lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

A Proposal For Fan Theory Etiquette

This is an idea I have had came up with. Basic some etiquette that in my view should be abided by when creating a fan theories or responding to fan theories. I'm posting this here since I post on this blog more often, but it applies to fan theories for all types of fandoms.

• DON'T CHERRY PICK. When crafting a theory don't brush aside contradicting or potentially contradicting information as a means to support your theory or a narrative.. Take it into account and either amend your theory or make a new one. In other words treat a theory like a hypothesis which it's more equivalent to.

•BE OPEN TO CRITICISM. Don't get mad or defensive when others pick apart a theory you made. That's what is supposed to happen with fan theories. If your theory holds up then it will, if it doesn't then take into account contradicting information and amend or change your theory. Also, definitely don't use pseudoscience to claim people who disagree with you just have something preventing them from understanding your "big brain" theory.

•BE WILLING TO ADMIT YOUR THEORY IS WRONG. If your theory doesn't hold up, admit it doesn't it's not the end of the world. Then go out there and make a new theory.

•REMEMBER FANON IS A THING. If your theory does hold water, remember fanon is a thing. Your theory can be the case in a fan canon you create yourself.

•DON'T TREAT YOUR THEORY AS CANON. Remember to make it clear that your theories and headcanons are not actually canon, that it's all speculation. Don't treat your theories as what the lore actual is. By extension don't say your theory is confirmed unless it absolutely 100% confirmed. Just make sure to keep a clear delineation on what is theory and official lore.

• DON'T HIDE BEHIND IT'S JUST A THEORY. This bit goes along with be open to criticism. Don't use the phrase "it's just a theory" as a shield to avoid criticism of your theory. It's like the people who use "it's just a joke" to avoid criticism. (Note, this applies to everyone who uses this phrase to avoid criticism for theories.)

•AGREE TO DISAGREE. Sometimes you and someone else will have a 2 different theories that aren't necessarily wrong or true, but also contradict each other. So it's okay to disagree and acknowledge the other person's theory is just as plausible.

•DON'T BE A JERK. Overall don't be a jerk and remember everyone is usually creating fan theories out of passionate for the franchises they love. Don't take things too seriously in the end of things.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

Transphobia In Super Mario-Kun

Heads up this post references something that happened in the Mario-Kun manga, and by no means supports the messed up tropes and stereotypes it displays. It was wrong then and it is wrong now, this post is purely for educational purposes.

So when discussing the canonicity of Super Mario-Kun to the games with some people, some had brought up a piece of information about Mario-Kun that I didn't know about. That is that Mario-Kun has an extremely transphobic depiction of Vivian in it.

So I looked into it and yes this is indeed the case. On the left is a picture of the panel in question from Super Mario-Kun Volume 34, and on the right is one that was translated. Source of translated image: Reddit r/AreTheCisOk's post on Super Mario-Kun's Volume 34's transphobia. So the manga has Vivian kiss Mario and Mario comments on this kiss being rough which Vivian responds by saying it's because she has facial hair. Which results in Mario running from Vivian in disgust and misgendering her by calling her a man.

So yeah whoever wrote this part of Mario-Kun decided to take Vivian aka one of the few confirmed trans characters from the Mario series, and play off of transphobic stereotypes. It starts off with having Mario get kissed by a trans woman and upon learning of her being trans, it plays off the transphobic trope having trans people particularly trans woman be depicted as deceitful and not presenting who they really are. Then following it up by having Mario run away in disgust all while misgendering Vivian. Honestly the worst version of Mario.

Btw, if you are wondering why such transphobia does exist in this manga, it's because Japan can be just as bad as other places when it comes to their mistreatment of other people. See my post On Birdo's Gender for a bit more information on this topic.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

Is Mips, Princess Peach's Pet?

So recently I came across the claim the Mips is Peach's pet rabbit, alongside the question on what happened to them. So I decided to make a lore post about it.

So I've been wanting to make a post about what Mips' whole deal is given for awhile people have been confused by it. On top of that the claim lead me to investigate such a claim, since I don't recall any official material claiming this. Given this would be another example of how the pets in Mario's world are pretty weird.

