Mario Day - Monday, March 10, 2025

We celebrate Mario Day on March 10 each year, because March 10, written as “Mar10”, looks like Mario’s name. The friendly mustached Mario character was initially released by Nintendo in 1985 — doesn’t that make you feel old? Since then, Mario has appeared in around 200 different games, and the Mario games have claimed the title of the best selling video game series in history, beating out popular competitors, like Pokemon.

If you grew up in the 1980’s or 1990’s you are sure to know who Mario and his brother Luigi are. Mario and his brother are the most renowned characters of any of the Nintendo games! For Mario Day take a walk through the history of this endearing character.

History of Mario Day

Mario Day came about when it was noticed that when one marks the day Mar.10, it spells Mario. From then it just took off. Mario was first introduced in Nintendo’s game Donkey Kong. When he appeared in this game in the early 1980’s he was not the well-named plumber that would be recognized today. His name was Mr. Jumpman and he was a carpenter. Much different wouldn’t you say?

Once he broke out on his own, changed his name and profession in Super Mario Bros. he began what was to be a takeover of Nintendo’s offerings. Games that he has been featured in have sold over 262 million copies worldwide making it the most successful video game series of all time.

It wasn’t just the character that made the game remarkable, but the technology that it was part of bringing it to the forefront of video gaming. The release of Super Mario 64 brought with it groundbreaking three-dimensional graphics. It was also the first game to integrate a camera view that could be controlled by the player! Super Mario Sunshine made advances in gravitation that allowed to soar through space and have more movement options than before. This series has been important to the industry of video gaming and the technological jumps that have been made through the years in console gaming.

How to celebrate Mario Day

There really is only one super way to celebrate Mario Day and this is to get playing! Dust off that console and take the day to enjoy the fun and frustration that comes with platform games (games that make you jump from level to level or over obstacles to advance). Have you shown your children the fun that Mario and all the characters have ready for them? Today is the day! Spend some quality time sharing the fun and the memories with them.

There are other fun ways to spend time on Mario Day. Is your school or work celebrating the day? Why not take a try at dressing up in that iconic red and blue outfit? You could try to dress up as another character from the series and see how well your friends really know the series. See if they can guess who you are?

Cakes, cupcakes and other sweets can be made and enjoyed this day as well. Gaming and sweets go hand in hand, so having a treat and some time to remind yourself why the Mario Series has been so successful is the perfect way to celebrate Mario Day! Don’t forget to share the fun with your friends and family. Mario loves his brother Luigi, so share the love as well as the fun!