Aside from the upcoming Super Mario Bros. Movie, many are curious about what the future of the Nintendo Plumber is. Many are hoping for a new game, while Mario Kart 8 continues to get DLC. And one rumor has supposedly shed light on the future of Mario games and products, revealing that it is all closely tied to the movie.
All of this comes from Zippo, who is a leaker with an iffy track record. It's hard to pinpoint exactly, but maybe half of their leaks have been proven true over time. They are usually attached to Nintendo products, with this Mario movie design adoption being one of three major rumors to come from this source. One of these is that a Nintendo Direct will take place soon, but that's an easy guess. Nintendo almost always kicks a new year off with a Direct presentation.
The second is that Mario products such as toys and video games will gradually adopt design elements from the movies, including the brother's updated outfits. As proof of this, Zippo posts an image of a Mario toy where, upon close inspection, it's clear that Mario has the shoelaces from the movie. This would imply stuff like the proportions of Mario's face could change over the coming years, though it's doubtful that this means Chris Pratt could play Mario in future, non-movie products. Rumors such as these should be taken with a healthy grain of salt, as even if Zippo's leak is true now and this is the plan, plans change. Surely, the Super Mario Bros. Movie's reception will weigh in on such decisions to some degree one way or another, after all.
The third rumor deals with a supposed new 2D Mario game that's said to be in the work. Zippo claims it has been in development for three years and should be close to wrapping up. Players will supposedly be able to play as Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Toad, with the release allegedly set for the 2023/2024 fiscal year.
Ultimately, of course, this all remains to be seen, so fans shouldn't put much thought into these. If a 2D Mario game is announced or new Mario products continue to adopt movie designs, it may be worth returning to Zippo's claims, but for now they can be filed in the rumor folder.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie releases on April 7, 2023.
Source: Zippo