It's crazy to think that Nintendo was not always a video game company. It actually started out as a Japanese playing card business in 1889. But, after that venture failed, the company tried its luck in toy manufacturing and Laser Clay Shooting before ultimately focusing on video games.

And now, ever since the international release of the NES console back in the 1980s, Nintendo has been a major staple in the lives of gamers everywhere for just over 30 years now.

The company has successfully produced many iconic video game characters in its history. Characters like that plumber who is addicted to mushrooms (Mario), the pointy-eared kid who is a mute (Link), the ape who has a thing for violently throwing barrels (Donkey Kong), and those creatures who are forced by humans to fight each other (Pokemon) are just a handful of examples of the many video game franchises that have maintained success among consumers.

On top of well-established video games, Nintendo has incorporated its on unique style when it came to its consoles and their features. Some examples include the N64 controller and its ability to cram many buttons on its weirdly designed body, the 3DS and its feature of using 3D without 3D glasses (that is, until your eyes became strained from staring at the screen too long), the Wii U GamePad and its tablet-like design that reminded people that they could probably just play on their actual tablets instead, etc.

It may seem like I'm being harsh, but I figured that me poking fun at one of my favorite video game companies ever would be a great transition into the reason for this article: Which is NINTENDO-INSPIRED MEMES!

So, if you're a Nintendo fan (and I'm guessing you are if you're reading this) then sit back, relax, and prepare to relate hard with the 25 Hilarious Memes Only True Gamers Will Understand.

25 Blowing Your Problems Away

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Chances are, if you were the proud owner of a Nintendo Entertainment System (most commonly known as the NES), you've experienced this issue: You put the game cartridge you want to play into your NES, only to find that the game is either not playing or it produces a glitchy mess of a picture on the television screen. Most of us assumed that dust was the issue. So what was the solution in our minds? Blowing into the cartridge like a flute, in the hopes that the dust escaped and the game would play. And this always seemed to fix the problem, assuring us that expelling air was the problem-solver, right? Well, the myth has since been debunked that it was the act of re-inserting the cartridge that most likely fixed it, and that the moisture in our breath did more harm then good for the games. Nintendo would actually go on to include messages on the back of the SNES and N64 cartridges that suggest not blowing into the games, but rather using a cleaning kit instead.

24 Luigi Is Out For Blood In Mario Kart

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Perhaps all of the years of playing second fiddle to his more popular brother, Mario, had come to a boil for Luigi as soon as Mario Kart 8 had arrived. With the added "Mario Kart TV" feature included for the first time, players were now able to record and upload highlights from races (which is awesome, I may add). But, this feature also helped expose the Luigi "death stare", as most Nintendo fans would come to know his expression as. Luigi's bloodlust would be exposed by a YouTuber called "Rizupicor" who uploaded a video using the replay feature that shows Luigi hurling a Green Shell at Waluigi, knocking him momentarily out of the race. Passing by Waluigi's broken-down racing kart is Luigi, but not before he turns his head and gives the most intensely hostile stare in the direction of his fallen foe. Because of the video, the Luigi death stare would become a huge meme in the Nintendo community (the most notable being the original video edited to include Chamillionaire's hit rap song Ridin' playing while Luigi stares down his rival). I guess even a passive character like Luigi can have an edgy, intimidating side too.

23 What Are You, Chicken?

via: 8bitnerds.com

Who was the toughest enemy Link had to face throughout his various adventures in The Legend of Zelda series? Most people would probably say Ganondorf is the obvious answer. But, if you had actually PLAYED the games, you would know that the most powerful enemies in the whole series was obviously the Cuccos. Yes, the birds that resemble chickens who made their debut in The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. These winged beasts seem harmless at first, but if you had made the mistake of attacking one out of curiosity for the first time, you were in for a world of hurt. Basically, the Cucco that Link attacks calls upon a seemingly infinite Cucco army, and this army is vicious! Unless Link was by an exit to another area, the only way Link could realistically escape the violent birds is with the sweet release of death. Sure, there would be various methods to stop the killer chickens throughout the series, but it was hard not to just end up panicking and letting the birds kill our heroic protagonist and restarting the journey from the last save point.

