28 Super Mario Bros. Memes To Celebrate 40 Years of Princess Peach Being in Another Castle

A meme with Mario on the left, confused about saving Princess Peach vs. playing games with her kidnapper, and on the right, a cake with Sorry for what I say during Mario Kart written in blue icing.

Published:

September 13, 2025

Reading time: 2 min.

Last updated on: September 13, 2025

Super Mario Bros memes are the perfect way to celebrate a true gaming milestone: today is the 40th anniversary of Super Mario Bros., which came out on September 13th, 1985. Keep the nostalgia going with 8 Mario Bros. Easter Eggs To Impress Your Inner 10-Year-Old and our look at the Top 25 Best-Selling NES Games of All Time.

This roundup taps every corner of Mushroom Kingdom lore, from the “clouds and bushes are the same sprite” gag to the laws-of-physics-defying underwater fireballs, the banana peel dread of Mario Kart, and even an existential Game Over. It’s a 40-year victory lap of tiny details only lifelong players spot at a glance.

1. Clouds vs. Bushes: Same Sprite, Different Paint

Super Mario Bros memes - Meme shows a Super Mario game scene with clouds and bushes circled to highlight their identical shapes, followed by a shocked Mario face. Text reads: Clouds and bushes are the same thing.

Once you see that clouds and bushes share the same shape, you can’t unsee it.

2. Plumber By Trade, Gamer At Heart

Green pipes under a sink are decorated to resemble Mario game elements, with toy figures of Mario and Bowser on them, and a red and yellow pipe cap resembling a Mario game object. Text above reads, When youre a plumber by trade but a gamer by heart.

Real-world pipes get the Mushroom Kingdom treatment.

3. Grocery Cart vs. Mario Kart

Top: Adult calmly pushing a shopping cart in a grocery store. Bottom: Mario driving a go-kart, edited with the caption Pushing a shopping cart as a kid. Both compare how adults and kids view shopping carts.

Adult you pushes straight. Kid you drifts every aisle like Rainbow Road.

4. Underwater Fireballs Logic

A screenshot from a Mario video game shows Mario throwing fireballs underwater beside a squid enemy, with the caption CAN THROW FIREBALLS UNDERWATER at the top and bottom of the image.

Physics class: failed. Boss fight: passed. Mario’s flames don’t care about water.

5. Pixel-Perfect Edge Save

A pixelated video game character stands on the edge of a platform with most of its body hanging off, illustrating the caption: You dont fall as long as you have one millimeter of your shoes on solid ground.

If a single pixel of your boot touches ground, gravity politely waits.

6. Surprise Second Phase

Two-panel meme: Left shows Luigi looking calm in sunglasses. Right shows a blurry, panicked Luigi. Text above reads, When you beat the final boss, but there’s a second stage and the music gets more intense.

Beat the final boss, cue the music, then… phase two says “mamma mia.”

7. Hours Without Saving

A meme with two panels shows Mario in a Nintendo cap looking shocked at a laptop, then walking away sadly. Text above reads: When your game crashes, and you’ve been playing for hours without saving.

The instant your game crashes after a marathon grind is true character building.

8. Breaks Bricks, Loses To Turtles

Mario from the Super Mario games is shown with text above and below him: Has the ability to break blocks with his own head. Dies when touching a turtle. The background is a rainbow gradient.

Can headbutt stone, but one bump from a Koopa ends it all. Balance.

9. Banana Peel Sabotage

A three-panel meme of a smiling cartoon banana peel with the text: I see youre in 1st place on the last lap. It would be a shame if you slipped and fell off the course.

First place on the last lap is just an invitation for potassium-powered chaos.

10. “She’s Always In Another Castle” IRL

Two people dressed as Luigi and Mario from Super Mario sit and lie on a sidewalk, looking sad. White bold text above and below says, I KNOW, BRO / SHES ALWAYS IN ANOTHER CASTLE.

Street-level cosplay captures every Mario bro’s eternal heartbreak.

11. Power-Up? Aaaand It’s Gone

A screenshot of Mario in Super Mario Bros. about to hit a block, with a meme below showing a cartoon man at a desk saying AAAND ITS GONE.

That block had your mushroom right up until the universe said “nope.”

12. Side Quests With The Villain

Comic with four panels: Mario plays tennis and golf, while Princess Peach waits in a cell guarded by Bowser. Mario is then seen happily driving a go-kart, ignoring Peach’s predicament. Text: I THINK HE MAY HAVE FORGOTTEN and HAHA, LOL.

Saving Peach is hard when you keep golfing, karting, and picnicking with Bowser.

