This Safe Sex Video Owes a Surprising Amount to Mario and Mega Man
Posted by James Newton
Game on!
The UK has the highest teen pregnancy rate in Western Europe, and each county council has a role to play in educating its citizens in the best way to bring these numbers down. Leicestershire's Teenage Pregnancy Strategy has decide the best way to do this is with an educational video set in the world of 8-bit video games.
Check out the edited sprites of Mega Man, enemies from Dr Mario and other nostalgic references that, of course, potentially pregnant teenagers are far too young to appreciate.
And the best contraceptive of all? Being able to spot all the references and tiny errors in this video ought to do it.
[via eurogamer.net]




















#1
grenworthshero said:
NOW I've seen everything...
#2
theblackdragon said:
... whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat
#3
Erica_Hartmann said:
insert cute puppy scratching its ear here lol
Gaaaah! Screw this I'm outta here.
#4
Cheezy said:
I think I've played this EXACT game before...
#5
Woots said:
even with a condom, I wouldn't ram my penis through 15 STI's like he did.
#6
sonic_brawler95 said:
That......that black bar was a little........erm, slow.
#7
Robo-goose said:
#8
pixelman said:
I'm surprised this was posted after NL's proclaiming to be such a family-friendly site. :/
#9
Erica_Hartmann said:
....Why was my post changed...ALRIGHT WHO EDITED IT?!
#10
James said:
@pixelman If it's good enough for Leicestershire County Council, it's good enough for Nintendo Life, especially as Damo, Ant and I are all from Leicestershire
@BellGoRiiiing We have a no-facepalm policy here at Nintendo Life.
#11
TheBaconator said:
Stay in school kids.
#12
Erica_Hartmann said:
...But...but, it says cute puppy scratching its ear IMAGE!! T_T
#13
That_Guy_from_Faxana said:
Fun video! Makes me wanna use a condom right now!
#14
James said:
@BellGoRiiing I could edit that to say "dog scratching its ear image" but I'm not in a mischievous mood :3 Anyway, relax and roll with it, mang
#15
Erica_Hartmann said:
.................>_>
cute puppy scratching its ear again
EDIT: ...I hate you. lol
#16
Bass_X0 said:
what do condoms have to do with dogs? am i missing something?
#17
theblackdragon said:
what do condoms have to do with dogs?
about as much as Mega Man has to do with safe sex, really
#18
CanisWolfred said:
Aw, it's not from Sweden. Still hilarious, though.
#19
Raylax said:
#20
koops330 said:
lol
#21
kevohki said:
Makes me wish this ran as a campaign in the USA so I could watch and laugh at the backlash from the abstinence-only crowd.
#22
zane said:
Ah and some lovely sexism or misandry call it what you want. But truely, is it the blokes job to get condoms? Why wouldn't the girl "fight" for intercourse options? The girl is portrayed as a passive noob, bah though it was kinda cute it's still very condensending towards both sexes...
#23
PunnyGuy said:
This is more perverted than Pole's Big Adventure!
#24
DannyBoyTheDude said:
That was... interesting.
#25
StuffyStuff said:
I noticed a few things, but I'm afraid I'll get in trouble if I point them out. That condom is massive.
#26
SuperMarioFan96 said:
What.
#27
blink83 said:
Ugh, it's called abstinence O.O
#28
TheNewestBooM said:
that was... disturbing.
#29
RetroBrony91 said:
I have no words for this.
#30
Tasuki said:
ROFLMAO. That was too funny for words. I kinda question who ever came up with this idea. Does this stuff really make the kids practice safe sex? I guess after watching that they will be busy laughing to think about sex.
#31
Link-Hero said:
Umm... Ok...
#32
Peacock said:
._________O
#33
Ron_DelVillano said:
I think this is my new favorite thing in the entire world.
Also, I was hoping that the house at the end would do the Super Mario World style implosion.
#34
jaw51 said:
Wow...
They should have had the fireworks at the end when they went inside.
#35
Raylax said:
@33: I think they went for the SMB style - a flagpole and fireworks.
...OK I'm leaving.
#36
triforceofcourage said:
Have Fun. Stay Safe....... and run around outside naked whacking STIs with your condom....
#37
Marvelousmoo said:
o.0
#38
Rawk_Hawk said:
I'm surprised this is on a family friendly site like Nintendo life. Its also pretty stupid if you ask me.
#39
RetroBrony91 said:
I'm surprised this is on a family friendly site like Nintendo life.
My thoughts exactly, Tony; that's how wrong it is!
Users of all ages visit this site!!!
#40
Big_A2 said:
#41
SilverBaretta said:
That was the most twisted 81 seconds of my life.
#42
SwerdMurd said:
Say what you want about our "backwards sex ed practices" Europe, our teenagers have giant tummies cause they spend 60% of their lives at McDonalds, not cause they're pregnant!
HAH!
...wait....that insult didn't work as intended....
#43
turtlelink said:
Hey! Abstinence, abstinence, abstinence!
#44
Morphtorok said:
Edit some sprites. (X)
Rip backgrounds from games. (X)
Make faces with faceyourmanga and add hair (X)
Animate. (X)
Game on!
