Super Mario

Super Mario is Nintendo's flagship platform-game series, built around Mario, a mustached plumber who first appeared as "Jumpman" in the 1981 arcade game Donkey Kong. The series began under its present name with Super Mario Bros., released for Nintendo's Family Computer in Japan in 1985 and for the Nintendo Entertainment System in North America in 1985. Designed principally by Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka, it cast Mario and his brother Luigi against Bowser, king of the Koopas. Its simple premise is rescuing Princess Toadstool, later commonly called Princess Peach, from Bowser's captivity in the Mushroom Kingdom across eight increasingly difficult worlds.

Super Mario Bros. established conventions that became inseparable from the franchise: side-scrolling stages, breakable brick blocks, question-mark blocks, pipes, Goombas, Koopa Troopas, coins, and a countdown timer. Mario grows after taking a Super Mushroom, throws fireballs after collecting a Fire Flower, and gains temporary invincibility from a Starman. The game contains eight worlds with four courses each; world 1-1 served as an especially influential tutorial through level design rather than written instructions. Its commercial success helped revive the North American home-console market after the 1983 video-game crash. Nintendo reported lifetime sales of more than 58 million copies, including NES editions.

Later entries changed the formula while retaining Mario's movement and Bowser. Super Mario Bros. 3 released in Japan in 1988, introduced a world map, the Tanooki Suit, and the Koopalings. Super Mario World arrived with the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1990 in Japan and introduced Yoshi, a companion that swallows enemies. Super Mario 64 launched alongside the Nintendo 64 in Japan in 1996, moving the series into 3D exploration using Power Stars for objectives. Super Mario Sunshine followed on GameCube in 2002, while Super Mario Galaxy, released for Wii in 2007, centered stages on small planetary bodies and gravity.

Super Mario Odyssey, released for Nintendo Switch in 2017, gave Mario Cappy, a sentient hat that lets him capture enemies and objects. Super Mario Bros. Wonder, released for Switch in 2023, introduced Wonder Flowers, which can radically alter a course, and made Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, and Toad playable alongside Mario and Luigi. Beyond the main games, Mario has appeared in Mario Kart, Mario Party, sports titles, role-playing games, animation, and a 2023 feature film. Charles Martinet voiced Mario in games from Super Mario 64 until 2023; Kevin Afghani officially became Mario's new game voice in Super Mario Bros. Wonder.