PETA: anti-Mario campaign just a joke

By Tom Phillips Published 17 November, 2011

"Mario Fans: Relax!"

Animal rights group PETA has admitted its campaign condemning Super Mario 3D Land's furry Tanooki suit was not a serious attack on Nintendo's moustachioed mascot.

"Mario fans: Relax!", a statement from PETA passed to Eurogamer reads. "PETA's game was meant to be tongue-in-cheek, a fun way to call attention to a serious issue, that raccoon dogs are skinned alive for their fur."

"We wish real-life tanukis could fly or swat enemies away with their tails and escape from those who profit from their skins. You can help them by never buying real fur."

The activist group was apparently left surprised at how seriously people had taken its campaign, which features a 2D Mario-themed flash game Mario Kills Tanooki. In the game players control a bloodied and flayed racoon trying to win back its skin.

"Tanooki may be just a 'suit' in Mario games, but in real life, tanuki are raccoon dogs who are skinned alive for their fur. By wearing Tanooki, Mario is sending the message that it's OK to wear fur," the organisation originally stated.

But PETA has now admitted it was "a little surprised" the campaign "was taken so literally". "We know how beloved Mario is - we are huge Mario fans ourselves!" PETA spokesperson Ashley Palmer told Kotaku. "Our spoof is simply making a serious point: that there is a much darker story behind tanuki skins than Mario lets on.

Nintendo responded to the controversy earlier this week, telling Eurogamer that Mario's "light-hearted and whimsical" transformations "make no statement beyond the games themselves."

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Phillips

Tom joined Eurogamer in 2010 and has quickly made his mark writing news and columns and coming up with puntastic straplines. Questionable beard. @TomPhillips151 on Twitter.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Phillips archive page.

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Comments (74) Latest comment 6 months ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • NotoriousR #1 6 months ago

    A true testament to PETA's absurd campaigns if we didn't know it was a joke.

  • MattEdWithCheese #2 6 months ago

    What they should do is do a game called Murderrim, due to the potential for animal killing in Skyrim, I think Bethesda are completely okay about potential copyright infringement...

  • RFT #3 6 months ago

    Is that the unmistakable sound of furious backpedalling? I think it might be.

  • Eraser #4 6 months ago

    Yeah sure PETA, no please go away and die, bunch of attention whoring misfits.

  • TechnicPuppet #5 6 months ago

    I feel guilty when I kill friendly animals for their hides in Skyrim. As a light armour wearer I have no choice, yet.

    I would love it if it turned out the Dragons where goodies all along and by killing them we where bad. I feel guilty when I kill them as well.

  • madmaardigan #6 6 months ago

    It all seemed rather tongue-in-cheek when I checked out the PETA site yesterday, though you wouldn't have thought so reading all the rage and bile on the EG comments. It was more like reading the Daily Mail (who also covered it extensively, incidentally).

    Guess Mario is sacrosanct round these parts.

  • metalangel #7 6 months ago

    PETA: fuck off back to making your lion eat tofu.

    (I am also reminded of perhaps the greatest line ever: "You can't own property, man!";)

  • Cjail #8 6 months ago

    "a fun way to call attention to a serious issue"

    If PETA thinks that was funny then they are in big trouble!
    Edited by Cjail at 17/11/11 @ 10:08

  • Sodding_Gamer #9 6 months ago

    Not a great move PETA. You have made yourselves look even more pathetic than you did already with the whole stabbing a rat incident with BF3. Funny that they haven't picked up on the fact you stab a dog in the head in MW3. Considering the sales figures the guys at PETA probably have the game at home and are just BF3 haters.

    Negged?! Seriously this was meant to be a joke :p
    Edited by Sodding_Gamer at 17/11/11 @ 11:20

  • Mr_interesting_2011 #10 6 months ago

    The problem is, that people donate money to PETA to actually 'help' animals. People do not expect them to spend this money creating elaborate and expensive jokes!

    I think we all know who the real joke is...

