Mario Realism-Cartoon Spectrum

Mario has a strong design due to his balance of realism and cartoon elements. His features are undoubtedly cartoon, but they are still fairly relatable to an average person. His design is simple but still visibly Human. This allows him to fit into widely varying games and other media easily. If he were too realistic, let’s say, then he wouldn’t be able to have the incredible range as an IP as he currently does. Being too simple would as well limit range. Take Ryu (from Street Fighter) and Pac-Man for example. They are both very good fits for their respective games, but do not have much range do to Ryu’s level of realistic elements and Pac-Man’s level of cartoon elements. Most attempts to leave their respective lanes, especially in Pac-Man’s case, are panned.