I guess you could say it was the Wild West for "brand management" for video games in the 1980-90s. While none of them are as crazy as this, it feels like the Super Mario Bros. Super Show and the Nintendo Cereal System and the Zelda LCD wristwatch game are all related phenomena from a time when there was less apprehension about throwing Mario's good name around willy-nilly. Except those were all licensed out, and this apparently had Nintendo's full cooperation.
I suspect it's at least partly related to expanding game budgets, but also the way that nostalgia plays into this industry. For a time, there perhaps really was a sense that Mario and Link were just cooked up by some nerds in a basement at relatively low cost, and they could cook up another Mario or Link just as easily. But now they're recognized as lightning in a bottle and valuable multimedia properties. Hence the recent Mario movie, which in my mind is the exact opposite vibe of this game.
"For a time, there perhaps really was a sense that Mario and Link were just cooked up by some nerds in a basement at relatively low cost, and they could cook up another Mario or Link just as easily. But now they're recognized as lightning in a bottle and valuable multimedia properties."
Never thought of this before, but I definitely agree. Look how many iconic series were started in the late 80s/early 90s - Mario, Sonic, Zelda, Metroid, Mega Man, Street Fighter, Castlevania, etc. - most of which are still going today, to some degree. Not as easy to make a classic character or series these days. Because we've seen it all, I guess?
My explanation would be that those classic series and characters are brands, and I think it's really hard to establish a new brand just by improving incrementally on what has been done before, and it only gets harder if those previous brands saw continual reinvestment with new titles over the years. It's much easier to build a brand if you can establish a new category or genre.
This also ties into the broader "fracturing of the market" phenomenon. People in the late 20th century watched the same movies and TV shows, listened to the same music, and yes, played the same games. It's partly why media from that era is still much more iconic. I recently went to a wedding of people in their 20s, attended largely by people in their 20s, and 95% of the music at the reception was from before the newlyweds were out of diapers.
Now that our menu of options is much larger, we overlap much less with people around us. I think mainstream gamers mostly still play the same multiplayer games as their friends. But if you tell me that you mainly play single-player games, your top 10 or even top 50 could quite possibly consist entirely of games that I've never played. That was basically impossible in the old days.
Wow, fascinating article! This is the very first I have ever heard of this game, All Night Nippon Super Mario Bros. It is very consistent with how Nintendo has done business over the years: experimentation and disruption.
Yeah, Nintendo is a little too safe these days, but honestly, I'm just glad they're around, sticking to old gaming business practices like "not gouging the consumer."
Awesome find -- I've never heard of this!
I guess you could say it was the Wild West for "brand management" for video games in the 1980-90s. While none of them are as crazy as this, it feels like the Super Mario Bros. Super Show and the Nintendo Cereal System and the Zelda LCD wristwatch game are all related phenomena from a time when there was less apprehension about throwing Mario's good name around willy-nilly. Except those were all licensed out, and this apparently had Nintendo's full cooperation.
I suspect it's at least partly related to expanding game budgets, but also the way that nostalgia plays into this industry. For a time, there perhaps really was a sense that Mario and Link were just cooked up by some nerds in a basement at relatively low cost, and they could cook up another Mario or Link just as easily. But now they're recognized as lightning in a bottle and valuable multimedia properties. Hence the recent Mario movie, which in my mind is the exact opposite vibe of this game.
"For a time, there perhaps really was a sense that Mario and Link were just cooked up by some nerds in a basement at relatively low cost, and they could cook up another Mario or Link just as easily. But now they're recognized as lightning in a bottle and valuable multimedia properties."
Never thought of this before, but I definitely agree. Look how many iconic series were started in the late 80s/early 90s - Mario, Sonic, Zelda, Metroid, Mega Man, Street Fighter, Castlevania, etc. - most of which are still going today, to some degree. Not as easy to make a classic character or series these days. Because we've seen it all, I guess?
My explanation would be that those classic series and characters are brands, and I think it's really hard to establish a new brand just by improving incrementally on what has been done before, and it only gets harder if those previous brands saw continual reinvestment with new titles over the years. It's much easier to build a brand if you can establish a new category or genre.
This also ties into the broader "fracturing of the market" phenomenon. People in the late 20th century watched the same movies and TV shows, listened to the same music, and yes, played the same games. It's partly why media from that era is still much more iconic. I recently went to a wedding of people in their 20s, attended largely by people in their 20s, and 95% of the music at the reception was from before the newlyweds were out of diapers.
Now that our menu of options is much larger, we overlap much less with people around us. I think mainstream gamers mostly still play the same multiplayer games as their friends. But if you tell me that you mainly play single-player games, your top 10 or even top 50 could quite possibly consist entirely of games that I've never played. That was basically impossible in the old days.
Yeah, the whole monoculture thing that we had growing up in the 80s and 90s is definitely dead.
Shame, in a way, but I can't deny that I appreciate the shear variety of media to interact with. Especially amateur creators like on Youtube.
This was awesome.
Thanks, friend.
Wow, fascinating article! This is the very first I have ever heard of this game, All Night Nippon Super Mario Bros. It is very consistent with how Nintendo has done business over the years: experimentation and disruption.
Yeah, Nintendo is a little too safe these days, but honestly, I'm just glad they're around, sticking to old gaming business practices like "not gouging the consumer."