  • BigDannyH #11 6 months ago

    It was a good idea to try to make a lot of people aware of the cruelty involved in the fur trade but they handled it really badly.

    At the end of the day, Mario is supposed to have transformed, he's not wearing a fur coat.

    I defy anyone to wear fur having seen footage of those poor animals after they have been flayed alive. Gruesome.

  • abigsmurf #12 6 months ago

    So you think skinning animals alive is something you can laugh about then PETA? Good to know.

  • Bealsy #13 6 months ago

    HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHA.

    not.

  • Donaldthescotishtwin #14 6 months ago

    Pretty obvious they got shit scared.

  • username84 #15 6 months ago

    Ha ha fair play on PETA..
    Did a really good job on spreading their message. And we all know how seriously
    defensive us geeks err gamers can get when our pixilated chums are attacked.

  • arcam #16 6 months ago

    If there is any hint of criticism of gaming, many gamers' default response is ATTACK!, regardless of what that criticism is or how it is delivered.

  • CheesecakeBobby #17 6 months ago

    Not really a waste of money if all they wanted was free publicity. Every time they pull a stunt like this, game websites with a far broader readership than their own site reproduce the story and thus we all become aware of their anti-fur campaign, for example. Yes some of their campaigns are stupid but skinning raccoons alive is more objectionable than their flash parodies, unless you really are a bastard.

  • Lolatron #18 6 months ago

    I don't understand this whole scenario at all. PETA are People for the Eating of Tasty Animals right?!


    RIGHT?!!?!

  • TruSmiles #19 6 months ago

    I'm such a friendly, animal-loving person that has experimented with vegetarianism on and off over the years.

    But there is nothing more fun than setting fire to goats and pushing them off a mountain in Skyrim with a shout. I'm sure if there were any raccoons in Skyrim, I would do the same :o

  • Machetazo #20 6 months ago

    Having seen that defaced image of Mario maliciously holding aloft the severed tanooki animal head, it's no question of gamers being wronged, but Nintendo. What PETA did can't be defended as any form of satire, it has no such basis in commentary, they thoroughly misrepresented and sought to bring harm to Nintendo, by associating one of their well-known properties with such a campaign using a likeness/image they had absolutely no right to use.

    Even if they did have the permission to use the image, EULA's are very clear to point out that this kind of thing just isn't on. What's there to argue?

    What's to stop anybody else picking and choosing IP they don't own to represent their purposes, if PETA can get away with it? This isn't Super Tofu Boy, this is another level. They have presented Nintendo's character in an unbelievably crass and inappropriate way.
    Edited by Machetazo at 17/11/11 @ 10:33

  • Captain_JMac #21 6 months ago

    Nintendo should sue them for libel

  • thedaveeyres #22 6 months ago

    It was a serious way to call attention to a fun issue.
    Edited by thedaveeyres at 17/11/11 @ 10:35

  • madmaardigan #23 6 months ago

    @Machetazo PETA aren't fools and I would guess they are baiting Nintendo for exactly this response, more free publicity for them. Nintendo aren't fools either and I doubt they want to be seen playing the role of the Evil Corporation. My guess is it will quietly disappear in the not-too-distant.

  • Liquidoodle #24 6 months ago

    PETA is actually MORONS spelt backwards, FACT!

  • disusedgenius #25 6 months ago

    The video games community in being overly literalist, reactionary dicks, you say?

    Shocking...

  • LR100 #26 6 months ago

    Well that's us gamers told, we are the largest purchasers of racoon dog fur after all. I've seen the error of my ways!

  • the_dudefather #27 6 months ago

    It's not even the first time this happened

    Poor Yoshi

  • Toothball #28 6 months ago

    Well I found the whole thing very funny, but then I was laughing at PETA rather than with them.

  • kinky_mong #29 6 months ago

    "Relax guys! It was just a joke! Just like when we gave the Animal Liberation Front money to firebomb labs we thought might be linked to animal testing! How we all laughed at that!"

