In this issue of NF Magazine, we’re doing things a little differently. We almost always award our front cover position to an upcoming game, then seek to theme the content inside to match that game and support some aspect of its design, its world or its characters. This time around, though, one character alone is in our spotlight. The one. The only! Waluigi!
Because, by golly, if Masahiro Sakurai isn’t going to show him the respect he’s due, the Nintendo Force surely will step up to salute him instead.
But ah, that’s the issue, isn’t it? That’s the question. Is Waluigi a mascot who’s worthy of true love and honest respect – an icon who has wrongly been left out of the lineup of Nintendo’s most prestigious series? Or has his profile and “popularity” simply been inflated by laugh-seeking, meme-loving gamers on the Internet, only crying foul at his lack of inclusion as a joke, when in reality he only deserves the background character treatment he usually gets?
We’ll seek an answer within the pages of this 35th NF edition. We’ve prepared a complete retrospective of Waluigi’s whole 18-year career in gaming thus far, to examine how he’s evolved over time. We look ahead at Super Mario Party, his next most prominent appearance that will hit store shelves in early October. We review Mario Tennis Aces, which is probably the most Waluigi-ish game Waluigi has ever had. (And then, for those of you who can’t stand the guy, all our other regular previews, reviews, features and the like are here too.) But if you don’t like Waluigi, I have to say to you: WAAAAAAHHH!
Also included with print copies: A gloriously goofy work of WAAAAnderous art, a wall poster we’re calling “Too Many Waluigis.” Look upon it! (Or don’t, if you don’t want to. You could always hang up the Super Mario Party art that’s printed on the opposite side.)
