Variations on a Mario

When Joystiq upgraded their site back in July, they introduced Mario as a placeholder avatar in their comment system:



Since then, they've opened things up to their viewers by allowing them to customize their profile avatar. While one could reasonably expect that everyone would simply upload a funny picture or create their own one-of-a-kind icon, some users were a bit more subtle, using the default avatar as a canvas for their own unique brand of gaming art.

Here's a sampling of some of the Mariovatars showing up in Joystiq's comments since the beginning of August:






Nice work guys. It's cool to see a placeholder unintentionally become the genesis for some pretty kick-ass artwork.

N.B.: I know that Reggie Fils-Guevara isn't strictly based on the Mario avatar, but he rounded out the set nicely.

Update: The Marios are pouring in! It also looks like I missed a couple. I'll try to keep up:








Keep 'em coming, guys!