Mario (Nintendo vs. Capcom)

Mario (also known as Super Mario) is the main protagonist of the Super Mario Bros Series created by Nintendo, starting with his first appearance in the 1981 arcade game "Donkey Kong" in which he was named "Jumpman". Since his debut, Mario has starred in over 250 titles; christening the title "Mr. Nintendo" as his professions span a wide variety of gameplay styles. From adventurer to doctor, painter to construction worker, Mario's diverse abilities have saved the Mushroom Kingdom countless times from the tyrannical rule of his arch-nemesis King Koopa(a.k.a Bowser), thwarting his numerous attempts to kidnap Princess Toadstool (or simply known as Peach).

In the dimensional disturbance caused by Team Capcom's invasion, Mario's peaceful living in the Mushroom Kingdom was once again interrupted; though he was no stranger to rogue forces threatening the safety of Princess Toadstool's lands, Mario could sense that this new force possessed strengths unlike any he'd come across before.

Mario's rival in this cross-dimensional war is Ryu.

Opening
Mario is seen at his house deep within the Mushroom Kingdom leaning alongside the railing, staring off into the distance with a somewhat relaxed glance while Luigi proceeds down the trail and snags mail from their box, coming to his senses while Luigi approaches him.

"Hey bro, looks like you got something from the castle, looks like Toadsworth'sinsignia!"

Taking the obscure envelope from his brother's hands, Mario begins reading the paper contained within:

"Master Mario,

This invoice is to notify you on a matter of up-most importance. As you will soon witness, there is calamity afoot, the castle is in great peril as we speak. A disturbance in the space time is consuming the far reaches of the Kingdom, and will soon engulf us all if action is not taken immediately, I implore you come to the Princess's aid at once!

Cordially,

Toadsworth (Royal Aid)"

"Ohh...sounds bad bro, what are you going to do?" Luigi places a concern finger on his chin.

Mario takes a short glance and Luigi and swiftly launches himself from the porch, making his way down the dirt trail towards the castle. As his distance draws closer to Peach's castle, Mario sees the distortion in the distance marked by a violet tear in the fabric of their world. Coming to terms with the ensuing destruction, Mario makes out a lone figure perched on one of the nearby hills; a fearsome-looking, tall figure sporting a red headband and gloves, a white gi clothing his muscular figure. Taking a clenched fist, Mario suspects this man is the reason behind the kingdom's peril and begins his charge towards the unknown assailant that was now beginning to take notice of his presence as well.

Rival
Name: Ryu

Reason: Mario suspects Ryu is the cause of the dimensional disturbance in the Mushroom Kingdom; as he is familiar dispatching assailants seeking to cause harm to the citizens, Mario charges at Ryu and engages in fist to fist combat. Ryu sees Mario as a worthy opponent through their trading blows and the swiftness of his attacks, therefore sating his desire to travel to distant lands and encounter strong fighters.

Connection: Mario and Ryu both originate from arcades in the 1980's that revolutionized their respective gaming genres, Mario's debut in Super Mario Bros. became a significant influence in the development of platforming games, and is regarded to this day as one of the greatest platformers to this day. With Ryu's debut in Fighting Street (Later titled Street Fighter), the modern fighting game genre was born. Mechanics that Street Fighter brought to the arcade soon became the ground-work and inspiration for rival fighting games like King of Fighters, Virtua Fighter, Tekken, etc. with Street FIghter II regarded as one of the most polished and innovative fighting game experiences to exist. Both Mario and Ryu are formidable fighters with significant stamina and mental discipline, as shown through Ryu's intense physical training to thwart the evil ambitions of Shadaloo and Mario's grand-scale adventuring through deserts and mountains to save Princess Toadstool. Mario and Ryu are both capable of adapting to long-range battles as well, as they both posses the ability to fire strings of energy from their hands; respectively Ryu's ability to fire spiritual energy in the form of Hadoken while Mario utilizes the Fire and Ice Flowers to launch balls of fiery or chilling properties.