In the annals of pop culture pseudo-holidays, March 10 certainly isn’t at the top of the heap–I reckon that slot goes to September 19, the date of our beloved International Talk Like a Pirate Day–but it is a fun diversion for the Nintendo faithful. On this date, we celebrate the Big N’s Koopa-kickin’ mascot Mario… for obvious reasons.
If, however, you are having trouble picking an appropriate MAR10 activity, I do have a handful of helpful suggestions:
- Just yesterday, Nintendo rolled out a free update to Super Mario Maker. You can now shake P-Switch and Door items to create Keys and Locked Doors, respectively. The classic Coin can also be shaken so as to become a Pink Coin, and collecting all the Pink Coins in a level causes a Key to appear. (And don’t even get me started on the whole shake-a-Thwomp-into-a-Skewer thing. Madness!) This new update also includes a new “Super Expert” difficulty mode for the 100-Mario Challenge, as well as new additions to the Super Mario Maker Bookmark website.
- Fans can also take this opportunity to pre-order the new Nintendo Select editions of many fine Wii U and 3DS titles such as Super Mario 3D World and Mario Party: Island Tour. And, of course, Amazon Prime subscribers get a sweet discount on top of the already budget price of $19.99.
- Gamers in need of more instant gratification need look no further than Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam. Released earlier this year, this Nintendo 3DS title combines the indubitable charms of both the Mario & Luigi series with those of Paper Mario franchise for a unique world-spanning, papercrafting RPG adventure.
- But perhaps most importantly, as we’ve just celebrated Mario’s landmark 30th anniversary, the simplest thing you can do is to merely reflect on your own fond memories of Mario games past. From 1985’s classic Super Mario Bros. to upcoming titles like Paper Mario: Color Splash and Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, Mario and company promise to keep us entertained for years to come!
