Mario and Sonic

Many people will agree that Super Mario Bros. is the primary game that catapulted Nintendo to fame and fortune. Mario Bros. was published in 1983 while Super Mario Bros. was released in 1985 as a sequel and has been in the pedestal of the best-selling video game of all time for over 20 years.

The cute yet sometimes questionable brotherhood of Mario and Luigi has taken gaming and adventure to a whole new level. However, some people may find it odd that Mario has risen to fame much more than his brother Luigi. Despite being brothers and venturing in the same adventure, Mario is obviously more popular than his slimmer brother Luigi. This may be due to having Mario's name in the title of the game or it could be because his chubbiness is more appealing.
Mario was created by Shigeru Miyamoto. He is a short and chubby Italian-American plumber from the Mushroom Kingdom. His outfit is mainly red as emphasized by his jumper and hat. His main goal in the original game is to defeat the monster-like villain called Bowser, also known as King Koopa, and save Princess Peach Toadstool. He also has other opponents like Wario and Donkey Kong in other games.
Mario has been in roughly 200 different video games. Mario games have been popular for many decades and are still well-known nowadays. Fans are always after Mario games that have become more and more unique and interesting through the years. Popular Mario games include Mario Kart, Mario Tennis, Mario Golf, Paper Mario, Mario Is Missing!, and others.
Aside from the numerous Mario games and sequels made by Nintendo, Mario has also appeared in TV shows, cartoons, toys, clothes, books, ads, and whatnot. His popularity transcended generations upon generations of gamers who are in search of a real adventure game.

On the other hand, Sonic the Hedgehog was created by Naoto Oshima and Yuji Naka for SEGA to rival Mario of Nintendo. The first sonic video game was released on June 23, 1991. Sonic was chosen to be SEGA's mascot because his blue color matches the company's logo. His shoes were inspired by Michael Jackson and were given the color red as influenced by Santa Claus.
Originally, Sonic was named "Mr. Needlemouse". He had fangs, a human girlfriend, and was a member of a band. To make him appropriate and more acceptable to American audiences, Madeline Schroeder softened the character.

As the years passed, Sonic's appearance has also been changed. He was given more drooping and longer quills, green irises, and longer legs. More variations in his appearance can be seen in comics, cartoons, artworks, and others.
Just like Mario, Sonic has appeared in numerous video games in various gaming platforms. Sonic games have been released since 1991 until just last year, 2011. Fans are certainly looking forward to more Sonic games this year and in the years to come. The most recent and popular Sonic games include Sonic the Hedgehog 4, Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brother, Sonic Free Riders, Sonic and the Black Knight, Sonic Generations, and Sonic Colors.