So checking Mips' in game dialogue we get our answer, and........ There is nothing about him being Peach's pet. However, Mips does say he had the Star which Bowser gave him as a gift. This answers what Mips' deal is, and it's simple really; he's working for Bowser as Bowser gave the Power Stars to his minions.

So Mips is not Peach's pet, but if he was he wouldn't be her pet for long given he is shown in game working for Bowser.

So where did the person that made this claim original get this idea from in the first place, if not the official source material. Well.... When engaging in this claim and questioning where the person who made the claim got it from since there was nothing in the games to suggest this, they actually ended up responding to me. So they got mad at me questioning it and claimed it was from the Mario Wiki, before well doing what some people do when contradicted. Regardless that gave me a lead, the Mario Wiki.

So I checked the Mario Wiki where it did claim that Mips was Peach's pet rabbit. "He is Princess Peach's pet rabbit." But something noteworthy was the cited source, it was from some apparent guide book called the Super Mario Bros. Hyakka: Nintendo Kōshiki Guidebook. Said guide book I can't find information on online. The only thing that shows up is things like a Mario World guidebook, an All Stars guidebook, the Encyclopedia, and a Yoshi's Island guidebook. In other words this guidebook might not exist. However, if someone can find information on this guidebook and where I can find it do let me know in the comments. That being said since it is a guidebook, that falls in the category of things like Nintendo Power where people make stuff up about the lore of the games.

So, Mips is not Peach's pet and this serves as a reminder to check the sources of something that is claimed on the Mario Wiki.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

Mario's Bubble Ability

An ability Mario has had since he was a Baby is the ability to save himself from pits and stuff by forming a bubble around himself. A detail that we see a lot in games but people overlook it, and this has been a thing since Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

A little self promo for something I've been working on, unrelated to my lore posts.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

The SM3DL Tail Tree In SMO

So in Super Mario Odyssey the Tail Tree from Super Mario 3D Land makes and appearance on Peach's Castle Grounds. This is a nice little nod to that game but it also further confirms the Mario games are indeed canon to each other with an ongoing continuity.

Even the The Art Of Super Mario Odyssey on page 306 in the notes further confirms this by referring to it as a return, and by bringing up the fact it previously appeared in Super Mario 3D Land.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

The Toads & Koopa Conflict Hypothesis

I so there is a line from Paper Mario 64 that got me thinking about the history of conflict between the Mushroom and Koopa Kingdoms. So here is my hypothesis.

So the line in question comes from Kammy Koopa's response to the Toads suffering and not having their wishes granted. "Oh how delightful! They deserve it for the way they've treated us Koopas over the years." So I have wondered what could the Toads possibly have done to make Kammy say this.

So a little detail I have noticed is you can find Toad houses in the Koopa Kingdom. So I have always wondered why are they here? This is Bowser's Territory not the Mushroom Kingdom. On top of that things like Peach's stained-glass window, the ? Blocks, and 1-Up Mushrooms all have an in-universe explanation. So what I believe is the Toads and the previous rulers of the Mushroom Kingdom were conquerors at some point, and basically started to try to subjugate the Koopas.

This would explain why there are Toad houses in the Sprixie Kingdom, like I speculated in a previous post it's presence could imply thee Sprixie Kingdom was once under the Mushroom Kingdom's control. This would also explain why the Mushroom Kingdom is so vast, with both the Eastern and Western parts of it making up the whole Kingdom. These could be various territories that were conquered. Note, the "kingdom" in Mario Odyssey aren't actually Kingdoms but countries as seen in the Japanese version, and Pauline is the Mayor of New Donk City and not the entire Metro Kingdom or as the Japanese puts it City Country. So the Mushroom Kingdom in comparison to other Kingdoms is still pretty large, only possibly rivaled by Sarassaland.

Speaking of Super Mario Odyssey, this would explain why there is paintings littering the castle grounds which the brochure states the watchtowers they reside in have existed since olden times. It could be possible the previous rulers of the Mushroom Kingdom tried to takeover other countries in the Mario World as well but failed.

