is a princess character in the ''Mario'' franchise. She debuted in the 1989

Game Boy The is a handheld game console developed by Nintendo, launched in the Japanese home market on April 21, 1989, followed by North America later that year and other territories from 1990 onwards. Following the success of the Game & Watch single-ga ...

launch game ''

Super Mario Land is a 1989 platform game developed by Nintendo Research & Development 1, Nintendo R&D1, the same team that designed the Game Boy. It was published by Nintendo as Game Boy#Launch titles, one of the first four games released for the console. I ...

'' as the ruler of

Sarasaland is a 1989 platform game developed by Nintendo R&D1, the same team that designed the Game Boy. It was published by Nintendo as one of the first four games released for the console. It is the first handheld entry in the ''Super Mario'' seri ...

where she was given the role of

damsel in distress The damsel in distress is a narrative device in which one or more men must rescue a woman who has been kidnapped or placed in other peril. The "damsel" is often portrayed as beautiful, popular, and of high social status; she is usually depicted ...

for

Mario Mario (; ) is a Character (arts), character created by the Japanese game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the star of the ''Mario (franchise), Mario'' franchise, a recurring character in the ''Donkey Kong'' franchise, and the mascot of the Ja ...

to rescue. The game’s official Japanese manual described the character as "a slightly tomboyish and energetic princess", a personality that would be defined through vocal performances and unique animations in later titles. Daisy has been presented as

Luigi Luigi (; ) is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Part of Nintendo's ''Mario'' franchise, he is a kind-hearted, cowardly Italian plumber, and the younger fraternal twin brother and sidekick of Mario. Like ...

's love interest, paralleling the relationship between Mario and

Princess Peach is a character in Nintendo's Mario (franchise), ''Mario'' franchise. She was created by Shigeru Miyamoto and introduced in the 1985 original ''Super Mario Bros.'' game as Princess Toadstool. She is the Queen regnant, princess regnant and hea ...

. Since her appearance in ''

Mario Tennis ''Mario Tennis'' is a 2000 sports video game developed by Camelot Software Planning and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64 (N64). Following '' Mario's Tennis'', it is the second game in the ''Mario Tennis'' series. The game is known for ...

'', she has been a staple

playable character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...

in ''Mario''

spin-off Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media *Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work *''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine * ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...

games, including ''

Mario Party is a series of party video games created by Hudson Soft and owned by Nintendo. It features List of Mario franchise characters, characters from the Mario (franchise), ''Mario'' franchise in which up to four local players or Artificial inte ...

'' and ''

Mario Kart is a series of kart racing games based on the ''Mario (franchise), Mario'' franchise developed and published by Nintendo. Players compete in go-kart races while using various power-up item (game terminology), items. It features Characters in ...

''. She also appears as a playable character in ''

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' is a 2018 crossover fighting game developed by Bandai Namco Studios and Sora Ltd. and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. It is the fifth installment in the '' Super Smash Bros.'' series, succeeding ' ...

''. Daisy has been primarily voiced by American voice actress Deanna Mustard from 2003 to 2022, who was succeeded by Giselle Fernandez starting with '' Super Mario Bros. Wonder''. She is portrayed by

Samantha Mathis Samantha Mathis (born May 12, 1970) is an American actress and trade union leader who served as the Vice President, Actors/Performers of SAG-AFTRA from 2015 to 2019. The daughter of actress Bibi Besch, Mathis made her film debut in '' Pump Up ...

in the live-action ''

Super Mario Bros. is a 1985 Platformer, platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). It is the successor to the 1983 arcade game ''Mario Bros.'' and the first game in the ''Super Mario'' series. It was origi ...

'' film. Princess Daisy has been a popular character for her noticeable contrast to Peach and her memorable characterization in games such as the ''Mario Strikers'' series. Though the character had largely been exclusive to spin-off titles since 2000, she was later integrated into the mainline ''Super'' ''Mario'' series of video games as a playable character in ''

Super Mario Run is a 2016 platform game developed and published by Nintendo for iOS and later Android. It is Nintendo's first mobile game that is part of one of the company's long-running and major franchises. In ''Super Mario Run'', the player controls Mario ...

'' in 2017 and '' Super Mario Bros. Wonder'' in 2023.

Concept and creation

Princess Daisy was created as a

for

to rescue in ''

''. It was produced as a launch title for the

handheld game console by

Gunpei Yokoi , sometimes transliterated as Gumpei Yokoi, was a Japanese toy maker and video game designer. As a long-time Nintendo employee, he was best known as creator of the Game & Watch handheld system, inventor of the cross-shaped Control Pad, the ...

in partnership with

Satoru Okada Satoru Okada (岡田智 ''Okada Satoru'', born January 10, 1947) is the former general manager of Nintendo Research & Engineering, the division designing and developing Nintendo handheld game consoles. He is best known for creating the origina ...

without the input of

Shigeru Miyamoto is a Japanese video game designer, video game producer, producer and Creative director#Video games, game director at Nintendo, where he has served as one of its representative directors as an executive since 2002. Widely regarded as one o ...