22 From First To Last

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If you played Mario Kart 64 or any of the later Mario Kart games, you know the feeling: you're racing in a match and are in first place thus far. It's the final stretch. The end is in sight, and you have a healthy lead over the other racers. Victory seems absolutely guaranteed. But, to your shock and horror you see that someone has fired a Blue Shell (also known as the Spiny Shell) your way, and because you are in the lead and have no counter items, your fate is already sealed. The Blue Shell reaches you, hovering over top of your character as if to taunt you, and then finally it explodes and incapacitates your racer in the process. That lead you had? Literally erased, as you see characters passing by your mangled go-kart. You are know in seventh place, with no hope of coming back, all because of one rage-inducing item that is meant to balance the race. The lesson here is that you should never have a lead in Mario Kart. EVER. Because you will only end up having that lead snatched from you by a turtle shell that will relentlessly pursue you, similar to how Liam Neeson's character in Taken would stop at nothing but to find his daughter's kidnappers and kill them.

21 Some Say Reggie's Body Is Still Ready To This Day

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Perhaps it was a secret worth keeping, Reggie. Back in 2007 at E3 (arguably the biggest event for gaming), during a demonstration for Nintendo's workout game Wii Fit, Nintendo executive Reggie Fils-Aime was asked to come on stage and have his "body checked" by the Nintendo Balance Board (a gaming peripheral used for Wii Fit). Reggie would respond in an awkward fashion by saying, "My body... my body is ready." What does that even MEAN, Reggie?! Anyways, the now-infamous quote gained popularity online and in the gaming community as a way to describe your excitement for something (usually gaming-related announcements) and turned into a pretty well-known meme in the process. For example, if you were to tell me that the new Super Smash Bros. game was going to feature Shrek as a playable character, I would respond with: "SHREK?! MY BODY IS READY!" So, now that you all know the proper way of responding to exciting gaming news, I ask that you all use this phrase in Reggie's honor.

20 The Great Nintendo Switch Licking Epidemic Of 2017

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This was a classic case of curiosity killed the taste buds. When Nintendo decided to use small game cartridges for the Nintendo Switch instead of game discs, there was a possibility that young kids might try and eat them (because they're kids). So, Nintendo decided to apply a non-toxic bittering agent to the cartridges, so that kids would be too grossed out by the taste and be discouraged from actually eating them. When word got out to the masses about this, various grown adults decided that they wanted to try tasting the cartridges themselves (because why not, I guess?). Soon enough, the activity of reviewing or reacting to the nasty taste of the Switch games was flooding social media sites, YouTube, game review sites, etc. and made for one of the weirdest trends of 2017. Anyone who watched this trend from the sidelines will probably get a good laugh at the SpongeBob meme above. And for any of you that actually tried licking the cartridges, this meme will probably only be a reminder of how truly disgusting they tasted (NOT THAT I TASTED THEM! NOPE! NOT AT ALL!).

19 Did Professor Oak Assume My Gender?

via: memecenter.com

It was a rite of passage in the older installments of the Pokémon video games. Professor Oak would welcome you, the Pokémon Trainer, into the Pokémon world at the very beginning of the games. During these meet and greet sessions, Oak would take a break from explaining how cool it was to force these pocket creatures into fighting one another, and he would toss a game-altering question your way. "Now tell me. Are you a boy? Or are you a girl?", Oak would say while squinting at you awkwardly. While most games at the time decided your character for you, Pokémon gave you the option to choose which gender your Pokémon Trainer would be. How exciting! While this was cool, instead of letting you choose your gender before any interactions, Pokémon decided to have a senile old professor ask you the question instead, making the situation kind of uncomfortable in context. This makes the Futurama Fry meme parodying Oak's existential question all the more hilarious and relatable.

18 Only The Worst Kinds Of People Played Oddjob

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GoldenEye 007 was a first person shooter game for the N64 and was based on the Bond film GoldenEye (obviously). The game had a great story mode, but what truly made the game a classic was because it featured one of the best multiplayer experiences for the N64 console. Up to four players could play in the multiplayer mode, and players had a large variety of options in terms of maps, game modes and characters. Among those characters was a bonus character that turned out to be Oddjob, the hat-wielding villain from the Bond film Goldfinger. As soon as you unlocked Oddjob, you would have found out right away why he is an unfair character. The reason is because the character's height is the shortest in the game, which meant that the normal auto-aim would actually place itself above Oddjob's head. So, this meant to shoot the character, you would have to stop moving and aim downwards (which gave Oddjob a huge advantage over the rest of the cast). So if your friends insta-locked Oddjob after boasting about having skill, just know that they are literally "scumbags".

