When I first met Mario in the arcade version of Donkey Kong, he was but a simple carpenter, wearing red overalls, a matching red hat, a blue shirt, and work boots. He may have been fighting a giant monkey, but Mario still felt too common to have a dense collection of costumes, let alone become a cosplayer. What a difference three decades makes.

This November sees add a cat outfit to Mario’s already huge collection of special power-enhancing clothes. A new addition to the dozens of costumes Mario makes this fitting time for GamesRadar to recount the dozens of different super-powered clothes Mario has worn over the years. Believe it or not, even I had forgotten a couple of these, though it’s hard to forget...

First seen: Super Mario Bros.

For many players in the west, Fire Mario was their introduction to the plumber, as the hero is wearing the outfit on the Super Mario Bros. box art. The fire-hurling combo of red and white have appeared in the majority of core Mario games, though the colors flipped post-Super Mario Bros. Super Mario Bros. 3 was one of the few times the red and white design was replaced, though remakes of SMB3 exchanged the all-orange attire with the standard look.

First seen: Super Mario Bros. 3

The second Super Mario Bros.--both US and Japanese versions--didn’t add any new costumes, so Super Mario Bros. 3 chose to bring them back with a vengeance. Chief among them was the cover-featured Raccoon Mario. Like a sexy Halloween costume, Mario simply adds ears and a tail to normal clothes, but with the added benefit of flight. The raccoon outfit lay dormant for years until it returned in New Super Mario Bros. 2. The reappearance was likely hastened by the popular return of...

First seen: Super Mario Bros. 3

Tanooki Mario doesn’t believe in half measures. If you’re going to dress as a magical raccoon, it’s best to go all the way with the furry getup. Based on Japanese myth, Tanooki Mario can not only fly, but also transform into a statue, and both those skills were recreated in Super Mario 3D Land. While the Tanooki Suit was pretty rare in Super Mario Bros. 3, the useful transformation was everywhere in 3D land, and it returns in Super Mario 3D World.

First seen: Super Mario Bros. 3

This green ensemble was fun, but it was also hard to handle. Frog Mario moved pretty well underwater, but his stuttering half-steps weren’t all that useful on land. About as rare as the Tanooki Suit, Frog Mario has yet to make a return outside of an allusion in Paper Mario: Sticker Star. If it ever does, we hope Nintendo can find a better approach to the controls.

First seen: Super Mario Bros. 3

This costume gave Mario a more sinister edge, with him stealing the powers of one of his most annoying enemies to use against them. Also hard to find, Hammer Mario could fling his unlimited supply of hammers as well as his enemies, plus it gave him a handy shell to hide in. Later games had spiritual successors to this costume, but the Hammer Bros. Suit has yet to truly return.

First seen: Super Mario World

Nintendo pushed all of Mario’s animal wardrobe to the back of the closet for Super Mario World. Almost all the old power-ups took a break to make room for Yoshi, and Mario’s flying ability was now tied to a simple yellow cape. The look certainly made Mario look more “Super,” but it was a little too simple for the then-new 16-bit console. Outside of Mario’s reflect move in Smash Bros., the cape has made few recent appearance, which is odd given how many retro powers appeared in recent Mario titles.

First seen: Super Mario Land 2

Super Mario Land was one of the few traditional Mario games headed by someone other than Shigeru Miyamoto, and that situation lead to some odd, one off outfits. The most prominently featured was Rabbit Mario. The bunny ears affixed to his head slowed descent on jumps just like the raccoon tail, but without the added benefit of flight. Because, as we all know, rabbits can’t fly, unlike raccoons.

First seen: Super Mario Land 2

Super Mario Galaxy seems to suggest that Mario can easily breathe in space, but Super Mario Land 2 makes that look like a recent development. In SML2’s few outer space stages, Mario dons a traditional space suit that would likely meet NASA regulations. Perhaps back then Mario could breathe in space, he was just being overly cautious.

