Nintendo has a somewhat equivocal relationship with the annual Mario Day celebration of its most famous mascot on March 10. The celebration, originally coined by fans because MAR10 spells Mario, has been officially recognized by Nintendo for the last 10 years or so. But the company usually focuses its Mario Day celebrations on discounts, marketing promotions, and in-game events rather than major announcements or software drops.
We don't know the full extent of Nintendo's plans for Mario Day 2026 yet, but we do now know that it will mark the occasion by adding three vintage Mario games to Nintendo Classics. The games, which will be available to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscribers on March 10, are the original 2004 Game Boy Advance version of the puzzle-platformer Mario vs. Donkey Kong, plus two more titles for the recently launched Virtual Boy collection: Mario's Tennis and Mario Clash, both from 1995.
Nintendo was once so ashamed of the failure of the Virtual Boy that it avoided all mention of the misbegotten VR console, so it's remarkable enough that it's exhuming two more of the console's forgotten titles in Mario's honor. Mario's Tennis was bundled with the console in North America and has a reputation as probably the best Virtual Boy game, although that isn't saying much. It presents a low, over-the-shoulder view of a tennis court, the better to emphasize the Virtual Boy's 3D effect. Mario Clash is a kind of stereoscopic reimagining of the Mario Bros. arcade game, with Mario jumping in and out of the background, knocking enemies off ledges.
The addition of Mario vs. Donkey Kong to the Nintendo Classics collection is also a little surprising, since the game was fairly recently remade for the Switch. That remake made some big changes, adding levels and an easier, casual play style, so it's good to have the original available on Nintendo Switch Online.
As far as Mario games go, these are relatively deep cuts. Is Nintendo still holding back something splashier for Mario's big day? We'll find out next week.