What defines a Mario game?

[Mechakamek]

1. The style
Some people say that the DKC series are Mario
games.I disagree. The world in those games is
a lot less cartoony and shares little of the
features of the Mario games (smiley clouds, pipes...) and none of the characters
 the enemies are mostly just slightly
deformed animals)

So that discludes all of Rares games

2. The format
The games that were released for PC
(Mario Teaches Typing, Marios Missing,
Marios Time Machine, Marios Early Years,
Marios FUNdamentals) were all edutainment
titles that were heavily dissaproved by
Miyamoto. Same goes for Marios Hotel on CD-i

Also mere cameos by Mario characters do not
make a Mario game. It doesn´t maatter if it is made by another company (like SMRPG)as long as it remains faithful to the "Mario Spirit" and is approved by Miyamoto.

[Hinopio]

Yes, I have to agree.  A game is only 'Mario' if it is approved by Mario's creator, Miyamoto-san.  All of those Mario cameos are cute, but they just saturate and confuse the Mario universe to no end.  One of Miyamoto's other creations, the Zelda series, is free of doofy cameos and edutainment titles.  And let's face it, the series is really better off that way.

Now, enough of my incessant ramblings, let's hear more input...