PETA - Relax Mario Fans, It Was All a Joke

Troll's Remorse in action.

Either way, the best thing you can do when PETA opens their mouths is not listen.

Well, that makes me feel better.

Joke?? then how do you explain the flash games??? huhhhhhh!

Peta makes bold statement about Tanooki's.
Nintendo's response: "Come at me, bro!"
Peta backs down...and rightly so

Sounds like someone at peta realised what a massive balls up they had made and decided to back pedal. Let's face it - this was a dumb move on their part - Nintendo did not deserve those stupid comments or to be the butt of a ill concieved and idiotic joke designed to grab attention. All they managed was to make themselves look stupid. Backfire of the century.

If it was a joke, then why did they make Mario look like a psychopath?

so PETA bash nintendo by saying they hate how nintendo is condoning the killing of tanooki's because mario wears a tanooki suit. and just today, they say it was all a joke?

even still, i didn't find it funny. if this was their attempt of a joke, then it has backfired because PETA managed to anger many nintendo fans over this.

morons they are. and i don't think we got a proper apology either from them.

Yeah, right. PETA, you seriously are a bunch of big mouthed cowards.

Bullcrap. PETA only says this now because they realized how dumb this made them look. Anybody who's familiar with PETA knows what I'm talking about.

LOL, Nintendo sends in only a miniscule part of their forces, and PETA immediately retreats.

Those trolls are probably just making excuses after realizing how stupid they were.

Breaking News.
PETA back tracks on on their recent, stupid publicity stunt aimed towards nintendo`s super mario charecter.
The reason behind the decision is because some members of PETA had already placed a reserve for mario`s latest adventure for their childrens christmas presents, and wished to not look like fools when collecting the game from their local games shop.
It was also reported that two children of one of the activists had already been noted of pointing out to their parents moronic behaviour when they came across an NES with a copy super mario 3 that they had found in their parents closet.

joke my &%#, PETA just got so much flak for the game so they had to try to save their own skin, when they got to know that its regular people that play mario games and not people who generally can afford to buy fur

You call that a joke? BS!

IMO, the PETA folks do not even know what a joke is and never laugh about anything.

Looks like PETA bit off more than they could chew.

The only thing that dissapoints me in all this is that Nintendo didn't get their wit on like Cooking Mama did.

I like how PETA can't resist "SKINNING SUCKS, DON'T BUY FUR" to the end of this press release. How many Mario fan's wear fur?

Anything for a little attention.

Aaaha! Got me! XD

Apparently you guys were wrong when you said "We aren't kidding", but still...

PETA really did make a sick joke there. You call Mario ripping off a tanuki's flesh and running around with it a funny joke, PETA?

I think PETA are the ones abusing tanukis, not poor Mario (and to an extent Luigi).

we got troll'd D:

Or, it wasn't a joke until they realized how much it irritated people and how ridiculous it was.

If that was a joke, it was the single least funny one I've ever heard, seen or otherwise percieved in my entire life (a few years more than quarter of a century as of now). I'm not saying that there is no problem of brutal animal treatment and all that, but when a Mario-Tanooki-slaughter tie-in appears, you know that someone took the wrong pill...

I have less respect for PETA (if that's possible) for flip-flopping on the intentions of their statement and looking like pathetic cowards.

Oops, I forgot to laugh.

unsuccessful troll is unsuccessful
nice try PETA

So if a popular company (say, Nintendo), makes a joke, everyone goes "lol."

If an unpopular company (PETA) does it, everyone goes "troll."

Good to know.

This is kinda like if a doctor were to say
"Yeah, wouldn't it be hilerious if Johnny Depp snapped and violently killed everybody I knew in the most graphic and horrific manner? Because, you know, he has been a pirate wielding a sword before. Heh... heh... heh... By the way, are you aware of serial killers?"

I mean, I wouldn't expect somebody who spends their years 'protecting animals from harm' to find a joke which involves terribly violent acts towards cute and cuddly creatures funny. Its kinda creepy. If I was handing my dog over to somebody who wanted to give it a better life and he cracked a joke like this I'd probably punch him in the face, grab back my dog and make a run for it!

If anything, I'd say they are just trying to find away out of this without having to apologise. :<

@yellowchocobo: I can't remember the last time nintendo made a bad joke about a popular character from another conpany.

LMFAO! Now that's some funny stuff...if they really mean it then that's what I call an expert Practical Joke xD

I think it's a pretty good joke. It's just crazy that their PR people didn't expect this reaction. ...or DID they?!

According to PETA, having a bloody, gory flash game about animals being skinned alive is a "fun" way to call attention to the subject.

WOW! An animal's rights group making jokes about violence towards animals! That is hilarious!

lol they made something, got bitten by it and now try to make it look like a joke? we all know it wasnt a joke Peta just Forget that Mario has the most fans of all game charakters

Super Tofu Boy was sort of funny, but the Tanooki Flash game was just sick. They seem to enjoy making violent games about skinning animals.

