Mario
Since his first game, Mario has to save the "damsel in distress" of the game. Originally, he had to rescue his girlfriend Pauline in Donkey Kong. Pauline was soon replaced by a new damsel-in-distress, Princess Peach, in Super Mario Bros. (she was first named "Princess Toadstool" or simply "the Princess" in English-speaking places until 1993, when Yoshi's Safari was sold, even though the name was not widely used until Super Mario 64 was sold three years later). Pauline returned in the Game Boy remake of Donkey Kong in 1994, and later Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis in 2006, although the character is now said to be "Mario's friend".