From here this would leave us at the current times with Peach the ruler who is trying to make the world a better place. Alongside the Toads who have become cowardly and lazy placing a value of relaxation. Thus resulting in the paintings no longer being used and other possibly territories like the Sprixe Kingdom becoming independent again. And the now remant Toad Houses in places like the Koopa Kingdom only being used here and there to help the Mario Bros. On top of all of that the Koopas still holding resentment towards the Toads have no problem rallying behind their charismatic leader Bowser, who is a conqueror and prides himself on being evil. As he treats them well and enjoys making the Toads suffer.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

The Sun Spirits Hypothesis

So an icon enemy that first showed up in Super Mario Bros. 3 is the Angry Sun, which later shows up in games like Mario Kart DS and Super Mario Maker. But someone might wonder why the Sun is attacking Mario....

So in Paper Mario 64 you come across the Sun of Flower Fields which can't not enter the skies of Flower Fields to bring light to Flower Fields. This implies there there is a sun in every location that serves as a local sun separate from the main sun.

So I think these suns are Sun Spirits similar to the Star Spirits, and provide light for people. In addition it seems their collectible version that also provides light and whose absence results in less light it Shine Sprites of Isle Delfino.

This is a theme I've noticed is there is common theme of collectibles that mirror spirits in the Mario world. You have the various Star Spirits, then the Power Stars and Super Stars, and then the Silver Stars and the Mini Stars. Several Power Stars Make up a Grand Star, and several Super Stars make up an unnamed giant Star seen in Mario Party. With 5 Mini Stars making up a Super Star and 5 Silver Stars making up a Power Star. Alongside all types of Power Star variants being Copper and Green Stars for example. Or the Power Moons which are just Power Stars in a different shape. These Stars I believe make up the the side of stars and star spirits, or as Mario Party DS says. "This brilliant, shining Star radiates courage and strength for everyone to soak up everywhere. And you can't have a Mario Party without a Star!"

From here one can easily see the Dark Star is Star Spirit gone bad, with Dark Star or Ztars alongside Mini Ztars being it's equivalent to Super Stars and Mini Stars. Or in other words, polar opposites. This representing the dark side of stars and star spirits, or as Mario Party DS says. "This dark, gloomy icon oozes with sadness and regret. Unfortunately, where there is light, there is dark. Where there's a Star, there's a Ztar!" I think this may extend out to power-ups as well. As I have brought up in a previous post I believe power-ups are created by Lumalees, which is similar to how Lumas can become Power Stars. If this is indeed the case the Super Mushrooms and other power-ups represent the positive side of power-ups, while Poison and Rotten Shrooms representing the side of the Dark Star, most notably Rotten Mushrooms being Mushrooms that have gone bad.

I think the same goes for these Sun Spirits, with them being a variant of the Star Spirits but focus on provides light more than granting wishes. By extension Shine Sprites and Cat Shines are a variant of Power Stars that provide light. And on top of that the Angry Suns is the Sun Spirit equivalent of the Dark Star.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

The Power-Up Origin Hypothesis

A question one might ask in regards to the Mario lore is where do Power-Ups come from, well I have a hypothesis.

So in Super Mario Galaxy you can feed a Lumalee at the Luma Shop to get a mushroom of your choice.

Afterwards eating the Star Bits the Lumalee will transform in into either a 1-Up Mushroom or Life Shroom which Mario eats to aid him in his quest.

I believe this is where Power-Ups in the Mushroom Kingdom come from, whether it be a Super Mushrooms or Super Stars. Which also make sense because Lumas do become things like planets, galaxies, and Power Stars as well.

So a Super Star would make sense and explain where they come from.

Since Mario eats the Super Mushroom and Fire Flower this must time into the cycles Rosalina speaks of.

On top of that this would explain why power-ups like Super Stars are sapient, and Mushrooms like the Rotten Mushroom and Poison Mushroom seem to be alive.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

Why I Don't Like Game Theory

Anyone reading should not use the information here to harass either Game Theory or the other person mentioned in it.

So this is a phrase I've heard said a lot the videos made by Game Theory pre and post retirement of the creator, whenever someone would cover a video of theirs for getting stuff wrong. Whether is be the Lorax, Get Out, Arcane, Sonic, Minecraft, Megaman, Undertale, FNAF, or Metroid. Something to the effect of "I don't know much about Game Theory and think they did poor research, and are unintentionally spreading misinformation." Or "I like their other videos and think they do great on them, but this video they did bad in."