13. Ramsay Rates The Mushroom

Chef Gordon Ramsay angrily points and yells at a contestant in a kitchen. Text above says, This Mushroom is so raw, and below, It said that the princess is in another castle!.

“It’s so raw it told me the princess is in another castle!” Chef’s kiss.

14. Best By MAR10

A milk jug with a blue cap shows an expiration date that reads MAR10, resembling the name Mario. The caption above the image reads Limited edition Mario milk.

Limited edition milk stamped with the most on-brand date in grocery history.

15. How To Avoid Work Stress

Cartoon character resembling Mario lies relaxed in bed, hugging a wrench, with the caption: How to avoid stress at work: 1. Don’t go to work.

Step 1: Don’t go to work. Step 2: See Step 1.

16. Mario Through The Years

A timeline image of Marios character design evolution from 1985 to 2013, showing Mario in different art styles and poses for each year, over a classic Super Mario game background.

From 8-bit icon to HD hero, every era gets a power-up.

17. Adulthood In A Nutshell

A Super Mario game screen with text saying the princess isn’t real and only suffering exists. Above, a caption reads “Adulthood in a nutshell.” Mario and Toad stand next to each other.

“Nothing is real. There is only suffering.” Press A to cope.

18. Mario Lore Is… Complicated

A meme of Mario. Top image: Mario with his hand raised, eyes closed, labeled “Saving Princess Peach.” Bottom image: Mario smiling with eyes closed, labeled “Playing Golf, Tennis and having Go-Kart races with the guy who kidnapped her.”.

Rescue mission by day, country club with Bowser by night.

19. What If Peach Chose Bowser?

A surprised young man with messy hair is shown with text above and below him: What if the princess really wants to be with Bowser but Mario keeps kidnapping her?.

Conspiracy Keanu asks the question the timeline can’t handle.

20. What Doesn’t Kill Me Makes Me Smaller

Cartoon image of Mario from the Super Mario games jumping, with the text WHAT DOESNT KILL ME MAKES ME SMALLER above and below him.

Nietzsche didn’t see the Super Mushroom coming.

21. Tea Time With Mario Kart 64

Two older adults sit in a cozy living room, playing Mario Kart 64 on a TV, with text above saying they race daily to decide who makes tea, a tradition since 2001.

Settling household chores with Rainbow Road since 2001.

22. Work it, Mario.

A large Mario statue holding a flagpole is in a store. A person’s hand is placing a dollar bill in Mario’s overalls, as if tipping him. Red and white Mario-themed decor is visible in the background.

No touching!

23. Don’t Look Down, Yoshi

Pixel art image parody of Mario and Yoshi at a cliff. Mario says We can make-a this jump! Just-a don’t look down! Below, the ravine is filled with many fallen Yoshis, hinting at failed jumps.

Faith jump across a sea of Yoshis. Everything’s fine. Probably.

24. “Peaches, Peaches, Peaches”

A grocery store display shows nectarines below a hand-drawn sign of Bowser from Mario, singing Peaches, peaches, peaches with musical notes. The fruit is mislabeled as nectarines instead of peaches.

Grocery store sign goes full Bowser ballad.

25. “That’s Him, Dad!”

A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle stands next to a Koopa who points at Mario, saying, Thats him dad! in a Super Mario Bros.-style video game scene.

TMNT outing goes sideways when they spot the plumber.

26. Pop Quiz: Rideable Sidekick

A quiz question asks, Who is Mario and Luigis rideable sidekick? with answer options Yoshi, Toad, Bowser, and Peach. A comment below reads, this is a matter of opinion.

I see what you did there.

27. Sorry For What I Said During Mario Kart

A round cake with white frosting and blue writing that says, Sorry for what I say during Mario Kart, with a blue heart. The cake is on a white plate.

Some friendships require apology cake and 150cc.

28. “I Prefer The Real Mario”

A meme with three sets of images: First, animated Mario; second, actor as Mario; third, a mustached man in a cheap Mario costume. Each pair is followed by Fassbender’s character saying, “I prefer the real Mario,” then “I said the REAL Mario,” ending with “Perfection!”.

From pixels to live action, perfection is in the eye of the player.

More Retro Gaming Nostalgia

This Super Nintendo Unboxing Video Will Transport You Back to 1991 – You can practically smell that brand new NES getting unboxed.
10 Most Valuable NES Games That Collectors Pay Big Money For – NES holy grails and why they’re so valuable to collectors.
30 Best-Selling Video Game Consoles of All Time – Check out where your favorite consoles rank.

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Colby has been in digital publishing for 15+ years. In a past life he was the Editor in Chief of Literally Media Entertainment brands (cracked.com, ebaumsworld.com, cheezburger.com).

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