16 Little-Known Gaming Facts That'll Blow Your Mind

12. Mario's Blocks Are Actually Innocent People

According to the original set of instructions that came with Super Mario Bros. way back in 1985, when evil beset the Mushroom Kingdom, "The quiet peace-loving Mushroom People were turned into mere stones, bricks and even horse-hair plants". This means that all those blocks you were gleefully thwacking into oblivion actually contained innocent villagers - making everything you thought you knew about Mario into a total lie. The instructions even end saying you play as "Mario, the hero of the story (maybe)." Maybe indeed!