Kraft Mac & Cheese is celebrating more than 30 years of offering its classic, easy-to-make pasta, and it’s doing it the way any respectable 30-something celebrates: with video games.
The company has joined forces with Nintendo to launch Kraft Mac & Cheese Super Mario Shapes. The pasta is inspired by the game’s iconic universe, with pasta in the shape of Fire Flower, Super Star, and Super Mushroom shapes. The new offering draws inspiration from elements of the Super Mario universe that power up Mario, Luigi, and, yes, Princess Peach, along with other popular characters from the games.
As to why the brand decided to include Mario? Well, any good Italian like Mario will tell you: family.
“In today’s fast-paced world, it has become increasingly difficult for families to find time to enjoy meals together,” Ashleigh Gibson, senior director of marketing for Kraft Mac & Cheese at the Kraft Heinz Company, said in a press release announcing the collaboration. “We’ve always helped families reground, reset, and reconnect during mealtime. It’s important to us that we continue providing that reassuring comfort, which is why we’re excited to partner with Nintendo on the newest addition to our shapes portfolio. We look forward to bringing families back together at the table, bonding over two things we know they love — Kraft Mac & Cheese and Super Mario.”
The Mario version of the pasta is available both in box form for when you’re making that Mario-bonding meal for the fam and four-packs of Easy Mac cups for when you’re perhaps bonding with Mario himself during a solo Paper Mario binge session.
Kraft Mac & Cheese, Inc
Kraft Mac & Cheese, Inc
Mario and his entourage join a number of other well-known brands commemorated in pasta form, including characters from Paw Patrol, SpongeBob SquarePants, Star Wars, and Frozen.
It’s not the plumber’s first foray into having his likeness appear at mealtime. Kellogg’s previously released a Super Mario Cereal that featured a mix of star-shaped oats and marshmallows in the form of Super Mushrooms, 1-Up Mushrooms, and Question Blocks. The box also included an amiibo functionality for use with Nintendo Switch games, and countless other brands have used the character over the years to sell everything from candy to yogurt.
Mario has even been used to promote other instant noodle dishes in Japan, although not of the cheesy variety. Nissin’s Super Mario Spicy Tomato Noodle puts the mustachioed hero in a rich red tomato broth with savory notes of chicken and pork and the aroma of Himeji mushrooms.
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