Editing Bowser's Castle

{{about|Bowser's actual castle|other uses|[[Bowser's Castle (disambiguation)]]}}

{{distinguish|Castle Bowser|Neo Bowser Castle}}

|image=[[File:MK8-Course-Bowser'sCastle.png|250px]]<br>Bowser's Castle in ''[[Mario Kart 8]]''/''[[Mario Kart 8 Deluxe]]''

|inhabitants=Bowser, [[Koopalings]], [[Bowser Jr.]], [[Bowser's Minions]]

|latest_appearance=''[[Mario & Luigi: Brothership]]'' ([[List of games by date#2024|2024]])

'''Bowser's Castle''' (or simply '''Bowser Castle''') is a recurring location in the [[Super Mario (franchise)|''Super Mario'' franchise]]. It is the domicile of the [[Koopa (species)|Koopa]] villain [[Bowser]] and the base of operations for [[Bowser's Minions|his army]]. The castle's name, design, and greater location vary from game to game, but the castle is usually a Western-themed castle and situated in a volcanic wasteland, and it is characteristically an important base from which Bowser formulates his plans and summons his minions to take over the [[Mushroom Kingdom]] and carry out the capture of [[Princess Peach]]. Bowser's Castle is usually the final area that [[Mario]] and his friends visit to defeat Bowser and rescue Peach and is usually guarded by Bowser's most powerful minions. In the ''Super Mario'' spin-offs, the castle can serve as a go-kart course, a tennis court, a baseball stadium, etc., depending on the sport on which the game is based.

 

In ''[[New Super Mario Bros.]]'', Bowser's Castle is relatively similar in appearance to the one in ''[[Super Mario World]]''. It is found rising out of a lake of lava and is at the end of a twelve-level-long path. Once inside, Mario/Luigi will encounter [[Thwomp]]s, [[Dry Bones]], [[burner]]s, as well as [[Lava Bubble|Podoboo]]s. The ? Switches in the castle have an unusual effect; once pressed, the gravity of the castle will invert and the Player, along with any enemies (excluding burners) will have their positions inverted. The second part of the castle is a looping room, similar to Worlds 4-4 and 7-4 of ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]'', with lots of lava, a single Podoboo and a single [[Fire Bar]]. Once the final boss door is reached at the castle's end, Mario/Luigi will have to battle both [[Bowser Jr.]] and [[Bowser]] to rescue [[Princess Peach]].

Later after the final battle, when six of the Koopalings flip Bowser on his belly, the castle starts collapsing and falling down on top of them.

The real Bowser's Castle differs from previous castle levels, as Mario spends much of it riding [[Spine Coaster|Bone Roller Coaster]]s. Mario then reaches a cannon which launches him to a tower with another cannon on it, which Mario uses to reach Bowser's tower. No [[Checkpoint Flag]]s are found in this level, although there is an invisible checkpoint at the start of Bowser's fight. Mario then walks to the big red door and enters. Peach is tied up to the flagpole, but before Mario can rescue her, Bowser falls from above and attempts to crush Mario, which causes the floor to collapse and the final battle begins. Bowser attacks Mario with fireballs, spiked balls and barrels as Mario makes his way up the castle until they reach the second bridge. Mario tricks Bowser into clearing the path to the switch, which Mario presses, causing the bridge to collapse and Bowser to fall. However, as Mario continues to make his way up the castle, Bowser returns and pursues Mario, breathing purple flames which jet towards Mario, until they reach the final bridge, in which Bowser chases Mario until Mario reaches the final switch, which he presses, once again causing the bridge to explode, sending Bowser falling into the lava. Mario then rescues Peach and they head back home.

Bowser's Castle reappears in [[World 6 (New Super Mario Bros. 2)|World 6]] of ''[[New Super Mario Bros. 2]]''. Like in ''New Super Mario Bros. Wii'', Mario and Luigi face Bowser through two phases at the end of the castle. Its appearance in this game is again similar to that of ''New Super Mario Bros.''

Although Bowser's Castle itself does not appear in ''[[New Super Mario Bros. U]]'', Bowser after capturing Peach's Castle in the beginning of the game starts renovating the castle to better resemble his own castle, ultimately succeeding by the time Mario fights Bowser Jr. for the final time at the end of [[Meringue Clouds|World 7]]. After he is defeated, the castle returns to its normal state.

In ''[[Super Mario Odyssey]]'', Bowser's Castle is located in [[Bowser's Kingdom]]. The castle featured in the game was constructed specifically for Bowser's wedding with Princess Peach.<ref>{{cite|language=en-us|author=Kanmuri, Yukari Tasai, Rachel Roberts, and Jenny Blenk, editors|title=''[[The Art of Super Mario Odyssey]]''|format=First English Edition|location=Milwaukie|publisher=[[Dark Horse Comics|Dark Horse Books]]|date=November 5, 2019|page=263|isbn=978-1-50671-375-5}}</ref> Unlike in most games, in which the castle has a Western design, the castle featured in this game is traditional [[Japan|Japanese]] castle, with a concentric series of walls and baileys, a traditional garden and tea house, and a central keep. Instead of the usual [[lava]], its moats are filled with [[Poison (obstacle)|poison]].

