It seems interesting that video game music in general has become so popular. There was a time when it was only an afterthought. Now, companies devote large sums of money and even have in-house musicians for their titles.
But, what strikes me now is the nostalgia and joy we hear from this particular theme. A simple google video search shows quite how much nostalgia is associated with it.
True, it is very simple and entertaining. But there are other considerations that seem to give this music a particular place in our collective hearts. Not only is it a connection to childhood, but it is also the remembered simplicity of the childhood play that is associated with it.
Super Mario Bros. came out as a major launch title of a video game platform that didn’t have any hold on the public. The Nintendo Entertainment System blew away the competitors in terms of its graphics then. Super Mario Bros. was the game. The number of other available systems and games were far less than today. It was a time where a kid could often play all the games in a given genre . But many would come back to Super Mario Bros.
It is this contrast of nostalgic simplicity with the incredible depth and growth of societal technology and interconnectivity that culminated in such a notable memory. It represented the birth of the amazing experience of interconnectedness with technology at a whole new fun level.
More to the point, it was a new simple joy.
And this guy is just amazing:
