Koji Kondo

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Lore & Background

Kondo's influence on Super Smash Bros. is rooted in his decades of work at Nintendo. He was hired in 1984 as the company's first dedicated composer, creating the audio design for Punch-Out!! and later composing major scores for Super Mario Bros. (1985) and The Legend of Zelda (1986). His music for Super Mario Bros. was designed around the feeling of motion, following Shigeru Miyamoto's demand that audio be made "with substance" and synchronized with gameplay. Kondo based most of the score around dance genres like Latin music and the waltz. For The Legend of Zelda, he juxtaposed the overworld theme with dungeon music to project distinct characters, so players know almost immediately where they are within the game. These principles ensure that when his tracks appear in Smash Bros., they carry the same emotional and gameplay cues.

In Their Own Story

In 1984, Koji Kondo found his way to Nintendo by looking at the school's job placement board. He recalled, "I saw the Nintendo ad, and had a love of making synthesizers, and loved games, and thought – that's the place for me." He interviewed with one company, Nintendo, and has been there ever since. His first work was the audio design for the 1984 arcade game Punch-Out!!. In 1985, Super Mario Bros. became his first major score, with melodies created so short segments could be endlessly repeated during gameplay without causing boredom. The main theme has since been featured in more than 50 concerts, become a best-selling ringtone, and been remixed or sampled by various musicians. For The Legend of Zelda, he produced four main pieces of background music; the overworld theme has become comparable in popularity with the Super Mario Bros. main theme. Kondo attended the world premiere of Play! A Video Game Symphony in Chicago in May 2006, where his music was performed by a full symphony orchestra. He also performed piano with Imagine Dragons at The Game Awards 2014. He was inducted into the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences' Hall of Fame in 2024.

Reader's Guide

Kondo's role in Super Smash Bros. is indirect but foundational: his compositions from the Super Mario and The Legend of Zelda series are the primary source material for the game's music. He composed the scores for Super Mario Bros. 3 (1988), Super Mario World (1990), and Yoshi's Island (1995). Until the early 2000s, Kondo would usually write all compositions by himself on a project, with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time being the last one he worked on alone. Since then, he has collaborated with other staff members, advising and supervising music created by others, as well as providing additional compositions for games including Super Mario Galaxy, The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, and Super Mario 3D World. He served as lead composer of Super Mario Maker and Super Mario Maker 2, and was a consultant for the score to The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023). His willingness to allow his classic tracks to be remixed and orchestrated for Smash Bros. ensures that while battles are new and dynamic, the soul of Nintendo remains intact.

Did You Know?

• Kondo was hired by Nintendo in 1984 as its first dedicated composer.
• His Super Mario Bros. theme was the first piece of music from a video game included in the American National Recording Registry.
• Kondo learned to play the electronic organ from age five, starting in Yamaha Music classes from kindergarten.
• He performed piano with the American rock band Imagine Dragons at The Game Awards 2014.
• Kondo was inducted into the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences' Hall of Fame in 2024.