wave. The animated film includes a star-studded cast of Hollywood actors in supporting roles including Rogen as Bebop, Ice Cube as Superfly, John Cena as Rocksteady, and action-movie legend Jackie Chan as Master Splinter, to name a few.

    Speaking with Empire Magazine, Rogen revealed that his fanboy-related TMNT injury came soon after his father gifted him his pair of nunchucks.

    “Part of the reason I did karate was because of the Ninja Turtles,” Rogen said. “Me and [co-writer Evan Goldberg] both did karate together. My dad got me nunchucks that I cracked my head open with, because I was obsessed with the Ninja Turtles, and Michelangelo specifically.”

    Goldberg added to Rogen’s painful recountings of his ninja faux pas, divulging that it was more than Rogen’s head that the comedy actor broke when displaying his nunchuck skills, saying “Seth had just got these nunchucks. He was like, ‘Yo, check this out, I want to show you this awesome move,’ and just immediately shattered a huge chandelier from his parents’ house into a billion pieces. It took us, like, five hours to clean. On a sitcom, you’d be like, ‘This is too broad.’”

    “It was instantaneous,” Rogen added. “It was as though what I was trying to show him was my ability to destroy a lamp.”

    Paramount

    Read More: TMNT Movie Gets Shell-Shockingly Existential New Trailer

    In retrospect, it’s probably best that Rogen fancied Mikey instead of Leonardo or Raphael. One could only imagine the kind of physical and property damage a kid could do if left unattended in a house with twin katana or two sais.

    Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem hits theaters on August 2.

       

    Isaiah Colbert

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  • The Super Mario Bros. Movie’s Jack Black Made An Incredible Love Letter To Gaming

    The Super Mario Bros. Movie’s Jack Black Made An Incredible Love Letter To Gaming

    You probably know Jack Black from his long career as the enthusiastic star of films like School of Rock and Kung Fu Panda, and most recently as the actor who was the perfect amount of excited to voice Bowser for The Super Mario Bros. Movie. While Chris Pratt convinced me that he’s never touched a controller in his life, Black wants you to know that he is a hardcore gamer like the rest of you, something he’s made many delightful YouTube videos about in the past on his channel JablinskiGames. Now he and Kyle Gass, who together are better known as the rock duo Tenacious D, have created a musical tribute to games in their signature style, complete with a video in which a cartoon version of Black cameos in games such as God of War, Fallout 4, Tomb Raider, Street Fighter, Sonic, and Red Dead Redemption 2. 

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    Tenacious D – Video Games (Official Video)

    This is good, actually. Black starts off singing that “I don’t play video games no more, I never play video games.” As the video goes on, it becomes clear that his cartoon persona is as plugged in as the rest of us. He makes exceptions for AAA and Nintendo games that he considers to be “experiences,” all while reiterating over and over that he doesn’t have time for gaming. At one point, he appears naked while riding the most fucked-up-looking horse I’ve ever seen. True to the experience of gaming, the animations are filled with gratuitous violence, but with a comedic tone.

    Over and over, he stresses: “That’s not a game. That’s an adult thang.” His song addresses how gaming is stigmatized by people who didn’t grow up with a console, but it’s not woe-is-me about it. Black is so excited to share what he loves about his favorite games, and you should be too.

    The music was produced by Tenacious D, which, if you’re unaware, is a comedy rock duo formed by Black and Kyle Gass, another actor who also appears in the video (only to die incredibly frequently). Tenacious D has a sizable cult following, but The Super Mario Bros. Movie has reminded mainstream audiences that Black can really sing. His performance of the love ballad “Peaches” blew up the internet, and is eligible for an Oscar nomination.

    Of course, the other reason that Black is enjoying so much popularity right now is because he doesn’t act like engaging with video game media is beneath him. Or that he’s paid for his time. When he has to put in a public appearance for the Mario Bros. movie, he goes above and beyond to dress like he voices Bowser. Even his “Video Games” video stands as a work of art on its own rather than a cynical marketing ploy to capture the gaming fan base. I hope Nintendo brings him back for whatever the next Nintendo movie is going to be. They’d be making a huge mistake if they didn’t—Black’s charisma and goodwill extends beyond the movie screen.

    Sisi Jiang

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  • Nintendo ‘Hacker’ Will Be Punished For The Rest Of His Life

    Nintendo ‘Hacker’ Will Be Punished For The Rest Of His Life

    Image: Nintendo

    In February 2022 Gary Bowser, a member of the hacking operation Team Xecuter—a long-time target of Nintendo’s lawyers—was sentenced to 40 months in prison for his part in helping run a business that reportedly earned him over $300,000.

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    Thanks to a combination of time already served and good behaviour while in prison, however, Bowser is about to be released and sent home to Canada. On the eve of his departure—he’s currently awaiting transport to Toronto with a new passport—Bowser sat down for an interview with NickMoses 05 (thanks TorrentFreak) to discuss the events surrounding his imprisonment and impending freedom.

