When tasked to come up with something fresh, innovative, and Michael Kelso approved (begrudgingly or not) it is easy to forget something I love about a classic NES game that’s right there in front of me the whole time, and there is no game in the vast Nintendo universe more iconic, more deserving of the term classic than the original Super Mario Bros. Stories of this game are told far and wide, and yet for all the fanfare the game gets, there’s one thing that is conveniently overlooked. No, this isn’t about Atari Man’s love of Luigi’s green facial hair when it’s time for him to start shooting fire, nor is it about Bowser’s never changing creeper face that desperately tries to lure kids into an unmarked van with promises of candy and the latest Octonauts toy. There’s one thing I love the most about this game, one thing that deserves it’s own Real Men Of Genius type commercial, and it isn’t even something that’s entirely game related.
Super Mario Bros, dear readers, was one of the most notable circumstances where lazy developers still had their moment to shine, when being bored with tedious tasks was still rewarded, because it was 1985, and no one really cared to argue. If you don’t believe your friendly, neighborhood Atari Man, all you have to do when playing this classic platform game is to look up, and then look back down.
Hi there, just letting you know ANYTHING is possible.-Cloudbush
That’s right, the clouds and the bushes are the same shape, same design, just different colors. While I’m certain there are far more accurate reasons as to why this happened, I think I’m worthy enough to put my own spin on things. Yes, Atari Man loves lazy developers, because they give birth to things like this, Pac-Man on the Atari 2600, and every religious themed game in the history of everything. Oh sure, one could just slap the word prototype at the end of the game, but it takes a real man with big A and B buttons to just put something out there regardless of how sloppy it looks, but hey, what did you guys and gals expect the day the bushes and clouds were created, something by Michelangelo? It’s hard to do when you had the most successful and yet drunken night at the karaoke bar in your entire life!
That’s the spirit, random pink sweater chick!
Besides, let’s be honest with ourselves here, haven’t we all had our moments where we wished the bushes and the clouds were the same colors, the same textures, the same amount of ozone depletion and Edward Scissorhands precision? Wow, imagine that, Johnny Depp in full on creepy guy mode making the clouds look even more appealing than a Bob Ross painting (That was for you, Aaron Hickman!)
I am in no way associated with this article OR Retro Obscura. Leave my spirit alone, Hickman.
Now I know what you’re thinking as you sit there in your Legend Of Zelda t-shirt, eating some Doritos, and wishing you had a cold Crystal Pepsi to wash it down with, why would anybody want to honor sheer laziness in the video game industry? Well because friends, we all still blindly do it every holiday season or whenever a brand new game comes out, because let’s face it, nothing really is brand new anymore, now is it? I’m not one for waxing philosophy (and even less hardwood floors, you can ask my fiancée, Kathy) but games are never 100% ready to go like they used to be, and while some people may try to cover the collective butts of their favorite video game companies by saying that they just had so many ideas that couldn’t have made it into the game in time for release, we know what’s really happening, now don’t we? Of course we do. Probably something that involves way too much high carb snacks and binge watching Orange Is The New Black. I’ve seen it a hundred times.
So why does Atari Man love lazy developers if there’s nothing honorable in being lazy? Well even though I’m not for being lazy at all, it’s bad for your health and may even cause tooth decay (I know, Rob, I know) I am most definitely in favor of doing the least amount of work and still looking impressive and worthy of accolades despite that little nagging factor of being as efficient as a garden slug (of the none Ducktales drunken variety) Can you really blame developers of games like Super Mario Bros for being looked at as video game gods despite the fact that REAL video game gods know the difference between a bush and a cloud?
I’ve only heard of one god-like bush, and he sang one killer “She’ll Be Comin’ Round The Mountain”.
Seriously, hats off to you guys, and be sure to sing another killer public domain song Friday night at Wong’s Wings And Karaoke Bar for me. You guys are awesome!
2 Dudes and a NES 