First seen: Super Mario Land 2

Fire power-ups in Super Mario Land 2 gave the developers a real challenge. Without any colors beyond spinach green available for the Game Boy, how could the game tell players about the fire ability without red and white coloring? That’s where Mario gaudy feather comes in. It works great as a visual indicator of the power-up, but once Game Boy’s color pallette died out, so did this outfit.

First seen: Super Mario 64

Super Mario 64 brought Mario (and the platforming genre) into three dimensions, but in the switch over he lost much of his flare for fashion. The full bodied outfits and matching power-ups were replaced by timed abilities like the understated wing cap. Even if the flight was incredibly freeing, later entries ditched the cap when Mario took to the air.

First seen: Super Mario 64.

CGI graphics were still pretty novel in 1996, so Mario’s new invincibility power-up bit the style of Terminator 2’s T-1000, making his body a metallic, reflective surface. It made Mario temporarily safe from harm, but it also slowed him down considerably. Though Mario has dropped that power-up, Metal Mario has been spun off into his own character, one that frequently appears in Smash Bros. and sports games.

First seen: Super Mario Sunshine

Look, let's not insult the guy, but Mario just looks weird in short sleeves. He may be on vacation, but it feels odd to see that much bare skin on the guy, particularly when a talking water tank is on his back. Despite Mario’s attempts to accessorize with F.L.U.D.D., the item has only made a return appearances as a special attack in recent Smash Bros. games.

First seen: Super Mario Galaxy

After more than a decade of subtler transformations, Super Mario Galaxy was a welcome return to Super Mario Bros. 3’s tradition of introducing a ton of new power-ups. First up is Mario’s fuzzy new bee outfit, which gives him limited flight and the ability to stick to walls, though it isn’t very useful outside the honeycomb. And then there’s the unfortunate side effect of the costume vanishing when it touches water.

First seen: Super Mario Galaxy

The first Galaxy showed players that Mario looks great as a ghost, and we were able to see it happen without Mario dying. This recent addition changed Mario into his classic ghostly enemy, giving Boo Mario the power to turn invisible and float through walls. And it’s such a convincing outfit that it even scares Luigi (though he’s pretty high strung to begin with).

First seen: Super Mario Galaxy

This Mario transformation reminds me of the pretty, but functionally useless outfits that define artsy, high fashion. Mario looks avant garde wrapped in metal, but he can’t really get around all that well. That’s likely a reason that Spring Mario only appears in a handful of stages.

First seen: Super Mario Galaxy

How did it take until 2007 to have an Ice Mario? Despite it being the logical response to Fire Mario, the Ice Power didn’t appear until Super Mario Galaxy. Not only could Mario freeze enemies with balls of ice, he also became a skilled ice skater. When this power appeared in New Super Mario Bros. Wii, the icy skin was replaced with a more traditional red and blue pattern.

First seen: Super Mario Galaxy

Galaxy granted Mario the limited ability to fly whenever he shot out a star portal, but his black and red ensemble greatly expanded that power. It functioned pretty much like 64’s Wing Cap, but appeared even less. And unlike the other Galaxy powers, this form did not return in the sequel.

First seen: New Super Mario Bros. Wii

New Super Mario Bros. Wii marked the first original 2D Mario game on a console since World, and it made up for lost time by adding a couple new abilities to Mario’s wardrobe. First up was the propeller power-up. It dressed Mario in jumpsuit akin to a skydivers and added a large helmet with a propeller on top. Not only could the power send Mario into the clouds, but other characters could grab onto his feet to ride along with him.

First seen: New Super Mario Bros. Wii

Ice Mario is all well and good, but wouldn't you like to throw ice balls and slide on your tummy at intense speeds? That’s what the adorable Penguin Suit offered Mario and friends. It’s also pretty tough, as it can smash through blocks without scratching a flipper.