    Seeing Gary Bowser For The First Time

    As I said at the time of his sentencing, while Bowser was guilty of a crime, and confessed this in front of a court of law, I still think it’s interesting—and important—to examine the details of his sentencing, which show the extent to which companies like Nintendo pursue these cases through the American legal system, and the severity of the punishments handed out.

    While Bowser was convicted, served time in prison and is about to be released, his punishment isn’t over. In fact, he’ll be paying for his crimes for the rest of his life, because the damages he was ordered to pay Nintendo at the time of his sentencing —a total of $10 million (Bowser says an additional $4.5 million won’t have to be paid back since he’ll be in Canada, not the US)—are so astronomical that he’ll likely never be able to make good on them.

    Bowser says Nintendo can take 25-30% of his “monthly gross income” for the rest of his working life. They began the process while he was still in prison; like many American inmates, Bowser was able to work jobs (for what’s essentially spare change) while behind bars, and over the course of his time at the SeaTac Federal Detention Center in Washington he was able to pay back $25 a month. Adding up to a total of…$175.

    Bowser was one of two men arrested in connection with Team Xecuter. While commonly referred to as a “hacker” in media reports he actually confessed to being the company’s “salesman”, and reportedly made $320,000 over seven years of work. The other, French citizen Max Louarn, allegedly the leader of the operation (a role he denies), has managed so far to avoid deportation to the US to face charges, though it’s believed he helped the company make millions over the course of its operation.

    Luke Plunkett

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  • 14 Of The Best And Most Obscure Secrets We Spotted In The Super Mario Bros. Movie

    14 Of The Best And Most Obscure Secrets We Spotted In The Super Mario Bros. Movie

    Photo: Illumination

    I watched The Super Mario Bros Movie during its opening week with the intent of writing this Easter eggs and references article, only to realize that the movie is nothing but Easter Eggs and references. A thorough roundup would be indistinguishable from a wholesale rundown of the entire movie.

    The plot for The Super Mario Bros Movie is paper-thin. Narratively, the characters are static bordering on inert; there’s no arc or growth to any of them. It’s just one action set piece to the next; your enjoyment is intimately tied to your pre-existing knowledge of these characters and your ability to recognize a parade of homages to Nintendo history.

    It is, in other words, narratively identical to a Mario 2D platformer. Critics are complaining about the lack of characterization and depth in the Mario movie. But to paraphrase Gertrude Stein, there is no “there” there. We needn’t be so harsh.

    Unlike HBO’s The Last of Us, which took its game’s cinematic aspirations to their logical conclusion, the Mario franchise’s brilliance has never been the Plot; it’s been the gameplay. It’s been that perfect blend of inventive, instructive level design and hairpin controls.

    Take that away, and we’re left with a reel of Easter eggs, which is exactly how this movie was intended. Here are 20 of the best ones that we spotted. Which one was your favorite?

    Kevin Wong

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  • What You Should Know About The Super Mario Bros. Movie’s End Credits Scenes

    What You Should Know About The Super Mario Bros. Movie’s End Credits Scenes

    Oh, hello there. I see you’ve got your phone out at the movie theater and you’re sitting in the credits for The Super Mario Bros. Movie. You’re probably here wondering if there are extra scenes worth sticking around for. Well, I’m here to answer that question and more, so let’s jump down the warp pipe and into the unknown.

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    Does The Super Mario Bros. Movie have a post-credits scene?

    In short, yes. It has two, actually. One happens during the credits, and another happens right at the very end. Let’s break down both scenes. And no, we’re not talking about the weirdly existential Luma that comes back around near the end. Hopefully the fact that Luma is in the movie at all, though, is a cause to hope for something more SMG-sized. Peach does tell Mario that there are a ton of galaxies out there while they’re waiting in a field of power-ups.

    What is Bowser’s fate?

    The first scene features Bowser reprising his song from earlier in the movie called “Peaches.” This is nice, because he was rudely interrupted while singing it before, and now he gets to belt out a few more lines about his unrequited love for the princess. Jack Black apparently wrote Peaches himself! However, it turns out he’s still shrunken down and in his bottle prison from the final fight. It’s unclear if the Mushroom Kingdom is just going to keep him locked up in there, but at least he’ll be able to serenade anyone who passes by.

    If you wait a little bit longer after that scene and through all the names scrolling on the screen, there’s a second teaser.

    Super Mario Bros. teases a very special Yoshi

    While the Bowser scene is cute, the one of real consequence is the post-credits scene at the very end of the film. In it, we see a Yoshi egg has ended up in the Brooklyn sewers after Mario and Bowser’s fight brought parts of the Mushroom Kingdom into the movie’s depiction of New York. As the egg starts to crack, the screen cuts to black and we hear the little dinosaur’s iconic “yoshi” cry.

