Mushroom Kingdom Fusion (Also known as MKF in short and sometimes called MKFusion, Which a Youtube Channel was named after that focuses on the progress being made with the game in updates) is a huge fan game with Mario gameplay, crossed over with more than 30 different video game universes and elements. The game has been in development since it's early days and has had a troubled history for a long time (See below on Development History for more details)
Since then, The game resumed updates and is now updated on a yearly basis. The current version can always be downloaded from here, Which is v0.875 Stable REV B, released on December 27, 2023, via Itch.io.
Key features[]
- Modified Mario-style gameplay, with SMB2 mechanics (plucking vegetables, items, Subcon enemies, etc.) and guns.
- A roster of playable characters, both from within the Mario universe and outside of the Mario universe. Each character will have their own unique powerup system and gameplay mechanics, adapted to fit within the Mario-based gameplay.
- Extremely variable worlds. Game worlds will feature a traditional Mario world at the beginning. Later worlds based off other video games (like Sonic and Mega Man). Other worlds feature completely original ideas (for example: our Earth).
- Dozens, if not hundreds, of different levels. Includes both levels, based on a particular games, and a special Fusion Levels.
Development[]
The fangame began as a solo project by EddyMRA (Formerly known as JudgeSpear, Also known alongside JDogindy for being close friends and for being part of the MUGEN community before MKF.) It is made in GameMaker. The game is based on the Super Mario Bros. Hello Engine 3 by the name of Hello himself, heavily modified to meet the requirements of the game and to fix bugs.
After the release the first version, Several talented people offered their help to Eddy, Creating the Fusion Team. He once stepped down as a core dev member, But he came back and changed his position and is now in the major contributors to the project. He and the team also used to work on the cancelled spinoff Super Mario Fusion: Revival. The team has undergone many shifts as time went on. They include:
The Core Team[]
This group of developers are the ones calling the shots and making the major decisions as to what MKF will contain.
- Dooki51 (main developer)
- Gladiacloud (level designer)
- TaXMaN (coder, cutscene designer)
- PicoMico (coder, level designer, spriter)
- Bugsie (coder, level designer)
- CB78 (spriter)
- Kirbman (coder, level designer, spriter)
Emeritus Core Team[]
These individuals have been inactive for long periods of time on MKF due to personal obligations, but have made major contributions to the game:
- EddyMRA (formerly JudgeSpear) (project founder, coder, level designer)
- Hello (engine creator)
- Obreck2 (coder, level designer)
- Shodian (level designer, coder)
- NO Body (spriter)
- Lars Luron (coder, level designer, planner)
- AuraLancer (level designer, coder)
- Del (coder, level designer, planner)
- Fosterkmas (level designer)
Past MKF Developers[]
These individuals are no longer part of the team. However, they have contributed to MKF in some form during its development.
- Tron Knotts (spriter - Mega Man Mario and Spartan Mario)
- ProjectTerra (AKA XavierGenisi: level designer)
- Riverroad (coder, level designer)
- Mew (storywriter, level designer)
- Starsims Universe (Mega Man consultant, level designer)
- Finlander (level designer)
- DC Hunk (spriter)
- Pouncer (level designer)
- Weird Bananas (level designer)
- JDogindy (level designer, spriter)
- Magnemania (coder, level designer)
- Ben66 (story ideas for World 5: Gehenna)
Notable Contributors[]
These contributors may not have been ever part of the MKF development team, but they have assisted MKF in some way, even by non-technical means such as promotional articles and videos.
- Bloodgrey (spriter)
- Yoshbot (journalist)
- Psychopath (coder)
- Tron Knotts (spriter)
- Impish (contributor)
- Uncanny Valley (coder, level designer)
- Sum Gai (aka Hadriex: videographer)
History[]
Mushroom Kingdom Fusion has an interesting story behind it since its inception, and many changes took place since then.
How it all began (1992-2000)[]
JudgeSpear's ideas for a self-made Super Mario game began when he first played Super Mario Land 2: The 6 Golden Coins for the original Game Boy. The concept was borrowed from SML2's creative level settings, and eventually lead to Super Mario MF Fusion (SMMF) A game made on Multimedia Fusion 1.2 Build 98, in the year 2000, Which MF was named after in the name.
