Nintendo, Next Level on what separates Luigi from Mario
Back in the day (pre-Super Mario Bros. 2), Mario and Luigi were completely identical. They looked the same and played the same.
Now, however, the two brothers have separate identities. Luigi is known these days for being a bit of a wimp, and from a gameplay perspective, can jump higher and can be slightly slippier to control.
Nintendo’s Yoshihito Ikebata and a pair of staffers recently discussed the differences between Mario and Luigi. Read their comments below.
Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon supervisor Yoshihito Ikebata:
“Luigi, by nature, is sort of a little bit of a fearful and clumsy character, so that’s something that provides a lot of opportunity for gameplay.”
Next Level Games’ Brian Davis:
“With Luigi you can also explore a wider range of emotions.”
Next Level Games director Bryce Holliday:
“He’s kind of the underdog in the shadow of his brother. So he kind of has that fearful tension that always surrounds him. This game’s about spooks and comedy. He just provides a wider range or reactions. Our animators have had a lot more fun kind of getting a wider range of emotions through to the player than Mario will. He just kind of does his pump-fist and jumps up. After 10 hours of pump-fist, it might be too much.”
