Mario Teaches Typing

Mario Teaches Typing is an educational video game developed and published by Interplay Productions for MS-DOS compatible operating systems, Windows, and Macintosh. It uses the Mario character, licensed from Nintendo, to teach keyboard skills. Featuring several modes of difficulty, it teaches typing letters, words, and sentences using aesthetics from Mario games. Interplay aimed to replicate the success of the Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing software. Nintendo agreed as it was expanding into more creative and educational products. Interplay released Mario Teaches Typing on floppy disk in 1992 and then published an enhanced version on CD-ROM in 1993. A sequel, Mario Teaches Typing 2, was developed by Brainstorm and published by Interplay in 1997. Like the enhanced version, it updated the interface and added features. Mario Teaches Typing was the first time Mario spoke in a video game, originally by Ronald Ruben for the initial release and then by Charles Martinet in the CD release. Afterward, Martinet became the official voice of Mario, voicing him for 32 years. Mario Teaches Typing frequently appeared in top ten sales charts of educational software from 1992 to 1996 and sold 800,000 copies. All versions received a mixed reception by publications, with the earlier releases receiving more favorable reviews than the sequel. Praise focused on the use of the Mario franchise in the presentation and its appeal to children. Critics were divided as to its competency as a typing tutorial. Reviewers felt Mario Teaches Typing was more suitable for children than Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing. Nintendo continued the relationship with Interplay until ceasing endeavors outside Nintendo systems in the late 1990s.