Luigi Timeline

## 1980s

March 14, 1983: Luigi made his debut in *Mario Bros.* on the Game & Watch. He was created to player 2 to Mario who made his debut in the arcade game, *Donkey Kong*.

June 21, 1983: Luigi made his second appearance in the arcade game, *Mario Bros.* He started out as a pallet swap of Mario.

December 1983: The *Mario Bros.* arcade game was released on the Atari. The commercial for it was the first time Luigi was ever portrayed with the cowardly personality he would later be known for.

August 1984: Luigi was player 2 to Mario in *VS. Wrecking Crew*.

September 13, 1985: Luigi starred alongside Mario in Super Mario Bros.

June 3, 1986: Super Mario Bros. 2 was released in Japan. This was the first game where Luigi wasn't exclusive to player 2. It also introduced his high jump and poor traction which caused him to slide when landing.

July 20, 1986: Luigi starred alongside Mario in their first movie, *Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach!* (Released only in Japan.) This was the first time Luigi was designed to be taller and thinner than Mario. He was portrayed as greedy and obsessed with money which would be character traits later used for Wario.

October 9, 1988: Due to concerns about Super Mario Bros. 2 being too difficult for Western gamers, *Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic* was remade as Super Mario Bros. 2 for America. This was where his design was fully established since he was made taller to fit the proportions of the character he replaced, Mama. Just like in the other *Super Mario Bros. 2*, he had a higher jump.

October 23, 1988: Luigi went back to being player 2 and a palette swap of Mario in *Super Mario Bros. 3.*

September 4, 1989: Luigi starred alongside Mario in their first American cartoon, *The Super Mario Bros. Super Show*. This was the second time Luigi was portrayed with his cowardly personality.

## 1990s

September 1990: McDonald's had a toy promotion for *Super Mario Bros. 3*. *Luigi's Hammer Toss* (which was released among a few LCD game watches as part of the promotion) was Luigi's first ever solo game.

September 8, 1990: Luigi would star alongside Mario in their second American animated show, *The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3*.

November 10, 1990: Luigi starred in his own solo episode of *The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3*, *Life's Ruff*. Because of Mario's absence, this episode made Luigi the only character to appear in every episode of the DIC cartoons.

November 21, 1990: Luigi was player 2 and a palette swap of Mario again in *Super Mario World*.

September 14, 1991: Luigi starred alongside Mario in their third American animated show, *Super Mario World*.

September 20, 1991: *NES Open Tournament Golf* introduced Luigi's relationship with Princess Daisy who debuted in *Super Mario Land* two years prior.

December 7, 1991: *The Super Mario World* episode *Mama Luigi* premiered. This episode would later become popular with YouTube Poop and internet memes. It was also the final episode of the show and the DIC cartoons as a whole.

1992: Luigi starred in his second game; Mario is Missing on the MS-DOS. This was his first speaking role in a video game.

August 27, 1992: Luigi was among the racers playable in *Super Mario Kart* and every Mario Kart game after.

May 28, 1993: Luigi starred alongside Mario in their second movie, *The Super Mario Bros. Movie*.

June 1993: Mario is Missing was released on the SNES.

July 1993: Mario is Missing was released on the NES.

July 14, 1993: *Super Mario All-Stars* was released on the Super Nintendo. It was a compilation of *Super Mario Bros.*, *Super Mario Bros. 2 (USA)*, *Super Mario Bros. 3* and the original *Super Mario Bros. 2* now titled *Super Mario Bros. The Lost Levels* all remade with improved graphics and sprites.

April 5, 1994: Luigi appeared in the cutscenes for *Hotel Mario*. This game spawned some memes including his line "I hope she made lotsa spaghetti."

December 1994: *Super Mario All-Stars* got an expansion called *Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World* which had *Super Mario World* remade with Luigi's updated design.

August 5, 1995: Baby Luigi made his first appearance in *Yoshi's Island* along with Baby Mario. He was kidnapped by Kamek who attacked the stork delivering him and his brother, and it's up to Yoshi and Baby Mario to save him.

March 9, 1996: While Luigi didn't get to join Mario on his first RPG adventure in *Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars*, he did host the instruction booklet for the game and made a cameo during the credits. He also made a wish on a star in Star Hill to be a great plumber like his brother (though in the Japanese version, he wished to help his brother.)

June 23, 1996: *Super Mario 64* was originally planned to have Luigi as a playable character for 2-player mode, but due to programming limitations, he didn't make the final cut.

February 10, 1997: *Mario Kart 64*'s American release was the first game where Charles Martinet provided the voice for Luigi.

December 18, 1998: The first *Mario Party* game was released, and Luigi would be playable in every game of the series. He had his own board in this game called *Luigi's Engine Room*.

