Mario
Mario is a video game franchise created by Nintendo in 1981. It is one of the largest video game franchises, consisting of over 200 titles and even three related franchises, Yoshi, Wario, and Donkey Kong. It stars the titular character Mario, a red-capped plumber who often has to go on an adventure to save Princess Peach, particularly in the main Super Mario series. Shigeru Miyamoto is credited for being the creator of Mario, just like The Legend of Zelda.
Since the beginning, The Legend of Zelda series has been closely connected to the Mario franchise. A The Legend of Zelda title has often been developed concurrently with a Super Mario series title by a similar group of developers. This has occurred as early as The Legend of Zelda and Super Mario Bros., with the open world ideas going into the former game and the linear ideas going into the latter. The The Legend of Zelda game with the most Mario-related material is Link's Awakening.
There are several Mario elements that are also a part of The Legend of Zelda despite the two being separate franchises. For instance, several recurring Mario enemies — such as Chain Chomps, Podoboos, and Thwomps — have appeared as actual enemies in a few The Legend of Zelda titles. Chain Chomps were even planned to first appear as enemies in The Legend of Zelda franchise,[1] but ended up first appearing in Super Mario Bros. 3. However, A Link to the Past still counts as one of their earlier appearances.
The The Legend of Zelda series has sometimes elaborated upon the family tree of some Mario species, such as Manhandlas, who are said to be giant Piranha Plants.