First seen: Super Mario Galaxy 2

Galaxy 2 brought back virtually every ability from the first game, plus it added Yoshi to the sub-series, and yet it still found room for a couple more new outfits. First up the rough and ready Rock Mario. The change of clothes wasn’t too useful when walking around, but if you give Rock Mario enough space, he can transform into a huge boulder, propelling himself forward at high speeds.

First seen: Super Mario Galaxy 2.

On the other end of Galaxy 2’s weight spectrum is Cloud Mario. The fluffy, cottony garb made Mario light enough to walk on clouds with little effort, and with a little shake of the Wii Remote, he could create happy little clouds of his own. The power-up hasn’t appeared since, save for an unlockable Mii costume in Mario Power Tennis.

First seen: Super Mario 3D Land

3D Land was primarily a celebration of the long-awaited return of Tanooki Mario, but the devs found time to create another transformation, one that’s been long overdue. Boomerang Bros. have been attacking Mario since the third game, and Boomerang Mario gave players a chance to finally return the favor. Let’s hope this one makes more returns than Hammer Mario.

First seen: New Super Mario Bros. 2

The Wu Tang Clan once rapped ”Cash rules everything around me,” and that’s very true for New Super Mario Bros. 2. The games hook was challenging players to collect as many coins as possible, which the Gold Mario transformation really helps with. It grant Mario with the Midas touch, changing every block his fireballs touch into coins. And in a strange insult to Luigi, this power-up turns the green one silver, further illustrating his second place status to Mario.

First seen: New Super Mario Bros. U

You’d think Mario wouldn’t need anymore flying rodents after raccoons and tanookis, but Wii U launch game New Super Mario Bros. U added squirrels to the menagerie. To be honest, the gliding powers of Flying Squirrel Mario might be the most logical flight ability he’s ever had. Even more logical is the power-up’s ability to hold onto walls, something its has in common with...

First seen: Super Mario 3D World

Mario’s cat transformation reaches new heights of cuteness, and it even changes Mario’s behavior. He starts meowing, running on all four, and climbing walls with his new claws. Cat Mario is also great at destroying things, though he mainly uses it on Goombas, unlike real cats, who choose to focus on ruining your most prized possessions.

First seen: Super Mario 3D World

The only thing better than one Mario is two Marios, right? Or three, or four - depending on how many Double Cherry power-ups you can snag without losing any of your doppelgangers, you can amass the beginnings of a small clone army. It's also handy to know that any fatal touch won't bring you to a halt as long as you've got a backup Mario waiting in the wings, and making it to the end of a level with all your copies still intact feels amazing. Go team!

is a very, very different shooter to the one that launched 12 months ago. It has been patched, tweaked, added to, tweaked some more, then patched again for good measure. Weapons have been balanced and rebalanced, loot caves have been blocked off, and two expansions have brought fresh challenges for Guardians to take on. So much has changed but despite this, many have fallen off the Destiny wagon.

Just about everyone on the GamesRadar+ team has played Destiny, but some have abandoned the Light of the Traveler in pursuit of other gaming interests. That's understandable. Parts of early Destiny were broken and the repetition of quests and environments pushed players away. But as we all learn more about the upcoming expansion, former players (GR+'s included) are seriously considering a return to the fight. There are always concerns when coming back to such a sprawling and involved game, which is why I - as someone who is still playing Destiny regularly - have had the GR+ staff bring their Taken King concerns to me. Now let's see if the new expansion squashes those doubts.

I'm not saying The Taken King is going to revolutionize video game storytelling or anything, but I expect The Taken King's story to be on par with what the Halo series has been putting out in the most recent years. Destiny's Lore runs deep - it's just not in the game. The Taken King is building on what narrative there was from vanilla Destiny and the following DLC content The Dark Below and House of Wolves and bringing some of the Grimoire-style storytelling into the missions.

The story is going to be more fleshed out. In the Dark Below, the Guardians killed Crota, a Hive god who had taken over Earth's moon. The thing is, Crota has a daddy, and he's super pissed that his son is dead. Now he's coming to destroy all of man/Exo/Awoken kind, and it's up to the Guardians to stop him in TTK. There is teraction with the prominent characters in the tower, which include a Nathan Fillion-voiced Exo hunter leading you through the new adventure. The story missions also feature an improved Ghost character, voiced by Nolan North (RIP Dinklebot) who gives you lore tidbits as you explore and scan the environments.

