The History of Mario

He is the most recognizable face in gaming. A short, portly plumber with a mustache who jumps on turtles. But the history of Mario is the history of the video game industry itself. From saving the arcade business to defining 3D movement, Shigeru Miyamoto's creation has seen it all.

It Started with a Gorilla

In 1981, Mario wasn't even Mario. He was "Jumpman" in the arcade hit Donkey Kong. He was a carpenter, not a plumber, trying to save his girlfriend Pauline. The game was a massive success, establishing Nintendo of America and setting the stage for the platforming genre.

The NES Era: Defining a Genre

Super Mario Bros. (1985) saved the home console market after the crash of 1983. It introduced smooth scrolling, precise physics, and secret areas. It created the grammar of video games: run left to right, jump on heads, eat mushrooms to grow. Super Mario Bros. 3 perfected this formula, introducing the world map and power-up suits.

The 3D Revolution

Super Mario 64 (1996) is arguably the most important game ever made. It solved the problem of 3D movement in a digital space. before Mario 64, 3D games were clunky and confusing. Nintendo introduced the analog stick and a camera system that followed the player. It set the standard that every 3D game follows to this day.

Galaxy and Beyond

The Wii era brought us Super Mario Galaxy, playing with gravity and spherical worlds. The Switch era gave us Odyssey, returning to the sandbox exploration of 64, and most recently, Super Mario Wonder, which reinvented the 2D scrolling formula with psychedelic, unpredictable "Wonder Effects." Mario endures because Nintendo is never afraid to reinvent him while keeping the core fun intact.