But with a full view of things this trend is a not a bug but a feature. If you read my previous post on this subject I have talked about this very problem and how it is very intentional. Where he outright said as advice to a new writer that he brushes aside contradicting information to create a narrative, while purposefully leaving out key bits of information with Mario Is Mental as the example.

However, all I had to go off of was some old screenshots and the written quote without video evidence........ Until now

So I basically have gotten a hold of the original video that was basically lost media at this point. So I clipped together 3 clips from this video titled How I almost worked for Game Theory, with a later addition of "edit now I do. The first one is for context, the second one is for evidence that the creator did work for MatPat eventually, and the third one is the infamous clip in question.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

Movie Bowser's Character

So not long ago I came across a video that referred to Bowser in the movies not actually being evil, just misunderstood, and just in love with Peach. Something I've seen several people do before and it is very similar to what I've seen people do with Eric Frankenstein from Creature Commandos. And like Eric several people are missing the fact that the movie version of Bowser in particular is basically a toxic manchild.

So while the game version does have elements of this with him needing to be the biggest baddest guy around and not show weakness or ask for help. And by extension make the game Bowser like this as well. They have several differences which make the movie version of Bowser suffer from toxic masculinity. So I'm going to go over these and point out how they are similar and where they diverge.

Bowser throughout the movie feels threatened by Mario thinking that Mario is going to somehow steal Peach from him. Getting angry and declaring he will kill Luigi just because of Mario, and slamming the piano on Kamek's fingers after literally saying "I'm not threatened." While Bowser in the games does feel threatened by Mario and tries to up stage him, he doesn't aim to kill his opponents including Mario most of the time, let alone Luigi.

Later when a Koopa Troopa askes Bowser what if Peach says no showing his insecurity and violent tendencies. While game Bowser is violent and will lash out in fits of rage, doesn't do it often and only attacks his troops when he is really frustrated or they tick him off. Like he did with Kammy and Iggy. On top of this Bowser treats his minions well. If it were the game version of Bowser would have probably something like, "what are you stupid of course she will say yes I am just that awesome!!" Instead of setting his minion on fire. He also doesn't aim to harm Kamek given his is the one who raised him and he basically respects Kamek.

Bowser in the movie also seems to only be in love with the idea of being in love with Peach, and if he marries her all his problems will be solved. Bowser: "You ruined my wedding, I was finally gonna be happy! Now you will suffer like me!" This shows the movie version of Bowser is unhappy and suffering, thinking that if he just marries Peach he will finally be happy. While the game version of Bowser seems to also just be in love with the idea of being with Peach as well, he doesn't show signs of being unhappy and suffering(from what I can tell). This is also probably because of the societal expectations placed on Bowser especially as the king of the Koopas. Also, if the movie Bowser is anything like the game version, he grew up not knowing his parents as he was raised by his caretaker Kamek. This would definitely play a part in his unhappiness and expectations.

Bowser is both versions doesn't really respect Peach or even know anything about her. Movie Bowser just lists off how she looks and nothing about Peach as a person, and both overall have a one sided relationship with Peach. On top of this both try to force Peach to marry them in spite of Peach not wanting to, and the movie version threatens her subjects if she doesn't. And while the game version knows better than to sacrifice a bunch of people which Peach would not be okay with, they still don't completely care if Peach is okay with something. As he revels in the Toads suffering and not having their wishes granted, all while telling Peach to smile.

A side note people have notice such themes in the movie carry over Mario and DK. Both Mario and DK struggle with societal expectation and getting approval from their fathers. Cranky Kong being very toxic which is also true for Cranky in the games. Something Transparency Boo actually talks about in their video Dixie Kong's Gender Trouble | A Feminist View on Donkey Kong Country. And that while Mario and DK are able to overcome their struggles and become heroes, Bowser just self destructs and is unable to overcome his struggles. But it is also noticed Luigi in the movie doesn't suffer from these expectations or trying to gain approval. That Luigi is content and doesn't care about other's opinions, or his father's approval. But he does comfort his brother does care about that. On top of that Luigi is not afraid to well be afraid where others tired to hide it. I guess Luigi truly is number 1.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

Political Themes In Mario

So there are people nowadays that complain about "politics" being "forced" in media such as Mario, whether or not this is the case. They often go on to say they just want things like Mario to be an escapist fantasy and to keep politics out. So I wanted to talk about political themes in Mario games similar to how I did for Sonic.

