The release of Super Mario 3D Land did not get all praises since its release on Nov. 13, 2011. In fact the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) called the attention of Nintendo as the game sends out a message that wearing fur is a good idea.

The game showcases an appearance of Mario in a Tanooki Suit, a power-up that was first seen in Super Mario 3. This power-up allows Mario to float down gently but the ability fly is no longer there, unlike in the Super Mario 3.

According to PETA a Tanuki are raccoon dogs who are skinned alive for fur. Tanooki may seem to be one of Mario's power-up in the game, but to PETA, Mario wearing a Tanooki suit is sending a message that it is OK to wear fur.

PETA showed how serious they are to the campaign against animal cruelty that they even organized a website called Mario Kills Tanooki, to show their protest against the game Super Mario 3D Land. The website invites visitors to play the game Super Tanooki Skin 2D. The gamer takes the place of the raccoon who is supposed to follow Mario to get back its fur. Mario tries to outrun the raccoon as he flies in a Tanooki Suit with blood still dripping, giving the impression Mario just took the raccoon's fur to have some power.

Mario is not the first game that caught PETA's attention on animal cruelty. It was earlier reported that PETA was disappointed at Battlefield 3 for having a scene where a rat has to be executed with a combat knife and then tossed aside. PETA says that the scene might instigate players to do the same act in real life.

Despite the issue with PETA, Super Mario 3D Land has sold 343,000 copies in Japan in just a week of release. IGN even gave the game an Editor's Choice Award, calling it brilliant and addictive even if #D gaming is in its infancy. Game Informer, on the other hand, said that the game lived up to the level of quality of the previous Mario games.

Super Mario 3D Land is the newest addition to the Mario. The game was developed by Nintendo EAD Tokyo for the Nintendo 3DS and was released Nov. 3, 2011 in Japan and Nov. 13, 2011 in North America. It is set to be out in the Australian and European market later in the month.