. With the aim to create a scaled-down game based on the gameplay of the 1985 ''

'', it moved away from the usual setting of the Mushroom Kingdom. The development team created Sarasaland, named after a type of floral design, and made Daisy to match that concept. Daisy was added to ''

'' for the

Nintendo 64 The (N64) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on June 23, 1996, in North America on September 29, 1996, and in Europe and Australia on March 1, 1997. As the successor to the Super Nintendo E ...

due to the developer

Camelot Software Planning (trade name, doing business as Camelot! Software Planning) is a Japanese video game developer established in 1994 and headquartered in Shinjuku, Tokyo. It is known for developing sports games, particularly in Nintendo's ''Mario (franchise), Mari ...

wanting someone whose body shape was appropriate for real-life sports. Daisy's appearance in '' Super Mario Bros. Wonder'' came about due to the game's director, Shiro Mouri, noticing that his two daughters often fought over who got to play as

, so he wanted to resolve that and also please ''Mario'' fans. In various ''Mario'' games, she has been voiced by a variety of different individuals, including Deanna Mustard from 2003 to 2022 and Giselle Fernandez since 2023.

Appearances

In video games

First appearing in 1989's ''

'', Daisy is the princess of Sarasaland, a world outside of the series' usual setting of the Mushroom Kingdom, and is rescued by

from the alien Tatanga. In 1991, she had a smaller appearance in ''

NES Open Tournament Golf ''NES Open Tournament Golf'', known in Japan as is a 1991 sports video game developed by HAL Laboratory and Nintendo R&D2 and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It is the fourth golf game to feature Mario as a player ...

'' as

caddie In golf, a caddie (or caddy) is a companion to the player, providing both practical support and strategic guidance on the course. Caddies are responsible for carrying the player’s bag, managing clubs, and assisting with basic course maintena ...

. In 2000, Daisy appeared as a

in ''

''. Since then, Daisy is regularly a playable character in ''Mario'' sports games, usually wearing a sleeveless shirt and shorts in the colors of her princess gown. In 2001, she was introduced as a playable character in the ''

'' series beginning with ''

Mario Party 3 is a party video game developed by Hudson Soft and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. The third installment in the ''Mario Party'' series, it was first released in Japan on December 7, 2000, in North America on May 7, 2001, in Australia ...

''. She is also playable in ''

'' games, first appearing in '' Mario Kart: Double Dash!!'', where her course is known as ''Daisy Cruiser''. ''

Mario Kart Wii is a 2008 kart racing game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii. It is the sixth installment in the ''Mario Kart'' series, and was released in April 2008. In ''Mario Kart Wii,'' the player takes control of one of 24 ''Mario'' series c ...

'' also added Baby Daisy, her

toddler A toddler is a child approximately 1 to 3 years old, though definitions vary. The toddler years are a time of great cognitive, emotional and social development. The word is derived from "toddle", which means to walk unsteadily, as children at thi ...

version, which has since appeared in multiple games. Other playable appearances have included ''

,'' '' Fortune Street'', and '' Super Mario Bros. Wonder''. She was added to ''

'' as a playable character, after previously appearing as a trophy. Her gameplay in ''Ultimate'' is largely identical to that of Princess Peach. Daisy appears as a

skin Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have different ...

in multiple video games, including ''

Super Mario Maker is a 2015 platform game and game creation system developed and published by Nintendo. An entry in the ''Super Mario'' series, the game allowed players to create, play, and share courses based on previous ''Super Mario'' titles including ''Sup ...

'' and ''

Minecraft ''Minecraft'' is a 2011 sandbox game developed and published by the Swedish video game developer Mojang Studios. Originally created by Markus Persson, Markus "Notch" Persson using the Java (programming language), Java programming language, the ...

''. Daisy's

Amiibo (, ; stylized as amiibo; plural: ''Amiibo'') is a toys-to-life platform by Nintendo, which was launched in November 2014. It consists of a wireless communications and storage protocol for connecting figurines to the Wii U, Nintendo 3DS, Ni ...

figurine for the ''Super Mario'' franchise was released on November 4, 2016, to coincide with the release of '' Mario Party: Star Rush''. Meanwhile, her Amiibo figurine related to the ''Super Smash Bros.'' franchise was released on February 13, 2019. Daisy was added to ''

Dr. Mario World was a 2019 match-three mobile game developed and published by Nintendo in collaboration with Line Corporation and NHN Entertainment. On July 28, 2021, Nintendo announced that the game's services would end on November 1, 2021 at 2 AM North Am ...