@WaltzElf It's all in a matter of taste. PETA makes it's "Jokes" appear hate-filled and make them look like that's what they truly believe. Essentially, if they are staying true to their word, PETA is too good at making jokes. Also, stop actively trying to spark controversy. I'm not going to say you're a troll because I don't know your true beliefs, but you always word your posts as if you want to start something.

@WaltzElf You can't even begin to say that.

PETA=FAIL!

I feel like they could be sued for this, simply because regardless of how crazy PETA is, they do have followers who might have been in control of people who wanted to buy the game but didn't because of it.

Would it be a good case? Probably not, but hopefully it would make them tone down their ridiculous actions a bit.

On top of that, this is clearly an attempt to cover themselves to prevent such a thing from happening, so that's about all there is to say.

Suuuuure, PETA. This was totally a joke. I'm going to totally believe you. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go hit my head against the wall while stepping on hot coals

I respect what PETA stands for (as I for one can't stand any real fur or leather stuff myself and will never buy any of the stuff), but sometimes they really can be as dumb as a doorknob.

lol i think its funny how they try to backtrack now by saying it was a joke. they really shot themselves in the foot.

PETA: ORLY? That statement is more real when it is made on april, not on november.

Edit: What about a WTF tag on this one too, Mr. Admin? (Very good earned IMHO)

Bullsh*t

PETA, you portrayed a game where a worldwide beloved character in a FICTIONAL FANTASY WORLD who uses magic powers to get magically crafted attire and abilities was a bloodthirsty skinner of creatures he's more likely to defend than anything else, blood graphically depicted, and now that you got caught with your stupidity showing, you wanna make peace. Piss off.

they say its a joke because now they feel stupid

TROLLS UNITE!!

queue power rangers intro

OK so where was the part of this that was suppose to make me laugh? Maybe Nintendo should make a game where you can see how many animals you can skin, but wait it's a joke so it's ok and hilarious....

what cowards lol.

Thought so, PETA.

I knew they felt stupid as soon as Nintendo responded. And turns out to be true

PETA is trolling.

@Swik: not legendary ones, no, but common people playing at trolling? all the time. :3

I recall Francis in Super Paper Mario saying he would like a Tanooki Suit made from real Tanooki fur...

Obvious troll was obvious. +1 for the Tanuki suit references, PETA. But I still hate you.

joke huh? that does NOT excuse the sh*t on their website.

my advice PETA;grow some balls and stop b*tching over nintendo.we wouldnt want our a*ses sued AGAIN, would we?

That's it I'm buying a fur coat for my mom AND an alligator skin purse.

#$%&#%@#$&%@#&$^ing trolls

'Oh no! The Nintendo community is a lot more vocal than the 4 nutjobs who still think PETA is good. Better backtrack. Fast.'

The world needs PETA like a hole in the head.

It's up to US as INDIVIDUALS to decide whether or not we decide to hunt or eat the flesh from another living being.

By the way, a friend of mine was was shooting for grouse up in Scotland - and he accidentally shot a golden eagle. As you may know a golden eagle is a protected species, so he was brought into the court. My friend said it was an accident and it got into his line of fire and the judge was about to let him off, but before he did he asked him out of interest what he did with the carcass of the golden eagle. He said "I ate it." The judge then asked him what it tasted like. My friend replied, "rather like swan."

yet these hypocrites say its bad to skin tanuki alive. REAL MATURE. http://www.petakillsanimals.com/

It wasn't a joke, it was a mistake.

I don't understand why PETA have softened all of a sudden. Why should they care what people think - they're a pressure group?

When they objectified women by asking famous actresses to strip and pose in the anti-fur campaign, I don't remember them declaring "LOL j/k!" And when they likened the slaughter of animals to the Holocaust as suffered by 6 million Jews, it wasn't just japes and larks. So why is this different?

Have PETA grown a conscience?

Will it still be funny when I burn down your headquarters wearing nothing but a real fur bikini and then pretend it's a joke?

Wow... PETA has no balls. Nintendo replies with one message and they immediately retreat and say "We were just joking!"

BS PETA, pure BS! You publicity wanting dogs...

Principal: Ok, Peta tell me why you punched Nintendo in the face?
Peta: It was a joke Mr. Principal. Honest, I never "meant" to hurt him (wraps arm round Nintendo's shoulder awkwardly)
Nintendo: (under his breath) Like #@!$ it was...

@yellowchocobo That isn't even backed up with evidence, nor is it even remotely true. Do you work for PETA too?

@yellowchocobo

nintendo doesnt even make jokes that get them in troll trouble. smart guys.

If it was meant to be a joke it was in really poor taste and I don't think anyone else was laughing.

