Luigi

Luigi (ルイージ) is a character in the Mario series. He is the younger brother of the more-famous Mario, but is still a prominent character (and second only to his older brother) in the series of the same name. He has featured as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. and Super Smash Bros. Melee. Though it is unconfirmed at this time, it seems likely he will return in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

For the fighter, see Luigi (SSB), and Luigi (SSBM).

Character description
Luigi made his first appearance in Mario Bros. for the arcade as the character the second player would control. His appearance is a palette swap of Mario, except colored with green instead of red. He was named after a pizza parlor which was near Nintendo of America's headquarters called "Mario & Luigi's".

Luigi would then once again be featured in the world-famous Super Mario Bros. for the NES, which saw the two brothers traveling through the Mushroom Kingdom for the first to rescue Princess Peach (then called "Princess Toadstool") from the evil Koopa King, Bowser. He would subsequently appear in Super Mario Bros. 2, where it was established for the first time that Luigi could actually jump higher than Mario, something that has stuck ever since. He would once again return in Super Mario Bros. 3 as well as Super Mario World.

Over the years, while Mario appeared in more and more games, Luigi started taking a backseat to his older brother, even being left out of some games entirely. While he appeared as the solo playable character in Mario is Missing, this was not a "true" Mario title. The most notable of these was Luigi's absense in the world-famous Super Mario 64 which garnered some controversy.

However, he would soon make his first appearance in a fighting game in Super Smash Bros. and following that, garnered the spotlight in his own game Luigi's Mansion which launched the Gamecube. Since then, Nintendo has made a more conscious effort to include Luigi in more games, playable or otherwise, he starred alongside Mario in the Mario and Luigi games for the Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS and was a playable character in Super Paper Mario (after appearing as a non-playable character in the first two Paper Mario games). Things have since been looking up for Luigi, and while he is less famous than Mario, he is a popular character among gamers.

As a playable character

 * Main article: Luigi (SSB)

Luigi's first appearance in a fighting game is the original Super Smash Bros. as one of the four secret playable characters. He can be unlocked after completing the Target Test with all of the original 8 playable characters. Luigi's abilities are very similar to Mario's, but with a few differences. His B-move is also a Fireball except colored green rather than red, and is not affected by gravity like Mario's, so it floats in the air. His B-Up is also an uppercut third jump called the Super Jump Punch, but it does only 1% damage if the hit is indirect. If the hit is direct, it can do up to 25% damage. His B-Down move is called the Luigi Cyclone which is similar to the Mario Tornado, but it sends the opponent flying away from Luigi almost straight up and is often used as a combo finisher. Luigi's taunt is also the only one that does damage.

In Single-player
In the game's single-player mode, you and a randomly chosen ally will fight Luigi and Mario in a team battle on Peach's Castle. Because of this, Luigi is the only secret character to be featured in the game's single-player mode.

As a playable character

 * Main article: Luigi (SSBM)

Luigi returns in Melee as a secret character. He can be unlocked in the adventure game by finishing the first stage with the number "two" in the timer, which will cause Luigi to take Mario's place in the subsequent battle, or by playing 800 VS. matches. Luigi is once again similar to Mario, but his new B-Forward move gives him a unique ability, the Green Missile. Luigi charges up, and when this is finished, launches himself forward as though he were a missile. (Hence the title) This can be used as a recovery move along with his Super Jump Punch.

In Single-player
Luigi can appear in the adventure mode if the player finishes the first stage, Mushroom Kingdom Adventure, with the number "two" anywhere in the timer, a cutscene will occur which will show Luigi taking Mario's place in the upcoming battle. The player will then have to battle a team of Luigi and Peach. If you have unlocked Luigi, Metal Luigi will appear on the Battlefield stage alongside Metal Mario.

Luigi is featured in the following Event Matches:
 * Event 31: Mario Bros. Madness: Your character battles a team of Mario and Luigi in a 2-minute unlimited-stock match in the Mushroom: Kingdom stage. Whoever gets the most KOs wins, much like in a standard time-match.
 * Event 35: Time for a Check-up: You play as Luigi as you battle a team of Dr. Mario and Peach on the Yoshi's Island: Yoshi's Story, with each character having 1 stock and the match timed for 3 minutes.
 * Event 38: Super Mario Bros. 2: In this match, your character must battle against Mario, Luigi, and Peach in an unlimited-time 2-stock match on Mushroom: Kingdom II. The odds may seem especially stacked against the player, but the opponent team is subject to friendly fire. The character selection and stage are a direct throwback to the original Super Mario Bros. 2, an NES sequel to Super Mario Bros.
 * Event 40: All-Star Match 4: Luigi is the second opponent you must fight in this series of staged battles. Your character battles him on the Mushroom Kingdom II stage, and your character has 2 stock while Luigi has one. With a timer of four minutes, you must defeat him and the other four characters with the overall time and life you have: Marth, Jigglypuff, Mewtwo, Mr. Game and Watch.
 * Event 42: Trouble King 2: You play as Luigi against a giant Bowser on the stage Poke Floats, with both players having 2 stock each.

Trophies
By tradition, Luigi as a playable character is featured on his personal 3 trophies. His normal trophy is acquired by beating the Classic mode with Luigi on any difficulty, and his Smash Red and Smash Blue trophies are acquired the same way by beating the Adventure and All-Star modes, respectively.


 * Luigi
 * Although Mario's younger brother has always played second fiddle, Luigi finally garnered the spotlight with his very own game, Luigi's Mansion. Things are looking up for the eternal understudy; he's even picked up his own rival in Waluigi. The day he's referred to as the "lean, mean, green machine" may not be too far off. (Mario Bros., Arcade 1983)


 * Luigi (Smash Red)
 * Luigi has worse traction than his brother, but he's a more powerful jumper. His Fireballs aren't affected by gravity, so they fly straight horizontally. The Green Missile is similar to Pikachu's Skull Bash, but there's a 12.5% chance of a spontaneous misfire. Luigi's taunting pose inflicts minor damage. (B: Fireball, Smash B: Green Missile)


 * Luigi (Smash Blue)
 * Smack someone with Luigi's Super Jump Punch, and if the timing is just right, it will become a Fire Jump Punch of incredible strength. However, Luigi can only jump straight up when delivering this blow, and if his aim is a bit off, he'll only do a single point of damage. The Luigi Cyclone sucks foes in and twirls them about. (Up & B: Super Jump Punch, Down & B: Luigi Cyclone)

Another trophy that features Luigi is Vacuum Luigi.

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Luigi has not yet been shown to appear in the upcoming Wii fighting game, but given his staple roles in the previous two games, his return in Brawl seems to be next to guaranteed.