Super Mario Manga Creator Kazuki Motoyama Has Passed Away

You might not have gotten to read much of his work, but manga creator Kazuki Motoyama was renowned for his run on a very famous Nintendo character: Super Mario. Motoyama’s run on Kodansha’s Super Mario manga lasted from 1988 all the way until 1998, boasting outrageous humor, lovely art, and even adaptations of some of the mainline games like Super Mario 64. His work was finally localized into English back in 2022 when VIZ published Super Mario Bros.: Manga Mania, a compilation of some of Motoyama’s comics.

Sadly, it was revealed by his sister, Lisa Motoyama, that her brother had passed away at the age of 69. There was no explanation as to how he passed, but she was grateful to those who supported her brother during his life. Nintendojo offers our condolensces to the Motoyama family at this time and celebrate his wonderful contribution to the Super Mario Bros. mythos.

Source: Lisa Motoyama Instagram Account