Mario Is Missing! / YMMV

Accidental Nightmare Fuel:
- Toad's wide, blank stare whenever you call him.
- Weegee's wide, blank stare that he has all the time.
- The music that plays if you decide to exit through the pipe before completing the level.
Adaptation Displacement: Despite the PC version spawning far more memes and also being the original version, the console versions are far more well known than it. If you look up either game, you will generally find a lot more information and reviews on those two than the PC version. This primarily comes from the fact that it rides off the heels of a franchise that found its fame on the corresponding consoles, and the fact that many people were duped into believing they would be proper installments in the franchise rather than edutainment games.
Alternative Character Interpretation: "Weegee" is universally seen by the internet as a completely different entity from Luigi, thanks to his decidedly creepy model given in the PC-DOS version. "Weegee's" perpetually blank, unnerving stare has lead to him being seen as either a Memetic Badass, Memetic Psychopath, Memetic Molester or all three combined.
Anti-Climax Boss:
- In the NES version, after you've completed all of the levels you have to fight Bowser. Since this game has no life meter and no power-ups, Luigi cannot lose, no matter how many times he gets hit. Oh, and this only applies to the NES version — in the other versions of the game, the entire confrontation plays out in a cutscene.
- The SNES version has you fight three Koopa Kids who just run from left to right in a hallway. Unlike Bowser in the NES version, they can't even touch Luigi; the plumber is free to Goomba Stomp them at his leisure.
Ass Pull: Mario suddenly being afraid of the dark towards the end of the game. This was clearly only utilized as a flimsy attempt to raise the stakes, or at least what little there were. Especially ludicrous considering how often traveling to dark underground sewers is part of his job.
Awesome Music: The cover of Promenade from ''Pictures at an Exhibition'' used in the NES version's pause screen is a great rendition with a spacey feel that suits the game's atmosphere of learning and education.
Ensemble Dark Horse: The policewoman who says "You won't find adobe here in Nairobi!" Occurred due to a clip of this on YouTube gaining popularity and it being some of the only footage of the game to get uploaded for a while; the policewoman actually appears in every location in the game and tons of the rest of the dialogue is equally as corny as that line, but that video ended up giving that particular moment a slight bump in popularity.
Fan Nickname: Thanks to the hilariously Off-Model depictions of all the characters in the PC version, all of the main trio has been assigned a goofy community nickname — Malleo for Mario, Yushee for Yoshi, and most famously, Weegee for Luigi.
Hilarious in Hindsight:
- Several of the game's concepts were eventually used in standalone Mario games. For one, Luigi taking the lead role in a game, and Mario being captured and needing to be rescued. The Luigi's Mansion games are basically this game, but much better executed.
- Bowser's behavior in Mario Is Missing is not only strangely prophetic of the final boss of New Super Mario Bros. U, but is also the first time Bowser is portrayed as hiding in his shell; Something that Super Smash Bros. Melee and later Mario Power Tennis would establish as being something Bowser could do.
It's Easy, So It Sucks!: A common complaint about the console versions is that it is impossible to lose due to Luigi not having a health bar. The PC version averts it due to being more point-and-click based, a genre you don't usually have a health bar in.
Memetic Mutation:
- This game gave birth to the "Weegee" meme, due to his somewhat Off-Model portrayal in the PC-DOS version of the game.
- You won't find adobe here in Nairobi! But they do have some spectacular hotels. ^Explanation
Memetic Molester: Weegee, of course. He's often made as creepy as possible, editing him into other images to add an instant level of discomfort.
Memetic Psychopath: Weegee crosses this with Eldritch Abomination; his stare apparently has the power to eventually turn others into Weegee clones.
Misaimed Marketing: This and its successor are infamous cases of this, especially with respect to the console versions. A quick look at the front covers would understandably dupe an unsuspecting fan into thinking either game was supposed to be the next major installment in the Mario platformer series, with the Tag Line on the cover being the only clear indicator that it's an Edutainment Game. The back of the box makes it much more clear, but a title like "Mario is Missing" does not give way to this in any clear way unlike others such as Mario Teaches Typing or the Mario's Early Years series.
Narm Charm: The voice acting in the CD Deluxe version is hardly a collection of award-winning performances, but the over-acting and indifference can be charming anyway.
Porting Disaster: While the PC version already wasn't well regarded to begin with, the NES and SNES reimaginings suck nearly all of what little charm the game had out of it and replace the point-and-click controls with platforming style, making getting around a much bigger chore. This also leads to the awkward situation of a platform game with no real platforming and enemies that can't even hurt you, and it doesn't exactly help that said controls are quite slippery and cumbersome.
Retroactive Recognition: One of the people who worked on this game, Wes Jenkins, would become far more well known for being the creator of LEGO Island.
So Bad, It's Good: The PC version is legendary for its sheer absurdity. The fact it gave birth to Weegee is enough evidence on its face, but one would be remiss to forget about the constant stream of Off-Model artwork and the hilariously bad voice acting added to the Deluxe version.
Spiritual Successor: Most likely unintentionally, the Luigi's Mansion games. An adventure game series starring Luigi revolving around searching and puzzle solving where Luigi once again acts as the hero and Mario as the missing Distressed Dude, minus the educational elements.
They Changed It, Now It Sucks!: The NES/SNES versions got this reaction when compared to the DOS version due to removing the Memetic Mutation elements. That might not be a bad thing, though...
Watch It for the Meme: Most people only checked out the game because Weegee was in it. Just as well, because most people consider the actual gameplay to be unbelievably boring.

YMMV / Mario Is Missing!

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