January 21, 1999: Luigi was an unlockable fighter in *Super Smash Bros.* and every other game in the series after. He was still an echo-fighter to Mario and had Mario's voice clips recycled with a higher pitch.

## 2000s

July 21, 2000: *Mario Tennis* introduced Luigi's rival, Waluigi.

August 11, 2000: Luigi was a supporting character in *Paper Mario* where he wrote a diary expressing jealousy of Mario's adventures that he didn't get to be a part of.

September 14, 2001: Luigi starred in the first game of his own game series, *Luigi's Mansion*. This was where his personality and voice were fully established.

November 21, 2001: Luigi was an unlockable fighter in *Super Smash Bros. Melee*. He was still an echo-fighter to Mario and had Mario's voice clips recycled with a higher pitch.

July 28, 2003: Mario Golf: *Toadstool Tour* was released. Luigi gained a bit of controversy because some people misinterpreted that he was making a gesture meaning *lesbian* when getting a good shot.

November 7, 2003: Baby Luigi made his first playable appearance in *Mario Kart: Double Dash!!*

November 17, 2003: Luigi starred in his first RPG game alongside Mario, *Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga*. This game started the running gag with Luigi living in Mario's shadow.

July 22, 2004: Luigi was a supporting character in *Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door* where he told Mario about his adventures and wrote about them while his sidekicks revealed how he exaggerated them.

November 21, 2004: After being left out of the original, Luigi was added as a playable character in *Super Mario 64 DS* along with Yoshi and Wario. This was his first time being playable in a 3D platform game. He could be unlocked by going into a secret painting in Big Boo's Haunt as Mario, figuring out where to go, then rescuing him from Big Boo. Luigi was given a high spin jump and the ability to swim faster. In the Rec Room, Luigi had a collection of mini games that were all casino themed with him being a dealer.

January 27, 2005: Baby Luigi was playable in 2-player mode for *Yoshi Touch & Go*. So far, this is the only time Baby Luigi has ever been playable in a Yoshi's Island game.

July 14, 2005: Luigi was one of two playable characters along with Mario in *Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix*. This was the first (and so far only) game where *Waluigi* was the main antagonist.

November 28, 2005: The Mario & Luigi games continued as a series with its second game, *Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time* where the brothers went back in time and fought alongside their baby counterparts.

May 15, 2006: Luigi was an unlockable playable character in *New Super Mario Bros.* on the DS. He played identical to Mario. Three of his minigames from *Super Mario 64 DS* returned in the minigame mode section.

April 9, 2007: Luigi was brainwashed and became the villain, Mr. L in *Super Paper Mario*.

November 1, 2007: Luigi was an unlockable character in *Super Mario Galaxy* marking his second playable appearance in a 3D platform game.

January 31, 2008: Luigi was an unlockable playable fighter in *Super Smash Bros. Brawl*. This time, he was his own distinct fighter rather than an echo-fighter for Mario, even having his own voice. His final smash move was the Negative Zone in which he would create a green voice that dealt a random status effect to any opponents caught in it. He also played a big part in the Subspace Emissary story where he, King DeDeDe and Ness had to save the other fighters.

February 11, 2009: *Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story* was the third entry in the Mario & Luigi series. In it, Mario and Luigi go on an adventure inside Bowser.

## 2010s

February 14, 2013: *The Year of Luigi* was announced in the Nintendo Direct.

March 20, 2013: Luigi's Mansion got its first sequel, *Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon* (titled *Luigi's Mansion 2* in Japan.)

March 24, 2013: *Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon* was released in North America. While it's unknown if it happened on this date, Nintendo World held a party celebrating its release.

May 26, 2013: From then until June 23, Nintendo held a Wii U tour promoting *New Super Luigi U* in Disneyland.

June 20, 2013: *New Super Luigi U* was released as DLC for *New Super Mario Bros. U.*

July 12, 2013: The fourth game in the Mario & Luigi series, *Mario & Luigi Dream Team* was released in Europe. In it, Mario goes inside Luigi's dreams.

August 11, 2013: *Mario & Luigi Dream Team* was released in North America. While it's unknown if it happened on this date, Nintendo World held a pajama party to celebrate its release.

August 12, 2013: From then until September 8, the L line in Chicago was re-painted to promote *New Super Luigi U* and was temporarily re-named, The Luigi Line. On this day only from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m., Luigi was there as a meet-and-greet character. Also, Luigi temporarily took over Nintendo's Twitter page to talk about his adventure on the train.

August 25, 2013: *New Super Luigi U* was released as its standalone game. Nintendo World held a party celebrating its release.

November 22, 2013: *Super Mario 3D World* was released on the Wii U with *Luigi Bros.* as an unlockable bonus game. This was also the debut of Cat Luigi.

