If you played Super Mario World as a child - or still do, if you were one of the lucky few who picked up a Classic Mini SNES - you'll remember how Yoshi was able to grab anything and eat it.
The animation for it was always a bit dubious, though. Was Mario hitting Yoshi over the head or was he simply pointing at whatever he wanted Yoshi to eat? Sadly, it seems, it's the latter.
In an interview with two of the original developers of Super Mario World on Nintendo's official website (and subsequently translated by Kotaku), it was confirmed that - yes - Mario is beating Yoshi over the head like the cruel bastard we always knew he was.
According to Shigefumi Hino, who designed Yoshi, the original plan was to have Mario ride a horse - but it eventually became a dinosaur-type thing, thus resulting in Yoshi. However, when it came to the animation, it gets a bit sinister. "Lots of people think that while Mario is pointing his finger foreward, he’s saying ‘Go,’ and Yoshi’s tongue comes out," explained Hino. "However, the set up that I drew was that when Mario punches Yoshi in the head, the character’s tongue shoots out in surprise."
Childhood. RUINED.
Via Nintendo / Kotaku