''[[The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3]]'' migrates away from the concept of King Koopa owning several castles and, instead, he only owns one castle, located in [[Dark Land]]. This castle is interchangeably referred to by the names "Kastle Koopa" and "Koopa Kastle". Kastle Koopa largely resembles its video game counterpart, with Bowser's image engraved on it, although it is blue in color and lacks the towers. Kastle Koopa also possesses a large hall filled with portraits, as well as bedrooms for the [[Koopalings]] and a laboratory most often used by [[Ludwig von Koopa|Kooky von Koopa]].

In the ''[[Super Mario World (television series)|Super Mario World]]'' cartoon produced by [[DIC Entertainment]] and Nintendo, the main base and home for Bowser and the Koopalings is called '''King Koopa's Neon Castle'''. Apparently located in a lava filled wasteland, Neon Castle lacks the amount of towers its game counterpart possesses, only having one; Neon Castle also possesses a rectangular shape and, like the Japanese version of the game, has "KOOPA" flashing in neon lights on its front, instead of "BOWSER". The castle carries over many of its game counterpart's traps, like [[Spinner|Ball 'N' Chain]]s, lava, [[Bowser Statue|fire-breathing statues]] and various kinds of minions. In the episode "[[Mama Luigi]]," Mario refers to it as King Koopa's "'''Coney Island Disco Palace'''," possibly based off of the final section of Bowser's Castle in that game, which featured a "[[? Block#Super Mario World|disco ball]]" that illuminated it.

At least one race course set in Bowser's Castle has appeared in every ''[[Mario Kart (series)|Mario Kart]]'' game to date. It is one of three course settings with this property, alongside [[Mario Circuit]] and [[Rainbow Road]]. Unlike them, however, this even extends to the arcade games (although these have featured equivalents to Mario Circuit and Rainbow Road in their place). Most games in the series introduce one [[New course|new]] Bowser's Castle course each; however, ''[[Super Mario Kart]]'' introduces three Bowser's Castles, while ''[[Mario Kart: Super Circuit]]'' introduces four. ''[[Mario Kart Tour]]'' does not introduce a fully original Bowser's Castle course, though it does introduce [[RMX Bowser's Castle 1]], a [[remix course]] based on ''Super Circuit''{{'}}s versions, particularly {{classic-link|GBA|Bowser's Castle 1}}.

Starting from ''Super Circuit'', Bowser's Castle courses are the third course of the [[Special Cup]], before Rainbow Road. They typically include hazards such as lava, [[Thwomp]]s, dangerous jumps, and [[Bowser Statue|giant statues of Bowser]] attacking the racers. Though most of these courses use the name "Bowser's Castle", those from ''Super Mario Kart'' and ''Mario Kart DS'' are instead called "Bowser Castle"; this was also true of those from ''Mario Kart: Super Circuit'' prior to their appearances in ''Mario Kart Tour''.

![[File:SMK Bowser Castle 1 Lower-Screen Map.png]]<br>[[Bowser Castle 1]]

|''[[Super Mario Kart]]''<br>''[[Mario Kart: Super Circuit]]''

|The first Bowser Castle of ''Super Mario Kart'', which appears as the fourth course of the [[Mushroom Cup]]. It features several long, straight paths, as well as 90° bends, and a couple of jumps. [[Thwomp]]s also appear here to hinder the racers' path.

![[File:SMK Bowser Castle 2 Lower-Screen Map.png]]<br>[[Bowser Castle 2]]

|''[[Super Mario Kart]]''<br>''[[Mario Kart: Super Circuit]]''

|The second Bowser Castle of ''Super Mario Kart'', which appears as the fourth course of the [[Flower Cup]]. Still featuring 90° bends and Thwomps, is more complicated in design, and includes a dead end that can only be passed over with a [[Cape Feather|Feather]].

![[File:SMK Bowser Castle 3 Lower-Screen Map.png]]<br>[[SNES Bowser Castle 3|Bowser Castle 3]]

|''[[Super Mario Kart]]''<br>''[[Mario Kart: Super Circuit]]''<br>''[[Mario Kart Tour]]''<br>''[[Mario Kart 8 Deluxe]]'' <small>(''[[Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – Booster Course Pass|Booster Course Pass]]'')</small>

|The final Bowser Castle of ''Super Mario Kart'', which appears as the fourth course of the [[Star Cup]]. It features several split paths on two straightaways, the first of which being made of several differently-sized jumps. In ''Mario Kart Tour'' and ''Mario Kart 8 Deluxe'', this first path is bent upwards, which is also in [[anti-gravity]] in ''Mario Kart 8 Deluxe''.