  • f00b_inc #30 6 months ago

    They couldn't handle the Internet NERD RAGE. They were not prepared! LoL

  • FireMonkey #31 6 months ago

    @BigDannyH - "At the end of the day, Mario is supposed to have transformed, he's not wearing a fur coat".

    Not quite right. It is a suit and it was created by a tailor called Tanooki.

    http://www.mariowiki.com/Tanooki_Suit

  • arcam #32 6 months ago

    @Machetazo

    EULAs don't override existing laws, and despite you saying this can't be classed as satire, it clearly can.

  • basiclee #33 6 months ago

    I'm a big believer of animal welfare, but PETA are an absolutely idiotic organisation unfortunately.

  • Freek #34 6 months ago

    Lets go back to the original statement:
    "Tanooki may be just a 'suit' in Mario games, but in real life, tanuki are raccoon dogs who are skinned alive for their fur. By wearing Tanooki, Mario is sending the message that it's OK to wear fur."

    Wich part of that is a joke or tongue in cheek?

  • disusedgenius #35 6 months ago

    Jesus fucking Christ. Next time anyone says that it's just Americans who don't get sarcasm/irony/whatever I'm pointing them at that post.

  • Bilstar #36 6 months ago

    F***ing hell...

  • Freek #37 6 months ago

    @disusedgenius At a certian point PETA started to say and do so much crazy shit that it's no longer possible to see what is a joke and what is real anymore.
    But I do love the fact that you keep complaining about the angry reactions with your own brand of swearing and anger.

  • disusedgenius #38 6 months ago

    No no, it's still pretty easy.

  • Pulsar_t #39 6 months ago

    Videogame Community, an oxymoron if I ever read one.

  • 32768Colours #40 6 months ago

    "Mario fans: Relax!", a statement from PETA passed to Eurogamer reads. "PETA's game was meant to be tongue-in-cheek, a fun way to call attention to a serious issue, that raccoon dogs are skinned alive for their fur."

    Oh I see! It was just a light-hearted look at animal cruelty! Ha ha ha! Ah ha ha!

    Ah ha! Ah ha huh ah... ah.

    Ahem...

    :|
    Edited by 32768Colours at 17/11/11 @ 13:25

  • menage #41 6 months ago

    A joke is only a joke if people get it.

  • ballshock #42 6 months ago

    pussies

  • disusedgenius #43 6 months ago

    @Pulsar_t

    How so?

  • disusedgenius #44 6 months ago

    @32768Colours

    Did you even read that statement you quoted?

  • disusedgenius #45 6 months ago

    @menage

    Not really, no. It can be a bad joke, or it can be one of those jokes meant to make people who don't get it look stupid.

  • kickerconspiracy #46 6 months ago

    I ironically ate a hamster yesterday.

    It's ok because I was being ironic, right?

  • disusedgenius #47 6 months ago

    Nah.

  • weebl #48 6 months ago

    Nintendo should still sue them over copyright violation. That'd teach 'em.

  • ajaxpliskin #49 6 months ago

    I love the way PETA continuously damage their own good cause.

  • dfua #50 6 months ago

    The comments over this issue does little more than reinforce stereotypes of gamers. Few rational responses just blind hatred.

    Did anyone really think they were serious? They've taken advantage of the hype and promotion from Nintendo to raise awareness of a real issue.

  • Pickster #51 6 months ago

    The only Joke is that PETA has soo many followers.

    They have a nasty, rotten core and I wish them all the missery in the world.

    And just to make things clear, I am not pro animal cruelty, just very much anti bullshit.

  • Pickster #52 6 months ago

    Watch this for an idea (NSFW)

    Penn and Teller
    Edited by Pickster at 17/11/11 @ 14:31

  • darkmorgado #53 6 months ago

    There is also a much darker story about PETA than PETA let on.

    They kill thousands upon thousands of animals each year.

    F*cking hypocrites, preaching animal rights whilst slaughtering them as fast as they can get their hands on them.

    They kill 85% of animals that they "rescue", even when they are perfectly healthy.
    Edited by darkmorgado at 17/11/11 @ 15:03

  • Cean #54 6 months ago

    It was a joke? Why go to the trouble of making a flash game then? Also won't someone thing of the poor turtles.

