It Turns Out That Mario Is No Longer A Plumber

In a recent update to Nintendo’s Japanese site, it seems that Mario may no longer be a plumber.

Specifically, the first part of the newly updated bio reads as follows:

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

This update does not specify what Mario’s current profession is, simply that he is no longer a plumber.

Credit: Nintendo

The new bio for Mario on Nintendo's Japanese site.

Admittedly, Mario’s origins as a plumber were somewhat fluid, as his profession changed to meet the scenario. This is something Shigeru Miyamoto talked about in a 2010 interview with USA Today.

The character I came up with to fit that best was this small little guy with a big nose and a moustache, the characteristics that would stand out in that medium. We created the game design first and then we put the characters in to fit that. With Donkey Kong, we have this gorilla who grabs this gal and runs away with her and you have to go chase the gorilla down to save the lady. And the game's stage was a construction site, so we made him into basically a carpenter. With 1983's Mario Bros., we brought in Luigi and a lot of the game was played underground so we made him to fit that setting and, we decided he could be a plumber. The scenario dictates his role.

The scenario is an important point here as Mario has also taken on the role of a doctor in the past but this new update does create more questions than it answers.

However, for the time being, it seems that Mario’s current profession is not tied to his prior work as a plumber. What his new role may be though, remains to be seen.