Unless you've been living under a rock for the past couple of weeks you'll know the latest (proper) Mario game has finally been released. So join our staff as we recollect on gamings most famous series.

As the latest Mario game is released, what are your thoughts on the series?

Will: Well the Mario series has not really meant much to me apart from great games. I origianlly played mario games in the arcades where he was called "Jumpman" and then moved to the Gameboy with them classic side scrolling titles. Then as the N64 came and i was a late comer to the console i have not had the pleasure to plat on Super Mario 64 yet, but i soon will. The main mario games on the N64 for me were mario Kart, i spent hours on end on this game sorting out arguements with my brother. Also it was Mario Tennis, this was also a very addictive games that got me interested in a game i never really played before. Then there was Mario Golf which i never had the chance to play.

Due to me not yet having the chance to play Mario 64, I cant really show much enthusiasm towards Super Mario Sunshine, but i am still excited about it and will surely buy it. Now to Mario Tennis/Kart/Golf we have seen little footage of this yet but they will surely be great games which i hope to own. I also hope Mario Kart will be online although Shiggy has told them to concentrate on the single player mode. We shall just have to wait and see.

*UPDATE* Today i just got Mario 64 and its rather spiffing. Well its quite fun and addictive but its not as good as made out to be. maybe thats cos i have only juts played the first area. It will probally grow on me soon enough.

Conor: The Mario games brought me up as a child in terms of games. As far back as I can remember I was playing with Mario on the NES. I only had a few games for the NES and only one good one; Mario Bros. 3. That game was just so unbelievably good, it was what got me into computer games. In fact, I still have a go when I visit my aunties (her and my uncle have a NES with it :) )

Then on the SNES were the brilliant, brilliant Super Mario Worlds, I thought platforming couldn't get any better. Until Mario 64 arrived, and revolutionised gaming as we knew it. Pure genious. The Karts/Golfs/Tennis etc. were all great (especially Mario Kart 64) but what I really wanted was another genius platformer. Now I've only (appox.) 74 days to go.

Sunshine looks to carry on where the series left off, Nintendo have clearly not lost any talent over the years. It looks to be as fun and enjoyable as the other Marios (though I doubt it'll better Mario 64). Looking back on the series is like remembering an old friend, an old friend who I'll be playing with again in just 74 days.

Javid: Mario games have always established their grasp on having killer ap game-play and possibly the most addictive nature ever seen. This is why on every single Nintendo console, Mario shows up and causes a stir within other developers to try and level it quality. Every time a true mario adventure game is released, it raises the bar for everything, and this is why i think the Mario series has been so incredible. Im certainly a sucka for it, always have been and always will be.

I think its too hard to pin point exact greatest moments, but how about just completing one, its a challege within itself and a sure achievement, you feel proud to say 'I completed Mario!' and it stays in your mind as one thing you've done that you will always remember, how many other games can do that? ... lets just hope Sunshine isnt short like recent titles Nintendo have released. Still even if it is, im sure it will be filled with the imaginative worlds, the great characters and that special feel only Nintendo seem to be able to create. Long live Mario!

Jim: Mario games have always been my favourite. Right back to Super Mario Bros, the Mario games have always provided a challenge and endless fun, something that only the classic games can do. I still remember the day I completed Super Mario Bros. I must have been about 6 or so then, my dad had just got back from a fishing trip, and i had just gotten past the Hammer Bros level (the 2nd last level) when he walked inside. Dad, who completed the game long ago didnt think I'd beat the last level, infact he put 10 bux on it (which was a lot of money for a 6 year old!). I had 5 lives left, and I beat the last level on my last one, and became rich! Woohooo!!

Thats the pleasure of the Mario games, they always provide something special. Mario Party is a good example, as is Mario Kart - Which is my favourite game of all time!

Here here Jav! Long live Mario!

Lammie: My first encounter with Mario & Co. was on the NES with Super Mario Bros. Back then graphics weren't as big a feature as they are now, obviously. I didn't actually own the game until I got Super Mario Allstars for the SNES, but I played SMB about three times more than both SMB 2 and SMB 3. I think the simplicity and playability made it so addictive. Even ten years after its initial debut it still was a stong competitor against the current games out. Then came Yoshi's Island, I wasn't a huge fan of Super Mario World, but Yoshi's Island offered something different in a Mario game. The graphics worked beautifully and it was packed to the brim with gameplay. And adding more than just jump on heads and throw fire balls was an attractive feature to say the least. I really really liked the egg eating throwning thing...

Then came Super Mario 64. Probably more influential than any other game since the grand-daddy of all platformers, Donkey Kong. For the first time ever you could play in a real 3d world. SM64 revolutionized gaming forever, I still remember the first time I saw it, jaw dropping to say the least. My favourite moment ever when playing games would have to be the first few minutes that I played SM64. I was so impressed with the way Mario had been brought to the 3rd dimension.

My worst moment would have to have been the time I smashed my SNES controller playing SMW2, I hate that game. I don't know what to expect from Sunshine, I've only seen one video because I think I want to try and feel the same way when I played SM64 for the first time, I want to be surprised, impressed, and addicted.....and I'm sure I will.

Link: I think that there is one word that sums up pretty well the Mario series up to this date and that word is revolutionary. Mario games have always been the games that set standards for platform games and at times for all games in general.

The Mario games on the NES were pure brilliant and fun 2D side-scrolling platform action at its best. The lack of serious violence may make you think that the NES Mario would be thought of as kiddie, but he never was though of as such. Mario Bros. was a great introduction to Mario. Mario 2 was also a good game, but wasn't as popular as the first. And then Mario 3 came out and it was definitely the best NES Mario (and perhaps the best of all time).

A couple years later and the SNES was released with Super Mario Bros. This game took us back to the same style of play as seen in the first Mario game, but the graphics were beefed up and this game screamed fun all over again. The other SNES Mario was another step up in graphics, but it changed the style of play in Mario games. It was quite an enjoyable game and Mario's crying was more than enough to motivate you to save him.

And then the game that trule revolutionized. Mario 64 raised the bar (as usual) drasticly in games quality. Mario's leap into 3D really showed how a 3D platformer should be and is thought by many as the best game ever. Now: Luigi's Mansion has been released and hasn't exactly revolutionized anything (except for maybe ghostbusting), but Mario Sunshine is nearing release and it is sure to be as good as the Mario games have promised to be.

That's it for this week! Join us next Sunday when we will give our thoughts on the current state of the games industry and how it needs to move forward. See you there!