Getting Out Of Debt

Mario is the superhero of the video gaming industry. Ever since teens began their initial love affair with arcade games, Mario's character has been adored. Other games transformed, disappeared, and were altogether forgotten, but there was something about the character of Mario that simply would not let the fans let go.

Still today, some 200 game appearances and 27 years later, Mario is the good luck charm for his video game creators. As such, the character has made cameo appearances in unrelated games, engaged in cart racing, sports, puzzles, fighting, and of course the continuous rescue of a beautiful princess.

Even as it would be impossible to mention each game that features the unsinkable plumber, highlighting the amazing transformation of Mario is a list of firsts and combines a cast of characters that have found a large fan base amongst the ranks of dedicated gamers and young weekend warriors alike.

Mario Character Highlights a World of Firsts

• Mario started out as a humble carpenter in the arcade classic "Donkey Kong." His name was JumpMan and with his telltale overall, cap, red boots, large nose and mustache, this is pretty much all he did. He debuted in 1981 and traversed the dangers of unfinished construction sites to rescue the lovely Pauline from dangerous Donkey Kong.
• In 1982, Mario is seen again in the only Nintendo game in which he was considered a villan: Donkey Kong Jr, the sequel to the extraordinarily popular Donkey Kong. In this game, Donkey Kong Jr. is tasked with rescuing his father from Mario, who has imprisoned Donkey Kong.
• In 1983, Mario is promoted to plumber. This job has stuck with him ever since. In this year he also became a big brother to Luigi. It is not until 1985 and "Super Mario Bros." that he becomes a hero in his own right and is given dominion over the Mushroom Kingdom where he is considered a superhero. His enemy is Bowser, a cross between a trutle and a dragon and a villain who has kidnapped Princess Toadstool. Mario is charged to return her safe and sound, though she always somehow ends up being in another castle.
• This is the first time that Mario moved from simply arcade style games to the Nintendo platform. The Guinness Book of World Records reports that the 1989 edition of "Super Mario Bros." is the best selling video game ever, recording a staggering 40 million copies sold worldwide; an amazing feat for the unassuming plumber from the Mushroom Kingdom.

This phenomenal success inspired the makers of Mario to have the popular character appear in a host of unrelated games either as an icon, a non-playable character, or an Easter egg character, as well as nearly every printable and electronic surface that was marketed to children including lunchboxes, television shows, action figures, and more.

In 1989 Mario made his debut on Game Boy. The game is "Super Mario Land" and instead of the Mushroom Kingdom, Mario now lives in Sarasaland; the villain is Tatanga, and the princess is named Daisy, not Toadstool. Incidentally, "Super Mario Land" catapulted to the number three spot of best selling games with a total of 18 million copies crossing store counters and into the hands of eager fans.

With the advance of Super Nintendo, Mario made the move to this platform as well. The 1993 "Super Mario World" game once again pits Mario against Bowser in an effort to save Princess Toadstool. For the first time Mario now adds the spin jump to his repertoire. One of the most delightful characters of the series, the adorable dinosaur Yoshi, is introduced. This widely popular game showcased the power of the 16-bit SNES platform over its predecessor, the Nintendo Entertainment System.

Mario reappears in 1996 on the Nintendo 64 platform. The game is aptly named "Super Mario 64." It is the very first 3D appearance that Mario will make, and fans were awed. Once again Princess Toadstool - this time renamed Princess Peach -- is in need of rescue, and the evil Bowser is the villain. Although not as commercially successful as other Mario games, this 3D game is known today as the best selling game on the Nintendo 64 platform with an astonishing 12 million copies sold. Used copies of Super Mario 64 still sell well on the open internet market.

The World of Mario and His Friends

Mario relies on a cast of characters that have added to the immense popularity of this game. As his first and foremost occupation is the rescue of perennial damsel in distress, Princess Toadstool (later known as Princess Peach), she is worth mentioning first. Her usual role simply requires her to be kidnapped by the evil Bowser and then allow Mario to chase after the both of them. Like Mario, she is one of the most recognizable characters of the game and even has made cameo appearances in other games, much like Mario and later on also Yoshi.

She received her very own spin off game, "Super Princess Peach," in which the tables are turned and she must rescue Mario from Bowser. Designed for Nintendo DS, it is not a widely popular game, although its "E" rating makes it a favorite for parents looking for a safe, fun game for youngsters.

Already touched upon, Yoshi is the dinosaur which initially provides transportation to Mario. As both Mario and Yoshi's character's develop, they work as a team to vanquish their foes and find the one-ups that offer them advantages in the game. First seen in NES titles like 'Yoshi' and 'Yoshis Cookie' and later on in the ever-popular "Super Mario World" designed fro the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, this character amassed such a huge fan base.