Let's be real. You're going to be replaying content in Destiny. There are Strikes, Missions, and Raids to grind for gear and you're going to see those events and environments over and over if you want those shiny Exotics. BUT! Bungie has been working on making much of Destiny's repeatable content less predictable. Strikes now have randomized elements, so you might walk into a room full of Cabal your first time in but come into that same room a second time to find it filled with Taken.

Then there's the Dreadnaught. This place is all about exploration, solving puzzles and uncovering secrets hidden in the darkest corners of the Hive-built space ship. We don’t have many details on what we'll find during Dreadnaught Patrols, but Bungie promises that there are plenty of worthwhile rewards to uncover. Like, Legendary / Exotic quality, not that Rare or Uncommon garbage.

This is where Bungie has made some big changes. There used to be a saying in Destiny: "Forever 29," referring to the level players were stuck on as they kept grinding the Vault of Glass for their last piece of randomly dropped raid gear. Now, your character level is no longer tied to the gear you have equipped. You progress as you would in any other RPG. You kill stuff, complete missions, and turn in bounties to get experience and earn max level 40.

The game no longer forces you to grind a single event to get to the max level. The Trials of Osiris, Raids, the Court of Oryx, and Strike missions all allow you to get the game's most powerful gear.

Playing Destiny with a coordinated crew of likeminded players is definitely the best way to experience the open-world shooter, but unlike vanilla Destiny, The Taken King makes it easier to see high-level content without having to set up a fireteam beforehand. In the Dreadnaught's Court of Oryx, you can join in on any other player's event, helping them accomplish their task and netting you some hefty loot in the process. You play with other players, earn gear, and face some pretty tough bosses without any strings attached.

The old Weekly Heroic Strikes have been axed in favor of a more rewarding Heroic Strike Playlist, which automatically does matchmaking for you (much like the old Weeklies did). Playing through the playlist with other random Guardians will ensure you're getting plenty of Legendary Marks - the primary currency for purchasing high-level legendary gear. With this new system you can get up to the max level with some pretty effective gear all by your lonesome.

Even though your character level no longer relies on you acquiring new gear, higher level weapons and armor does make you more powerful. You still have to get Legendary and Exotic kit from chests, quests, and boss drops, but - hold on - it's better now.

Destiny's random loot system now takes all of the items in your inventory into account. So if you already have a Last Word hand cannon, you'll be less likely to receive it in a drop and more likely to get another Exotic instead. Grinding one event over and over is less likely to be a thing you’re forced to do, because you'll get the items you want more often.

Quests, bounties, and faction reputation have changed quite a bit in The Taken King. Now everything is ‘questified’ (actual term used by Bungie). Meaning, the bounties and quests can be tracked in the new quests screen and progress can be viewed in the ghost overlay in-game. In addition to the interface, Bungie is adding a greater variety of bounties to the rotation.

With The Taken King expansion, the faction vendors have also gotten an upgrade. You can still earn rep by turning in bounties and completing missions for experience, but now you don't have to wear that faction's class item to earn it. You just pledge allegiance to your chosen faction by paying a small fee of Glimmer. Also, if you don't want to grind out experience, you can sell materials for faction rep. Then there are vendors like the Gunsmith, with whom you can test out guns to gain reputation and purchase weekly Legendary rewards.

That's cool. No game is perfect and Destiny isn't for everyone, but Bungie has put a lot of effort into transforming Destiny over the last year. The developer has been incredibly dedicated to making the game better and has been very transparent with the community about making the necessary tweaks and changes. Though Destiny might not have started off with the best first impression, the future is looking bright, and now's definitely the time to hook up with your old fireteam, jump into the Crucible, and get back into Destiny.