Everyone’s played a Mario game at least once in their life; it doesn’t matter if it’s old or new, they’re all equally fun and offer interesting challenges and sometimes really fun stories that everyone can engage in. The game and small, red plumber have been a cultural icon for gamers and specifically for the company that created them, Nintendo. Thanks to this game, amongst other hit classics, Nintendo is known as a staple in the gaming community and an all-around classic. But Italian plumbers aside, there is one person who’s just as famous and popular.
The princess of the Mushroom Kingdom, Princess Peach has been known by a few different names, but the sentiment always remains the same. She’s been here since the beginning and has been an icon for gaming women no matter their age; if you know the name Mario, there’s no way you don’t know about Princess Peach. She’s appeared in countless games, given tons of cameos and been the sole reason we even go on these adventures in the first place.
But the ruler is a little mysterious. Outside of her being continuously captured by the Koopa King, Bowser, we don’t really know much about Peach’s life or what she’s like as a ruler. WE can only guess that since the toads love her and she’s incredibly sweet to Mario, she’s a loving person, but there’s nothing about her past, relatives or some of her own capabilities. Here are 25 things people always get wrong about Princess Peach.
25 She First Appeared In 1985
We first were introduced to the Princess of the toads in 1985. This would be the start of her long “damsel in distress” career as Bowser continued capturing her. Sure, things were a little different back then, not just because everything was 8-bit, but some things just never seemed to change.
Unfortunately, she wasn’t a major role…
Peach’s start in the Mario franchise was a little strange at first. No one really knew anything about her and she was just a figure that needed saving. Luckily, they’ve worked towards fixing that in later years.
24 But She Wasn't A Movable Character Until 1988
When we say Princess Peach was not that big of a deal originally, we really mean she wasn’t even important enough to make movable. That’s right, the peachy princess didn’t even move as a character until three years after her initial release.
Not a lot is known about why Peach doesn’t move beforehand, but it is pretty strange considering most of the other characters do; even if it isn’t a lot. That’s a big change considering she’s a Smash Bros. character these days!
23 She Used To Look Much Different
Princess Peach is known as the iconic blonde beauty Nintendo loves to show off. Her pink dress and long golden hair is pretty much a signature for her by now. However, that’s not what she always looked like.
Is Princess Peach dying her hair?
In her original look, Peach actually was a brunette with a white dress. Sure, in the original games this may have been to match Mario’s look, but we’d see the same version of her later on with better graphics.
22 Her Remake Wanted Her To Be Cute And Stubborn
Princess Peach may have not always looked the way we know her as now, but when they redesigned her character, they did have quite a few ideas in mind for what they wanted to go for. The new design called for something that was extremely cute, but also a little stubborn.
Why they were looking for this particular design, we’re not entirely sure. However, her princess look is very cute and we’d imagine that anyone who gets captured as much as her would want to be a little stubborn!
21 She Wasn't Mario's First Love
Everyone ships Peach and Mario; it’s just a classic love story of heroes saving princesses from giant turtles after all. But this was not Mario’s first romance. If you remember from the older games, Pauline was actually the first damsel in distress for Mario to ever save.
Pauline also reappeared in Super Mario Odyssey with a brand-new look!
There’s heavy speculation that the two were a type of couple, most likely romantic. However, Peach would later step onto the scene and the new ship would set sail from there.
20 He Wasn't Hers Either!
If you’re a little upset that you don’t remember Pauline or her relationship with Mario, don’t worry, because peach had someone else before too. There was a small period of time, in which Nintendo confirmed was sort of a parallel universe, where Peach had a different love interest.
It seems a little strange because we never actually see Prince Haru in any of the Mario games; which is where we know most the characters in the first place. Prince Haru only ever appeared in the Super Mario anime!
19 No One Really Called Her Princess Peach For A While
The name “Princess Peach” alone is adorable. It’s cute and it sort of matches the pink theme she has going on! However, Peach wasn’t always known by that name, particularly in the U.S. When her character was first introduced, everyone in the U.S. knew her as Princess Toadstool.
What was her name again?
Why her name was ever Princess Toadstool and only for her American release, we can’t totally say. However, during her first release, there were a lot of strange oddities having to deal with the Princess’ name, so we’re not totally surprised.
18 She Was Inspired By Olive Oyl
Remember the old cartoon Popeye? It may seem totally unrelated to Princess Peach, but she was actually based off of one of the show’s characters. Popeye’s love interest, Olive Oyl, served as inspiration for the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom.
The reasoning for this was because the game's creator, Shigeru Miyamoto, was really into the sailor characters and actually wanted to originally license them for the game. The deal didn’t happen, but it may have been for the better since these characters have become a cultural icon for gamers!
17 Who Is Princess Toadstool?
We’ve talked a little bit about how Princess Peach used to be known as Princess Toadstool, but there’s another very strange part about the story that deserves and explanation all of its own. Princess Toadstool is speculated to not only be the groundwork for Princess Peach, but also Princess Daisy.
The game Super Mario Land had a different team with different ideas.
