Nintendo Developers: ‘Mario is Punching Yoshi’

Super Mario World fans have long disputed whether the titular character punches Yoshi in the head to make him grab items with his tongue. Indeed, many Mario apologists claim the action is a point, not a punch. Even the official game art promoted that idea:

However, the game’s developers now confirm the disturbing truth: Mario abuses his dinosaur.

Mario Punching Yoshi

Nintendo developers Takashi Tezuka and Shigefumi Hino spoke exclusively to Nintendo’s official site. The pair spoke about the creation of Super Mario World, and Yoshi specifically. In the interview, they drop the sad truth that Mario is nothing but a bully. Hino says (translation courtesy of Kotaku):

“Lots of people think that while Mario is pointing his finger forward, he’s saying ‘Go,’ and Yoshi’s tongue comes out. However, the set up that I drew was that when Mario punches Yoshi in the head, the character’s tongue shoots out in surprise.”

“What’s more, there’s an added ‘bop’ sound. However, it seemed like people would say ‘Poor Yoshi,’ so that’s why it became that Mario is saying ‘Go.’”

As disturbing as the revelation is, it certainly fits with the theory that Mario is in fact Wario. The darkness has always been there.

Yoshi the Horse

In more pleasant news, Tezuka explains Yoshi’s origin. Apparently, Shigeru Miyamoto loved horses and wanted Mario to have his own steed. He says:

“I think he likes horses. When we were making [Super Mario Bros. 3], he drew a picture of Mario riding a horse and had put it up on wall next to where he sits. When I saw that, I thought, ‘I guess he wants Mario to ride something.’ So, when we were making Super Mario World, we had this ‘dinosaur land’ concept, and I had Hino draw reptile type art.”

Hino adds:

“Initially, the keyword that I had was ‘horse,’ so I imagined something quite later and, for the time being, drew a large lizard type creature.”

In an alternate universe, Mario could be punching a horse.