JUMPING INTO IT

How Nintendo turned Mario into a superstar

- DYLAN APOLLIS

AS THE STAR OF THE BEST-SELLING PLATFORM GAME OF ALL TIME, SUPER

Mario is recognised as an iconic video game character. He emerged as a character named Jumpman' in the primitive handheld arcade game Donkey Kong in 1981, but quickly spawned one of the most successful franchises ever.

But the history of Nintendo's Mario began in 1889, when Fusajiro Yamauchi founded a company called Nintendo Koppai, manufacturing Japanese playing cards called 'hanafuda' for gambling. Yamauchi also tried his luck in unfamiliar territory, producing rice packets and even, um, 'love hotels. He also started a taxi company. among other things.

It was Hiroshi, Yamauchi's grandson who took over in 1956, who began looking for opportunities to expand the business. He set his sights on the video-game industry and got his big break in 1977 when he introduced a colour gaming console to the Japanese market. The very first Nintendo console came with games pre-loaded, including the classic Pong, and sold three million units.