But unlike Johnny Blowupsafe, Gary Bowser is a real person, who served real jail time, and now has an almost-life-ruining fine that will float over his head like a dark cloud until the day he dies.

Part of the Universal Studios Japan complex in Osaka, it features a Mario Kart ride with a real-life Bowser’s Castle. Nintendo began life in 1889 as a manufacturer of Japanese “hanafuda ...