The 'Super' in Super Mario refers to the effect of the Super Mushroom power-up.

In the 1985 game Super Mario Bros., the Super Mushroom changed how players survived. In earlier games like the 1983 Mario Bros., one hit from an enemy caused an immediate game over. The Super Mushroom added a health system where getting hit just turned Mario back into his small form.The game uses different sizes for Mario's hit box, which is the area that can touch enemies. Small Mario has a hit box of 16x16 pixels. Super Mario has a larger hit box of 16x32 pixels. This larger size makes it easier for enemies to touch him, but it also allows him to reach higher areas.The game code checks Mario's power-up state when he hits a brick from below. If the state is set to 0, Mario is small and the brick just bounces. If the state is set to 1, Mario is Super and the game replaces the brick with a breaking animation. This mechanic was inspired by the Alice in Wonderland stories where Alice eats cake to grow larger.