I just saw an old box for Super Mario Bros. 2's initial release in the US, and a little banner on the bottom asserting the game was "Mario Madness" caught my eye.

Now, putting aside for a moment that this game wasn't a Mario game at all in Japan and that "Doki Doki Madness" could be considered more appropriate, this is awesome. More things should declare their madness upon their packaging.

This standard will now determine whether I deem a product worthy of purchase. If there is no declaration of madness, such as "soda madness", "cereal madness", "ambulance madness", etc, I shall say "no! No, thank you!"

It's entirely possible I'll starve as a result, but it's important to have standards.

Basically, after playing Smash Bros Brawl's Subspace Emissary, I'd like to see Zero Suit Samus (or her simply wearing something other than that big bulky suit that hides her face) with Pikachu as her pet. I found Samus with a Pikachu companion to be amusing.

I also liked seeing Peach and Zelda hanging out. It's not a pairing I expected to be fun, but my favorite moments during Subspace Emissary involved those two (especially once Zelda becomes Sheik) and it makes me want to see more of their wacky adventures.

(Also, I think Mario and Link should keep an eye on those two. Sheik and Peach may be closer than they'd be comfortable with)

I also think Lucario is awesome, but there's already a lot of art of him (and several, um, over-the-top female variations ), but one thing that bugs me about him is the huge spike in the center of his chest. Everything else about him screams "HUGGLE ME!", but that thing makes that quite the dangerous proposition. ...but maybe that's the point o_O

I'll likely draw some of these myself someday, but it'll probably be a while before I get to it

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EDIT - Any deviations that fit the Samus w/pet Pikachu and/or Peach w/Sheik (or Zelda) that get linked to in the comments (and that are not labeled as "Mature") will get featured below. If I somehow miss a link, let me know.

Peach and Sheik (or Zelda):



Samus and Pet Pikachu:

I just discovered, by way of fave notifications, that you can add ENTIRE FOLDERS as favorites. I'm eager to to have a collections folder in my fave section, but, um...

very few people that I fave seem... to... use folders..

...

Ok, I'm excited IN ADVANCE for a future with people having folders that I would fave.

I have a theory: Ash never evolves Pikachu because his Pikachu is already so powerful that the power of its Raichu form would TEAR REALITY ASUNDER.

Last night, I got Smash Bros Brawl. For many people, this means I don't get to complain about anything ever until they get their copies, but I still want to talk about my experiences waiting for the game.

First off, I originally assumed I'd have to wait outside in a line, but that assumption changed when I got a voice mail saying people could show up at 10 pm and get their orders processed. Knowing that processing orders requires a register, I figured I'd be able to get inside, pay for my game, and casually do whatever for the remainder of the time.

I was, however, misinformed. There was a tournament at 10, a tournament where people brawled one-on-one, and only those playing were allowed inside, and the screen was facing AWAY from the door, making it difficult-to-impossible for spectators. This did not interest me, and the manager told me I could come back at 11 to process my order. So I left and killed time for an hour.

When I came back, the tourney was still going. I didn't realize that they wouldn't be processing until AFTER the tournament and that 11 was a very, very vague (and wrong) approximation, so I stood outside in the cold while very, very rowdy (and possibly intoxicated) fans of brawl rambunctiously cheered on a tournament they couldn't really see.

I'd just assume they were excited and not on something, but the level of behavior at that time of night and under those circumstances suggested to me either extremely rude or chemically uninhibited people; possibly both. To put it into perspective, the manager had to tell them to keep it down just to keep the cops from coming by. And while I haven't been to a pre-release like this before, I've been to four years of Comic-Con. These guys made excited con goers meeting celebrities look tame.

Anyway, there's not much to the rest. Just waiting in line, getting inside for about a minute to pay, more waiting outside, then finally getting the game.

So as I said, I got the game, alls well that ends well. But it is therapeutic to write out such experiences, and it may serve as a cautionary note to others, so here it is. I think it might have been better if I had a friend come with me, but unfortunately most people I know in person either weren't available or not into Smash Bros (or even Nintendo), so I was alone. I recommend dressing appropriate to the weather, directing any questions directly to people who work there and not rowdy people waiting in line who might try to mess with you (didn't happen to me, but did to others), and sharing the experience with someone so you're not just out there resisting a strong desire to punch certain people