Popular Culture Review 29.2
part of the pleasure of playing as him . The use of his first ingame dialogue “ It ’ s a me , Mario !” is reason enough to view this game as an introduction of the character to the uninitiated . Mario ’ s true identity is underscored to them here as a pliable persona for the gamer to do with what they will . This concept is an interesting inversion of what was recently shown in 2015 in Super Mario Maker . In that game , Mario remains the same , while the world is what the player gets to play with . Either way , that player can understand that the series at its core is a clay of sorts , a transformative toy for the gamer to change him- or herself within and to change his or her surroundings .
Mario ’ s ability to transform holds allure for so many gamers because so many people desire the same ability to change their lot in life . Much of the available research on video games focuses on their role as a form of wish fulfillment . Sheila C . Murphy says the foundations of academic video game and digital culture research “ triumphed the virtual as a realm where one could escape ‘ lived ’ reality and act ‘ freely ’ in the realm of the ‘ technological sublime ’ �in a cyberspace that was untainted by the social realities and inequalities of class , race , and gender ” ( 225 ). People on social media create new identities for themselves via cool user names , flattering profile pictures , and carefully crafted feeds , while video gamers do these things and more . Gamers control and embody their idealized selves . This is easy to see in games like The Elder Scrolls V : Skyrim or Fallout 4 where players name their avatars , control their appearance , and even make personal decisions for them , but research shows players experiencing a sense of idealized self even through avatars who bear little resemblance to the player .
The wish fulfillment one experiences through an avatar like Mario takes place through the process of identification . Jon-
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