Arrival of Kitty-chan and fellow Sanrio character My Melody is the most Japanese thing since schoolgirl outfit Pikachu.
While Nintendo keeps a pretty tight grip on its intellectual properties, it can also be remarkably inclusive when it comes to letting characters owned by other companies come play in its virtual worlds. Super Mario Maker has hosted a number of non-Nintendo characters as special playable guests, such as musical trio Babymetal, which joined the game last month.
But while most of the guest characters can’t hold a candle to main man Mario’s fame, it’s a different story with the introduction of Hello Kitty, one of the most recognizable characters on the planet, to the Mario Maker cast.
In the just-released preview video, we see Mario grab a mushroom and transform into the Sanrio megastar. And yes, she’s properly depicted at her official height of five apples tall.
▼ She’d tower over the Smurfs.
In many ways, Kitty-chan’s simple yet inviting design is a perfect match for the aesthetics of an 8-bit Mario game. However, it’s a little disconcerting to see her expressionlessly kill Goombas by stomping on them.
Hello Kitty is also violent enough to actually hit blocks with her head, instead of using an upraised fist like Mario does…
…and she gets speed lines when she runs, which are a dynamic touch, but make her look perhaps a little too gleeful as she sprints after a Koopa Troopa shell that’s mowing down her enemies.
▼ “Die die die!”
Aside from Sanrio’s iconic feline, the company is also sending tragically underrated yet adorable bunny rabbit My Melody into Mario Maker.
▼ Seen here showing off her fuzzy little tail.
In contrast to Hello Kitty’s surprisingly violent screen time, My Melody merely stuns an enemy before hopping over a pit, up a stack of musical note blocks, and completing the stage, which prompts a dainty xylophone-style arrangement of the Mario level clear music to play.
As usual with Mario Maker guest characters, Hello Kitty and My Melody can be obtained by completing their special event course, titled Sanrio Characters (Hello Kitty●My Melody), or サンリオキャラクターズ（ハローキティ●マイメロディ） in Japanese.
Worried about breaking your Japanese-ness level-measuring equipment? Follow Casey on Twitter, and let his instruments take the brunt of the workload.
Source: YouTube/Nintendo 公式チャンネル
Images: YouTube/Nintendo 公式チャンネル (edited by RocketNews24)