November 28, 2013: Sadly, Luigi's actor from *The Super Mario Bros. Super Show*, Danny Wells died in Toronto, Ontario at age 72.

December 31, 2013: *Dr. Luigi* was released in the Wii U's eShop.

March 18, 2014: *The Year of Luigi* ended.

May 7, 2014: 2013 was reported to be a financial failure for Nintendo, losing $457 million in total, primarily due to the poor reception of the Wii U and its games; however, an Internet meme spread in the end of the year that declared Luigi the cause of Nintendo's financial loss (despite *Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon* and *Mario & Luigi: Dream Team* selling well enough to earn Nintendo Selects labels.)

May 30, 2014: Luigi's death stare became a meme from a YouTube video posted by *Rizupicorr* titled *Waluigi vs Luigi* which shows *Mario Kart 8* footage of Luigi hitting Waluigi with a green shell and giving him an angry look.

September 13, 2014: Luigi was a fighter in *Super Smash Bros.* on the 3DS. He was given a new final smash where he uses his Poltergust 5000 from *Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon*.

November 21, 2014: Luigi was a fighter in *Super Smash Bros.* on the Wii U with the same moves as the 3DS.

December 2014: Luigi got his own *Super Smash Bros.* Amiibo as part of wave 2.

March 20, 2015: Luigi got his own Amiibo as part of the Super Mario Bros. Amiibo series.

May 31, 2015: Dr. Luigi made his second appearance in *Dr. Mario: Miracle Cure* on the 3DS, this time wearing a doctor head mirror instead of his hat.

August 28, 2017: Luigi got into some controversy after he was shown dabbing in a trailer for *Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle*.

February 21, 2018: After being absent from *Super Mario Odyssey*, Luigi appeared in a DLC for the game called *Luigi's Balloon World* where one player online could hide a balloon while another would have to find it under a time limit.

June 22, 2018: In *Mario Tennis Aces*, Luigi is possessed by Lucien and Mario has to save him.

August 8, 2018: Luigi was killed by the Grim Reaper in Simon Belmont's reveal trailer at the beginning of the *Super Smash Bros. Ultimate* Direct. Fans freaked out, and Nintendo UK made a post confirmed that Luigi was okay.

September 13, 2018: *Luigi's Mansion 3* was revealed at the beginning of the Nintendo Direct.

October 12, 2018: *Luigi's Mansion* got a remake on the 3DS. Gooigi was introduced in the game's 2-player mode.

December 7, 2018: Luigi was an unlockable fighter in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. This time using the *Poltergust G-00* from *Luigi's Mansion 3*.

October 22, 2019: After being surprisingly absent from *Mario Kart Tour* for the first two weeks, Luigi was finally added in as a playable character for the Halloween Tour along with Baby Luigi, Waluigi and King Boo from the *Luigi's Mansion* games.

October 31, 2019: *Luigi's Mansion 3* was released.

November 1, 2019: In *Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020*, Luigi had an accident where he caused Mario, Sonic, Bowser and Eggman to get trapped in a video game based on the Olympic Games of Tokyo 1964, and it's up to he and Tails to get them out while encountering the other characters along the way.

## 2020s

January 21, 2020: Penguin Luigi was added to *Mario Kart Tour* for the Ice Tour.

March 3, 2020: Luigi (Classic) was added to Mario Kart Tour for the Mario Bros. Tour.

October 16, 2020: Luigi had his own remote-control car as part of *Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit* alongside Mario.

November 17, 2020: *Mario Kart Tour* had a Mario Vs. Luigi Tour which introduced Builder Luigi to the game. Team Luigi lost to Team Mario.

January 13, 2021: Luigi (Lederhosen) was added to *Mario Kart Tour* for the Berlin Tour. He gained a bit of controversy as some saw his clothes as stereotypical.

June 16, 2021: Luigi (Painter) was added to *Mario Kart Tour* for the Paris Tour.

January 12, 2022: Luigi (Vacation) was added to *Mario Kart Tour* for the Singapore Tour.

June 7, 2022: Cat Luigi was added to *Mario Kart Tour* for the Cat Tour.

September 6, 2022: *Mario Kart Tour* had a second Mario Vs. Luigi Tour which introduced Knight Luigi to the game. Team Luigi lost to Team Mario again.

October 11, 2022: Luigi (Chef) was added to *Mario Kart Tour* for the Battle Tour.

November 22, 2022: Kitsune Luigi was added to *Mario Kart Tour* for the Animal Tour.

April 5, 2023: Luigi had a major role voiced by Charlie Day in *The Super Mario Bros. Movie*.

August 23, 2023: Charles Martinet announced he was stepping down from voicing Mario, Luigi and his other roles.

Summer, 2024: Luigi's Mansion 2 HD will be released on the Switch.