Topic: Super Mario Bros.

Hollywood Jobs: Greg Rice, Video Game Developer

Hollywood Jobs: Greg Rice, Video Game Developer

Greg Rice is an Assistant Producer at Double Fine Productions, a video game production company, where he is “in charge of keeping game development teams productive.” His latest projects include Sesame Street: Once Upon A Monster and Trenched. He called me from his office in San Francisco to chat about what it’s like to play video games for a living, where he finds inspiration, and the direction the industry is headed. More »

Video: Two Dancers Dressed as Mario and Luigi Do a Fantastic ‘Super Mario Bros.’ Swing Dance

Video: Two Dancers Dressed as Mario and Luigi Do a Fantastic 'Super Mario Bros.' Swing Dance

Swing dancing’s pretty cool in a time-long-past way, right? And we all grew up with Super Mario Bros. on our Gameboys or Wiis. Bet you never thought they could be combined! Dancers Morgan Day and Emily Wigger debuted this amazing mash-up at the Camp Hollywood 2011 National Jitterbug Championship; there have been a couple grainy versions going around the Internet, but here’s a high-quality version from Swing! The Documentary. More »

Gallery: The Cutest Toy Pop Culture Duos You Will Ever See

Gallery: The Cutest Toy Pop Culture Duos You Will Ever See

If you’ve ever wished you could snap up your favorite pop culture duo and keep it in your pocket, now’s your chance. Artist Andrew Kolb’s series “Two of a Kind” takes well-known characters and turns them into wooden dolls that may be the cutest things I’ve ever seen. The characters run (naturally) in pairs, and of the inspiration for the series, Kolb says, “The idea stems from the recurring theme of pairs comprised of one who is tall and thin and the other who is short and stout.” Each set of figures starts with the same basic templates; then Kolb unleashes his artistic talents, and they turn into unique renderings of pop culture regulars. Like what you see? Check out more of Kolb’s work on his Tumblr. More »

13 Spectacularly Creative Cosplay Costumes

13 Spectacularly Creative Cosplay Costumes

My own particular nerdy tendencies have never reached dressing-up-as-beloved-fictional-characters heights, but I’m pretty impressed by those who DO venture into that territory. What better place, then, to showcase your lovingly-constructed masterpieces than San Diego Comic-Con, which incidentally is happening this weekend? We’ll bring you images of the best of this year’s SDCC costumes as soon as they start surfacing, but until then, in honor of the event, we bring you 13 of the most creative cosplay costumes we’ve ever seen from previous years. They’re not necessarily the most detailed of costumes (though a few are); but they all demonstrate some excellent outside-the-proverbial-box thinking. Who would you dress up as? Tell us in the comments! More »

17 Pop Culture Variations on ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’

17 Pop Culture Variations on 'Keep Calm and Carry On'

Freaking out because the weekend’s almost over? Have no fear! We’ve got five simple words that will help: Keep Calm and Carry On. Originally created as a poster slogan by the British government during the Second World War, the saying was intended to raise the morale of the British public in the event of invasion. Luckily, it never had to be used, and after the war, it fell into obscurity. In 2000, though, the poster resurfaced in a second-hand bookstore in Northumberland– and thus, a meme was born! Since then, the phrase has shown up on everything from tea towels to coffee mugs (Fact: I have a vinyl decal of the words adorning my wall). Naturally, since its rediscovery, the creative masses on the interwebs have taken the poster’s design and come up with endless variations, often with hilarious pop culture themes. So, as the weekend draws to a close, I offer you this advice: Keep calm, carry on, and take a look at these other versions so you’ll know exactly what to do if a Dementor attacks you or if a vampire falls in love with you. More »

The 10 Best Geeky Marriage Proposals of All Time

The 10 Best Geeky Marriage Proposals of All Time

A couple of weeks ago, we here at Crushable HQ shared with you an adorable nerdy marriage proposal via Pokeball. As we alternately ooh’ed and aah’ed over the creativity that went into the proposal, it occurred to us that we’ve been hearing about an awful lot of equally creative geeky marriage proposals lately. So because Sunday is a good day to go “Awwwww!” a lot, we’ve assembled ten of the best geeky marriage proposals of all time here for your viewing pleasure. Ready? Set? Awwwwwww! More »

‘Super Mario Bros.’ Reimagined As a Live-Action Indie Drama (with Drugs)

'Super Mario Bros.' Reimagined As a Live-Action Indie Drama (with Drugs)

Joe Nicolosi‘s reimagination of Super Mario Bros., in the form of a faux trailer that debuted at SXSW (via The Daily What), may be the best live-action take on Mario that I’ve seen, for the following reasons:
1. The gritty indie aesthetic.
2. Bowser as a yuppie who sneers, “Your princess? She’s in another castle.”
3. Mario’s sad face.
4. “You goomba!” “I don’t know where she is!”
5. Makeshift levels that incorporate mini golf castles, go karts, and what looks like a game of DDR. More »