Because the Super Mario Land team gave a lot of their characters secondary English names, enemies and Princess Peach also had difference aliases. Hers’ just so happened to be Daisy, who would later be considered a separate character.
16 Unlike Mario, She Has Weapons!
We know Mario has a pretty solid set of skills that helps him defeat enemies and save Peach, but she’s actually a little more versatile than him. Sure, jumping on koopas and pushing a button to send Bowser plummeting to his melting doom is great, but Peach actually has weapons!
Some of these weapons include a Psych Bomb, the Peach Bomber, and even her own parasol is considered deadly! Not to mention, when she has Perry, he can actually eat enemies for her!
15 Her Emotions Are Special Powers On Their Own
If you remember Peach’s game, Super Princess Peach, you’ll see that your favorite Princess has a lot of emotions going on. Not only is her parasol, Perry, an incredibly powerful item that helps protect her on her journey to rescue Mario, but her own emotions themselves help her.
We really wouldn't want to get her mad!
When Peach is in a more positive mood, it can lead to positive results like healing. But when Peach is in a more negative mood, like anger, she might just let the world burn.
14 She Was One Of The Richest Fictional Billionaires
You probably already saw this coming, but Princess Peach is actually pretty rich. What else would you expect of a princess that literally runs a fictional kingdom and spends her days getting captured? Forbes created a list of the richest fictional characters and this princess ranked pretty high on the list.
She was estimated to be worth $1.3 billion so we have to wonder how well the mushroom business is going. She was also listed with characters like Bruce Wayne and Willy Wonka.
13 We Get To See Her As A Baby!
The Mario franchise babies are really, really cute; Princess Peach is no exception to this rule. In the game Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, we’re first introduced to the young princess who can’t even really walk yet. Since her release, we’ve seen her countless times since.
She’s playable in plenty of Mario games these days!
One of the cool things about seeing the baby counterpart about Princess Peach is that we also get to see what her upbringing was like, which is still a mystery for the most part.
12 There's Only One Official Princess Peach Game
You would think with how much we see Princess Peach and her ever-steady popularity, that we’d see more games with her in the lead. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case; there’s only one real game where Princess Peach takes charge for once.
In Super Princess Peach, you play as the princess who’s, ironically, saving Mario this time. Along the way, you take with you a parasol named Perry, who has a very interesting and fragmented past. There is also a second version of this game, so if you haven't played it yet, you might want to give it a try!
11 She's Had Several Voice Actors!
When you’ve been around as long as Peach, and in so many different things nonetheless, you tend to need a lot of different voice actors. Not to mention, Peach has had different voice actors from both Japan and the U.S., which sometimes doubles the number!
Different things require different voice actors!
Two of her most popular voice actors are Samantha Kelly and Jen Taylor, who’ve both voiced her for numerous projects both past and present. She’s certainly a cool character to play!
10 Is Daisy Her Cousin?
We know that Peach and Daisy might be princesses that came from one single concept princess in the beginning, but now that they’re canonically different characters, things are a little different! Storyline wise, we’re not entirely sure what their relationship is. Sure, they seem like best friends, but they might actually be related!
There’s a Prime Guide for Mario Kart Wii which actually states that the two women are cousins. But because no other games ever bring it up, it’s hard to tell if this was just a one-time thing that’s not really canon.
9 She's Known For Having "White Magic"
If there’s one thing we’ve learned on this list, it’s that Princess Peach is a pretty astounding person. So if you were already blown away by that, listen to this; she’s actually stated to be able to wield white magic. Blake Harris, the author of Console Wars, shared a character guide form 1993 with his Twitter followers.
The guide had a lot to say…
The guide states that her magic has the ability to bring her people back to life, but it also helps to keep her tidy while being captured or keeping herself safe from injury.
8 She Has Therapeutic Healing
There are two moves that Princess Peach can use that are really interesting; Group Hug and Therapy. Both of these powers give her the ability to heal. In a lot of games where she appears, or she’s given powers or special moves like this, Peach’s healing revolves around really sweet sentiments.
Perhaps it’s because she’s considered a kind figure in the Mario franchise, or it’s simply because of that “white magic” we talked about a little earlier, but it’s one of the many sweet things that Peach is able to do.
7 She's Been Captured 23 Times!
It can be a little annoying, but Princess Peach has been constantly captured. Really, when it happens this often, we’re sure she’s kind of sick of it. Can’t a girl get a weekend off? But the big question for everyone is, just how many times has she been captured by Bowser?
The short answer is, a lot!
The princess has been estimated to be captured at least 23 times since her release. Honestly, that’s just one too many times! She really needs a break.
6 Can She Defeat Bowser On Her Own?
There’s actually some speculation that Princess Peach isn’t really that helpless on her own. In fact, some fans theorize that she might have abilities to take down Bowser, whether that’s through some kind of capability through her kingdom or through magic she might have.
While Peach doesn’t seem to keen on getting herself out, which could be for any number of reasons, it would then make sense why Bowser would want to lock her up. Too bad Mario always comes in and defeats him anyways!