Joystiq [Nintendo]

Painter

Job experience: Mario Paint (SNES, 1992), Mario Artist (N64DD, 1999)

We suspect that with all of his usual vocal clamoring, Mario never had much of a chance of matching the Zen-like tranquility of TV's afro'd painting instructor extraordinaire, Bob Ross. Then again, Bob Ross is pretty much second to nobody in the painting industry (if painters are gauged entirely by their hair style, and why wouldn't they be?). These games showcase the rare instances in which we see Mario fulfilling the role of a detail-oriented artist, and so we wonder whether his occasional canvas dabbling could amount to anything remotely compelling or inspirational. Judging from Mario Paint's box art, no, not really. The illustrative dimension of Mario's persona also sports a sideways ball cap, which is a notable fashion statement.

09/07/08