#45
longtimegamer said:
Awfully short looking game. Guess the main character was in a hurry for some reason, hmmmmmm
#46
pokemonzrpg said:
Interesting. So they promote running around nude instead? I don't think that would help prevent teen pregnancy... xD
#47
Token_Girl said:
@Sweet_Murd
The joke falls especially flat when you take into consideration that the US teen pregnancy rate nearly twice that of the UK's.
#48
the_shpydar said:
Win. Way weird, but still win.
#49
blink83 said:
Well, users of all ages need to practice save sex.
Abstaining is better tho D:
#50
BulbasaurusRex said:
Since when are they called STI's? I thought they were called STD's.
They would get a big fine from the FCC if they showed that poorly edited commercial here in the United States.
There is a 100% accurate method for avoiding unwanted pregnancy and STD's (outside of being born with one, having a bad blood transfusion, or not being careful around other people's blood). It's called "not having sex until you're married and then only with your spouse (assuming said spouse is also STD free as determined by the pre-marriage blood tests)."
#51
Noire said:
I'm surprised this was posted after NL's proclaiming to be such a family-friendly site. :/
I am too. How are people suppossed to have families if they're always playing it safe?
#52
James said:
The only thing funnier than this video has been the comments page. Bravo NL users, you've done it again
#53
theblackdragon said:
@Tony, StarBoy: it's not like NL hasn't ever reported on anything vaguely risque before :3 it's video game related, UK related, and it's not like they're showing anything raunchy or super-perverted. it's a video attempting to promote safe sex to kids for crying out loud, and they did a good job making it tastefully amusing IMO given the subject material.
also, for those who've questioned it, 'STIs' are 'sexually transmitted infections'; apparently they use that acronym in the UK? :3
#54
Wesbert said:
I can just about see the typical adolescent video-gamer's reaction.
"Huh! Shoddy Wii-Type graphics. This should be on the XBOX360, with proper HD graphics! And Kinect support!"
#55
Raylax said:
Not everybody believes in abstinence, guys. Just because some of you do doesn't mean you have a moral high ground on the subject.
#56
ToneDeath said:
At least the characters are more responsible than in Zelda.
"I can restore your life" anyone?
#57
Sakura_Moonlight2421 said:
@theblackdragon: Actually the term "STis" is used here in the US too but we are used to hearing about "STDs" instead since their much deadlier and can't be treated with conventional medical means, whereas "STis" can be treated with strong meds to clear up the infection.
#58
JusticeColde said:
Now I feel really bad about a night with My gf & mega-man My Head A Splode
#59
Omenapoika said:
Abstinence is just silly. I dare not say stupid and dangerous because that might insult someone. It's ok as long as it's one's personal way of not having sex, but it should not harm other people's lives by not teaching kids about sex and contraception. Everybody (well, it seems almost everybody) will or wants to have sex and if they don't know what they're up to, it might end up in stds, abortions and various atrocious activities.
On the other hand, if people know their way about it, people can enjoy the natural closeness of sex and live a full life with it. Without an increased risk of prostate cancer, heart disease, stress and depressive behavior which are caused by lack of sexual activity.
All the activity aimed for healthier and meaningful life gets my thumbs up!
#60
NintendoNaut said:
I don't think any human words can describe how friggin' wrong this is. Loling at @19 XD.
#61
Ski_Deuce said:
I'm not a fan of just assuming teens are going to have sex. That mindset can put more perceived pressure on teens from the adults around them. If an organization is concerned about the behavior of teens it should go to the root, not say, "You're going to do it anyway, so here's a way to try to prevent the consequences of your actions."
#62
irken004 said:
I swear, that guy looks like Max from Max and the Magic Marker @_@
#63
KrazyKain said:
this is better
#64
Mikau94 said:
The Mario one is WAY worse. Captain N, LOL
#65
DrDaisy said:
Like sonic_brawler95 said, whoever was responsible for the censor bar needs more practice.
#66
Leonzable said:
LOL
#67
Pokeman said:
I got my first condom!!!
#68
Gameday said:
Thats crazy bread
#69
astarisborn94 said:
Only specific forms of condoms (Like laytax for example) protects against teen pregnancy and STI's/STD's. Even then, they do not fully protect you from the potential diseases that could be associated with it.
There are no form of "safe sex" and even thought this is video game influenced, it doesn't change me being a proud abstinence.
Want to know what would be a good video? An eight-bit video about abstinence.
#70
James said:
Actually I think that might be the most boring video ever.
Those of you who are abstinent by choice, hats off to you, but those who make a different choice should still be educated on how to make their sex safer - most people know that contraceptives aren't 100% effective but they're a damn sight better than none at all.
Oh, and @Des, thanks for sharing that link, it was huge amounts of good times :3
#71
Robo-goose said:
I fully support abstinence with all my heart and soul. Kids shouldn't be going around doing "it" with whatever person they find at school. And yes, I state that as fact.
#72
SuperLink said:
@KrazyKain
I never knew that Luigi was so well learned in that kind of stuff. Yoshi and baby Mario come out of egg, lol.
#73
MeloMan said:
That's one dangerous cowlick.
#74
Morphtorok said:
@69:
Character 1: BEEP (lets have sex)
Character 2: BLOOP (no)
The end
#75
The_Fox said:
Abstinence? Hah, good one guys. We all know how well that works in the real world.