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The Four Fantastic Mario & Luigi Co-op Games Nintendo Needs

Because we can never get enough.

By Caleb ShermanPublished 3 years ago 5 min read
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The era of the couch co-op game has been upon us for a while. It's not like the idea is new, but in recent years couch co-op games have dominated the multiplayer market, those and battle royale games. Franchises like Kirby and Donkey Kong have featured couch co-op since their early days. More recently the Super Mario 3D games have featured 4-player simultaneous co-op, Kirby has evolved into the 4-player landscape as well, and even the Legend of Zelda franchise has expanded into multiplayer formats, albeit not always local. But it's about time that Mario and Luigi branch out into some new couch gameplay experiences. With that in mind, here are four Mario, Luigi and Co. games that we need in the near future.

1. We've seen them: Flashpoint Tactics, Firefighter Simulator, Phasmophobia, it's time for a Mario themed home rescue game, and the brothers are equipped for it. I'm talking, Flash Liquidizer Ultra Dowsing Device action gameplay, combined with Poltergust 3000 dust and ghost control, meets tactical home safety.

We all know that ghosts are well known pyromaniacs, especially Boos. Hundreds of Mushroom Kingdom homes and castles are in jeopardy. The only solution? Call the boiz. Mario, Luigi, and two other characters of your choosing, roll up in a mushroom shaped fire truck (or otherwise) equipped with F.L.U.D.D.s and Poltergusts, ready to extinguish flames and suck up troublemakers. It's a winning idea, and you know it Shigeru Miyamoto.

2. The Poltergust is a powerful vaccuum, capable of sucking up even ethereal beings. Meanwhile, the F.L.U.D.D. is a just as spectacular example of a...portable fire hydrant...backpack...thing, capable of blasting any grime from any surface. Yes, the Mario brothers have made good use of these tools on their various adventures. But what about their home whenever they're away on adventures. Dust must build up like crazy, and how unlikely is it really that Bowser would send some goons to make a mess of the place while the Bros are out?

Thus, we should get Mario & Luigi Cleaning Craze (title is a work in progress and not copyrighted). Controling the Mario Bros and other denizens of the Mushroom Kingdom, take F.L.U.D.D., Poltergust, Fireflower and Hammer to various flats, apartments, homes and castles throughout the land. Yeah, you say "But who wants to play a game about cleaning?" I present to you numerous Mario Party minigames, and the couch co-op masterpiece Out of Space. The real question is, who doesn't need this in their life?

3. You know, Bowser and crew show up at Peach's castle a lot, it's a wonder we don't see it taking significant damage. Or maybe it does and we just never get to see the repair stages. Weird, right? Princess Peach lives in a pretty big castle, must take a LOT of stone to repair if it ever gets damaged. And, what about improvements? Surely Peach could go for a nice solid gold pantry to keep all her cake ingredients in. Ah, I know a duo that could help with that.

Mario & Luigi in Miner Trouble! I know, it seems like a bottom of the barrel scrape, but it's not unrealistic, right? Games like Minecraft and Terarria are terribly popular, and always fun with a friend or two along for the ride. Plus, a 3D hubworld that evolves as the players advance in an underground mine and collect larger amounts of valuable resources could keep such a game engaging for a while. Offer players sandbox style access to the area around Peach's castle, and maybe a feature like Yoshi taming and breeding, and you've got yourself a top shelf game. I mean, it's not like the Mario Bros aren't known to dive down tunnels into underground mazes. Or wield hammers. Or fight monsters. This is the way.

4. The Mario Bros and their friends stay busy don't they? Everything is so active. Tennis, basketball, soccer, kart racing, smashing...golf. Okay, so Mario and the crew get up to some decent leisure activities, but I believe it's time for another vacation for Mario and the princess. Let's get away to a deserted island, pack some appropriate clothes, and play some beach volleyball. Some Xtreme beach volleyball.

This is a bit far from Nintendo's normal playing field, farbeit from gamers to push the envelope, but the Dead or Alive Xtreme games found an audience, I find it unlikely a similar -ahem- romp on the beach would be ignored with the Nintendo stamp on it. Team up as Mario and Luigi, or any other doubles team of your choice, potentially from the entire Smash Bros roster, and dominate the beach volleyball scene, then take to the resort pool and enjoy some leisure activity. Not unlike Mario Tennis Pro Tour. Mix in the idea that the Mario party was invited to the island for a devious reason, and you can even have an underlying adventure to go through. Oh, also Bowsette, the fanbase demands it.

And so, there are four Mario & Luigi games Nintendo needs to put out, both for their fans, and their pocketbooks. A proverbial gold mine of Nintendo Switch exclusive titles, whose genres are mostly well-tested and bearing fruit. That's not to say these are the only viable Mario & Luigi adventures we could find ourselves playing in the future, just all that I could envision at the time. Limitless possibilities gamers, play, and dream, well.

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About the Creator

Caleb Sherman

Twitch.tv streamer (Amnesia Duck), retro game enthusiast (don't ask me about Ataris though), lucky husband, and author.

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