'' in a post-launch update in 2019. In 2022, she was also added as a post-launch downloadable character to '' Mario Strikers: Battle League''.

In other media

Daisy is one of the main characters of 1993's ''

'' film, loosely based on the games, portrayed by

. She is a student of archaeology at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

with whom Luigi falls in love. Daisy is kidnapped by two henchmen of President Koopa, the dictator of Dinohattan, who wants to merge his world and the human world, necessitating Mario and Luigi to save her.

Universal Studios Japan is a theme park located in Osaka, Japan. Opened on March 31, 2001, it is one of six Universal Destinations & Experiences, Universal Studios theme parks worldwide and was the first to open outside the United States. The park is owned and operat ...

and

Universal Studios Hollywood Universal Studios Hollywood is a film studio and Amusement park, theme park located in Universal City, California, near Hollywood, Los Angeles. It is one of the oldest and most famous Hollywood film studios still in use. Its official marketin ...

's immersive

Super Nintendo World (stylized in all caps) is a themed area at Universal Studios Japan, Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Epic Universe, with a future area under construction at Universal Studios Singapore. A result of a partnership between Nintendo and Un ...

areas include interactive "Power-Up Bands" featuring a design based on her dress.

Reception

Daisy has received generally positive reception. Critics noted the similarities between Peach and Daisy, such as ''

Destructoid ''Destructoid'' is a website that was founded as a video game-focused blog in March 2006 by Yanier Gonzalez, a Cuban-American cartoonist and author. Enthusiast Gaming acquired the website in 2017 and sold it to Gamurs Group in 2022. Histor ...

'' writer Chad Concelmo and ''

Siliconera The GAMURS Group, simply known as Gamurs, is an esports media and entertainment publisher. Established in 2014, the group operates multiple brands focusing on the esports and entertainment news markets, including the websites: ''Dot Esports'', '' ...

'' writer Jenni Lada. Lada felt that ''

Mario Tennis Aces ''Mario Tennis Aces'' is a 2018 sports game developed by Camelot Software Planning and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. The game is part of the ''Mario Tennis'' series and sold over 4.50 million copies by December 31, 2022, making ...

'' successfully gave Daisy a distinctive personality, stating that while Peach was reserved and stylish, Daisy was more energetic. She felt that Daisy's characterisation was an improvement on Peach due to being more athletic and emotional. Daisy's inclusion as a playable character in ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' was highly anticipated by CJ Andriessen of ''

'', who described her as the "best princess" and considered her to be one of the most requested characters for the ''Smash'' roster. '' Syfy'' writer Mason Brady considered Daisy's introduction in the ''

Super Smash Bros. is a series of platform fighting video games published by Nintendo. Created by Masahiro Sakurai, the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series is a crossover featuring many characters from other video game series created by Nintendo and other develope ...

'' series disappointing due to being a near copy of Peach, describing it as a "blatant lack of originality". When the base roster for ''Mario Strikers: Battle League'' was revealed, several fans expressed disappointment and anger that Daisy was excluded. Neal Ronaghan of ''Nintendo World Report'' felt that she was a beloved character in the ''Strikers'' series, bemoaning her absence. ''

VentureBeat ''VentureBeat'' is an American technology website headquartered in San Francisco, California. ''VentureBeat'' is a tech news source that publishes news, analysis, long-form features, interviews, and videos. The ''VentureBeat'' company was fou ...

'' considered starting a

Change.org Change.org is a website which allows users to create and sign petitions in an attempt to advance various social causes by raising awareness and influencing decision-makers. The site is a US-based for-profit company and claims to have 551 million ...

petition for her to be included, commenting that she had stood out in ''

Super Mario Strikers ''Super Mario Strikers'', known in Europe and Australia as ''Mario Smash Football'', is a 2005 Sports video game, sports video game developed by Next Level Games and published by Nintendo for the GameCube. The game's developers had worked on ''N ...

'' for her "sassy attitude" and celebration pose that involves turning her back to the camera. Ari Notis of ''

Kotaku ''Kotaku'' is a video game website and blog that was originally launched in 2004 as part of the Gawker Media network. Notable former contributors to the site include Luke Smith, Cecilia D'Anastasio, Tim Rogers, and Jason Schreier. History ...

'' echoed fan excitement when she was added to the game in a DLC update and thought that her exclusion had been indicative of a wider problem with the game's limited content. Hope Bellingham writing for ''GamesRadar+'' expressed excitement that Daisy was finally getting recognition from Nintendo by making her a playable character in '' Super Mario Bros. Wonder'' and noted that although it was not technically the first time she had been playable, it was a "momentous occasion" for fans.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daisy, Princess Fantasy film characters Female characters in video games Luigi Mario (franchise) characters Princess characters in video games Super Mario Land Super Smash Bros. fighters Video game characters introduced in 1989 Fictional hostages and kidnapped people