Sounds more to me like "Oh great it looks like we ticked some people off and are losing support, quick! act like it was all a joke!"

What's the difference? PETA's a joke even when they're serious.

I'm a PETA member, who is all for what they represent. That said, this didn't work at all. It was counter productive, by looking like a ridiculous publicity stunt. Get your BLEEP together, PETA, and don't attack beloved video game characters. Way to help the cause, getting on gamers' bad side. Things like this make a mockery of us.

@70 oh yes. I don't throw a tantrum because a group that exists to create over-the-top controversy to try and prove a very legitimate point that goes well beyond videogames (According to this thread, around 98 per cent of the population doesn't understand the concept of "hyperbole"), makes a way controversial and over-the-top publicity stunt of a joke at the expense of Nintendo.

And because I don't throw a tantrum and understand what PETA's getting at I MUST belong to PETA.

_{resorting to insults is beneath you, and yet you do it with a surprising consistency. knock it off plz — TBD}

Back-pedaling much?

I called shenanigans

If it was a joke, that would PETA was trolling, and PETA doesn't troll.

I suppose this was the only right thing they could do, but it makes their image even worse.

A bad joke or a horrible joke that nobody laughed at?

Take your f*cking pick.

A joke huh? A JOKE?!?!? I'm OUTRAGED! >: ( That was a joke alright, a mean one too! Sure, it was a joke, with artwork of a bloody Mario and an entire flash game. You're nothing but a bunch of stupid idiots PETA, you aren't some animal-rights group, that's for sure!

@75 If it was a hyperbole they wouldn't have made a flash game. This was not a case of hyperbole.

Seems weird...publicity stunts like this are PETA's bread and butter. Their entire budget is like 90% marketing, 10% euthanizing animals in their shelters, because if they're not euthanized, they will be pets, and being a pet is slavery (even for animals that have been bread for years to be domesticated...seriously, check out what founder Ingrid Newkirk has said about the subject). If you actually care about animals being treated humanely, look to the ASPCA.

They must have gotten a cease and desist letter in the mail from Nintendo or something.

@Waltz: if you don't want to be taken as a combatant, don't come out swinging.

It was clearly not a joke. I'm glad most people can see that. I'm just surprised they actually realized their mistake and backed away from one of their horrible ideas.

wasn't a very GOOD joke... it was funny... but in the 'how can anyone EVER take them seriously' kind of way

I think they just realized how ridiculous this made them look and are now trying to laugh it off. Guess what? I'm not laughing.

So that video about the tanukis getting skinned alive was there because....?

Wow. What they call a joke is obviously a way to discharge their ridiculous case on Nintendo before they dig themselves down even further. PETA is a disgrace to all that is logical.

PETA realized everyone realized they were full of crap and were publicity making fun of them so they retracted their statement. Wonder how many people actually believed they were kidding.

Calm down everyone...
PETA is a pressure group going to any means necessary to save Thier company, Evan if that means metaphorically skinning a beloved video game character alive to present his skin to the rest of the world as something ugly and distastefull, the truth is real video game characters are loved and cherished by millions across the globe.
By slating Mario for wearing tanuki skin, PETA are sending the message that it's ok to be a douchebag...it's not ok PETA, it's not ok at all.

I just played the flash game and the tanuki scares me. I don't understand why PETA would make a game about an animal being skinned, with bleeding animals in the background. Even if they were trying to make a point in doing so, it's still stupid. What a failed joke. ._.

If PETA really felt they had made a mistake, they would have taken down the flash game and removed all references of Mario/Nintendo from the tanuki cruelty video. Seriously, PETA, if you're truly sorry, you will remove all references to Mario.

Speaking of the online flash game Mario Skins Tanooki 2D, Tanooki finally captured Mario and reclaimed his suit, though I probably killed dozens more of Tanookis by bludgeoning them into pipes and bricks, and dropping them into pits. My high score is 19 seconds with 47 coins collected. Here's a hotlink to the file without all the propiganda. Open it in your web browser; it won't work if you try to play it from your HD.
http://features.peta.org/mario-kills-tanooki/swf/Tanooki.swf

But if you like Mario parodies, there's tons of better stuff to be found here:
http://www.newgrounds.com/collection/mario.html

A joke? Hah! Their whole inappropriate protest blew up in their faces with nobody to support them, and now it's a joke? Not even an apology?

Talk about a troll's remorse.

@9 I chose bad trolling by a joke.

Not even as a joke...

its funny how many people have called BS in these comments XD

Oh, Peta, you armpit of society you.

I'm still buying a fur coat...

On the positive side of this it gave SM3DL more publicity

@Post 5: "massive balls". Tanooki.

Cooking Mama has fans! I'm one! <3

Cooking Mama has fans! I'm one! <3

eye roll.

Bull $hit, they just wanted some free publicity!