Princess Peach, Nintendo`s iconic heroine, wasn`t always known by that name. Before the release of Super Mario 64, she was widely recognized as Princess Toadstool. It has now come to light that this earlier name originated not from a decision made by Nintendo itself, but from an unexpected source.
In an interview with Time Extension, Nintendo veteran Leslie Swan, whose nearly three-decade career included localizing numerous classic games, writing for Nintendo Power magazine, and even voicing Princess Peach in Super Mario 64, revealed the surprising story behind the “Toadstool” moniker. She explained that in Nintendo`s early days, there was limited communication between the development teams in Japan and the marketing departments in the US.
“For Super Mario Bros., they [Nintendo] outsourced the creation of the manual to an advertising agency,” Swan stated. “And that agency simply came up with names for various elements. So, they were the ones who coined `Princess Toadstool` as Peach`s name.”
This name remained in use for the next decade. Swan recalled that during the localization of Super Mario 64 for North America, Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto had a strong fondness for the name “Peach” and insisted on its inclusion.
Swan proposed combining the two names for the US release. According to her, “Peach” could serve as Princess Toadstool`s more “informal” designation. This is why, at the beginning of Super Mario 64, Mario`s letter is signed “Princess Toadstool,” with “Peach” handwritten in pink.
In recent years, Princess Peach has significantly evolved as a character, stepping out of Mario`s shadow. Far from being merely a damsel in distress, she emerged as a formidable presence in The Super Mario Bros. Movie. In 2024, she even received her own game, Princess Peach: Showtime!, marking her first starring role as the main protagonist since Super Princess Peach on Nintendo DS in 2006.
Despite Peach`s increasing independence, her relationship with Mario remains intricate. Nintendo recently went out of its way to clarify that Mario and Princess Peach are merely “good friends.”