To mark the 40th anniversary of the release of the “Super Mario Bros” video game, SF’s Union Square Nintendo Store is bringing in Mario this weekend, or rather, someone in a Mario mascot suit that you can take pictures with.

The Chronicle reported Monday morning that Nintendo video game star character Mario will be visiting SF’s Union Square Nintendo Store this weekend, on both Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Though this may result in some confusing Google search results for both Nintendo fans and weather-watchers, considering that something called Tropical Storm Mario may be hitting the Bay Area later this week.

The Chronicle describes Saturday and Sunday’s Mario photo-op as “the first time fans in the Bay Area will have the chance to meet him in person.” But what is not mentioned there is that Mario already came to the store when it opened this past May. But maybe this is some new, juiced-up version of the Mario mascot suit?

As Nintendo notes above, we are upon the 40th anniversary of the release of the video game “Super Mario Bros,” which became one of the most popular video games of all time. Mario is slated to do fan appearances at the store from 1 to 5 pm Saturday and 12 to 4 pm Sunday. Yes you can get a photo with Mario, and there is no reservation system this time. So it’s first-come, first-served, which sounds like it would entail getting in line pretty early in the morning.  

CNet has a full lineup of all of Nintendo’s 40th anniversary of Mario activities, which involve some new Mario-themed Switch and Switch 2 games, and the new “Mario Tennis Fever” coming in early 2026 (though I will go into Simpsons Comic Book Guy voice and point out that Mario himself actually debuted in the arcade game “Donkey Kong” in 1981, which was 44 years ago).  

All this Mario madness is expected to culminate in the release of the upcoming film The Super Mario Galaxy Movie on April 3, 2026, whose trailer below will give you absolutely no insight into the plot of this film.

Still, the Mario appearance is a welcome sign that Nintendo is putting consistent efforts into making their San Francisco store a destination. “We believe in the city very, very much,” Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser (yes, his name is actually Bowser) told the Chronicle when the store opened. “San Francisco fit that bill perfectly. First of all, it’s an iconic city. It has a very large population, a very passionate population and community, and we’re really proud to be a part of it.”

Translation? There are a lot of video game nerds in the Bay Area, and this store is well-positioned to capitalize. Expect those video game nerds to be out in full force this Saturday and Sunday at the Union Square Nintendo Store at Powell and Geary streets.

Related: SF’s Union Square Nintendo Store Opens to Huge Crowds, and Mascot Animals Crossing All Over the Place [SFist]

Image: PARIS, FRANCE - OCTOBER 23: Animators dressed as Luigi and Mario characters from the Super Mario video game series created by Nintendo pose during the 'Paris Games Week' at Parc des Expositions Porte de Versailles on October 23, 2024 in Paris, France. Paris Games Week' is an international trade fair for video games and esport that runs from October 23 to 27, 2024. (Photo by Chesnot/Getty Images)