Super Mario
Nintendo's globally recognized video-game brand centered on Mario, platform games, racing, sports, party, role-playing, film, theme-park, and licensed entertainment experiences.
Last updated October 14, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
Super Mario is Nintendo's flagship entertainment brand and one of the most recognizable properties in interactive media. It is built around Mario, a fictional Italian-American plumber character who first appeared in Nintendo's arcade and platform-game work before becoming the central figure of a broad family of games and licensed experiences. The brand's defining identity combines immediately readable visual design, accessible controls, colorful worlds, comic characters, imaginative power-ups, and challenge that can serve both beginners and experienced players. The modern Super Mario brand took shape with Super Mario Bros., released for the Family Computer in Japan in September 1985. The game established a side-scrolling platform format in which players guide Mario through obstacle-filled stages, collect coins, use power-ups, defeat enemies, and rescue Princess Peach. Its design helped make the Nintendo Entertainment System a mass-market platform and gave Nintendo a durable character-led franchise. Shigeru Miyamoto was the principal creative force behind the character and game design, while Takashi Tezuka was among the key development leaders. Nintendo's own retrospective material describes the game's development as an iterative process involving experiments with movement, jumping, screen scrolling, character scale, and the capabilities of the Family Computer hardware. The brand expanded through several related lines. Mainline platform games evolved from two-dimensional releases into three-dimensional exploration with Super Mario 64, which became a defining launch title for the Nintendo 64 in 1996. Later entries continued to alternate between large-scale 3D adventures and deliberately traditional 2D platform games, including the New Super Mario Bros. family. Spin-off series widened the brand's audience and gameplay vocabulary: Mario Kart introduced competitive and cooperative kart racing; Mario Party centered on board-game-style multiplayer and minigames; Mario Tennis and Mario Golf adapted sports formats; and role-playing titles such as Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi used the characters in story-driven adventures. Super Mario Maker further turned the brand into a creation and community platform by allowing players to design, share, and play courses. Super Mario is also an important cross-media and location-based property. Nintendo has used the characters in animated productions, toys, apparel, stationery, food promotions, advertising partnerships, and theme-park attractions. The 1993 live-action film was poorly received relative to the later brand revival, while The Super Mario Bros. Movie, produced by Illumination and released in 2023, demonstrated the commercial reach of the game property in cinema. Its promotional program included Nintendo Direct integration, trailers, retail and food partnerships, and a global campaign coordinated with Universal and Illumination. The brand remains active across Nintendo hardware, especially the Nintendo Switch family, and continues to function as a gateway to Nintendo's broader ecosystem. Its positioning emphasizes broad household appeal rather than narrow genre specialization: games are designed to be approachable, visually inviting, and suitable for solo, family, cooperative, and competitive play. Beyond individual releases, Super Mario serves as a long-term intellectual-property platform that links software, hardware launches, digital services, merchandise, entertainment, and physical destinations such as Super Nintendo World.