In the 1995 release of "Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island" for Super Nintendo Entertainment System and also Game Boy Advance, players control Yoshi himself and also a host of other Yoshi characters. Mario himself appears as a baby in this game and factors only tangentially into the game play.

Luigi is the sidekick and brother to Mario. Although his roles are decidedly smaller than those of Mario, he has his own 2001 spin off game in "Luigi's Mansion," in which he must unlock a series of worlds in order to save Mario from King Boo. Released for the Nintendo Gamecube platform, it ranks as fifth in the list of bestselling games for the Gamecube.

A helper to both Mario and Luigi is Toad. At home in the Mushroom Kingdom he became a playable character in "Super Mario Bros. 2;" generally he is little more than an assistant who provides the place where Mario or Luigi can save the game process. Not surprisingly, he too received a spin off game called "Wario's Woods" which is a mix between Tetris and an action game. This game falls into the puzzle genre and is available on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, regular Nintendo Entertainment System, Virtual Console, and Satellaview platforms.

Bowser is the enemy of Mario and the Mushroom Kingdom. He looks like a cross between turtle and dinosaur. Ruler of the Koopas, he tirelessly sends his minions against Mario and his friends and kidnaps Princess Toadstool or Peach. This action generally initiates the game play.

Donkey Kong is the original apelike enemy of Mario. The latter is arguably a spin off game character from the widely successful arcade game, and once Mario's popularity surpassed that of Donkey Kong, the ape was relegated to playing second fiddle, making occasional guest appearances in other Mario games. He has since reemerged and been given his own series.

Wario is another Mario adversary but did not appear until 1992 when he was introduced in "Super Mario 2: 6 Golden Coins" to Game Boy aficionados. Wario is the polar opposite to Mario and actually has a striking visual resemblance to the character. On a side note, Luigi has his own doppelganger in the form of Waluigi who is brother to Wario. Also afforded a series of spin off games, Wario becomes a playable character in the 1994 Nintendo Game Boy favorite "Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land." From there the games that are designed with this character in a starring role are copious.

A play on this imagery is found in the 2002 Nintendo Game Cube release of "Super Mario Sunshine" in which a graffiti spreading anti hero named Shadow Mario leaves his telltale signature all over Isle Delfino. Because of the outward likeness to Mario, the latter is charged with undoing the graffiti that now mars the buildings.

Mario Now and In The Future

There is little doubt that Mario is one of the most popular and easily recognizable video game characters ever. Spawning an amazing number of spin off games and spanning a variety of platforms, this is one of the most versatile offerings the video game industry has offered thus far. The year 2008 has already shown the release of five titles: "Mario Kart," "Super Smash Bros. Brawl," "Dr. Mario Online Rx," "Mario Super Sluggers," and "Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars." All of these games are available on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and also Wii Virtual Console.

An enigma among games, Mario and his cohorts are characters that transcend age and gender barriers, and players from all ages enjoy the various platforms and game releases. At this point in time there is not end in sight to the popularity of Mario, and gamers are heartily glad for the character's projected future longevity.

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AP - Militants torched 160 vehicles, including dozens of Humvees destined for U.S. and allied forces fighting in Afghanistan, in the boldest attack so far on the critical military supply line through Pakistan.

Game consoles are the latest form of enjoying games in audio and visual formats. These multimedia enriched devices are used for enjoyment purposes. The built-in games in these gadgets are backed with many fabulous images which are developed by gaming console designers. The users can enjoy playing games on a television or computer. The games on these consoles are controlled using a hand-held controlled device which is connected with the console. This is well known as a controller. These controllers are backed with number of key buttons and directional controls. The controller is backed with number of buttons like analog joysticks which are used to control a picture or image on the screen. As a matter of fact, each button is assigned a purpose for coordinating with the images on the screen. The hand-held console comprises of vibrant display panel, speakers and controls of a console into one small object.

The game console is a form of interactive and innovative multimedia device which is used for entertainment purpose. It lets the users to play exciting games from his computer. The games on these devices are mostly controlled and manipulated with the help of a controller. As a matter of fact, these gaming consoles are gaining importance over the other entertainment devices, as some of the leading market names are joining hands with manufacturers. The Sony PSP, Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii are the best-selling gaming consoles in the market. These devices are fantastic! It makes the whole gaming experience of a user highly thrilling and unforgettable. The Nintendo Wii from the house of Nintendo is the backed with the highly used features and functions.