17 Please Don't Turn Around, Please Don't Turn Around, Please Don't Turn Around...

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Boo is kind of like the ghost-version of someone who would talk smack behind your back, but as soon as you confronted that person, he/she would be too afraid to say it to your face. Super Mario Bros. 3 was where Boos debuted, and basically their purpose in the game was to chase down Mario or Luigi when they weren't looking in the direction of the Boos. But, as soon as Mario or Luigi faced the direction of the Boos, the cowardly ghosts would cover their faces in defeat and panic. In other words, Boos are terrible ghosts! Instead of trying to catch the attention of their victims and haunt them, they choose to slowly creep up on them but then they become the actual scaredy-cats in the situation when they are being looked at (as is exemplified by the Mario rage comic).

16 No Really, My Uncle Works At Nintendo!

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We all knew that one kid growing up who would boast that he or she had an uncle or distant relative that worked for Nintendo, which is the reason why he/she knew about a "super secret bonus area" in the new Pokémon game that nobody else knows about. Chances are, that kid did not have an uncle who worked for Nintendo. And also, that "secret area" probably didn't exist to begin with. Childhood situations like this inspired a meme online where the phrase "My Uncle Works at Nintendo" would be used regarding obviously fake rumors about Nintendo's future projects. An example of this would be me saying that Sheik is a playable character in the new Super Mario Bros. game, I know because my uncle works at Nintendo! See how simple it is? Just know that if you use this expression though, you aren't any better than the kid from your childhood who was a huge compulsive liar.

15 A Fitness Instructor Joins The Fight!

via: memecenter.com

When it comes to working out, the expression "no pain, no gain" is a commonly-used phrase to motivate people into exercising even if their bodies were aching. But, when Wii Fit Trainer was announced as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4, the actual pain of the other characters on the roster was her gain. If you think it's weird that a personal trainer was included in a fighting game where the majority of the characters have some form of previous experience in hurting others, think about it: Fitness trainers' jobs are to literally hurt people. Granted, it's to help people get in better shape, but fitness trainers will usually push people to work out until their bodies are sore and tired to generate results better. Seems like a perfect fit for a Smash Bros. game! Wii Fit Trainer's inclusion in the game would go on to spawn a bunch of hilarious memes online involving her making death threats using fitness terms, like the one above. If you've ever worked out before though, those threats may seem all too real.

14 You're Going To Need More Balls

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If you were lucky enough to stumble upon a Legendary Pokémon in the Pokémon games, it was a special experience. Especially because they're pretty hard to locate, finding one and having the chance to catch it left players with a feeling of excitement like no other. That is, if they were prepared enough. Since Legendary Pokémon are extremely rare, this made them super difficult to catch. If you were lucky, you had a stockpile of Master Balls ready to unload upon the mythical pocket monsters. If you were unlucky though, you probably only had Great Balls and (even worse) regular Poké Balls to use. Sometimes you can get lucky and catch a Legendary Pokémon only using a couple of the lower-tier balls. But let me tell you, this meme is not exaggerating about how many Poké Balls or Great Balls you would probably end up throwing in the hopes that the Legendary Pokémon wouldn't escape. Even worse though, sometimes the Pokémon would flee from battle after your unsuccessful throws, leaving even the most skilled Pokémon Trainers with a sour taste in their mouths.

13 The Game Boy Was The Original Instagram

via: memecenter.com

Kids today have it so good. With convenient apps like Snapchat and Instagram available for high-quality selfies (complete with crazy filters and a dancing hot dog thing?), uploading and sharing photos with your family and friends could not be easier. BACK IN MY DAY THOUGH (the early 1990s), when you wanted to take a rad selfie AND be able to game, you had to bust out three things: your Game Boy, the Game Boy Camera for taking the photo, and the Game Boy Printer for printing the photo! If that sounds like a lot of work, that's because it was. But it was worth it, all to produce a super low-quality, greyscale photo that you could physically share with your peers around the schoolyard. Nintendo really made you work for your "comments" and "likes" back then!

12 Samus Took The Expression "Be The Ball" Too Literally

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In the Metroid games, the most important feature that Samus has at her disposal is her alternate form, known as the "Morphing Ball". In this form, Samus could turn herself into a smaller-sized sphere, which allowed her the ability to roll through smaller passages and tunnels. Even though it's implied that Samus transitions into some form of energy to fit into the ball, it is way funnier to speculate the logistics of Samus actually fitting herself into the tiny sphere. Like, how is she able to contort her body into a ball like Sonic the Hedgehog? How does she see where she is going if she's rolling like crazy down tunnels like a pinball? These are the real questions we should be asking (if you eliminate the possibility of Samus transcending her body into energy). I personally like to imagine the method Samus utilizes is similar to what Spiderman is doing in the image above. Even if it's wrong, just leave me to my suspended disbelief, guys!