  • disusedgenius #55 6 months ago

    @darkmorgado

    tomato, brown, mustard, bechamel etc?

  • Whitster #56 6 months ago

    @metalangel I can because I'm not a stinking hippy.

  • Stompy #57 6 months ago

    Post deleted at 23:13:35 17-04-2012

  • disappointed #58 6 months ago

    Seriously misunderestimated the gaming press's ability to make a mountain out of a molehill.

  • SG #59 6 months ago

    I don't think anyone can really believe that it was a joke can they? Not unless all of their previous similar campaigns have also been jokes. Blatant back-peddling and an attempt to get more media attention.

  • Lycanthroat #60 6 months ago

    Wait....what?

    Furious backpedalling indeed.

  • cardboardMonster #61 6 months ago

    It was just a joke - like on Top Gear...

  • lucky_jim #62 6 months ago

    @cardboardMonster - A Stewart Lee reference is an easy way to get a +1 from me.

    As far as this whole Tanooki thing is concerned, I had no idea it was a real animal, or that it was skinned alive for its fur. I wouldn't knowingly wear fur anyway, so perhaps the point is a bit wasted on me, but it certainly taught me something new.

    /tucks into delicious McTanooki

  • PaulieWaulie #63 6 months ago

    Post deleted at 14:23:40 06-01-2012

  • levitate #64 6 months ago

    It ain't a joke if nobody's laughing.

  • wayn3h #65 6 months ago

    Thing is, not all good publicity is good publicity. I thought PETA were utter thunderc*nts anyway, but this just further compounded that. Added to the fact I shared this story on fb (as I'm sure others did) where my 'non gamer' friends thought it was utterly ridiculous too.

    Bad move guys.
    Edited by wayn3h at 17/11/11 @ 18:40

  • Ryze #66 6 months ago

    TBH it's an excellent way of getting people talking about the cause.

    Ninty would have secretly loved it too, as they DESPERATELY need exposure for the 3DS and its games.

    Win/win?

  • Okamiwolf #67 6 months ago

    Hmmm... When the "reputation" of imaginary plumber Mario is more important to gamers than the torture of real animals, you know gamers have jumped the shark a bit and left reality behind in their quest for escapism.

    The only joke here is that gamers would rather live in their fantasy worlds fighting imaginary evil than confronting it in the real world where they could actually help stop real suffering.

  • Sunyavadin #68 6 months ago

    I still despise the hypocrisy in a "war on terror" which does not devote any attention to PETA, and all their actions in funding and encouraging murder of human beings.

    Yes guys, we knew it was a joke. BECAUSE PETA ARE AND ALWAYS HAVE BEEN A JOKE.

  • Pickster #69 6 months ago

    @Ryze
    @Okamiwolf

    Forgetting for a moment what PETA may or maynot have done in the past and may or may not be doing right now.

    I have a HUGE problem with any person or organisation that puts animal life before human life*.

    At the very most animal life and human life should be on the same footing.

    *This does not include those who put animals before their own life. That's their choise.

  • audienceWatching #70 6 months ago

    Jesus watch the video on their site. Skinned ALIVE, its disturbing to see an animal alive with no skin, blinking at a camera.

    As much as I think they are gun-ho about their campaigns, you can't deny how powerful and disturbing that is.

  • GrizzleBoy #71 6 months ago

    Its always telling when a campaigning group comes out to make an official statement that their latest campaign was just a joke.

    Luckily for them, we all knew PETA was just a joke quite a long time ago.

  • Lukus #72 6 months ago

    Everyone in here knows Mario isn't real, right?
    Edited by Lukus at 23/11/11 @ 14:38

  • Vyggo #73 6 months ago

    `The only joke here is that gamers would rather live in their fantasy worlds fighting imaginary evil than confronting it in the real world where they could actually help stop real suffering.`

    Damnit, have to admit that is pretty insightful and got my thinking.

  • brod #74 6 months ago

    Load of wank.