Red Dead Online offers many customization options for its silent protagonist, including some that appear to have been taken from a closet in the Mushroom Kingdom. For example, one Red Dead Online player has crafted gorgeous outfits--and equally gorgeous mustaches--corresponding to the iconic Mario, Luigi, Wario, and Waluigi from the Mario franchise. The results are as colorful as they are unexpectedly fitting.
There are few video game character designs as easily recognizable as the Mario brothers, so Redditor u/HeySoloSoyYo shared pictures of the outfits inspired by them first. The outfits consist of blue overalls, long collared shirts in red and green, white gloves, and newsboy caps. While they're pretty far from the soft and stylized aesthetic of the Mario games, the brothers are still recognizable, just shifted into a different genre of game. They'd look right at home while robbing another Red Dead Online player's camp or homestead.
It might take some fans off-guard to see Mario and Luigi packing actual guns, and not just the F.L.U.D.D. multipurpose water pack. However, there's much less cognitive dissonance regarding the sight of Wario and Waluigi walking around with pistols at their belts. Not only are these two characters antagonists, to begin with, but they've also always been presented as some of the meanest, sneakiest, and generally dastardly men the Mario franchise has to offer. As with one modder's attempt to recreate C.J. from Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas in Red Dead Online, Wario and Waluigi fit right into the lawless western setting of the Red Dead Redemption games.
Wario sports a heftier build and a ruddy complexion alongside a pair of purple overalls, a yellow collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, a yellow cap, a much thinner--and longer--mustache than either of the Mario brothers and the same pair of gloves. Waluigi, meanwhile, is by far the tallest and leanest of the quartet, wearing grey overalls, a purple collared shirt, and speckled grey and purple pageboy cap. The much poofier hat fits Waluigi's portrayal in the Mario games, but it does make him stick out a bit in this more realistic western portrayal. However, another Red Dead Redemption 2 fan is actively trying to turn it into a pirate game, complete with pirate hats, so this wouldn't be the first time Red Dead Redemption players have embraced odd fashion choices.
The post also features several screenshots of the characters in action, including one particularly apt picture of Mario holding up an alligator snapping turtle. While it's no Bowser, the alligator snapping turtle is one of the largest freshwater turtles in the world. The inclusion of this turtle, white gloves perfect for Mario characters, and other little details are what make Red Dead Redemption so compelling.
Red Dead Online is available now on PC, PlayStation 4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
