Nintendo is well known for its princesses. Aside from the Mario franchise’s lineup of princesses headed by Peach, they also have an entire franchise named after its central princess in The Legend of Zelda. Where there are princesses, it’s not surprising to find other members of royal families too, and this includes the fathers of those princesses: the kings.
Plenty of Nintendo games feature kings, whether they’re actual rulers of kingdoms or just strutting around with self-appointed titles. Some are good, benevolent rulers with an interest in looking after their subjects’ best interests. Others are evil and only seek power over all else.
10 King Hippo (Punch-Out!!)
King Hippo is technically not a real king. He’s a boxer who fights under the title, but he does at least wear a crown in the Wii edition of Punch-Out!! When he’s fought as the champion of the Minor Circuit. He even upgrades to an even bigger one in the World Circuit.
However, he’s far from the most regal of kings in his behavior. He wears ill-fitting shorts that have a tendency to fall down, and his fight in the World Circuit sees him strapping an unsporting manhole cover to his stomach to prevent Little Mac from landing body blows.
9 Porky Minch (Mother)
In EarthBound, Ness had an obnoxious neighbor named Porky who expresses selfish and cowardly traits. He even joins the party briefly during the early game, but his cowardice means he does nothing of use in battle. He eventually joins forces with the main antagonist, Giygas, and is fought as an enemy inside a mech.
He later shows up in Mother 3 having assumed the identity of King P, a dictatorial figure who has appointed himself ruler of New Pork City, a metropolis somewhere on the Nowhere Islands. He eventually turns out to be the final antagonist of the game, as he fights the party in an even larger mech.
8 Emperor Sorean Antiqua (Xenoblade Chronicles)
Sorean Antiqua is the ruler of the High Entia people on Bionis in the first Xenoblade Chronicles, and father to party member Melia. The party first encounters him as they seek entrance to Prison Island, an island belonging to the High Entia that contains a powerful being.
He is generally known as a kind ruler, one who cares for the needs of his people. Through the events of the game, he seeks ways to protect the capital from danger. He ultimately ends up sacrificing himself for his people, naming Melia as his successor.
7 Zephiel (Fire Emblem)
Zephiel is a major antagonist in the final Japan-only Fire Emblem title The Binding Blade, the same game that introduced Smash Bros favorite Roy as the protagonist. Zephiel is a crazed king, driven mad and seeking the destruction of humanity with the assistance of dragons.
It isn’t until this game's prequel that the player learns exactly what has driven him mad and turned him evil. As a prince, he was unloved by his bickering parents, and multiple assassination attempts made him believe in the inherent cruelty of humanity, turning him into a tyrant king.
6 King Zora (The Legend of Zelda)
King Zora is the ruler of the Zora people in various Zelda games. His most notable appearance is in Ocarina of Time, where he can be found sitting in a room full of waterfalls on a throne that requires a staircase to reach. He is much larger than the rest of his race and looks even more like a fish with legs than the rest of his people.
Link approaches him twice during Ocarina of Time. The first time is as a child to help Zora find his daughter, Ruto, where he shuffles slowly aside to grant Link access to Zora’s Fountain. The second time is as an adult where the Zora Kingdom has been frozen solid, including King Zora himself. If Link frees him, the King grants him a Zora Tunic, allowing him to breathe underwater.
5 King K Rool (Donkey Kong Country)
King K Rool is the ruler of the crocodile-like race of Kremlings. He makes an enemy of himself in Donkey Kong Country when he steals DK’s banana hoard. His motives for doing this are unclear, although he likely wants to gain control of DK’s territory for himself.
Even though he mostly appears as a king, he will also adopt numerous other personas. These include Kaptain K Rool, who takes the form of a pirate captain, and Baron K Roolenstein, a mad scientist who placed a robot puppet on his throne to distract from his activities.
4 Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule (The Legend of Zelda)
The King of Hyrule is referenced numerous times in the Zelda franchise, from an ancient king in the original NES titles to a vaguely referenced father to Princess Zelda in others. However, in Wind Waker, the king plays a much greater role than in other titles, appearing in person to aid in Link’s quest.
He spends most of Wind Waker in the form of a boat, as he is the true identity of the King of Red Lions boat that Link uses to travel the Great Sea. His goal is to save Hyrule from Ganondorf, and needs a hero to do this, which is why he sought out Link in the first place. He often offers advice to the player throughout their journey.
3 King Dedede (Kirby)
King Dedede is a large penguin who has appointed himself king of Dream Land, and has spent his time in this role acting as both foe and friend to Kirby. He is selfish and greedy, and craves vast amounts of food, which he spends more time pursuing over managing his subjects.
These greedy actions have often put him at odds with Kirby, who will often fight to stop him destroying Dream Land through his poor actions. However, over time he has also become a friendly presence to his former rival, often spending more time helping than hindering.
2 Ganon (The Legend of Zelda)
Ganon is the persistent antagonist of the Zelda series, reappearing throughout Hyrule’s history to bring death and destruction while Link and Zelda work to bring him down. He’s also frequently known as the King of Evil, due to his command of evil forces across the land.
He’s also often presented as the King of the Gerudo, as the unusual occurrence of a male Gerudo is enough to place him on the throne as their ruler. However, it’s clear that his position as a ruler is a cruel, dictatorial one that leads to the people living in ruin.
1 Bowser (Super Mario Bros)
There doesn’t appear to be a king for the Mushroom Kingdom, with Peach’s dad being constantly absent throughout the series. However, there is still a king in the Mario games who plays a major role.
Bowser is the king of the Koopas, with him commanding armies of Goombas, Koopa Troopers and other creatures to go up against Mario. This may explain his desire to kidnap Peach so often, as this would allow him to gain control of the Mushroom Kingdom and expand his domain.