An extraordinary talent that’s come out of the art world is the creation of fan art. Artists have been figuring out how to merge their favorite things for years now, and their work is usually inspired by their passion for multiple platforms or a storyline they want to bring into existence. The drawings and illustrations that have come out of this fan art movement are heartfelt and oftentimes amusing with an underlying humor. For years people have been creating their own crossovers, but it hasn’t been until recently with the burst of popularity in the gaming and anime world that people are finally taking notice.
Fan art can make you feel encumbered with emotion if it’s something that strikes your heartstrings just the right way, or it can make you think of what could have been. That’s the amazing thing about these images…Everyone reacts to them differently, but they always mean something to someone. On the other hand, it becomes an incredible expression of the artist and somewhat of a “bearing of the soul” on paper for them. To take something that only exists in your head and make it visible for other fans and the world to see is truly spectacular. It’s awesome to see other storylines or crossovers that bring two different tales together; often things we’d never have thought of otherwise. We’ve found some really cool fan art that is all considered Nintendo-Disney crossovers, and I’m pretty sure you’re bound to have a favorite.
25 Princess Zelda Reimagined
It’s easy enough to reimagine old-school Nintendo characters simply because the graphics were never really modernized unless the game has since been remade. Replacing Zelda with a Disney princess seems almost like a no-brainer, especially one that closely resembles her.
This is a beautiful crossover that has just the right amount of Zelda and the Sleeping Beauty herself, Aurora.
It’s really the background that hits this one home, though—everything from the minor Zelda-esque details on her wardrobe to the Triforce featured illuminated behind the princess.
Art by Glimpen.
24 Some Extra Company
How awesome is this rendition of a classic scene from Beauty and the Beast? The background was probably changed to something a bit more recognizable for the sake of the Mario characters running through, but it’s still cool all the same. Belle and Beast look unphased by the Italian plumbers and Princess Peach, but we could just imagine Lumiere and Cogsworth getting ready to chase them out. This is a fun one that totally showcases the silliness of Mario and Luigi, even outside of their normal environment.
Artist unknown.
23 Worthy Of Mickey
The most iconic Disney character is by far Mickey, with his partner Minnie not too far behind. From the classic black and white cartoons to popular games like Kingdom Hearts, Mickey Mouse has set the standard for Disney and always been modernized and updated to remain relevant to today. Here we see him taking the place of Mario with Minnie as so apropos, Princess Peach. Even in overalls Mickey still maintains his can-do attitude and Minnie her optimistic, joy-filled spirit.
22 Steamboat Mario
I love this next piece of fan art so much because it combines nostalgia with… well, more serious nostalgia. Virtually we’re seeing two generations come together in this rendition, Mickey Mouse from the old-school cartoons that played in black and white, pre-color, and Mario, from old-school Nintendo.
It’s the best of both worlds and the most popular gaming and cartoon icons from each generation.
This is the perfect crossover of the late 1920s meets the late 1980s gamer world… and we’re totally feelin’ it.
21 Frozen In Time
Frozen took the world by storm with “Let It Go” and had many a kid singing it nonstop, which led to many adults investing in earplugs. Some cool things did come out of it though (no pun intended) and fan art was one of them. People began to merge Frozen and video games together, and this is one of the pictures that came from it. Elsa meets Princess Peach! We just can’t help but wonder if Princess Peach could stand up to Anna had she been in Arendelle.
20 Zelda Back In Time
Hold up, we’ve got another classic Mickey setting on our hands! Even if you’re not a Zelda fan, you have to admit that this is pretty cool. Literally, everything has been thought out in terms of old-school Mickey, from the characters to the setting.
This is also reminiscent of Cuphead, a game that used the same throwback, retro graphics to create a slightly creepy, awesome platformer.
Can we just discuss for a second the tree that’s actually smiling? We could stare at this for hours wishing this scene was actually playable.
19 Ariel The Jedi
We already knew that Ariel was definitely a rebel in her own right, which made her totally rad in our books. I didn’t think she could get any cooler until I saw this piece of fan art, featuring the red-headed mermaid herself sans legs, holding a lightsaber instead…Two, in fact, because you know that one just isn’t enough. Her mechanic legs only add to the cool factor of this entire work of art, but perhaps the best part? The reimagined, futuristic Flounder that’s floating subtly in the background. Have at those Rebel forces, girl.
18 Gotta Catch ‘Em All
When we first saw Jasmine in Aladdin, I’m pretty sure many of us in our prepubescent stages weren’t thinking, “aww, so cute!” This drawing adds a certain level of innocent to Jasmine’s normally somewhat adult appearance and makes her cute and relatable. Her tiger, Rajah, has been transformed into a Pokémon and we can only imagine the havoc she could have released on Jafar with this little guy. It’s definitely cool to think of Disney in terms of Pokémon and even cooler to see main characters reimagined in a new light.
Art by Ace.Of.Artz.
