MARIO AND LUIGI HIRE COMEDIAN KATHY GRIFFIN TO HELP FIND THE FUNNIEST JOKE

Nintendo Prizes Await the Winner of the Best Knock-Knock Joke Contest

REDMOND, Wash., Oct. 16, 2003 – Having rescued the princess for years and mastered his plumbing skills in the Mushroom Kingdom, longtime hero and defender Mario™ announces his latest quest: a search for the funniest knock-knock joke. Mario and his comical brother, Luigi, who co-stars in the new game Mario & Luigi™: Superstar Saga for the Game Boy® Advance, have hired comedienne Kathy Griffin to help them in this mission.

"Everything that Luigi does makes me laugh; I'm surprised we ever complete a level," says Mario. "With Kathy Griffin as our judge, we'll depend on her to keep us in line while she determines a winner."

The contest runs now through Nov. 16; contestants can submit jokes online at www.gameboy.com/marioandluigi. Each week, a finalist will be chosen from the week's entries. On Nov. 17, Griffin will select a grand prize winner from among those finalists.

"I know Nintendo will receive thousands of entries, so I hope Mario and Luigi will help me sort through these," Griffin said. "I'll be a tough knock-knock judge so make entries original, because I won't hesitate to throw those who write bad jokes into knock-knock jail."

Mario chose a knock-knock joke contest because the brothers' back-and-forth patter reflects the kind of slapstick humor that gamers will find in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga. For the first time, players control both Mario and Luigi simultaneously in this hilarious, action-filled role-playing game.

"An evil witch steals Princess Peach's voice and replaces it with explosives, of all things," says Mario. "Luigi and I work together to recover her stolen voice. Even bad-boy Bowser helps us – probably so he can kidnap her later."

Players can control Mario and Luigi separately or team them up for superhero-style combination moves. The involved storyline, puzzle-solving challenges and points system common to classic role-playing games combine with the jumping challenges and action battles of more traditional Mario games. Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga is Rated E for Everyone, and will be released Nov. 17 at an MSRP of $34.99.

The grand prize winner of the knock-knock joke contest will receive a Game Boy® Advance SP, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga game, Nintendo GameCube™ system and more. For official rules and prizes, go to www.gameboy.com/marioandluigi.