The Nintendo Wii games are played without tangling with the wires, as it restraints the functions with the help of wireless remote. This amazing Nintendo Wii gaming console was introduced in the 2006. This device is available in many colours such as black, white, silver, lime green, red and white. On this console, the users can discover innovative menu-interface which guides you through the user-friendly options. The user can play and download music in MP3 format on his Nintendo Wii. On this console, the users can download classic games from the Wii Shop Channel and play them on their Wii through the Virtual Console Channels.

On this console, the users can play various categories of games such as shooting, action, arcade, racing and many more. The excellent graphics and high-end features make the gaming environment alive among the users.

Stephen George is expert author of Games Products industry. Who writes on Game Consoles and Nintendo Wii.

AP - Sen. John McCain said Sunday that the situation in Afghanistan will get more difficult before it gets easier - "just like the surge in Iraq was" - as the U.S. prepares to pour thousands more troops into the country, including on the doorsteps of Kabul.

Overlord was last year's hit from Codemasters, a game which puts you in control of a fellow of a great many evil deeds, who in turn controls quite a few minions. The hook for this game was that while you controlled the Overlord directly in order to spread your chaos and destruction throughout the land, you had no direct control over your minions. Instead, you had to rely on specific commands you could give the Overlord, which would in turn command the minions in where to go. This often lead to some humorous battles ending in smashed pumpkins on minion heads, sheep being set aflame, and many other funny scenarios.

Climax Studios is working on a sort of prequel for Overlord which will be a Wii-exclusive release. Dark Legend plants you in the boots of the Overlord yet again, but this time in his younger days of commanding minions to bring death in destruction. Along with the new platform, Dark Legend will bring new gameplay mechanics. The game looks quite a bit like the original Overlord, which is quite the accomplishment given the Wii's hardware compared to that of the 360, or PC. However, the gameplay has changed quite a bit. Paths in the original Overlord were pretty linear and guided you through the game, but this is not the case in Dark Legend as it has more open spaces for your to explore. Dark Legend also gives the player direct control of the minion, with the ability to point them in the precise direction you want them to go with the Wii-mote.

Aside from the controls, Dark Legend seems as if it will play quite a bit like the original game. You'll be completing a variety of different quests in the same fantasy world, with your minions causing chaos and wreaking havoc along the way. Another great aspect of Dark Legend is the ability to choke your minions. You can pick a minion from your horde and violently choke him until his eyes glow yellow. After you let the minion go, he'll act as a sort of rocket, which will automatically hone in on any nearby enemies and detonate on impact. As with the older game, the color of the minion will have an effect on what the bomb does when it detonates. Regular brown minions will detonate like a normal bomb, while your colored minions will have added effects such as healing and area effect explosions with napalm effects.

Overlord: Dark Legend is scheduled for release sometime in 2009.

Find out more about this and other upcoming Wii releases at Are you a Wiiener?

E! Online - One of the pitfalls of leading a Charmed life...

Welcome to the first in our series of online fishing game reviews. We will review several free fishing games you can play online, so you know which games to play and which games to avoid. We recently had the opportunity to try the online fishing game, Bass Fishing Pro. The first thing we noticed about this game is that it loads very quickly. Many of the other fishing games we've played do not load nearly as fast, so it was off to a good start in our book. The main objective of this game is to catch the required number of bass within the given time frame. You will receive money for each fish you catch, and this will be displayed at the top of the screen. After each round, you will also receive money bonuses for the remaining time. Catching these fish is more difficult than it sounds, mind you; because you need to make sure you don't run out of fuel, and the fish aren't that easy to catch.

The controls for this bass fishing game are extremely simple. Use the right and left arrow keys to control your boat movement, and the down arrow to control your fishing line. Unfortunately you can only move the line down in the early rounds of the game. You will need to upgrade rods at some point to be able to move the line up and down.

We found the trick to this game is getting the hook directly in front of the fish in order to make the catch. Sounds like real fishing doesn't it? Move your boat across the lake and hold the DOWN arrow to get your hook near the fish. After the fish takes the bait, the fisherman will automatically reel the bass in. Do this enough times before the clock runs out and you make it to the next level. We only played long enough to make it through 3 levels, but the best part is after you complete each round, you can visit the tackle shop, where you can purchase more fuel, upgrade fishing rods and boat engines. Unfortunately the cost of these upgrades runs in the thousands, so you'll be bass fishing for a while before you can afford those luxuries.

Overall we enjoyed Bass Fishing Pro. The graphics are decent and the interface is very easy to use. It's not exactly like being on the lake, but if you have a few minutes to kill at work, you'll have a fun time trying to catch a few fish and make it to the higher rounds.

You can try the fishing game Bass Fishing Pro and other fun bass fishing games at http://www.TopFishingGames.com

AP - NASA says space shuttle Endeavour will begin its cross-country return trip to Florida on Monday, one day later than expected.