Absent Father

It’s generally accepted that Princess Peach is the ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom. But what if that wasn’t actually the case?

The instruction manual for the original game mentions her father, the Mushroom King. Despite this, he hasn’t made an appearance in any of the major games. Is Peach keeping him hidden away in a shameless bid to retain power?

We may never know!

Major Celebrity

In our own world, there is often little division between being a politician and being a celebrity. As it turns out, the Mushroom Kingdom works the same way!

Across various games, we see that Mushroom Kingdom citizens buy, sell, and collect photos and other merch featuring Peach. One superfan is a Koopa Troopa with a lifesized Peach print on his window.

Honestly, that just sounds like a waifu that is easier to clean. But we won’t yuck your yum, turtle man.

Powerful Emotions

The Super Princess Peach game was pretty regressive. But it also gave us a wild glimpse into some of Peach’s unexpected powers.

In this game, Peach is powered by emotions--literally. By cycling through emotions such as joy, gloom, rage, and calm, she can activate unexpected powers to help defeat enemies and solve puzzles.

But what emotion is it that helped her float in the second Mario game? We can only assume she was just vibing.

The Bad Girl of Mario’s Dreams

Some of the most insane Nintendo lore is hidden in the pages of old Club Nintendo comics. And that includes one of Mario’s stranger FemDom fantasies involving Peach!

One comic involved Dr. Wily taking over Mario’s town and turning Peach into a black-clad witch. This ended up being one of Mario’s dreams, which makes us wonder if Mario secretly dreams of dating a bad girl!

Different Names in Different Places

In America and Europe, it was a big deal when “Princess Toadstool” became “Princess Peach.” But that wasn’t the case in Japan!

That is because she was always known as Princess Peach in Japan. So when Mario 64 came out, it gave Nintendo a chance to synchronize her name across the different regions.

Time in Nursing School?

You’d think running a kingdom would keep Peach pretty busy. But apparently, she found the time to go back to school!

In the Dr. Mario games, Peach doesn’t just rock a nurse’s outfit. The instructions actually name her as Nurse Toadstool. Either Peach has been taking some online courses in her downtime or all of this is to support Mario in his drug habit and hideous medical malpractice.

All Caked Up

Did you know Princess Peach is all about that cake? And no, perverts--we’re not talking about what she’s packing under that pink dress!

Obviously, she baked Mario a cake in Super Mario 64 before getting kidnapped. And in the Mario Party games, there is a board you can play on named after Peach’s birthday cake. Peach also bakes cakes in Paper Mario and hooks Bowser up for a cake for being a good guy in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story.

Making Video Game History

In those early appearances, Peach was mostly a damsel in distress. She got more agency over time and eventually ended up making video game history.

Making her first appearance in 1985, Peach has the honor of having appeared in more games than any other female character. And given how many appearances she continues to make, nobody will be taking this honor from her anytime soon.

Princess of Many Names

We mostly refer to Mario’s Princess pal as “Peach” these days. But over the years, she’s had more names than you can shake a Fire Flower at!

In the original games, she was simply known as Princess Toadstool. In Super Mario 64, she writes a letter where she goes by Toadstool but signs her name as “Peach.” Since then, she has gone by the name “Peach” pretty exclusively.

Feline Heritage

Super Mario 3D World gave us cute new costumes that could make Peach and her friends look like adorable cats. But it turns out that Peach has had feline DNA in her design from the very beginning!

While Shigeru Miyamoto first designed Peach, he later asked Yōichi Kotabe to redraw her in a way that made her look both stubborn and cute. He also wanted Peach to look “a little cat-like” in her overall design.

Maybe this furry origin is why Peach isn’t weirded out when Mario starts strutting around in Tanooki suits and raccoon tails?

Sex With Bowser?!?

Bowser loves to kidnap Peach, and he eventually developed a romantic fixation on her. But is it possible she got bored enough to have sex with Bowser?

In Super Mario Sunshine, players encounter Bowser, Jr. This pint-sized threat is convinced that Peach is actually his mother. It turns out this is a lie Bowser told him, but Peach didn’t say anything when she first heard the kid call her “mama.”

It seems like in a world of magic and monsters, Peach couldn’t rule out shacking up with Bowser and popping out a secret baby!

Powerful Wizard

The hero rescuing the princess from certain doom is an ancient storytelling device. But in the original Super Mario Bros., Peach’s kidnapping is actually an important plot point.

Before invading the Mushroom Kingdom, Bowser used a spell to transform everyone into things like blocks and plants. As it turns out, Peach is a powerful wizard in her own right and the only one who can reverse this spell.

Bowser, then, kidnaps the princess so that she cannot immediately foil his magical machinations.

Daisy’s Cousin?

Daisy was introduced as a new princess for Mario to rescue in his first Game Boy outing. But the potential connection between Daisy and Peach is downright shocking.

In some Mario Kart guides published by Prima (and even licensed by Nintendo), it is specified that Daisy is actually Peach’s cousin. This makes Mario’s early romancing of Daisy even weirder.

And now that Daisy is Luigi’s love interest, it feels like these famous plumbers are both busy laying some (warp) pipe in the same family tree!

Grandmother Toad

We know a bit more about Peach’s family thanks to the Super MarioRPG. And what we learn is pretty damn weird!

Apparently, Peach has a grandmother who is a Toad. That may not seem so strange at first, but it raises all kinds of questions about whether Peach is human, Toad, or something else altogether.

Rotating Hair Color

What color is Peach’s hair? The answer might surprise you!

The modern Peach has a blonde ‘do that has become iconic. But she had brown hair in the original game and red hair in the DiC cartoon. Canonically, Peach’s hair color has been all over the place from the very beginning!