I understand, but the totality of your argument boils down to subjectivity, especially since we're discussing something as ephemeral as "character."

Some games don't quite have the Mario "feel," but where this begins and ends is up to the individual, based on what they feel is fundamentally Mario in the first place. You present examples as if their ability to support your point is self-evident, when it is not.

It's not even necessarily about agreeing or disagreeing with you, but the core argument here hasn't even really been established in a logically valid form.

I agree I think, the art style is extremely bland now it started with Mario 64 which is one of my top 5 favorite games and I attributed it to the N64's lack of power.

The music has gotten worse too, too much steel drums etc... I don't find it memorable.

Rayman Origins, and Donkey Kong Country Returns is way better than any mario or little big planet imo, in both music, level design and aesthetic.

You can say it's nostalgia, But I like Skyward Sword, I like the Newer Final Fantasy's, I Castlevania Lord of Shadow, Donkey Kong Country a lot. The newer mario particularly the 2D ones are just bleh in comparison with 1-3, world imo.

Uhhhh, I think the Galaxy's Greatest Wave music is perfectly fitting for the circumstance.  It's peppy upbeat racing music for a racing  minigame.  And I don't see whats less childish about the Mario 3 music.  There is less bass I guess, but that's a practical concern.  The Nintendo had a more narrow range of sounds, so the notes had to be further apart to make an appreciable difference. As another poster pointed out it's actually pretty musically complex.

I'm with Mr. Kahn on this one.  Until you can really define clearly what you mean by kiddy or not kiddy, it's hard to really debate this.  It seems that your just going on your personal feelings.  You're entitled to your opinion, but it's not something that can really be argued for or against.

True taste is subjective ultimately, but there is a way to debate art. I'm just doing what I think works.

No, he could not be more wrong. I'm trying to answer your questions and debate it, so give me a chance.

@bold, which is the interesting part. Did you notice that the super mario bros 3 music contains more woody sounds, like banging a hollow wooden stick? Yes, there is more bass in the older games, and the thing you point out that's it's probably a practical concern, is something I hinted at in the link I gave trucks. I hinted at that when comparing the DD version of the Zelda start theme against the NES version of the Zelda start theme.

D21 posted a video comparing the Genesis to the SNES, if you haven't watched it, it's an excellent viewing. There is a section where he compares the audio of both platforms, and he points out that the Genesis is better suited for metal type music, whereas the SNES could pull off some of the orchestral songs in FFIII. So that's again on a technical level that translated into the feel of the music.

On Wii however, Nintendo have the liberty to create the music they so please. As such, they choose to use kiddy sounds and instruments for a reason I cannot comprehend. I will try to word it but it is difficult, I'll try to find some sound samples.

Here, try this, it's much more reasonable while jazzy:

You can debate art, but you do need some sort of functional operational definition.

For example, what's a "kiddy" sound as opposed to a not kiddy sound?  What makes one instrument a kiddy insturment and another instrument an adult instrument?  You could play a lullaby on a bass guitar, and you can play a dirge on a mandolin (probably can't play a lullabye on a drum though. That'd be impressive).  You mention woody sounds in Mario Bros 3, but what exactly makes those sounds any more "adult" than the music in Mario?  Again, it seems you're just operating based on how the music makes you feel, but it may make me feel entirely differently.  

On the whole, I feel that you're attributing peppy, up tempo, cheerful, or high pitched as childish, and anything with more bass, more somber, or darker (physically or emotionally) as adult, and I don't think this is the case.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIuvjG3Egjo  Is this kiddy?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8P3IRiSm3iA&feature=related  You mentioned intimidating boss fights, but this was way more intimidating than anything in Mario 3.

@bold. Precisely. If included with other darker moods, it would fit well. But it doesn't fit well when it's not properly dosed.

@Final Boss theme. Yep, I heard that one while doing my research, and yes, it's an exception, but even it contains some cheesy segments. However I'll admit it's darker, but the zappy sounds I consider cheesy. Also, there is a point where going epic is trying too hard. there is a delicate middle. Nintendo hasn't found it yet imho.

@Final Boss NSMBWii. Exception, and yes a very awesome boss fight.

If you were in charge of this thread, word-for-word the same, it would be a troll thread and there would be far fewer serious responses to it.

Me arguing with you is a sign of respect, because when I do it it is because I think I can change your mind.

Alright, I get that, but I disagree.  I don't think there is anything inherently more adult about darker themes, or anything inherently less adult about treble notes.  Again, this all seems based on your personal preferences.  You find "zappy" sounds to be cheesy, but that doesn't make it so.  The modern Mario games just don't seem to meet your standards for "adult" entertainment, just like Tarzan won't meet many people's standards for "adult" entertainment (not to be confused with adult entertainment.    

@Final Boss theme-  When you're dealing with a plumber fighting a giant dinosaur in the heart of the universe with everything existence hanging in the balance, there is no such thing as going too epic.  By that point in Mario Galaxy, moderation was just a tiny dot in the rear view mirror.