Super Mario Bros (1986)

Developer(s): Nintendo

Director(s): Shigeru Miyamoto

Producer(s): Shigeru Miyamoto

Designer(s): Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka

Composer(s): Koji Kondo

Release: May 23, 1986

Platform: Arcade; Nintendo Entertainment System

*Super Mario Bros.* is a 1986 video game released by Japanese electronic entertainment developer Nintendo, that has since gone on to become one of the best-selling and most iconic games of all time. Originally developed as a direct sequel to *Mario Bros.* (1983), the game offers both a single-player mode, where players get to control the titular character Mario, an Italian plumber, as well as a two-player mode where a second player can control Mario's brother, Luigi (who assumes the same plot role and functionality as Mario and otherwise looks exactly the same apart from his color pallet swapping red for green). The objective of the game is for Mario and Luigi to travel into the GRIMDARK future of the 41st Millennium and rescue Princess Andromeda and her planet of Zebes from the invasion forces of the evil Daemon Prince Ganonroth.

Gameplay largely consists of Mario (and/or Luigi) navigating across the map, left to right, running, jumping from platform to platform, and sometimes using "Warp-pipes" to rapidly navigate some areas of the world and discover secret caches for bonus points. Mario's (and Luigi's) primary attack consists of jumping up into the air and then crushing their enemies from the weight of Mario's (and Luigi's) power armor. Occasionally, the player may pick up "power-ups" spread throughout the map, such as the chainsword (granting an additional attack that doesn't require jumping) or the "Star Child Talisman" that can transform Mario (and Luigi) into *Super Mario* (and/or *Super Luigi*), a super-powered form with enhanced jumping, durability, melee attack, and a new psychic attack that enable them to cast lightning balls at their enemies.

The plot, as revealed in early production notes and concept art, was originally going to revolve around Italian plumbers Mario and his brother Luigi embarking on a quest to save a fantasy-inspired land called "the Mushroom Kingdom" and their leader, "Princess Toadstool", from the clutches of a giant turtle-like villain called "Bowser" and his army of turtle-like enemies called "Koopas" as well as living mushroom-like enemies called "Goombas". Yeah, I know that sounds ridiculous - I mean, *Mushroom Kingdom*? Were they on acid when they came up with that idea? Thankfully, this silly and stupid concept which was *obviously* bound to fail never made it past the drawing board.

The game was originally going to be released in Autumn 1985. However, the sudden outbreak of World War III in Oct 1984 decisively disrupted Nintendo's operations, and for a while, the fate of the game and its developer seemed in grave jeopardy. Following the restoration of public order to Tokyo, Nintendo was able to resume operations, although the following recession of the global economy would severely damage the entire video game industry for years to come. Indeed, Nintendo was forced to cut back on many of the other projects they were working on at the time. Nevertheless, production on *Super Mario* continued, and the plot and game mechanics were modified to take into account new cultural and social changes resulting from World War III.

In the new *Super Mario*, many elements were taken from other games Nintendo had in early stages of production at the time, including the games that would eventually become *The Legend Of Lileath* (1987), and *Tyrannoid* (1988). For example, the main villain, the Chaos Lord Ganonroth, was taken from the original plans for *Legend Of Lileath*, while the planet Zebes was originally going to be the name of the villains' home world in *Metroid* (the working title for *Tyrannoid* before the plot of the game was changed halfway through production).

A large part of the game's success can be attributed to the simultaneous release of the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), the first gaming console released in the wake of World War III, as well as the lack of any serious competition at the time (being one of the first games released after the outbreak of the war, while competitors like Sega, Namco, Atari, and ENCOM were also struggling to navigate the wartime video game slump). Although the character of Mario had previously appeared in *Donkey Kong* (1981) and *Mario Bros.* (1983), it would be *Super Mario Bros.* that would be the character's global breakthrough, and help lay the cornerstone of a successful franchise that would include many additional games, spin-offs, and even a *critically acclaimed* hit movie in 1994 starring famed British actor Sir Robert William Hoskins in the title role and Dennis Hopper as the nefarious Lord Ganonroth.