Update: Something to Think About…

Super Mario World World 1-1 End

Have you ever wondered if there was a deeper meaning to the games that we play? Maybe something that if we took a look from a different perspective we might see a little more into the world around us and walk away with a deeper understanding of our life. A game that has underlying tones that connects to every day life, and is something that everyone has played.

Let’s just take Super Mario Bros for example, if we were to look at the game and try to search for hidden metaphors there is most likely thousands of them. Take a world in Mushroom Kingdom, say that this represents our transition from life to death. As we progress through the stage, we must collect many things from coins, to mushrooms, and even stars.

The coins could be a representation of our constant need for income and as we bash blocks open for them it is the equivalent of us working at a job. We work hard to get our money, bashing blocks open and sometimes doing it repetitively just to make money. However, sometimes there are ways to get money without having to work for it. Just like people do bad things or “underground dealings” to get cash quickly, this is also represented as well. Since we can all take that path, although hidden from view, by hopping down a pipe to a secret stash easily accessible wealth.

Also as we progress through the world we are in a constant search for mushrooms. These make us feel better and make us grow. We can say that mushrooms are our source of sustenance, and without them we would be starving. Yet, if we go and run into an enemy, which I would say would be “hard times” we actually begin to starve and get skinnier, thus shrinking. There is more than just mushrooms to find in the world as we can also obtain stars.

Now if Mario happens to obtain a Power Star he becomes invincible and starts flashing all sorts of different colors. Now these Stars are a direct representation of a lot of dangers in our life, especially those of drugs. When someone uses drugs it only affects them and can even make them feel like we are invincible. Explaining why it is only Mario that is flashing colors since he is the only one experiencing this euphoria. Thus giving him the power and mentality to be able to run past all his problems without fear.

However, just like in the real world, life always has its ups and downs, as accidents tend to happen to everyone. A direct representation of this are the “pitfalls” as they are the problems that we run into. We can easily run into them without even noticing them approaching, and unknowingly fall into them without meaning to. Since they can surprise us by just appearing below us without even knowing they were there in the first place. As we grow we learn that we are able to handle this situations with skill and are we learn how to avoid them. But even once in a a while we all have to suffer these problems.

There is also the fact that the bushes and the clouds in Super Mario Bros happen to look exactly the same just recolored. This is most definitely a meaning of a connection heavens and earth, and how they are indeed part of the same creation. In most religions this could stand as a metaphor for the final resting place that the earth and heavens are one. This is also strongly reinforced by the end of every level, as we have to climb a stairway high into the sky to reach the end. We could call this “The Stairway to Heaven”.

However, that is not all that is present in the Super Mario Bros., as the main goal of the game is to rescue the Princess. For what purpose would you need to rescue to the Princess but to fall in love and reproduce, and ultimately this brings us to the actual meaning of life. One can say that you weren’t actually going through Mushroom Kingdom to rescue her, but that your goal was to pass on your lineage through your offspring.

I don’t know if this is just a total coincidence or maybe we are all just looking for some type of connection and an understanding to the meaning to life…

[Note: I did not originally come up with the idea of this, I just expanded upon it. I saw the picture of someone explaining these theories but did not know the source, So I couldn’t source anyone, since the source has shown up as shown here It should be known that this was the inspiration for this post.]

An artist from New York. Will has been writing, designing, and loving video games since he was young. He has traveled across the United States, and parts of Canada in order to learn more about the world of gaming. After visiting E3 for the first time in 2009, he has vowed to return there and show off a game of his own. In his spare time he tinkers with electronics, programming, and of course collecting video games.