Mario Is Missing! is an educational game developed by The Software Toolworks, released in 1993 for MS-DOS, NES, SNES and other platforms. Starring Luigi in his first lead role since the 1990 Game & Watch title Luigi's Hammer Toss, it lets players learn geography while having fun.
In the game, Bowser builds a castle in Antarctica, planning to melt the ice cap with hair dryers to flood the Earth. He sends Koopas to cities worldwide to steal famous artifacts and landmarks to fund the hair dryers. Mario is captured trying to stop Bowser; players control Luigi to travel across cities, recover stolen artifacts, and ultimately rescue Mario.
Gameplay varies by platform: the MS-DOS version is a point-and-click adventure, while NES and SNES versions add platform-jumping elements. Players must find and defeat artifact-carrying Koopas in cities to collect stolen items, then return artifacts to their corresponding landmarks and answer related questions to verify authenticity.
As one of the few Mario series games starring Luigi, Mario Is Missing! aims to teach players global geography and cultural knowledge through interactive gameplay.