ie Magazine, like most of us, was baffled when Nintendo chose to change a legacy of launching new machines with a Mario title by ditching the plumber for his brother.

Determined to get to the heart of the matter, ieMag interviewed Nintendo's Public Relations Director, Beth Llewelyn, about why Nintendo made that decision ...

ie: Why is the GameCube system launching without a Mario title?

B.L.: “Nintendo GameCube will launch with a library of innovative and exclusive games guaranteed to appeal to a broad audience. While there is a dedicated Mario game in development, we decided Luigi needed a chance to strike out on his own. Luigi’s Mansion is a perfect complement to our launch line-up, and game players will be thrilled.”

Be sure to read the rest of the interview at ie Magazine's website.