Whenever a new Super Mario multiplayer spinoff like Mario Golf: Super Rush comes together, fans want to know which Mushroom Kingdom characters will be playable. While there's easy shoe-ins like Mario, Luigi, and Peach, there's also supporting characters like the Koopalings that don't always get to appear in Super Mario's supplemental games. One character who seems to have moved from one category to the other is Rosalina. Super Mario Galaxy's mysterious magical stargazer was an instant hit back in the day and seemed like a good occasional guest for future Mario games. On the contrary, Rosalina is now in just about every Mario spinoff that Nintendo makes.
The same is true for Mario Golf: Super Rush. Rosalina showed up in a DLC for Mario Golf: World Tour, but she'll be in the base game of Mario Golf: Super Rush. That's only the latest in a long line of spinoffs that Rosalina has made an appearance in. Super Mario fans certainly don't mind; she remains a beloved character, and Nintendo is also clearly happy to keep her a familiar face in the Mushroom Kingdom. That's not the same as Rosalina getting to lead a game like Super Mario Galaxy again, though. If Nintendo is determined to give her a permanent presence in Super Mario games, will she ever get to play a major role in a core game again?
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It's really amazing how many games Nintendo has allowed Rosalina to join in on. There's lots of sports games that she's appeared in since Super Mario Galaxy. Aside from some Mario Sports games, Rosalina is now a familiar face in the Mario Kart series, offering yet another racer in the franchise's wide roster. She's also a common player in the Mario Party games, including the recent Super Mario Party for Switch. Rosalina even has an impact on Nintendo outside of Mario games: she joined Super Smash Bros. as another playable Mario character before Princess Daisy did.
If Rosalina is such a mainstay in all these games, why doesn't she have much of an impact on core Mario games? She was a very minor character in Super Mario Galaxy 2, and her planned appearance in Super Mario Odyssey was cut. Her most major appearance after Super Mario Galaxy is probably in Super Mario 3D World where she appears as an unlockable character, but it takes a long time to find her. The cognitive dissonance between her role in core games and spinoffs is striking. If she's so well-loved by Nintendo and fans alike, it seems like she should be a main character in another core game.
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Rosalina was a big reason that Super Mario Galaxy worked well. Her kind but quiet demeanor was a nice change of pace from the peppy characters that Mario usually gets paired with in games like Mario Galaxy, and she had a pretty compelling backstory for a Mario character. As a sorceress from outer space, she contributes a pretty unique character concept to the Super Mario world after all. Nintendo has a great character on its hands, and so it ought to make use of her to her maximum potential. Something like Super Mario Odyssey 2 could find a way to make Rosalina a major character, traveling between different worlds at Mario's side and offering him guidance on new adventures. Alternatively, a traditional Mario platformer focusing on Peach, Daisy, Rosalina, and Toadette would be a fun way to celebrate Super Mario's female protagonists.
It's hard to say whether or not Nintendo is planning something for Rosalina long-term. It's been a long time since Super Mario Galaxy came out, and it still hasn't found a new recurring role for her. For the time being, games like Mario Golf: Super Rush are crucial in keeping excitement around Rosalina alive. Even if she's not being used to her maximum potential, it's fun to have a very magical character mixing things up in the rosters of Super Mario spinoffs. Rosalina is clearly part of the Super Mario family at this point, but she ought to play a bigger role. She's a strong character, and she opens up the door to more exciting spacefaring Mario adventures.
Mario Golf: Super Rush releases June 25 for Nintendo Switch.
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