In celebration of Super Mario 3D Land releasing tomorrow for Nintendo 3DS, Times Square was invaded today by all things Mario. And what better way to launch a brand new Mario game than to actually let fans feel like Mario. Military Island had a huge facelift, and it allowed fans to jump, run and slide about in a life-sized recreation of what Mario sees every day. When talking about the day's event, Marc Franklin of Nintendo of America had this to say: "literally bringing the game to life so you can play in Mario's world is evocative of the 3D experience in the game." It's true. 3D is all about being immersed into an experience, and there's nothing more immersive than life-sized stuff. Check out all of the day's fun by clicking on the jump.

The recreation of Mario's world had platforms (duh), a slide that was made to look like a warp pipe, trampolines that made Mario jumping noises, a flag pole, and coins and "?" blocks scattered throughout. It was like a playground for children and I think it is safe to say that everyone that attended felt like a kid. To kick things off, a  group of parkour Marios came in flipping and ganering all over the place to show us how it's done. Of course, everyone else didn't dare attempt to do any of that stuff in fear of breaking their own neck.

Fans who tweeted with the hashtag #SuperMario3D got a slice of mushroom pizza and those who waited on the long lines were also able to snag a plush-like Tanooki tail and ears. If going into the Mario playground wasn't your thing, there were also demo stations set up for fans to play the game a day before Super Mario 3D Land's release. I guess it's always more fun to do things earlier than everyone else.

From 12pm-2pm, those eager enough were also able to buy a copy of the game at Toys "R" Us in Times Square. Isaiah 'Triforce' Johnson, who waited on line for about a week, was the first on line to pick up a copy and should be recognized officially as the first person in the United States to purchase Super Mario 3D Land. Those who missed out on the two hour time frame will have to wait until sometime tomorrow to pick the game up.

Times Square eventually got crowded from all the festivities, but it's definitely heart-warming to see all these fans, both young and old, come and celebrate the release of the next Mario platformer. If you didn't make it to this event, you missed out. Don't worry though, I think chances are that more Mario games will be coming in the near future. But that's just a hunch.