Mario’s rise to fame was immediate. Japan had been searching for a way to compete with American Arcade makers and came up with Mario to combat them.
Mario was created by a then cabinet painter and general artist, Shigeru Miyamoto. Due to technical reasons, mario needed a mustache and to fulfill a 16×16 area. The decision to use an anti-hero/everyman was important and what many believe enabled people to step into the role of their favorite plumber.
Mario’s only competition was Sonic the hedgehog, but it wasn’t long before Japan owned Sega and Sonic. People like anti-heros like Mario because they are easy to relate to, instead of a perfectly chizzled super soldier, you have a saggy plumber who wasn’t perfect, doing the simple duty of stopping the gumba king and saving the princess. Mario is prone to mistakes and has lives to combat the fact. It’s okay if we are bad at mario, there is always 2 more lives and a reset button.
Mario speaks to everyone and after Mario’s release Mario was in 2/5 of every Japanese household. Mario also had the power to transcend social and political borders. People immediatly accepted Mario as their own, never knowing or questioning his orgins.