Game Theory: Luigi's SECRET Identity (Super Paper Mario)

Luigi has appeared in over 160 Mario games but is often relegated to secondary roles like filling doubles matches or riding in the back of Mario's Kart.

• He is a coward but still gets the job done despite his fears • He loves, admires, and respects his brother Mario • He is willing to suffer through haunted mansions and spinoff titles to help Mario • He cries tears of joy when successfully saving his brother

Luigi is more psychologically complex than most Mario franchise characters, with distinct fears, hopes, dreams, and wishes that set him apart.

Despite his lovable underdog persona, looks may be deceiving regarding what Luigi's true nature really is.

Super Paper Mario is the most unusual Mario game in the official lineup, with completely unique and bonkers gameplay requiring players to hop between 2D and 3D environments.

• The game features a much darker, sarcastic, and cynical tone than typical Mario games • Whole worlds get ripped to shreds, leaving only nothingness • Characters travel to hell, known as the Underwhere • Bowser and Peach get married, breaking all traditional rules

Count Bleck and his counterculture associate Nastasia are the main villains, not Bowser and Peach as in typical Mario games.

Luigi is hypnotized by Nastasia's laser eyes and transformed into Mr. L, an arrogant, violent villain who fights viciously against Mario throughout the game.

Brainwashing is best thought of as a spectrum with multiple methods, ranging from extreme to mild, that can alter human behavior and thinking.

• Educational method: extreme torture and isolation that reprograms right and wrong; takes weeks to months • Persuasive method: classical conditioning through rewards and punishments • Suggestive method: hypnosis, where suggestions guide behavior

The Patty Hearst case demonstrated how isolation and psychological manipulation over weeks led to complete behavioral transformation, even resulting in criminal activity.

Super Paper Mario shows instantaneous transformation of Luigi into Mr. L, which is inconsistent with the educational method requiring weeks or months of torture and conditioning.

Persuasive brainwashing, also called classical or operant conditioning, changes behavior through rewards and punishments without altering core beliefs.

• Behavior changes due to expectations for reward or punishment • Core moral beliefs remain unchanged • People act based on where they will be rewarded • Common in everyday situations like receiving compliments

Luigi receives no offers, rewards, or threats from Nastasia and Count Bleck to cross to the dark side, so persuasive brainwashing doesn't explain his transformation.

Once Luigi becomes Mr. L, he starts making evil decisions independently without Nastasia's interference, indicating this type of brainwashing doesn't apply.

Hypnosis is a state of selective, focused attention that approximately 85% of people can achieve, according to the Society of Clinical Hypnosis.

• The host witnessed YouTubers being hypnotized at a New York event • Hypnotized individuals engaged in unexpected behaviors like aggressively licking ice cream and enthusiastically milking cows • Subjects reported feeling awake and aware during the experience • The hypnotic state happened very quickly, similar to Nastasia's instantaneous powers

Luigi is a textbook candidate for hypnosis because he is used to taking direction from others and has been controlled by people throughout his life.

The instantaneous nature of Nastasia's hypnotic powers and Luigi's ability to flip back and forth between himself and Mr. L matches the speed of hypnotic induction observed in real demonstrations.

• Hypnosis feels like whatever you imagine it to be • Once in a trance, you are only as hypnotized as you let yourself become • Hypnotherapists confirm no one can be forced to do things against their will • Hypnosis does not cause loss of control but allows more focused control

If hypnotized, a person will not do anything against their morals; hypnosis only makes suggestions that align with existing morals sound like good ideas.

Luigi is hypnotized but not acting against his will, meaning under hypnosis, his true personality—Mr. L—emerges without changing his underlying morals or beliefs.

• Mr. L represents Luigi's true form: his real thoughts, ambitions, and feelings • The sweet, doofy Luigi exterior masks underlying sarcasm, feelings for Peach, and antagonism toward Mario • Hypnosis simply removes inhibitions and fears, allowing him to express his true self • Luigi was not transformed but revealed his authentic persona

The most real Luigi has ever been with viewers was when he was under hypnosis as Mr. L in Super Paper Mario.

Beneath Luigi's cute green exterior lies much more complexity and hidden feelings about his relationship with Mario and others than previously understood.

The famous Luigi death stare meme takes on new meaning when understanding that Luigi has genuine dark feelings lurking beneath his mild-mannered appearance.

The theory concludes that Luigi's hypnotized persona reveals his true nature, challenging the perception of Luigi as simply the lovable underdog sidekick.