History
Super Mario developed from Nintendo's earlier arcade work featuring Mario and from experiments in character movement, jumping, scrolling, and interactive level design. The decisive transformation came with Super Mario Bros., released for the Family Computer in Japan in September 1985. Designed principally under Shigeru Miyamoto's creative direction with contributions from Takashi Tezuka and other Nintendo and external development staff, the game established a responsive platforming language based on running, jumping, enemy encounters, collectible coins, hidden areas, and temporary power-ups. The 1985 game became a foundational release for Nintendo's home-console strategy. Its approachable controls and escalating level design helped attract players who were not previously committed video-game enthusiasts, while its secrets and precision challenges gave experienced players reasons to continue. The Mario character, recognizable through his red cap, mustache, overalls, and expressive animation, became the organizing symbol for a growing family of Nintendo software. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, Nintendo expanded the series with additional platform games and related character products. Super Mario Bros. 3 broadened the formula with a world map, multiple power-ups, varied environments, and more elaborate stage structures. Super Mario World, released for the Super Famicom in 1990 in Japan, introduced or established characters and mechanics that became important to later Mario media, including Yoshi's prominent role. The franchise also began to divide into distinct gameplay branches. Super Mario Kart, released in 1992, converted the characters and items into a multiplayer racing format, while Mario Paint, Mario Tennis, Mario Golf, and other projects explored creative, sporting, and competitive uses of the property. The move to three dimensions marked another major turning point. Super Mario 64, released in 1996 as a Nintendo 64 launch title, translated the series' movement principles into open 3D spaces and influenced the design of 3D platform games. Subsequent mainline entries continued to experiment with camera systems, movement abilities, level structure, cooperative play, gravity, and open-world exploration. At the same time, New Super Mario Bros. revived and modernized two-dimensional platforming for newer hardware, making the traditional format accessible to a new generation. Spin-offs became a central part of the brand rather than peripheral experiments. Mario Kart made item-based racing and multiplayer competition core parts of the franchise. Mario Party created a board-game framework supported by short minigames and social play. Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi brought role-playing systems, dialogue, and turn-based or timing-based combat into the universe. Super Mario Maker extended the property into user-generated content, allowing players to construct, publish, and share courses. These branches enabled Nintendo to preserve the characters while changing the rules, audience occasion, and social context of play. Nintendo also broadened Super Mario beyond games. The property appeared in consumer products, advertising tie-ins, publishing, animation, live events, and theme-park environments. A 1993 live-action film adaptation was a notable but troubled attempt at cross-media expansion. Decades later, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, released in 2023 through the partnership of Nintendo, Illumination, and Universal, presented a more closely coordinated adaptation and marketing strategy. The film's successful opening and broad promotional presence reinforced the commercial value of treating Mario as an entertainment ecosystem rather than only a software series. In the current era, Super Mario remains a core Nintendo brand across Switch software, multiplayer services, merchandise, and physical attractions. Its longevity rests on continuity and reinvention: familiar characters and visual motifs provide recognition, while each generation of games changes the hardware relationship, interaction model, or social use. The result is a brand positioned simultaneously as a platform-game tradition, a family entertainment property, a multiplayer franchise, and a global licensing platform.
- 2023
The Super Mario Bros. Movie expands the brand's film presence
[2]The Illumination and Universal animated film received a large global promotional campaign and became a major theatrical release for the property. Nintendo and Illumination released a feature-length animated film distributed worldwide by Universal.
- 2017
Super Mario Odyssey launches on Nintendo Switch
[15]The 3D adventure introduced Cappy’s capture mechanic and globe-spanning kingdoms built around exploration.
- 2016
Super Mario Run expands onto mobile devices
Nintendo released Super Mario Run on iOS, followed by Android availability in 2017.
- 2015
Super Mario Maker opens course creation to players
[14]The Wii U release allowed players to construct and share Mario courses, turning the series into a user-creation platform.
- 2014
Mercedes-Benz advertising collaboration
[3]Mercedes-Benz Japan used Super Mario Bros. characters and imagery in a launch campaign for the GLA compact SUV.
- 1996
Super Mario 64 brings the series into 3D
[5]Super Mario 64 became a defining Nintendo 64 launch title and established a new model for three-dimensional Mario platforming.
- 1993
Live-action film adaptation released
[2]A live-action Super Mario Bros. film was released, representing an early attempt to extend the property into cinema.
- 1992
Super Mario Kart creates a major spin-off branch
Super Mario Kart introduced character-based kart racing with items and multiplayer competition, laying the foundation for one of Nintendo's most durable Mario subseries.
- 1992
Super Mario Kart begins the racing sub-franchise
[14]Super Mario Kart brought Mario characters, items and courses into a competitive kart-racing format.
- 1990
Super Mario World expands the platform formula
[1]Super Mario World debuted in Japan for the Super Famicom, adding a larger world structure, new mechanics, and an important role for Yoshi.
Products and positioning
A broadly accessible, family-oriented entertainment brand that combines approachable game design with high replay value, character recognition, multiplayer interaction, and cross-media licensing. A family-friendly, globally accessible entertainment franchise that combines intuitive play with inventive worlds, character appeal and long-term Nintendo platform integration.
