Pauline (Nintendo)

Pauline (Japanese: ポリーン, Hepburn: Porīn; pronounced [poɾiːɴ]) is a character from the Mario and Donkey Kong video game franchises by Nintendo. She was created by the Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto and debuted as the Lady, the damsel in distress of the 1981 arcade game Donkey Kong. In the game, she is kidnapped by Donkey Kong and must be rescued by her love interest, Mario.

She is one of the earliest examples of the damsel in distress archetype in video games, a trope that persisted in the following decades. Pauline was replaced by Princess Peach as Mario's love interest in the Super Mario series, though she continued to appear as Mario's friend in the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series. In 2017, she reappeared as a supporting character in Super Mario Odyssey with a new role as the mayor of New Donk City, and she has since appeared as a player character in various Mario spin-off games, such as Mario Tennis Aces, Mario Kart Tour, Mario Golf: Super Rush, Mario Strikers: Battle League, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Super Mario Party Jamboree, and Mario Kart World.