Shigeru Miyamoto Explains Mario was Never Really a Doctor, and More

Though Nintendo is basically omnipresent at this point (regardless of how much or little money their devices are printing), there are still some unsolved mysteries in the Nintendo universe, and a few mysteries left to create. For instance, have you ever wondered how Bowser has all of those children that first appeared in Super Mario Bros. 3, even though there’s never a mention of a wife or mother? Have you happened to wonder why Mario has held a lot of blue collar jobs over the years, but somehow wrangled his way into becoming a doctor once upon a time? The esteemed and kind of insane Shigeru Miyamoto elucidates.

In an interview with GameInformer, the legendary game designer answered some amusing questions about the Mario universe.

A now-common joke states that, because they’re the “Mario brothers,” that means Mario and Luigi’s last name is actually “Mario,” thus creating some fairly amusing full names. Common grammar would dictate that, yes, that is indeed their last name, but Miyamoto explains that the name actually sprung from the infamous live-action Mario movie, because the script called for a last name, and someone penciled it in as a joke. It just stuck after that.

You may have wondered why Bowser has the seven Koopalings as children, but also why Bowser Jr. exists, and if he’s related to the Koopalings, and who their mother might be. Miyamoto explains that the Koopalings are not Bowser’s biological children, and Bowser Jr. is his only biological child, though the identity of the mother is a mystery.

If you’ve ever examined Mario’s facial and head hair, you might’ve noticed that the hair on his head is brown, but his facial hair is black. While that’s not unheard of in real life, it is somewhat uncommon. Miyamoto explains that they gave him brown hair because they would’ve felt badly giving him a less distinct black color.

The big amusing reveal, though, is that when discussing the myriad careers Mario has had — from graffiti remover, to plumber, to athlete, to carpenter, to boxing referee, and so on — doctor has never really fit, but Dr. Mario is one of Mario’s more prominent titles. If Mario has a medical degree, why has he chosen to shy away from the obviously more prestigious career of doctor? Miyamoto answers that, well, maybe that career wasn’t as legitimate as we might’ve thought. Basically, Mario is that creeper doctor that hangs out in alleys in post-apocalyptic fiction.

Miyamoto answers a few other musings regarding the Mario universe, so go check out the full interview.

(via GameInformer)

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