2D platform video game · 1985
The Super Mario Bros. Movie
The 1985 Family Computer release established the central Super Mario formula: side-scrolling stages, running and jumping, enemy encounters, coins, hidden areas, power-ups, and progression toward a rescue objective. Its control simplicity and carefully increasing difficulty made the game suitable for new players while retaining mastery challenges. The 2023 animated film produced by Illumination and released through Universal adapted Mario characters and settings for a global theatrical audience. Its launch was supported by coordinated Nintendo, Universal, and Illumination promotion, including trailers, digital campaigns, retail activity, and brand partnerships. The 1985 Family Computer platform game established the core Super Mario structure: side-scrolling courses, power-ups, enemies, secrets and a progression toward castles. Its design helped define the home-console platform genre and made Mario Nintendo’s central game character.
3D platform video game · 1996
Super Mario 64
Super Mario 64 translated Mario's movement into three-dimensional spaces and made open exploration, camera control, varied objectives, and collectible-based progression central to the experience. It helped define expectations for 3D platform games and became closely associated with the Nintendo 64 launch. Super Mario 64 translated Mario’s movement into three-dimensional space through an open hub, discrete worlds and analog control. Its camera and level structure influenced later 3D platform games, despite criticism of some camera behavior.
Kart-racing video game series · 1992
Mario Kart
Mario Kart uses Nintendo characters, themed tracks, driving abilities, and randomized items to create accessible racing with both competitive and cooperative appeal. Its split-screen and online formats have made it one of the brand's principal multiplayer offerings. Mario Kart uses Nintendo characters, themed circuits, drifting and item-based competition to create an accessible racing format. The series supports local and online multiplayer and has become one of Nintendo’s most important spin-off families.
Party and minigame video game series · 1998
Mario Party
Mario Party combines a digital board-game structure with short competitive and cooperative minigames. The format emphasizes local social play, chance, repeated rounds, and simple controls, allowing the franchise to reach players who may not normally choose platform or action games.
Level-creation video game series · 2015
Super Mario Maker
Super Mario Maker lets players build courses using elements from different Mario platform-game styles, test their designs, and share them with other users. It extends the brand from a collection of authored stages into a participatory platform based on creation, discovery, and community exchange. Super Mario Maker gives players tools to assemble courses using elements from different Mario eras. Courses can be shared and played by other users, making community participation and remixing part of the product’s central value.
Platform video game · 1990
Super Mario World
Released for the Super Famicom, Super Mario World broadened the traditional platform format with an interconnected world map, hidden exits, alternate routes and the rideable dinosaur Yoshi. It became one of the major two-dimensional entries in the franchise.
3D platform video game · 2007
Super Mario Galaxy
Super Mario Galaxy uses small planetoids, gravity shifts and highly varied environments to create a distinctive three-dimensional platforming experience. Its structure combines linear objectives with collectible-driven exploration.
3D platform video game · 2017
Super Mario Odyssey
Super Mario Odyssey is a Nintendo Switch adventure in which Mario travels across varied kingdoms with Cappy, a sentient cap that enables him to capture and control selected creatures and objects. The game emphasizes movement, exploration and collectible discovery.
Mobile game · 2016
Super Mario Run
Super Mario Run adapts Mario’s platforming for touch devices with automatic running, timed jumps and multiple modes. It was released on iOS in 2016 and Android in 2017, extending Nintendo’s mobile presence with a character-led experience.
Marketing campaigns
- 2025Super Mario Party Jamboree Nintendo Switch 2 Edition advertising
Japan
Nintendo released new commercials for the Nintendo Switch 2 edition of Super Mario Party Jamboree, showing Japanese entertainers playing the party title and its associated Jamboree TV content.
- 2023The Super Mario Bros. Movie global launch campaign
Global
Universal and Illumination promoted the animated film through staged trailer releases, a Nintendo Direct integration, global digital distribution, theatrical partnerships, and consumer promotions including food and retail tie-ins.
Outcome. Deadline reported a worldwide opening of approximately $377 million and described the release as a major box-office success, contrasting it with the weaker reception of the 1993 film.
- 2023Oreo x Super Mario
United States · Digital and social media markets
Oreo and Nintendo created limited-edition cookies featuring embossed Mario characters and enemies. The campaign used teaser posts, a video styled around Mario’s world, paid and earned media, and a social challenge in which fans stacked cookies while attempting to knock Bowser into milk.
