50 Fun Facts About Super Mario Odyssey

Which real city inspired New Donk City, the skyscraper-filled heart of Super Mario Odyssey?

New York is the model, and locals have their own proud nickname for the place: the Big Banana.

The Broodals, wedding planners hired by Bowser in Super Mario Odyssey, are what kind of animal?

Rabbits fill the whole crew, and when the four of them duck inside their hats they look just like flying saucers.

Pauline, the mayor in Super Mario Odyssey, first appeared alongside Mario in which classic arcade game?

Donkey Kong was her debut, and the developers made her mayor so that an unfamiliar setting would have one familiar face.

What colour are Super Mario Odyssey's regional coins, spent only in the kingdom where they are found?

Purple coins look different in every kingdom, and Crazy Cap shops trade them for local outfits and decorations for the airship.

Which cereal maker sold a Super Mario Odyssey breakfast cereal whose box doubled as an amiibo?

Kellogg's hid an NFC tag in the back of each Super Mario Cereal box, so scanning it unlocked extras inside the game.

Which longtime ally does Mario find and capture atop Peach's Castle in Super Mario Odyssey?

Yoshi can cling to walls and gobble things up with his tongue, and eating ten different fruits in one area earns a Power Moon.

Which country, visited by the director on a memorable trip, inspired Super Mario Odyssey's Sand Kingdom?

Mexico shows in the poncho and sombrero Mario can wear there and in residents styled after Day of the Dead figures.

Which animal is the first creature Mario captures in Super Mario Odyssey, inside Top-Hat Tower?

A frog gives Mario an extremely high jump, an early lesson in how captured creatures lend him abilities he lacks.

Which enormous dinosaur can Mario capture in the Cascade Kingdom of Super Mario Odyssey?

Tyrannosaurus can trample almost anything in its path, and the kingdom's travel brochure calls its still-living dinosaurs the biggest draw for tourists.

Which swing-style theme song does Mayor Pauline sing on stage at the New Donk City Festival?

Jump Up, Super Star! exists because the developers gave the mayor a love of jazz, which turned her into a singer; Kate Higgins provides the English vocals.

Which treasure does Bowser steal from the Sand Kingdom for his wedding in Super Mario Odyssey?

Binding Band is the ring he later tries to force onto Peach at the altar, and the Sphynx's first Sand Kingdom question asks what the thieving monster wanted from the land.

Which desert village beside ancient ruins is the main settlement of Super Mario Odyssey's Sand Kingdom?

Tostarena sits in the shadow of the Inverted Pyramid, which lifts off and floats in the air once night falls on the kingdom.

What trapped the taxi that a Sand Kingdom tourist is waiting for when Mario arrives in Super Mario Odyssey?

Ice had encased the cab near the Inverted Pyramid, and the Sphynx later quizzes Mario on what stopped the visitor's journey.

Which living statue carries Mario across the desert of Super Mario Odyssey's Sand Kingdom for a 30-coin fare?

Jaxi blends jaguar and taxi in its name, and it is one of only two things Mario can steer without capturing, the other being motor scooters. The Sphynx's quiz asks about its fare.

Which stone-head creature in Super Mario Odyssey wears sunglasses that reveal invisible platforms to Mario?

Moe-Eye takes its name and its looks from moai statue heads, and it panics and runs away whenever Mario comes close.

Which town of beret-wearing snails is the main settlement of Super Mario Odyssey's Seaside Kingdom?

Bubblaine was conceived as an elegant getaway themed on golden champagne, and naming it is the first question in the Sphynx's Seaside Kingdom quiz.

Which red fish can Mario capture in Super Mario Odyssey to swim faster and breathe underwater?

Cheep Cheep also gains a spin attack when the player shakes the controller, a detail the Sphynx tests in its Seaside Kingdom quiz.

Which Crazy Cap costume gets Mario into the Seaside Kingdom's locked hula-dancing room in Super Mario Odyssey?

Resort Outfit, worn with its matching hat, satisfies the snail guarding the door, and the Sphynx's Seaside Kingdom quiz asks about this dress code.

Mollusque-Lanceur, the boss who guzzles Sparkle Water in Super Mario Odyssey, resembles which sea creature?

Octopus is the look, though he is really an outsized Gushen; he corks the kingdom's four fountains, a number the Sphynx asks Mario to recall.

Which sport does a snail coach play against Mario in the Seaside Kingdom of Super Mario Odyssey?

Volleyball here gets faster with every two returns, and throwing Cappy at the ball from close range spikes it back at the coach.

What is the name of Cappy's little sister, whom Bowser kidnaps along with Princess Peach in Super Mario Odyssey?

Tiara is taken to serve as the bride's wedding headdress, and rescuing her is the reason Cappy teams up with Mario.

Which boss drains New Donk City's electricity from the roof of City Hall in Super Mario Odyssey?

Mechawiggler plugs its mouth into the lightning rod to feed, and Mario beats it by capturing a Sherm tank and shooting its glowing globes.

Which musician joins a drummer, guitarist and bassist in the group Mario recruits for Mayor Pauline in New Donk City?

A trumpeter completes the four-piece line-up, though the festival still cannot begin until Mario restarts the Underground Power Plant.

In Mayor Pauline's post-game quiz in Super Mario Odyssey, which hobby does the leader of New Donk City claim?

Going on walks lets her admire the city she loves, and Mario must answer four of her questions in a row to pass.

In her quiz in Super Mario Odyssey, what does Mayor Pauline of New Donk City admit she is bad with?

Fixing machines is her admitted weak spot; her other quiz answers include a treasured hat, a love of cake and a wish to visit the Cloud Kingdom.

