Super Mario 64 is one of the best video games in history, which marked an era and the hearts of gamers Nintendo 64. But although we always believed that it was a masterful idea of Shigeru Miyamototurns out he stole the idea from another title: Croc Legend of the Gobbos.
Launched in June 1996 along with the 64, the Mario game is considered the one that marked the way for 3D platform video games with polygonal graphics. However, the idea with which it materialized belonged to Argonaut Software.
According to a report on the website of Hobby ConsolesCroc Legend of the Gobbos, remembered title of 1997 for PlayStation 1, was previously a 3D video game prototype of Yoshi that Nintendo rejected.
Argonaut released the video game for the PS1, which while not as successful as the legendary Crash Bandicoot series, was one of Sony’s best-selling consoles.
The link is Yoshi
Jez San, founder of the late Argonaut studio, recounted the anecdote in an interview with EDGE magazine, quoted in GamesRadarin which he explains the similarities of video games.
The British company worked on the prototype of a 3D platform video game that was going to star Yoshi, called Yoshi Racers. His relationship with Nintendo was close, after Star Fox and the Super FX chip for Super Nintendo.
However, San reported that Miyamoto himself rejected the project after seeing it in person: “We showed it to Miyamoto and he loved it, he said it was great. And then he said no”.
That led to the companies ending their relationships, and thus Argonaut releasing the video game, renamed Croc Legend of the Gobbos.
“What we showed them was very similar to what they did with Mario 64″, added San, who confessed that he later met Shigeru Miyamoto at a video game fair and admitted that they were inspired by Croc for the successful Mario title.
“Sorry we didn’t play the game with you, but thanks for giving us the address for Mario 64″, Miyamoto ironically told him, who by launching Super Mario 64 before Croc, covered his back with plagiarism accusations.