Outcome. The campaign generated reported video views and social engagement while linking Oreo’s playfulness with Mario’s family-oriented appeal.
- 2023The Super Mario Bros. Movie theatrical promotion
Japan
Promotion for the animated film included Nintendo Direct trailers, collectible cinema cards, character booklets, decorated screening spaces, large question-block video displays and social-media participation activities.
Outcome. The film became a major theatrical extension of the Super Mario brand and was widely promoted through cinema, retail and media partnerships.
- 2021Super Mario advertising and partnership activity
Global
Advertising commentary described Super Mario's continued movement into commercial culture through brand integrations and the use of familiar characters and game symbols outside Nintendo's own software launches.
Outcome. The activity reinforced Super Mario's role as a flexible and widely recognized entertainment property.
- 2014Mercedes-Benz GLA and Super Mario Bros. collaboration
Japan
Mercedes-Benz Japan launched a campaign for the GLA compact SUV featuring Mario entering a game-inspired tunnel, driving the vehicle, and appearing in a humorous television commercial. A Mercedes me venue in Tokyo also used Super Mario decoration and offered Mario Kart 8 play. Mercedes-Benz Japan used Mario, pipes and game-like imagery in a launch campaign for the GLA compact SUV. The activation included a television commercial and a Mario Kart 8 play experience at Mercedes me in Tokyo.
Outcome. The collaboration associated the GLA with Mario's recognizable game world and created an experiential activation alongside national television advertising. The collaboration presented Mario as a broadly loved, agile character aligned with the vehicle’s positioning.
- 1996Super Mario 64 launch campaign
United States
Nintendo positioned Super Mario 64 as a key reason to buy Nintendo 64. The reported campaign used Nintendo Power subscriber mailings, television advertising and public demonstrations, including the 1996 E3 trade show.
Outcome. The game received strong critical acclaim and became the best-selling Nintendo 64 title according to the cited reference.
Brand decisions
2023
Coordinated expansion into theatrical entertainmentOtherBackground
After the poorly received 1993 live-action adaptation, Nintendo approached film expansion through a partnership with Illumination and Universal.
Action taken
The Super Mario Bros. Movie was released as an animated feature supported by Nintendo-linked promotion, Nintendo Direct activity, trailers, digital marketing, and consumer partnerships.
Aftermath
The film's strong opening demonstrated the potential of coordinated game, film, and licensing campaigns for the Super Mario intellectual property.
Worldwide opening. $377 million (Opening period in 2023)
2018
Adopt a closely supervised animated-film partnershipOtherBackground
Nintendo sought to extend Mario into feature animation after the limitations of earlier screen adaptations.
Action taken
Nintendo announced a production partnership involving Shigeru Miyamoto and Illumination founder Chris Meledandri, with Universal associated with worldwide distribution.
Aftermath
The arrangement produced The Super Mario Bros. Movie, released in 2023.
2015
Expansion into player-created contentStrategyBackground
Nintendo sought to extend the life of its platform-game design by enabling players to create and exchange their own Mario courses.
Action taken
Super Mario Maker introduced accessible course-building tools and online sharing features connected to the established Mario visual and gameplay language.
Aftermath
The brand gained a community and creator dimension, with user-generated levels becoming part of the ongoing play experience.
2015
Turn Mario into a player-creation platformStrategyBackground
After decades of Nintendo-authored courses, the company explored how Mario could support continuing community participation and content sharing.
Action taken
Nintendo released Super Mario Maker, enabling users to build, publish and play courses based on Mario design conventions.
Aftermath
The concept was expanded through Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS and Super Mario Maker 2 for Nintendo Switch.
1996
Transition from 2D to 3D platformingGeneration changeBackground
The arrival of the Nintendo 64 created an opportunity to redesign Mario around analog movement, three-dimensional spaces, and exploratory objectives.
Action taken
Nintendo launched Super Mario 64 as a major Nintendo 64 title and rebuilt the platforming experience around 3D environments and free movement.
Aftermath
The game became an influential reference point for 3D platform design and established a continuing pattern of technical and structural reinvention within the franchise.
