Super Mario (series)

Super Mario (series)

The Super Mario (スーパーマリオ?) video game series is the central series of the greater Mario franchise. Alternatively called the Super Mario Bros. (スーパーマリオブラザーズ, Sūpā Mario Burazāzu?) series or simply the Mario (マリオ?) series, they are a series of highly popular and critically acclaimed platforming video games by Nintendo, featuring, with rare exceptions, Nintendo's mascot Mario and, in many games, his brother Luigi as the player characters. At least one Super Mario game has been released for every major Nintendo video game console and handheld since the release of Super Mario Bros., the first title in the series, in 1985 for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES).

The Super Mario games focus on Mario's adventures in the fictional Mushroom Kingdom and all its various locales. Gameplay often centers around progressing through various levels set in these locales, where Mario jumps on and defeats various enemies. The games usually feature simple plots; the most common theme is that of Bowser, the primary antagonist, kidnapping Princess Peach, whom Mario rescues. Super Mario Bros. established many gameplay concepts and elements prevalent in nearly every Super Mario game, including a multitude of power-ups and items that bestow Mario with special abilities such as shooting fire and ice, growing to huge heights, and shrinking to micro size.

The series is central to a greater Mario franchise that includes other genres of video game as well as other media such as film, television, printed media and merchandise. Over 262 million copies of games in the Super Mario series have been sold worldwide, making it the best-selling video game franchise.