Concept art (left) compared to the final design (right)
In an interview, Shigeru Miyamoto stated that in developing Super Mario Galaxy (2007), while he had planned the usual kidnapping of Princess Peach, he also "had another cast of characters, a princess from outer space and her family of talking stars [the Lumas], who had a deeper, sadder story that was revealed through elegant picture-book scenes throughout the game."[1] This storybook is known in-game as Rosalina's Storybook and tells Rosalina's backstory. It was written by Yoshiaki Koizumi late at night so that no one would find out about it, saying that "for a long time, it really felt like telling a story in a Mario game was something that wasn't allowed" in an interview.[2] In another interview, Koizumi stated "I felt in this case that the Lumas and Rosalina really needed a story to explain what they were doing out there and to give the players a deeper understanding of their presence. So telling her story as a fairytale by reading the book to all the Lumas as if they were young children at storytime just seemed like the mood-appropriate way to accomplish this."[3]
When Rosalina's character was in early development, the Super Mario Galaxy development team contemplated having her character be related to Princess Peach. This relationship did not remain as an element of the final story, but is the reason for the design similarities between Peach and Rosalina.[4]
Appearances
Super Mario series
In Super Mario Galaxy, Bowser kidnaps Princess Peach by raising her castle from the ground with Peach still inside, and also attacks the Comet Observatory, where Rosalina lives with her adopted Lumas, and steals its main source of fuel: Power Stars. Rosalina asks Mario to retrieve the lost Power Stars; in return she promises to help him save Princess Peach. Once Mario retrieves enough Power Stars, Rosalina is able to turn her Comet Observatory into a comet and drive Mario to the center of the universe, where Bowser keeps the kidnapped Princess Peach. After Bowser is defeated by Mario, Bowser's galaxy at the center of the universe collapses into a supermassive black hole, devouring everything in its path, including Princess Peach's castle, Rosalina's Comet Observatory and Bowser's airships. All of Rosalina's Lumas throw themselves into the black hole in order to stop it. After this, Rosalina appears to Mario, explaining to him about the circle of life and the death and rebirth of stars; it is implicit in her explanation that the universe and all the Lumas are to be reborn. Afterwards, she leaves and Mario, as well as Bowser and Peach, wake up back in the Mushroom Kingdom again. Once 120 Power Stars in the game are collected, Rosalina delivers a thank you message to the player, promising to watch over them from beyond the stars.[5][full citation needed] In a backstory which is unlocked gradually as the game progresses, Rosalina tells the story of how she was a girl who travelled in a spaceship to help a lost Luma find its parents, hiding the fact that she herself had lost her own mother. As Rosalina starts to feel lonely, numerous other Lumas soon come to join her, and she learns that their purpose in life is to eventually transform into other things. Rosalina decides to build a house for her new family, which soon becomes the Comet Observatory.
In Super Mario Galaxy 2, throughout the game, a shadowy form named the "Cosmic Spirit", strongly resembling Rosalina, appears to help in levels where the player has died multiple times.[6] Rosalina is the one who mysteriously sends letters containing 50 Star Bits to Baby Luma who grants Mario a spin attack and she herself appears after Mario defeats Bowser and rescues Princess Peach in the final cutscene before the credits play. Rosalina also appears late in the game as well (by collecting 120 Power Stars), telling Lumas the story of the "Green Stars", which opens the Green Star missions (additional optional missions in the game), and finally, with the game completed, she appears on the game's hub and thanks Mario.[7]
In Super Mario 3D World and its Switch port, Rosalina is featured as an unlockable fifth character. She possesses the ability to perform the Spin Attack that Mario could in the Galaxy games, using it as both an attack and a second jump. When asked why Nintendo chose Rosalina over other Mario characters, director Kenta Motokura responded, "I was thinking about what would be pleasing after the ending and wanted to bring in another female character in addition to Princess Peach. Rosalina has a following among the Super Mario Galaxy fanbase, and she's appeared in Mario Kart recently, so I think she is well known."[8]
In Super Mario Odyssey, she appears as an 8-bit sprite in the Dark and Darker Side of the Moon which can be hit by Cappy to collect ten coins.[9]
Other games
Rosalina appears in Mario Kart Wii, Mario Kart 7, Mario Kart 8, Mario Kart Arcade GP DX and Mario Kart Tour as an unlockable character, and is available by default in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Mario Kart 8 sees the introduction of a baby version of Rosalina.[10][11][12] Rosalina also has a namesake racing track in Mario Kart 7 called Rosalina's Ice World.[13]Joystiq commented on her appearance, saying that it was nice to see that another "Nintendo character join the obscenely large roster of folks showing their faces in the game."[14]
Pedro Hernandez writing for Nintendo World Report chose Rosalina as his favourite Nintendo character, describing her as "one of the most fascinating and enigmatic Mario characters the franchise has yet seen" and commented that while other Nintendo characters rarely stray from their archetype, Rosalina is a "multifaceted and complicated character".[17] Douglas Wilson opined in GameSetWatch that Super Mario Galaxy's most surprising moment was Rosalina's storybook tale, stating that it "tackles the drama of human tragedy". He felt that she is the core of the game and her storybook provides the game's emotion and motivation.[18]Siliconera called Rosalina's story "bittersweet" and opined that while it could have been just another "save the princess" story, it instead "takes Super Mario Galaxy to an artistic level other Mario titles haven't approached."[19]Destructoid positively reviewed Rosalina's design, describing her as a "celestial stunner" and said that she "embodies style perfection".[20]
Jake Shapiro of Nintendo Life complained about Rosalina being a princess from the Mario franchise, stating "It’s a bummer that every single female-identified character in Mario Kart 8 is a princess".[21] Jeremy Parish of Polygon ranked 73 fighters from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate "from garbage to glorious", listing Rosalina at 51st, stating that "Rosalina is basically the most powerful singular force in the cosmos, if Super Mario Galaxy is to be believed—a divine arbiter of existence who can reset all reality at will. You’d think she’d have better things to do than whallop on Bowser Jr."[22] Gavin Jasper of Den of Geek ranked Rosalina as 33rd on his list of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate characters, stating "Rosalina is a fresh addition to the Mario franchise and a welcome face at his parties and go-kart races. In Smash, she adapts the Ice Climbers concept as her own fighting style, thanks to her partnership with Luma."[23] According to John Adams of his "Female Fighters: Perceptions of Femininity in the Super Smash Bros. Community", player response to Rosalina was positive about her gameplay and appearance.[24]
Mike Sholars writing for Kotaku opined that Rosalina's introduction brought with it a fundamental change in the Mario franchise. He said that while Princess Peach spent almost every game being rescued by Mario, Rosalina was not given the usual role of damsel in distress, but instead had her own lore. He further opined that "Nintendo seems to be chafing against its self-imposed reliance on distressed damsels".[25] In 2018, unused concept art of Rosalina playing a guitar in a Super Mario Odyssey art book developed into an internet obsession and spawned numerous works of fan art, which Ryan Craddock of Nintendo Life likened to Bowsette.[26]
^Official Game Bio: "Making her debut on the track, Rosalina shows her experience of space travel translates well to rocketing round the race course. With a friendly Luma by her side, Rosalina is right at home on the track!". Nintendo.