1985
Launch of Super Mario Bros.Product launchBackground
Nintendo was developing a home-console platform game that could demonstrate the Family Computer's scrolling and action capabilities while remaining approachable to a broad audience.
Action taken
The company released Super Mario Bros. in Japan in September 1985, using Mario as the lead character and combining platform movement, power-ups, collectibles, and staged progression.
Aftermath
The release became the foundation of Nintendo's flagship game brand and supported the wider expansion of Mario into multiple genres and media.
1985
Make Super Mario a recurring platform showcaseStrategyBackground
Nintendo needed software that could demonstrate the capabilities and appeal of its home-console hardware while remaining understandable to a broad audience.
Action taken
The company established Super Mario Bros. as a flagship platform title and continued to use later Mario games to introduce new hardware, control methods and graphical formats.
Aftermath
The franchise became a durable pillar of Nintendo’s hardware and software strategy.
Recent events
- 2025
Super Mario Party Jamboree Nintendo Switch 2 Edition campaign announced[13]
Product launch · Campaign
A new commercial campaign promoted the Nintendo Switch 2 edition of Super Mario Party Jamboree, with several Japanese entertainers shown playing the title.
- 2023
The Super Mario Bros. Movie opened with a major global marketing campaign[2]
Campaign · Product launch
Universal and Illumination coordinated trailer launches, Nintendo Direct integration, digital promotion, and consumer partnerships around The Super Mario Bros. Movie. The film recorded a reported worldwide opening of approximately $377 million, according to Deadline.
- 2023
The Super Mario Bros. Movie released internationally[9]
Product launch · Campaign
The animated feature extended the franchise into theatrical entertainment and was supported by trailers, cinema promotions, character materials and location-based activations.
- 2023
Oreo launched a Super Mario collaboration[16]
Product launch · Campaign
Mondelez and Nintendo promoted limited-edition Oreo cookies embossed with Mario characters through social media, video advertising and a fan challenge built around defeating Bowser.
- 2021
Super Mario characters continued to appear in commercial partnerships[4]
Campaign
Advertising-industry coverage documented the continued use of Super Mario imagery and character associations outside Nintendo's own game advertising, reflecting the franchise's value as a widely understood cultural symbol.
- 2018
Nintendo and Illumination announced The Super Mario Bros. Movie project[9]
Product launch · Other
Nintendo announced that Shigeru Miyamoto and Chris Meledandri would jointly produce an animated Super Mario feature, establishing the production framework that led to the 2023 film.
- 2014
Mercedes-Benz Japan partnered with Super Mario for the GLA launch[3]
Campaign · Product launch
Mercedes-Benz Japan promoted its compact GLA SUV through a Super Mario Bros. advertising collaboration. The campaign used Mario, game-inspired pipes, a television commercial, and a branded experience at the Mercedes me facility in Tokyo that included Mario Kart 8.
Sources16 sources
- 1Nintendo interview: Super Mario 25th Anniversarynintendo.co.jp
- 2Why the Animated Super Mario Bros. Movie Shattered Box Office Recordsdeadline.com
- 3Mercedes-Benz Japan announces GLA and Super Mario Bros. collaborationadvertimes.com
- 4Super Mario enters the advertising universesocialsamosa.com
- 5Nintendo Has Something to Sell Younytimes.com
- 6Super Mario seriesja.wikipedia.org
- 7Mario (video game character)ja.wikipedia.org
- 8Super Mario 64en.wikipedia.org
- 9The Super Mario Bros. Movieja.wikipedia.org
- 10Nintendo interview: Super Mario Bros. Wonder developersnintendo.com
- 11Nintendo interview: New Super Mario Bros. Wiinintendo.co.jp
- 12Oreo x Super Mario campaigncampaignjapan.com
- 13Super Mario Party Jamboree Nintendo Switch 2 Edition campaignndw.jp
- 14Super Mario Kart begins the racing sub-franchiseja.wikipedia.org
- 15Super Mario Odyssey launches on Nintendo Switchja.wikipedia.org
- 16奥利奥推出超级马力欧联名合作campaignjapan.com
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/ス-パ-マリオ · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled