Summary
One of the original artists who worked on the SNES version ofSuper Mario RPGreveals a bunch of scrapped concept art, which showed how the game was originally proposed with aThree Musketeersmotif in mind. The release of theSuper Mario RPGremake on Nintendo Switch has been a critical and commercial hit, making it one of the biggest and most successful released from Nintendo’s 2023 library. While there arenumerous changes made in theSuper Mario RPGremake, it is a faithful remake of the SNES original.
This remake has been praised not only by fans, but also by several development staff members who originally worked on the game. This includesSuper Mario RPG’s original director, Chihiro Fujioka. While Fujioka was not involved in the development of Switch remake, he praised how the team at ArtePiazza created the “perfect” remake. Another original member of the game’s staff, Jiro Mifune, also celebrated the release of the Switch remake, posting several pieces of scrapped concept art when Squaresoft was working on the SNES original.
This concept art was posted on Mifune’s Twitter account (somearchived by NintendoLife), showing off the various sketches whenSuper Mario RPGwas in its early concept phase. One of the original ideas for the RPG was to base it off ofThe Three Musketeers, showing off Mario, Luigi, Wario, and even Toad dressed in the same garb as the characters, complete with swords. Princess Peach and Bowser are even dressed in similar era-appropriate attire as well. These were all based off of Mifune feeling “uncomfortable” picturing Mario with a traditional sword and shield.
Mifune also released concept art of the “third” kingdom, which was called the “slug” kingdom, and would have been the villainous force that invaded Bowser’s kingdom and kidnaped Peach. These included an antagonistic mage named “Enigma Slugnid,” who had an army of anthropomorphic snails and sea creatures as enemies. These would eventually morph into the mechanicalweapon-like bosses from Smithy’s Armythat players would face in the final game.
Mifune wanted to celebrate the “miracle remake” of the game, which is why he posted all thisunseen concept art ofSuper Mario RPG. He thanked the many members of the development team who had worked on the remake, while posting about how he enjoyed watching playthrough videos of Super Mario RPG on YouTube, Twitch, and other social media sites.
These pieces of concept art are all intriguing glimpses into the developmenthistory ofSuper Mario RPG, which is filled with secrets and possible avenues the game could have taken. For those who are sad that the “Mario Musketeers” idea never got off the ground, the upcomingPrincess Peach: Showtime!is likely the closest that Nintendo will get to revisiting the concept for now.
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
WHERE TO PLAY
Mario returns in this incredible role-playing adventure! His latest rival is Smithy, a menacing creature who causes fear and treachery in the Mushroom Kingdom. Mario must recover seven stars and repair the Star Road before he can make his way to Bowser’s castle for a final confrontation with Smithy. Powerful weapons, sinister spells and other useful items help Mario to complete his harrowing journey. New friends and old allies support him along the way. Even Bowser lends a hand!
