Hideo Kojima, the creator of Metal Gear, may not be best known for his subtlety. But rarely have we heard the man behind Solid Snake get as exceedingly enthusiastic as he does when describing Nintendo's Super Mario Bros.
Reflecting on the game's 25th anniversary in the latest issue of Nintendo Power, Kojima gets gushy when describing the iconic NES platformer, lavishing Nintendo's "amazing feat" with praise bordering on idolatry.
"Shigeru Miyamoto not only altered the future of gaming," Kojima says of Super Mario Bros.'s contributions to gaming, "but actually change the concept of 'value' for all forms of entertainment. And, in the process, changed my future—leading me to become the game designer I am today."
"I feel the game truly deserves to be hailed as one of mankind's greatest inventions," Kojima continues, clearly fresh from a stint in his hyperbolic chamber. "The game's design, sense of fun, interactivity, and cerebral philosophy have made it the forefather of every game that has come since and of every game yet to come."
"Super Mario Bros. is the equivalent to the big bang of our gaming universe," Kojima contends. "If it were not for this blindingly spectacular creation, digital entertainment as we know it today would not exist."
Clearly, Nintendo has a fan in Kojima, who lent his creation, Solid Snake, to the most recent entry in Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. series.
The new issue of Nintendo Power features more developer love letters to Super Mario Bros. and should be on newsstands now.