Celebrating 25 years of Nintendo's iconic crossover fighting game, we finally have the official story behind the name "Super Smash Bros.," directly from its creator, Masahiro Sakurai.

Masahiro Sakurai Reveals the "Smash Bros." Naming Story

Satoru Iwata's Crucial Role in Naming Smash Bros.

Super Smash Bros., Nintendo's celebrated crossover fighting game, boasts a roster of characters from across the company's vast library of games. However, the name might seem a bit misleading, as few characters are actually brothers, and some aren't even male. So, how did it get its name? While Nintendo previously offered no official explanation, Sakurai recently unveiled the truth!

In a recent YouTube video, Sakurai explained that the name stems from the game's core concept: "friends settling minor disputes." He credits the late Satoru Iwata, former Nintendo president, with a significant contribution to the name.

Sakurai recounted, "Mr. Iwata played a key role in choosing the name Super Smash Bros. We brainstormed many potential names and words," This process included a meeting with Shigesato Itoi, creator of the Mother/Earthbound series, to finalize the title. Sakurai continued, "Mr. Iwata selected the 'brothers' element. His reasoning was that, although the characters weren't literally brothers, the term implied a friendly rivalry—a playful disagreement rather than outright combat!"

Beyond the naming origin, Sakurai shared anecdotes about his first encounter with Iwata and cherished memories of the former Nintendo president. Sakurai revealed that Iwata even assisted with programming the original Super Smash Bros. prototype, then known as Dragon King: The Fighting Game, for the Nintendo 64.