    While this egg likely belongs to the iconic green Yoshi that’s accompanied Mario throughout several games, this isn’t the first time the movie references these dinosaur steeds. In fact, there was a huge herd of them earlier in the movie when Mario and Peach are on their way to the Jungle Kingdom to recruit Cranky Kong’s army. So if the movie is taking the time to single out this specific egg, it likely means the movie is teasing a specific Yoshi that might have a larger role in a hypothetical sequel.

    Reception to The Super Mario Movie has been pretty mixed. Those who have already seen the movie have called it overly referential and or found some of its performances lacking, while others have praised its gorgeous animation. Ultimately, I’m not too surprised given I’ve always found Illumination’s output to be lacking. But hey, at least we got to see Bowser be down bad and singing. That’s fun!

    Kenneth Shepard

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  • Town Using $20K Of Covid Relief Cash On TMNT Manhole Covers

    Town Using $20K Of Covid Relief Cash On TMNT Manhole Covers

    Photo: Paul Natkin (Getty Images)

    Northampton, Massachusets officials have greenlit a plan to create and install four Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle-themed manhole covers to celebrate the fact that the massive franchise was originally created there. And to pay for it, the town is using funds intended to help rebuild towns and businesses affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

    The pandemic (which is still a thing, even if a lot of people are trying to pretend otherwise) devastated cities and businesses across the United States starting in March 2020. So in 2021, congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 aka ARPA. This was a nearly $2 trillion economic stimulus package that was designed to help the country recover faster from the various effects of the pandemic as well as to try to deal with the ongoing recession. After barely passing in congress, President Biden signed it on March 11, 2021. As a result, Northampton, Massachusets received $4 million that the town and its officials could put toward its Covid-19 recovery efforts.

    And that’s, I guess, how we ended up here: With a city spending $20,000 on TMNT-themed manhole covers.

    WCVB

    As reported by WCVB, the four manhole covers will be located along Main Street and each one will represent a different turtle. This isn’t just a random choice, as the city was the original home of Mirage Studios, the place where the TMNT franchise was born. Since their creation in 1984, the turtles have expanded beyond comics into movies, cartoons, games, toys, you name it. So, I get it. TMNT is a big deal to the town. But it still seems odd.

    According to the city’s breakdown of where all the ARPA money is going, the idea behind the custom manhole covers is to “invigorate downtown arts” via a “public art tribute to the Northampton-born Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.” That’s all well and good and checking the list of other grants, it’s clear more important projects are getting far more resources from the city. But I can’t help but wonder if that $20,000 could be better spent on helping more people directly. Or creating a tribute to a far superior show, Disney’s Gargoyles.

    Zack Zwiezen

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  • ‘Mario Rap’ Makes Comeback In Super Mario Bros. Movie Super Bowl Commercial

    ‘Mario Rap’ Makes Comeback In Super Mario Bros. Movie Super Bowl Commercial

    Another new trailer for the upcoming Super Mario Bros. movie has been released today, part of the onslaught of expensive and lengthy Super Bowl commercials, and while that’s usually enough to rot the brains of even the most online among us, I can assure you, this one is fantastic.

    Unlike every previous trailer, which are actual trailers featuring snippets from the movie, this is a new take on the Mario Rap, the classic intro from the Super Mario Bros. Super Show, the live-action series that ran from 1989-1991.

    Here, in case you need a refresher, is the original:

    Super Mario Brothers Super Show Intro

    And here is the 2023 version:

    Super Mario Bros. Plumbing Commercial

    I haven’t called that number because I’m not the in the US, but that website is indeed up and running, and is everything you would hope it would be from a struggling small business servicing the Brooklyn and Queens areas. There’s excessive animation, broken image links, a careers page (still under construction, sadly) and even a novelty mouse cursor.

    UPDATE: Hahahaha the number works:

    G/O Media may get a commission

    Best of all, though, are the testimonials, including one from Spike, who is actually the brothers’ boss, and who is making an appearance in the movie (he’ll be played by comedian Sebastian Maniscalco).

    Image for article titled 'Mario Rap' Makes Comeback In Super Mario Bros. Movie Super Bowl Commercial

    Screenshot: Illumination

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    Image for article titled 'Mario Rap' Makes Comeback In Super Mario Bros. Movie Super Bowl Commercial

    Screenshot: Illumination

    It’s weird that one of the things people have been most interested about as far as the upcoming Super Mario Bros. movie is concerned is how everyone sounds. I mean, we know who the cast is, have known that forever, but what we haven’t known is the extent to which each actor was going to ham it up.

    It’s why everyone has been so obsessed with Chris Pratt’s Mario, and why Jack Black seems perfect as Bowser because…he’s done that voice 1000 times and he was born for the role. One major voice we haven’t heard yet, though, is Seth Rogen’s Donkey Kong, and it was also one that could have gone in any number of directions.

    READ MORE

    Luke Plunkett

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