8 Overlooked Super Mario Characters We Need More Of

Over the years, hundreds of Mario games stretch across nearly every genre you can imagine. With that many entries, the developers at Nintendo have had the runway to make countless memorable characters. After all, if fans only got to see Mario and Luigi every game, things would’ve gotten stale long ago. That said, some of those characters have either been left behind or haven’t been given the starring role they deserve.

As a result, I’ve compiled a list of underappreciated characters (in terms of love from Nintendo) in Mario’s history. These eight characters either need to make a comeback or be given a more substantial role in future Mario games. This list is presented in alphabetical order, so don’t read into the placements.

1) Daisy

Princess Daisy is among the best athletes in the Mushroom Kingdom and has quickly become a go-to character in the Mario Party series. On top of that, she made her first playable appearance in a Mario platformer with Super Mario Bros. Wonder. What I’m saying is that Daisy’s stock is currently trending up.

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Hopefully, that means we get a Daisy-focused game soon. We’ve seen Princess Peach take a starring role a few times, so it might be fun to have Peach and Daisy save the Mario Bros.

2) Mouser

Mouser made his first appearance in Super Mario Bros. 2 and has mostly been out of the picture since. We’ve gotten Ms. Mowz in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, but Mouser was mostly lost to time after The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! outside of some Smash Bros. appearances. Let’s change that. Mouser is a fun enemy who Nintendo could have a lot of fun with, especially if they use some of his many aliases from the cartoon.

3) Mushbert

Look at how cool Mushbert is. In his lone appearance in Mario Party Advance, Mushbert is a Toad who loves anime and wears shades indoors. How Nintendo hasn’t brought this rad dude back into the fold is beyond me.

4) Pom Pom and Boom Boom

Pom Pom and her counterpart Boom Boom first appeared as bosses on the airships in Super Mario 3D Land. The duo has since gone on to appear in several side Mario games, including Super Mario Maker 2 and Super Mario Party Jamboree.

However, this duo is among Bowser’s most elite forces. I’d love to see them feature heavily in a new Mario RPG, giving extra personality to the team.

5) Poopa La Koopa

We don’t know much about Bowser’s grandfather. In The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, Bowser mentions that his motto was “cheat, beat, and be merry!” Outside of that, he’s never been mentioned. I think it would be fun for Nintendo to play around with time travel, potentially sending the Mario Bros. back to meet the Koopa who started Bowser down his villainous path.

6) Roy Koopa

Speaking of the Koopa family, we could always use more of the Koopalings. I’ve always been partial to Roy because of his slick sunglasses, but I would be just as happy with Lemmy, Wendy, or any of the rest of the crew.

7) Waluigi

Like Daisy, Waluigi has been featured in several Mario games over the years. His first game was Mario Tennis, which makes sense. The guy was seemingly created in a vat to be great at Mario sports games. Despite his popularity, Waluigi has yet to feature in a starring role.

I think it’s time for Nintendo to figure out Waluigi’s version of Luigi’s Mansion. The lanky, purple anti-hero’s brother has had several starring roles over the years, but nobody leaves room for Waluigi. Let’s fix that, Nintendo, and send Waluigi on his own journey.

8) Wanda

Wanda’s first appearance is in 1993’s Mario and Wario. In that game, Wario has put buckets on Mario, Peach, and Yoshi’s heads, and you have to use Wanda to control them along the path. It’s similar to Lemmings and has, for the most part, been Wanda’s only real appearance in the greater franchise.

I’m not calling for the return of that puzzle gameplay, but it does feel past time to bring Wanda back for a supporting role. Whether that means popping up as a cameo in the next mainline Mario game or being added as a DLC racer to Mario Kart World, give Wanda another shot, please.