So to start off we have the 2 kingdoms the Mushroom and Koopa Kingdom which are constantly in conflict bringing monarchies into the mix. Peach in particular has asked Mario and Yoshi to help the Jewelry Land out from Bowser's conquest in Yoshi's Safari.

She also has at least tried to met with the goodwill ambassador of the Beanbean Kingdom in Superstar Saga, she tried to deal with blorbs outbreak in Inside Story when she held a meeting, and has met with other Kingdom rulers such as Prince Florian.

There is also several kings she rulers over and vast amounts of land that make up the Mushroom Kingdom such the Eastern and Western territories.

There is also the themes of exchange rates of coins and borders established in Superstar Saga.

We also can't forget about the entire Koopa Army's existence.

In Odyssey it is established places like New Donk City hold elections for mayors as Pauline was elected to be the mayor.

Meanwhile in on Isle Delfino has an entire jury system that convicts Mario, alongside law enforcement.

In Super Mario Sunshine Bowser Junior pollutes Isle Delfino which Mario gets blamed for and has to clean up. This game as such themes are pollution ruining a beautiful island and disrupting the lifestyle of the islanders.

Speaking of pollution we can't forget about the Kremlings and how they not only polluted DK Island with Kremkroc Industries, but their homeland. As seen in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, Crocodile Island has a been almost completely ruined by the Kremlings create a dark polluted atmosphere.

All of this creating an environmentalist theme to these games.

Now while some people might say environmentalism shouldn't be regarded as political which I agree with, it has been made political by other people. With many of the people who complain about politics in media often complaining about environmentalism viewing it in media as inherently political. This is why I am including it.

On top of that there is the hypothesis the Kremlings and K. Rool particularly in the Donkey Kong Country 1 could possibly represent a real world event and person.

More on the environmentalism theming, there is the existence of the Wild Yoshi Sanctuary and possible rewilding of Yoshies.

Plus dinosaurs are often made inherently political by some people because of prehistory and evolution.

Also, of the Kremling, pirates are also political because of their connection to monarchies historical, especially being true for the Kremlings.

Finally Mario and Luigi are immigrants which should be self explanatory. In the games they lived in New Donk City for a time, while in the movieverse they are Italian-American immigrants living in Brooklyn, and many continuities.

Mario and Luigi are plumbers and went through many working class jobs in the past like construction, bottling, and cement.

On top of that Mario fought in an unnamed war as well in Mario Bombs Away.

And one extra thing Bowser especially in the movie can represent toxic masculinity, and someone who can never take no for an answer. Such a theme is often made inherently political by some people.

Also, the way Peach is described by Miyamoto can also be viewed as inherently political by certain people who hate the mere thought of someone like Peach being like that.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

My Unofficial Wario Character Bio

Wario is Mario's childhood friend turned rival who has known the plumber since they were babies. Wario after multiple attempts of trying to take over Mario’s castle he was successful, while Mario was off fighting Tatanga in Sarassaland. Wario would take over Mario Land and use a spell to brainwash the citizens of Mario Land into doing his bidding. Mario claims Wario has been jealous of Mario’s popularity since they were boys. After Wario was defeated by Mario he still wanted a castle and decided to go steal a giant golden Princess Peach statue that was stolen by the Brown Sugar pirates so he can hold it for ransom himself. But the pesky plumber would swoop in at the last second and retrieve the statue thwarting his plans, though he did get his own castle thanks to the Genie. However, Toad of all people would later completely demolish it. Wario while taking on a villainous role early on would become a hero in his own right, even helping rescue Peach once and thwarting Bowser’s evil plan. However, he usually does things for more selfish reasons particularly for getting things like treasure and fame. After many adventures Wario mostly settled on creating microgames with his friends in Diamond City where he lives, though he will try to screw them over in his get-rich-quick-schemes. Wario is the president of his video-game company which has produced many hot sellers. Wario also doesn’t love Mona, just to make that clear because many people don’t get that. She is his friend. Wario is a rival of Mario and while no longer a villain he does enjoy causing general mayhem. Wario self professes himself to be Mario’s archrival, and he is stated to hate Mario. Though Mario seems to view Wario as a friend and doesn’t really want conflict with Wario. Wario also seems to have somewhat of a rivalry with Donkey Kong.