It featured a roster of four characters: Mario, Luigi, Sonic, and Mickey Mouse (He was later announced for reinclusion in MK Fusion as an April Fool's Day joke.) Each character had their own strengths and weaknesses (i.e. Sonic runs fast, but has terrible momentum). Otherwise, they all played the same way. There were four levels, Such as a Sky Pop level into Bowser's Castle and the fight against him, Metropolitan Siege, The Entryway and Tower of Babel. (The latter three levels of which would be transferred over to MKF with the exception of the Sky Pop level, Although the fight against Bowser would be later imported in the v0.7375 update in Hell Prominence)
It once started out promising, But fatal and insurmountable glitches arose due to the poor memory management, Such as crashing randomly and strange glitches. Eventually, The game got scrapped and ended up in the dustbin for over six and a half years before being remade in late 2007 due to the severe limitations of MF 1.2.
Remaking the game from Scratch (2007-2012)[]
In December 2007, JudgeSpear discovered Game Maker. He then found out that a full-featured open-source SMB3 engine was made for Game Maker (SMB3 Hello Engine 3), introducing him to the prolific Mario fangame creator, Hello. From that engine, Super Mario Fusion: Mushroom Kingdom Hearts (SMF:MKH) was created. The game originally featured only Mario in a dimension-hopping quest to stop a dark force bent on subverting all realities. He had powerups based on other video games, like the Mega Man Suit and the Sci-Fi Suit.
The game became an internet hit within two weeks of the first videos posted onto YouTube. It received mentions on Joystiq, Kotaku, Destructoid (from which an editor, Tron Knotts, offered to make sprites, becoming the first contributor to the game project), and even game-specific sites such as Planet Doom and Halo Bungie.
Obreck2 contributed to a few Castlevania levels to the game. Later on, This changed to an addition of a vast array of new features, including a character change system and a host of miscellaneous fixes. He then introduced Arthur of Ghouls 'n Ghosts fame to the mix, Which brought his own gameplay with him. Obreck2 also became a co-programmer assisting many aspects of the game, With his years of Game Maker experience totally turning this project in a new direction.
JDogindy picked up Game Maker and learned the ropes of using it. He made his first contributions by including Klampons and made a whole design document for levels in Alternate Earth, Such as The Grand Canyon. He was also responsible for level designs chiefly for Isle of Genesis.
StarsimsUniverse came aboard with a slew of excellent level design mockups and sprite submissions for Mega Man-based levels, among other things. He even gave some interesting storyline concepts for the game, and how everything ties together. Intrigued by his brilliant contributions, JudgeSpear made an offer to him to design levels for the game. StarsimsUniverse became a chief contributor to the Megaman realm of the Mario game project.
Ben66 began by posting wonderful suggestions on the forums. Ben66 later received his own copy of Game Maker to help design levels, becoming the chief level designer of World 5: Gehenna.
Hello is the creator of the engine on which MKFusion is based. Hello offered to contribute his level designs to the project. With Hello being the creator of the engine responsible for MKF's existence, he was welcomed to the team with no reservation. Naturally, Hello became the chief level contributor of World 1: The Mushroom Kingdom.
With the advent of an extensive character roster, which includes non-Mario and non-Nintendo characters such as Link, Sonic, and even Arthur of Ghosts 'n Goblins fame, the game underwent a name change to the current name: Mushroom Kingdom Fusion.
Rough Seas (2009-2010)[]
With the creation of the Fusion Team and the love and dedication of its fanbase, Mushroom Kingdom Fusion progressed smoothly for a while. Its core cast was decided upon, the foundations for later additons were laid down, and ideas flowed freely. Stages were added, revised, and reworked, while the newer characters were programmed. And for a time of many months, all was well. But as is the nature of any project, rough patches were hit.
