Name 100 Nintendo Characters – Part 1

[C] Mario | Started as "Jumpman" before rebranding harder than Facebook to Meta. Now runs a medical practice, racing empire, and party planning business while somehow still finding time to save princesses.

[A] Donkey Kong | This tie-wearing ape went from arcade villain to banana-obsessed hero. Fun fact: he's actually Donkey Kong III—his grandpa was the original barrel-chucker who fought Mario.

[D] Pikachu | Originally designed as a chubby rodent, this electric mouse lost weight for TV stardom. Its name combines "pika" (spark sound) and "chu" (mouse squeak in Japanese).

[A] Yoshi | This green dino's full name is T. Yoshisaur Munchakoopas—seriously. He can swallow enemies whole and turn them into eggs, which is both useful and deeply concerning.

[A] Wario | Mario's evil twin loves garlic the way vampires hate it. His name combines "warui" (bad in Japanese) with Mario, because creativity peaked in the '90s apparently.

[D] Bowser | Despite kidnapping Peach countless times, he's a surprisingly good single dad to eight kids. Also canonically enjoys go-karting with his archenemies on weekends.

[A] Link | Named Link because he "links" players to the game world—not actually named after the hero himself. Left-handed until Wii controls made him ambidextrous for gameplay reasons.

[B] Peach | Rules the Mushroom Kingdom despite zero political experience and constant kidnappings. Her floating ability comes from her dress acting as a parasail—physics professors hate this one trick.

[D] Kirby | Named after Nintendo's lawyer John Kirby, who saved them from Universal Studios. This pink puffball is technically only eight inches tall but contains an actual black hole stomach.

[B] Luigi | Taller, can jump higher, but forever Player 2. His name supposedly means "similar" in Japanese, though that's disputed. Canonically afraid of ghosts yet stars in horror games.

[B] Fox McCloud | Lost his legs in combat and got metal replacements—that's why he can survive massive g-forces. His dad's name was James McCloud, proving creativity runs in the family.

[C] Jigglypuff | Its Japanese name "Purin" means pudding. Gets genuinely offended when people fall asleep during performances, which is ironic since that's literally the point of its lullaby.

[B] King Boo | This paranormal monarch has different crown designs depending on which game series he haunts. His vendetta against Luigi started because Luigi had the audacity to... vacuum ghosts.

[C] Waluigi | Created solely to give Wario a tennis doubles partner. His entire personality is "purple and angry." Fans desperately want him in Smash; Nintendo feeds on their tears.

[A] Princess Zelda | Named after Zelda Fitzgerald, F. Scott's wife. Constantly reincarnating yet somehow always needs saving, except when she's secretly a ninja named Sheik—plot twist efficiency at its finest.

[D] Ness | His name is an anagram of SNES. This psychic kid's favorite food canonically affects his stats—choose "steak" for maximum dad energy, "pizza" for authenticity.

[A] Ganondorf | The only male Gerudo born every 100 years, making him both rare and unfortunately evil. Spends centuries plotting, gets defeated by a kid with a slingshot.

[C] Samus Aran | Gaming's first major plot twist: she's a woman! Her suit weighs 198 pounds but contains helicopter technology. Traumatized by space pirates, becomes the space pirate hunter.

[B] Misty | Her Japanese name is Kasumi, meaning "mist." Carries a mallet specifically for hitting Brock when he flirts. Youngest gym leader at age 10—child labor laws don't exist in Pokémon.

[D] Captain Falcon | Shows his moves more in Smash than in his actual racing game. "Falcon Punch" became more famous than F-Zero itself. His real name is Douglas Jay Falcon.

[B] Popo | One half of gaming's most codependent couple. Wears blue, unlike his pink-clad partner Nana. Their infinite chain-grab combos got them soft-banned from tournaments—relationship goals?

[B] Pit | Can't fly despite having wings—needs a goddess's help for five minutes max. His name is literally "Pitto" in Japanese, which sounds like "pit"—groundbreaking nomenclature there, Nintendo.

[A] Meta Knight | Kirby's mysterious rival who may or may not be the same species. Owns a massive battleship called the Halberd, refuses to explain how he afforded it on a knight's salary.

[D] Game & Watch | Literally a 2D character in a 3D world—the original flat-earther. Based on Nintendo's first handheld success, predating even the Game Boy. Beeps instead of speaking—the strong, silent type.

[D] Olimar | Named after Mario spelled backwards (mostly). Only 0.75 inches tall, making him smaller than the coins Mario collects. Enslaves plant creatures for manual labor—capitalism at its tiniest.

[C] Mudkip | The meme lord of starter Pokémon— "so i herd u liek mudkipz" plagued internet forums for years. Based on the axolotl, which is somehow even weirder than Pokémon.

[B] R.O.B. | Robotic Operating Buddy was an actual toy that barely worked with two NES games. Nintendo snuck him into stores as a "toy" to avoid the post-crash "video game" stigma.

[C] King Dedede | Self-proclaimed king with zero legitimate claim to the throne. His hammer has a jet engine because regular hammers are for peasants. Secretly good at heart, terrible at showing it.

[C] Lucario | Can read auras and predict movements, still gets bodied by a ten-year-old with a type advantage. Speaks telepathically but chooses to say almost nothing—the introvert's Pokémon.

[A] The Dog | Duck Hunt's infamous laughing dog traumatized a generation. Players shot at him more than the ducks. Finally became playable in Smash, where karma is served cold.