Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3

Wario Land completely flipped Mario: the protagonist saved nobody, just wanted to get rich. Wario's greed was the central mechanic — accumulating coins and treasures determined which of seven endings you got, from a miserable shack to a golden castle. Wario shoulder-charged enemies with a brutality Mario would never show. Three transformation hats (bull, dragon, jet) added variety. Game design brilliantly transformed a character flaw into pure gameplay. This birthed a franchise parallel to Mario lasting to this day.