Where does Bowser plan to hold his wedding to Princess Peach in the final act of Super Mario Odyssey?

On the Moon, inside a cathedral-like Wedding Hall, where guests dragged in from the kingdoms he ransacked are forced to watch.

How does Princess Peach answer when Mario and Bowser both propose to her at the end of Super Mario Odyssey?

Turns them down: overwhelmed by their squabbling, she boards the airship with Cappy, and only then calls Mario to come home.

In the ending of Super Mario Odyssey, Bowser proposes to Princess Peach with a bouquet made of what?

Piranha Plants make up his snapping bouquet, while Mario holds out a single Rocket Flower, a detail the Sphynx later quizzes him on.

Which New Donk City minigame in Super Mario Odyssey awards Power Moons for streaks of 30 and 100 without a miss?

Jump-Rope Challenge has two New Donkers turning the rope faster after every five jumps until the count reaches 50.

Bowser's Castle in Super Mario Odyssey breaks with series tradition by copying the castles of which country?

Japan supplies the look, with a tea house, a garden and a central keep, and the moats hold poison rather than the usual lava.

Which missile-shaped enemy can Mario capture in Super Mario Odyssey to fly across wide gaps before it explodes?

Bullet Bill can also smash stone blocks Mario cannot break alone, but it blows up after a short flight and drops him wherever he happens to be.

Peach's Castle and its grounds, explored after the credits of Nintendo's Odyssey, closely copy which earlier adventure?

Super Mario 64 is honoured right down to a moat that can be drained and an entrance hall with black and white floor tiles.

Which character hosts Balloon World, the hide-and-seek mode added to Super Mario Odyssey in a 2018 update?

Luigi gives players 30 seconds to hide a balloon somewhere in a kingdom, then sets others around the world the task of finding it.

Which classic Mario enemy does Madame Broode keep as a golden pet in the Cascade Kingdom of Super Mario Odyssey?

Chain Chomp is her weapon and her weakness: Mario knocks off its sunhat, captures it and launches it straight back at her.

Which fiery enemy must Mario capture to swim across the pink molten sea of Super Mario Odyssey's Luncheon Kingdom?

Lava Bubble is the only way over many of the gaps, in a kingdom of pink lava and giant vegetables that was inspired by Italy.

What does Mario capture in Super Mario Odyssey's Luncheon Kingdom so that the giant bird Cookatiel carries him off?

A slab of meat is the bait: Cookatiel grabs it and drops it into the huge stew pot on top of Mount Volbono, where a Multi Moon waits.

Which hat-wearing parrot in Super Mario Odyssey recites the names of Power Moons that Mario has yet to find?

Talkatoo, whose name merges talk and cockatoo, only offers the title of each missing moon, leaving Mario to work out where it is.

Which bird swoops down and snatches Cappy from Mario on the Forgotten Isle in Super Mario Odyssey's Lost Kingdom?

Klepto retreats to a rising stone pillar with the stolen hat and simply flaps to another perch whenever Mario approaches it head-on.

What are the ghostly residents of the Cap Kingdom called in Super Mario Odyssey?

Bonneters count Cappy among them; the males have top-hat heads, while the females have cloche-hat heads trimmed with ribbons.

Which item, the only traditional power-up in Super Mario Odyssey, raises Mario's health from three wedges to six?

Life-Up Heart does the job the Life Mushroom did in the Galaxy games, and in Assist Mode it lifts the total to nine.

Which final gauntlet level in Super Mario Odyssey opens only after Mario has collected 500 Power Moons?

Darker Side keeps its single Power Moon for the very end of a run of challenges drawn from earlier kingdoms, and finishing it wins the Invisibility Hat.

Which block-building game, popular with children, eased the Super Mario Odyssey team's fears about camera controls?

Minecraft changed their minds: the team first feared a freely moving camera would be too hard for children, then reasoned that its young fan base proved otherwise.

Who directed Super Mario Odyssey and explained that Cappy was created so Mario had a buddy to travel with?

Kenta Motokura led the team while Shigeru Miyamoto stayed hands-off, reacting to the concepts the developers brought him rather than steering them.

Which Broodal handles client relations and is the first boss Mario fights in Super Mario Odyssey?

Topper leads the four wedding planners and attacks with his green hats; the designers kept him short so that Mario could easily jump on his head.

Which robot beside Hint Toad in Super Mario Odyssey takes five minutes to fetch each Power Moon hint?

Uncle amiibo sends a scanned Nintendo figure off to search the map, and certain figures also unlock their matching costumes earlier than usual.

Which Nintendo subsidiary gave additional development help to the main team behind Super Mario Odyssey?

1-Up Studio, known as Brownie Brown until 2013, was founded by former Square developers who had worked on the Mana series.

Which character works as an archivist inside Peach's Castle in Super Mario Odyssey, rewarding Mario's achievements?

Toadette, styled as she appeared in Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, hands over a Power Moon for each feat Mario has already completed.

With no lives system in Super Mario Odyssey, what does Mario lose each time he is defeated?

Ten coins is the whole penalty, making this the first 3D game in the series to do away with lives and the Game Over screen.

Which fellow Nintendo release beat Super Mario Odyssey to Game of the Year at The Game Awards 2017?

Breath of the Wild took the top prize, but Mario did not leave empty-handed: of six nominations, he won Best Family Game.

What kind of creature does Bowser set upon Mario's airship above the Ruined Kingdom in Super Mario Odyssey?

A dragon known as the Lord of Lightning does the job; the designers chose the standard dragon everyone pictures, rather than an original creature, in order to surprise players.