11 A Pokémon Trainer's Biggest Enemy Besides Gym Leaders? Traffic

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Pokémon Go has drastically seen its number of users decreased since the mobile game initially debuted. But it's hard to argue how unique and fun of an experience the game provided when literally EVERYONE was playing, especially when you were either catching Pokémon with friends or bonding with other large groups of strangers while trying to locate that fabled Dragonite. It also forced you to go outside and be physically active, which meant you needed a few things. These things (which are highlighted by the meme above) included a smartphone to play the game, a battery bank so your phone wouldn't run out of juice while trying to catch Pokémon, a comfortable pair of running shoes to make traversing to various PokéStops bearable, and finally you needed a solid car to get hit by... Okay, that last one is not recommended. Although, there were a few car incidents that happened which involved Pokémon Go users. Come on guys! The game even tells you to "be aware of your surroundings"!

10 Nintendo Knows What Sells

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Video games have had a long history of objectifying female characters. Even though there has been a decline in those numbers, female characters still find themselves being objectified or objectified more often than male characters would (especially in games aimed at younger audiences). So, maybe Nintendo is on to something? As you can see from the image above, Nintendo seems to be trending towards flipping the script and choosing to put more emphasis on objectifying the male characters in its newest games. I mean, look how fit Mario looks? How buff Link is? For anyone yearning for equality in a seemingly male-dominated environment, this is a welcome sight. Although, there is still room to improve I guess?

9 Nintendo "Switching" Up The Appearance Of The New Console

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After the massive success of the Wii, Nintendo looked to replicate those sales results with their follow-up console, the Wii U. Unfortunately for Nintendo though, not only did the Wii U fail to sell as many units as the Wii, but it also became Nintendo's worst-selling console ever in the company's history. It's hard to say why the console did not perform well commercially, especially because the Wii U Gamepad was a unique concept for a controller, offering gamers a tablet-like design that allowed people to play their games away from the television screen. So when the Nintendo Switch was announced, there was definitely speculated hype about what new features would be offered. One of these features was a familiar sight, as Nintendo decided to feature another controller resembling a tablet that allowed owners to play their games anywhere. The big physical difference though? You can detach the Joy-Con controllers from the screen and use them separately. This wasn't the biggest feature, but it's funny to imagine the meeting depicted in the meme was how it went down.

8 Wah!

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Something that has been speculated about for a long time by the Nintendo community is why doesn't Waluigi have his own game? Ever since his debut in Mario Tennis, Waluigi has found himself as a playable character in most of the Mario spin-off games. After being initially criticized, Waluigi has gained somewhat of a cult fandom online thanks to his appearance and his signature "Wah" catchphrase. The "Wah" would go on to become a meme in its on right as most memes involving Waluigi would emphasize his expression in various ways. Whether it be Waluigi depicted as Donald Drumpf trying to build a "Wah" instead of a wall, or the "Wah Fit Trainer" picture above, there is definitely no shortages of online memes about this character. We can only hope that he finds himself in his very own game someday. Get on it, Nintendo!

7 Hold My Beer

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It's no secret that the Super Smash Bros. series is one of the most well-known fighting game franchises out there. And as one of the few truly competitive titles Nintendo has to offer, you felt a sense of accomplishment when you could beat other people at the games. So, I'm sure all you fellow smashers out there have experienced this exact scenario too: You're at a party or a social-gathering of some kind. You find yourself enjoying a drink and socializing with others, when out of nowhere you hear someone talking about how good at Super Smash Bros. he or she is and that nobody can beat him/her. "How dare that person thinks he/she is better than I at Smash", you think to yourself as you scowl in the person's direction. The worst-case scenario was when there was no Smash Bros. in sight at the gathering you were at, and you just had to accept the unknown answer of who was better. But, if you were lucky enough to be somewhere with Smash Bros. available to play, you got to find out who truly reigned supreme.

6 Rainbow Road Rage

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Never has something so bright and colorful caused so much pain and fear. There's a reason that the Rainbow Road course is the final Special Cup track in the Mario Kart games. It is BRUTAL. Don't let the happy rainbow aesthetic fool you. With little to no railings to offer racers any kind of safety, unless you are perfect with your drifts or braking like crazy, you will most likely be driving right off the course into the dark abyss of space. On top of that, you also have to worry about the other racers too! But, with the course's gruelling layout and obstacles, Rainbow Road proves to be the opponent that racers should worry about the most. And I'm sure even the most experienced of Mario Kart players would agree.