For most Nintendo fans, Shigeru Miyamoto will always be heralded as the creator of the Super Mario universe and its diverse assortment of characters. However, it recently came to light that Miyamoto sees himself as little more than just the designer of the Mario brothers!

During today’s special Super Nintendo World Japan Direct, Shigeru Miyamoto officially stated that he was indeed Mario’s father (or “Dad”). When meeting both Mario and Luigi later during his tour of the theme park, Miyamoto then adds on that “Dad’s busy” when he bids both plumbers goodbye – confirming his parentage to the brothers!

Following this, Nintendo of America even confirmed that this was the case as well – calling Shigeru Miyamoto “Mario’s dad” (and by extension, Luigi’s dad) in an official tweet:

Thank you for watching today’s SUPER NINTENDO WORLD™ Direct! We hope you enjoyed getting a sneak peek at #SUPERNINTENDOWORLD from Mario’s dad, Shigeru Miyamoto! @USJ_Official

If you missed out on the livestream, catch up here: https://t.co/dmFTOykuql pic.twitter.com/dNZrUOrXbr

— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) December 18, 2020

The real question now is: which other Nintendo characters does Shigeru Miyamoto consider himself to be the father of? Does Link from The Legend of Zelda count? Feel free to let us know what you think below!