Super Mario, the beloved plumber who jumps and stomps his way through countless adventures, wasn’t always destined for the drainpipes and castles of the Mushroom Kingdom. In his earliest conception, the iconic video game character was actually intended to be a carpenter. His creator, Shigeru Miyamoto, envisioned Mario as a woodworker named Jumpman who would retrieve a kidnapped princess from a tower filled with dangerous obstacles. Miyamoto ultimately decided to alter Mario’s profession, settling on the plumbing trade, a decision that would forever change the landscape of video games. The choice was inspired by the handyman characters commonly featured in Japanese cartoons, and the overalls and cap instantly became synonymous with this heroic, pipe-wrench-wielding craftsman.
Prompt:
What’s a surprising detail about the origin story behind a popular video game character, console, or franchise that most gamers might not know?