17 100 Acre Pokémon Wood
Go ahead, let the cuteness wash over you. Take a minute, if you must, to scope out each and every Pokémon that’s taken the place of every character in the 100 Acre Wood. This is amazing, to say the least; not a single detail has been forgotten—even when it came down to Kanga and Roo. Each Pokémon has taken on the attributes and physical likeness to their predecessor, including Eeyore with his sad, downplayed disposition. I am in love.
16 That Took An Interesting Turn
I got a bit of a snork out of this one. This isn’t a crossover I ever thought I’d see and definitely not in this form. Mario takes the place of a young Simba with Donkey Kong pulling rank as Rafiki. In a weird, twisted way, it almost makes sense…
We just can’t figure out if it’s wrong or cute, in an oddball sort of way.
Either way, it’s a unique take on a scene that Disney and Lion King lovers alike will find somewhat amusing if nothing else.
15 Time To Find Zelda
Link Pikachu! That’s what we’re calling him, anyway. Could you imagine the power that this little guy would have fighting as Zelda? Someone needs to create this mod, stat. It’s a super fun take on both Pokémon and Zelda with a bit of cute thrown in for good measure. Even the hair that’s poking out of Pikachu’s cap so closely resembles Link’s that if you look really fast, you’d never be able to tell the difference…Just kidding. It’s neat, though.
14 Mega Mario
This one goes out to you, Mega Man fans! We’d imagine they’d be a pretty dynamic duo with Mega Man’s weaponry and Yoshi’s ability to jump on top of slow-moving turtles, turning them into missiles… or something like that.
Either way, it’d be a pretty sick game or cartoon and one that we’d gladly partake in.
If this was redone to include Mega Man’s retro graphics, I think I’d even be over the top excited for a Kickstarter devoted to the new storyline.
13 Prince Mario
This just seems so fitting, for some reason. In another bridging between two generations, Mario stands quietly at the side of a sleeping Snow White with a mushroom offering. What he thought the mushroom would do is beyond us, since Snow White had no need to grow taller, but the addition of all seven dwarfs and the cool green-toned artwork is pretty awesome. The dwarfs seem to be happy to see him, so who knows—Snow White Part II?
12 That’s-a A Nice Mushroom!
Here we go with the same retro Mickey/Cuphead-esque theme of Mario, but this time, the underlying theme of the Mario Bros. games is really driven home. We love the fact that even though this picture is in black and white, you can still totally pick out the crossover and really feel like Mario Bros. could have been around in 1929… although we’re pretty sure the graphics wouldn’t be nearly this good. For fans of old-school cartoons, this retro twist is a really great work.
11 The Faceoff
We call this one, “Link and Peter Pan realize they’re the same person.” You don’t realize how many similarities they have appearance-wise until you see them side-by-side, and in this artist’s rendition, they actually look like they belong.
They might be feuding but supposedly opposites attract, right?
There have definitely been times when Link could have used a little bit of help from the Lost Boys and alternately, where Peter Pan could have used a few extra fairies hanging around.
10 Zelda And The Sword In The Stone
Oh man, Link just likes to get into it with everyone! On second thought, we’re thinking that he probably wouldn’t do so well in any Disney universe—especially not one where there are ultimate swords with magic powers involved. Granted, there’s no way Link would have been able to pull this sword out of the stone, you can guarantee he’d try his best to get his hands on it anyway. Anything for Princess Zelda, right? How Disney-like of him.
9 If Disney And Zelda Had Babies
This is just adorable and you’re wrong if you say it’s not. As far as Disney goes, nothing is cuter than baby animals especially if those babies are soon-to-be major adult characters. I’m loving all of these Zelda-themed crossovers with Disney because they just make sense. You’ve got a damsel in distress, a sword-wielding hero, magic fairies, and several evil villains. I’m not going to lie, if Disney took over to make a Zelda movie, I wouldn’t be mad about it.
Art by Hoshi Hana.
8 A Strange Freaky Friday
Some fan art is super realistic like, say, what would happen if Link and Ash actually met up and had to fight in the other’s world? This art does the posed question some serious justice, with a very confused-looking, sword-wielding Ash, and an equally confused Link who’s trying to figure out what to do with a Poké Ball and Pikachu. It speaks for itself so you don’t need too much commentary from us, but this definitely has our vote as one of the top fan art crossovers out there. It’s even complete with Zelda fairies and a chicken!
7 The Real Avengers
There is way too much awesome and radness in this picture and I can hardly contain myself when I look at it. Awesomesauce is the only word that comes to mind, along with the brief thought of what Infinity War would have looked like with Donkey Kong as the hulk, Link as Hawkeye, Mario as Fury, and Kirby as Thor. Avengers and Nintendo fans alike, rejoice in that that is the ultimate superhero crossover. Now excuse me while I go and daydream about Kirby defeating a Thanos-Hyness crossover.
6 A Brave Crossover
I know I’m not the only real Merida fan out there and if you’re a fan of Brave, you’ll love this one. Taking the place of Merida’s wild little brothers are several Teddiursa from Pokémon and man, are they seriously cute. This isn’t about cute though, this is about how great it would be to see Merida defeat Mor’du with the help of several Pokémon partners. Don’t even deny it—you know you’d watch that reboot no questions asked.