It can be argued that the initial cause was the addition of new characters. While it had been set in stone for a while that there would only ten plus hidden character R.O.B., eventually more were added. With Classic Mario and Protoman came the introduction of the clone system, which would bring even more characters into the mix. For a while, it was accepted, but soon disapproval of all these new additions set in and feelings that they subtracted from the core cast grew. The development team soon realized this and halted character creation to focus on the game.
Eventually, a new unrest grew with comments about the game itself. Some began to feel that it had diverged too far from its Mario roots and tried to involve too many genres at once. The dev team agreed and began to remove the extraneous elements, such as the SHMUPS system, the Anti-Coalition, and the Yashichi Power. This was a quiet process that helped, but one more had yet to come.
New Horizons (2010)[]
Eventually, JudgeSpear handed over the reins of MKF to the rest of the Fusion Team. Still just a man, he could no longer continue to balance the pressures of his life with that of his fans. But most of all, the magic of working on the game was gone to him. He no longer felt the game was what he intended to be and he could no longer do anything about that. It is then that a resurrection of the previous game, Super Mario Fusion: Revival, was made. It is a sister project to MKF that will provide a game for those who want more focused Mario gameplay. Meanwhile, the Fusion Team continued to refine Mushroom Kingdom Fusion as usual. Though he had started distancing himself from the project, JudgeSpear would still support MKF. However, that came after...
The Peak of MKF (2010-2012)[]
The MKF development team was restructured, removing people who were inactive on the project for long periods of time and without the volume of contributions given their tenure. Several notable controversial people, who did very little for the project and brought unneeded drama to the team, were removed from the project as well. After a dramatic overhaul of the team, the current MKF development team was set in stone.
The team may be a fraction of the size it once was during MKF's peak, but with fewer dedicated developers working on the game instead of too many people on the team with creative differences, the project has finally been reined in and is on its way to being completed.
The Years in Limbo (2012-18)[]
On June 7, 2013, MKF was put on hold for an indeterminate amount of time, due to slow development and not enough spare time. It was later revealed four months later on the 20th that the game was cancelled. The reason was due to real life problems interfering with development, A lack of motivation, Developers refusing to get along and not having enough time to work. In addition, The game was messy and incomprehensive.
After the announcement, Many fans have tried to revive the game, But to no avail, As it was cancelled and revived twice before being officially cancelled in March of 2015 again, Leaving fans hopeless about the game's future,
The Restart of an Old Project (2018-Present)[]
While SMF:R failed, The developers chose to continue development and revive MKF in November of 2018. D-TurboKiller was in the process of fixing the bugs with it and giving it a fresh coat of paint, Such as new levels, The introduction of World Portals, Among others. Details could be found here. On Christmas Eve of 2018, D-TurboKiller announced that he was no longer working on the game due to Game Maker 8 being unsuitable for this kind of project, as well as a lack of time and energy.
Dooki51 then stepped up development on game in January 2019 with more changes being added to the game and fixing a major issue that made the game unable to be opened on PCs. The game's source was moved to Game Maker 8.1, and there are plans to eventually move the game to Game Maker Studio. With these changes, Tons of old content were eventually cut or edited in the game due to being buggy, merged, unfinished and more. This was the plan: Continue work on the game and use whatever there is available to bring the game towards a fully polished v1.0 release, Which is planned to release sometime later in the 2020s.
Trailers[]
Super Mario MF (Oldest MKF prototype)
Super Mario Fusion: Mushroom Kingdom Hearts from 2007-2008
Fangame Showcase #1 - Super Mario Fusion: Mushroom Kingdom Hearts V0.0.0.1b
Mushroom Kingdom Fusion NCFC '08 Trailer #1
Mushroom Kingdom Fusion NCFC '08 Trailer #2
Mushroom Kingdom Fusion Trailer
MKF v0.6 "Vanilla Shroom" Trailer
MKF v0.65.1 "Chocolate Shroom" Trailer
Links[]
https://web.archive.org/web/20080913071718/http://mkfusion.ipbfree.com/
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/mkfusion/
https://web.archive.org/web/20210122183039/http://www.fusiongameworks.net/blog/
https://web.archive.org/web/20110513222035/http://mkf.110mb.com/index.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20090331101735/https://www.youtube.com/user/MKFusionTeam