Wario is not Waluigi’s brother nor are they related or even friends. Wario and Waluigi do get along though and work well in party, sports, and karting events. So well in fact some people think Wario spends to much time with Waluigi, Wario is stronger than Mario and is able to hurl objects long distances which he uses in treasure hunting or in events like the Olympics. He has high stamina and his body can be altered in all sorts of ways but it won’t stop him in his pursuit of cash. Wario while he can be fast he is still lacking in speed and isn’t very agile, and he definitely isn’t the smartest person around. In party events Wario likes using the dueling glove because he is regarded as a matchless opponent and a dueling master. In karting events he likes sneaky and underhanded attacks primarily targeting Mario. He once used his Jalopy in the Mario Kart Grand Prix, though he had to turn the engine down for the event because it can reach a top speed of 280 mph. His car is his pride and joy. Wario even hosted a Grand Prix before called the Wario Grand Prix, and he has his own racing team called Wario Billionaires which may imply he is a billionaire himself. He also might have made Wario Motors out of spite because of the existence of Mario Motors. He runs his own pharmacy called Wario Pharmacy, and he runs a Gold Mine company called Shy Guy Metals which he has Shy Guys go mining in his gold mine. Aside from constructing places like Wario City in the Baseball Kingdom, he has built or owns other places. For example he might own Water Park, and Mount Wario. Wario is a scoundrel who is lazy, rude, greedy, crude, cunning, and has a boisterous personality and is regarded as the burly opposite of Mario or in other words bad Mario. He loves to toot his own horn. He loves eating garlic and making money.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

Peach's Vibes Possible Connection To Kami

So there is a hypothesis that Peach's Vibes from Super Princess Peach is rooted in Japanese culture.

So I'm going to give credit to one Gaijin Goombah because I got this hypothesis from an old video they made which no longer exists, but I remember what it was about. On top of that I believe that this hypothesis is likely to be correct on the possible real life inspiration behind Peach's Vibes, as opposed to that annoying joke people always make in regards to this game.

So the hypothesis suggests that Peach's vibes are based on mitama which can refer to spirit of a kami. From here one can connect the saki mitama to the Joy Heart, the ara mitama to the Rage Heart, the nigi mitama to the Gloom Heart, and the kushi mitama to the Calm heart. That not just their colors are the same but the way the mitama acts as is similar to the Peach's Vibes as well.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

Does Miyamoto Hate Story?

So it is a rather widespread notion that Miyamoto hates story and ruined Paper Mario.

So instead of talking about this topic ad nauseam myself in several posts, I decided to share these 2 videos that go over the topic made by one SuperMarioT. Their video No, Miyamoto DOESN'T Dislike Story in particular goes into a good amount of detail with a lot of research.

That being said while I aim not going to go over the points they make myself, I am gonna make a brief summary. But overall this is just summarizing the videos and not going in-depth. If you want that and the sources he cites watch both videos.

They go over how many games should have deeper and more compelling stories in an interview people quote mine often, and how the existence of the Zelda games and their story further proves this. In addition to how in the early early Zelda Miyamoto did have some problem with story, he would later change his mind. He also goes over how the plot of Zelda games couldn't have been snuck in behind Miyamoto's back, and the 2 different era of game development. On top of that as we know Pikmin a creation of Miyamoto's has a lot of lore and in-depth story. He would go on to talk about how Koizumi didn't sneak in the Rosalina's storybook and presented it to Miyamoto, and how the game doesn't hid said storybook. In addition, he brings up an Iwata askes interview where Miyamoto concludes philosophy of fun gameplay above story was actually him wanting resonance. And on top of that he talked about how Koizumi agreed with Miyamoto on how Super Mario Galaxy 2 didn't need story. He would eventually talk about how the teams at Intelligent Systems that made the first 3 Paper Mario games were different from the ones Sticker Star and beyond, and Tanabe mentioning they have had complete creative control since Color Splash. He brought up how Miyamoto found Sticker Star's gameplay boring, which is a similar criticism of people who played the game. He brought up Miyamoto's comments on whether or not Paper Mario needed a story wasn't a demand but a suggestion. On top of that they talked about how it seemed to be Tanabe staying in the past, and how many games like Odyssey had basically little limitations when it came to new characters.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

