RetroVision – Super Mario isn’t actually a Plumber

Yes, you read that right, Super Mario isn’t actually a plumber. Well rather he’s not one anymore. Having seemingly transitioned his career out of the utilities business a long time ago.

This revelation comes by way of none other that Nintendo themselves, who in their newly updated official Japanese character profile for the iconic moustached man, directly reference Mario’s plumbing days as a former career. Check out the translated biography below:

All around sporty, whether it’s tennis or baseball, soccer or car racing, he does everything cool. As a matter of fact, he also seems to have worked as a plumber a long time ago…

All in all, it seems all of Mario’s jumping through Warp Pipes just isn’t enough for him to be officially recognised as a plumber these days.

Super Mario not a Plumber profile Japan
An image of the brand new profile page on Nintendo’s Japanese site where the revelation originates from.

Interestingly Mario was never originally planned to be a plumber at all. In fact, Shigeru Miyamoto initially designed the character as a carpenter when creating the character Jumpman for the arcade classic Donkey Kong. The reasoning for this was simply because the game was set on a construction site.

This same logic was then taken into account when Mario Bros. was released in 1983. On this occasion Mario, and his newly introduced brother Luigi, were underground interacting with pipes. As such, Miyamoyo felt that on this occasion Mario was now a plumber. Essentially “the scenario dictates his role”, as Miyamoto explained in a 2010 interview with USA Today.

Super Mario not a plumber retro
Super Mario & Yoshi go head to head in with a Bullet Bill in Super Mario World. Arguably the former plumber’s finest hour.

All in all, it seems like Super Mario has turned his hand to more than one profession throughout his more than 36 year long career. In fact, all this makes his previous transitions into the likes of a medical professional in Dr. Mario, and an Olympic athlete in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games to name but a few, a lot more clearer. From builder to racing car driver, Mario is seemingly just one of the most talented guys in gaming, and by removing this tag of plumber, Nintendo have only made Mario more appealing, and even more talented.

Sophia Aubrey Drake

A lifelong gamer with a fanatical love of all things Nintendo and Japan. So much so that she's written a thesis on one and lived in the other. Currently on a quest to catch every last Pokémon. Follow me on twitter via @DivaXChill or @RingsandCoins.

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