In 1988, I was all about Nintendo. It had probably taken over as my favorite toy by that point if you want to consider it a toy. And I was already self-aware of my finer tastes in junk food. So Nintendo cereal coming along was right up my alley. It was made by Ralston, who was the king of producing commercially-licensed cereals in the ’80s and ’90s.
This short-lived cereal featured a split package designed and contained both Super Mario Bros. cereal and Zelda Adventure cereal. The Mario cereal was “fruity” flavored and was made up of super mushrooms, Goombas, Koopa Troopas, and Bowser-shaped pieces. The Zelda side consisted of berry-flavored Links, hearts, keys, boomerangs, and shields.
Given how I love gimmicky junk food, the fact that this mimicked Nerds cereal by featuring two different flavors packaged separately in the same box made it a sure bet that a box of this would end up coming home from the grocery store with us. And since she knew how big of a Nintendo fan I was, my mom didn’t put up a fight when I asked to try it.
I can’t recall the taste or if I was a fan or not, but the fact that it had no marshmallows was not a good start for a kid’s cereal if you want to make it long-term. It hit the market in 1988 and was gone in 1989. While it may not have stuck around long, it made a lasting impression on a lot of people, myself included.
I remember getting this several times when I was a kid, they had different designs on different boxes as well. When I look back and think of how rare Nintendo related things (outside of Videogames) seemed back then, compared to now, it makes me realize how fortunate it was to get things like this back then. I know there was the Super Mario Cereal that came out a few years ago, and there’s fruit snacks as well, but there was something special to me about the designs back then that haven’t been replicated. Along with the cereal, did you ever see or try the Fruit snacks back then? They had Legend of Zelda and Super Mario Bros 2 and 3 iirc.
I remember getting this as a kid. The heartbreak for me was that I was a much bigger fan of Mario than Zelda, but Zelda was the cereal flavor I liked more. I was so torn.
I also remember the lenticular cards they gave away. I always got Link, maybe one or two of the Cookie Crisp mascots (they were in there, too), but I had to trade for a Mario, and even then, I think the person who traded it to me wanted it back.
I also remember that Super Mario Bros. 2 and Zelda II were the new hotness when it came out, and the boxes focusing on the first games seemed positively antiquated at the time. Worse, it didn’t last long enough to make it to Super Mario Bros. 3! (I guess the third Zelda would have been a bit of an ask, though.)
That kind of marketing was really effective on me. If I saw anything Nintendo-related, my eyes lit up. Gosh, that still happens now!