About Mario Games - Bonuses

During the development of Donkey Kong, Mario was known as "Jumpman". Jumping—both to access places and as an offensive move—is a common gameplay element in Mario games, especially the Super Mario Bros. series. Mario's most commonly portrayed form of attack is jumping to stomp on the heads of enemies, first used in Mario Bros. This jump-stomp move may entirely crush smaller enemies on the stage, and usually deals damage to larger ones, sometimes also causing secondary effects. This attack often enables Mario to knock the turtle-like Koopa Troopas into or out of their shells, which can be used as weapons. Subsequent games have elaborated on Mario's jumping-related abilities. Super Mario World added the ability to spin-jump, which allows Mario to break blocks beneath him. Later, the Game Boy version of Donkey Kong allows Mario to jump higher with consecutive jumps, and perform a back-flip. In Super Mario 64, Mario has several jumping abilities, such as a sideways somersault, a ground pound, and the "Wall Kick", which propels him upwards by kicking off walls. In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Mario gains a unique power called Mario Finale by getting the smash ball, which is a double-helix fire explosion that covers from the left to the right screen.

Power-ups

Mario uses many items, which give him various powers. The first power-up Mario uses is the Hammer in Donkey Kong. Super Mario Bros. introduced the basic three power-ups that have become staples for the series—- the Super Mushroom, which causes Mario to grow larger; the Fire Flower, which allows Mario to throw fireballs; and the Starman, which gives Mario temporary invincibility. These powers have appeared regularly throughout the series. Throughout the series' history, there have been several kinds of Mushroom power-ups, including a 1-Up Mushroom, which gives Mario an extra life; Poison Mushroom, which causes Mario to either shrink or die; Mega Mushroom, which causes Mario to grow very large; and Mini Mushroom, which causes Mario to shrink. A common item across the series is an item that gives Mario the ability of flight. The first was introduced in Super Mario Bros. 3 called the Super Leaf, which gives Mario a raccoon suit. Also in this game is the Tanuki suit, which allows flight and the ability to turn into a statue. Later, in Super Mario World, an item called the Cape Feather was introduced that gave Mario a cape. In Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, a carrot was available that gave Mario rabbit ears that allowed him to fly, and in Super Mario 64, an item called the Wing Cap, resulting in the temporary ability to fly. All four of these flying power-ups were featured on the cover of their respective box arts. Super Mario Sunshine introduces a water spraying device called "F.L.U.D.D.", which has the ability to spray water, hover and more. Super Mario Galaxy set the record for most power-ups available in a Mario platformer. Although this included the revival of old power-ups such as the Fire Flower, it also introduced a number of new items. One, for example, is the Bee Mushroom, which naturally turned him into a bee, and therefore allowing him to float briefly and walk on special "hive" surfaces. Some of these powers have appeared in the Super Smash Bros. series. Super Smash Bros. features the Fire Flower as one of Mario and Luigi's attacks and an item any character can use. It also features the Star and Hammer. In Super Smash Bros. Melee, the Super and Poison Mushrooms also appear.