The Koopa Kingdom

So the Koopa Kingdom also known as the Bowser Badlands and Dark Lands is a Kingdom that is part of the Mushroom Continent, with the Mushroom Kingdom right next to it as it's neighboring Kingdom.

Now how we know the name of this kingdom is the Koopa Kingdom is from a line in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island's manual. On page 5 it says "The kidnapper is Kamek, an evil Magikoopa from the Koopa Kingdom."

Now people have question if the Mushroom Kingdom and the Koopa Kingdom are even part of the same continent, which mostly stems from confusion about Bowser's Kingdom aka Bowser Country. If you want information on that see my previous post on the topic, but the simple answer that is not the Koopa Kingdom nor is it Bowser's homeland. The Koopa Kingdom as we know from the cardinal directions it to the East of the Mushroom Kingdom, as in every game you travel through the Eastern parts of the Mushroom Kingdom. Always first going through the Grasslands and the Desert. On top of that Bowser in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story outrighted stated they live on the same continent, because what affects the Mushroom Kingdom affects the Koopa Kingdom. "Gee, PARDON ME! Guess what? I live here, Your Royal Genius!"

Some people think the Koopa Kingdom is part of Yoshi's Island, but they forget the scene where Yoshi and Baby Mario teleport off of Yoshi's Island and into the Koopa Kingdom.

[lore-of-the-mushroom-kingdom]

My Unofficial Ludwig Von Koopa Character Bio

Ludwig Von Koopa is the oldest of the 7 siblings that make up the Koopalings otherwise known as the Little Kuppa Corps. While he is the oldest he is not usually the leader, though Larry does seem to swap the leader role with him at times. Ludwig also seems to be the most skilled of the Koopalings, and often chuckles to himself before a fight. Ludwig has great power and defense, he can use his wand to wield magic, he can shake the ground if he wants, he can breath fire, he is pretty agile and is able to jump high and long distances, he can shoot out 3 attacks at once from his wand, he is able to do a flutter jump, he can create duplicates of himself, he can levitate in the air, and he can use basically a power shell attack. In fights he can coordinate with his fellow Koopalings like Larry to defeat his adversaries. He loves theatrics and enjoys messing with his opponents and will put on a show, announcing his next move on confidence. Like the other Koopalings he is able to operate various machinery such as Bowser’s Clown Copter, and has even been given his own airship. However, the other Koopalings he is the most intellectual, and has constructed machines for Mario to fight. For example, the Super Ludship and his Yoshi Safari Mech. He also has a back up plan ready to go when defeated aka a second phase, and in the case of the Super Ludship while trying to appear he states it was his plan all along. But in spite of his confidence he is able to admit defeat once he is defeated. Most importantly he is an elite commander who leads Bowser’s troops. As such he has commanded said troops in fights against those annoying Mario Bros. When fighting he uses big words in which he needs to simplify for his underlings. Initially viewing Goombas as pathetic he gained respect for them thanks to the former Captain Goomba. He actually likes painting as seen in his graffiti and Mario Kart sponsor Ludwig Painting. Ludwig is sarcastic and likes standing out in the crowd. He is obviously intelligent and a quick thinker who is really good at lying. He is also good at negotiation while managing tricky situations he finds himself in. He is the most grown up Koopalings and is impertinent. Not Bowser's kid and are an adult. His laugh is "gwehehehe.”

Note, while the Koopalings status as Bowser’s kids were retconned other information about them wasn’t stated to have been retconned so it can be regarded as still canon unless new information contradicts it. Mostly the sibling part is what I’m referring to.