![[File:Bowser's Castle MK64.png|250px]]<br>[[N64 Bowser's Castle|Bowser's Castle]]

|''[[Mario Kart 64]]''<br>''[[Mario Kart Wii]]''

|This iteration appears in ''Mario Kart 64'' at the end of the Star Cup. Starting outside, racers drive into the castle and traverse various rooms while avoiding Thwomps.

|-

![[File:MKSC Bowser Castle 1 Starting Line.png|200px]]<br>[[GBA Bowser's Castle 1|Bowser's Castle 1]]

|''[[Mario Kart: Super Circuit]]''<br>''[[Mario Kart 7]]''<br>''[[Mario Kart Tour]]''

|The first Bowser's Castle of ''Mario Kart: Super Circuit'', appearing as the final course of the Mushroom Cup. It is a short, angular course with various 90° turns and Thwomps. It features a large door with Bowser's emblem in the background.

|-

![[File:MKSC Bowser Castle 2 Starting Line.png|200px]]<br>[[GBA Bowser's Castle 2|Bowser's Castle 2]]

|''[[Mario Kart: Super Circuit]]''<br>''[[Mario Kart DS]]''<br>''[[Mario Kart Tour]]''

|The second Bowser's Castle of ''Mario Kart: Super Circuit'', appearing as the final course of the Flower Cup. A slightly larger course with more 90° turns, as well as holes in the road. The course features a large statue of Bowser in the background, but in ''Mario Kart Tour'', it reuses the same environment from Bowser's Castle 1 instead.

|-

![[File:MKSC Bowser Castle 3 Starting Line.png|200px]]<br>[[GBA Bowser's Castle 3|Bowser's Castle 3]]

|''[[Mario Kart: Super Circuit]]''<br>''[[Mario Kart Wii]]''<br>''[[Mario Kart Tour]]''

Outside of these courses, Bowser's Castle as it appears in ''[[Paper Mario]]'' can be seen in the background of ''Mario Kart: Super Circuit''{{'}}s [[Rainbow Road (Mario Kart: Super Circuit)|Rainbow Road]].

===''Mario is Missing!''===

 

===''Mario's Time Machine''===

 

===''Yoshi's Safari''===

In ''[[Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island]]'' and its [[Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3|Game Boy Advance version]], Bowser's Castle is located atop a tall mountain in [[World 6 (Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island)|World 6]]. The last level takes place here and it requires the player to go into one of four random doors. Afterward, a giant playroom for [[Baby Bowser]] is discovered inside. After defeating Baby Bowser, Kamek will come by and make him extremely large. The player fights on the top of the castle which, throughout the battle, is slowly destroyed. The castle is later entirely destroyed after the final battle.

{{multiple image|image1=VistaHillSMRPG.png|image2=SMRPG NS Exor.jpg|width1=180|width2=180|direction=vertical|footer=Bowser's Keep in ''[[Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars]]'' (top) and [[Super Mario RPG (Nintendo Switch)|its Switch remake]] (bottom)|align=left}}

In ''[[Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars]]'', the castle is named '''Bowser's Keep''' in English and is isolated on a mountain of red, jagged rocks. The keep rests on the largest rock, which resembles Bowser himself. The castle can only be accessed by a long bridge that connects to the faraway [[Vista Hill]]. The halls of Bowser's Keep are lined with statues of [[hammer]]-holding [[Terrapin]]s, which are the soldiers that originally guard the castle (sans hammer). At the very beginning of the game during a standard princess rescue, Mario goes through an entry room, a heavily guarded hallway, and a lava-filled room with bridges (the second of which collapses, being later replaced with [[Donut Block|Donut Lift]]s), before battling Bowser atop a chandelier in a large room.

Eventually, Mario and his team make it back to the keep using the [[royal bus]] from [[Nimbus Land]]. After traveling through the original rooms, now full of stronger versions of early-game enemies, such as [[Terra Cotta]]s, [[Pro Goomba]]s, and [[Malakoopa]]s, intermixed with some larger enemies. After passing through the room where Mario and Bowser fought in the beginning, they travel through a dark, twisted hall and meet up with the thief [[Croco]], who offers to sell them items. Following this is a challenge of six doors known as [[the Trial Course]]. After four of the six are completed, they fall from a doorway into a tall room and get into a battle against the brainwashed [[Wizakoopa]]. After being defeated and freed from his mind control, Wizakoopa creates a [[magic treasure box]] and offers free healing, while a nearby Croco sells better items than before. The next room is a long hall filled with [[Thwomp]]s (including a [[Big Thwomp|large one]]), while [[Blazer]]s are shot from off-screen and lead to battle against [[Big Blaster]]s if touched. The final room is a copy of the Bowser fight room and is held by [[Boomer (Super Mario RPG)|Boomer]]. Once Boomer is defeated, the group is taken to the roof, where they battle Exor.

In the epilogue, Exor crumbles to dust, and the castle is shown being repaired by the reestablished Koopa Troop.

**[[Lava Bubble]] (background cameo, unfought)

***[[Chaindelier]]

**[[Forkie]]s

**[[Pro Goomba]]

**[[Grand Troopa]]

**[[Wizakoopa]] (boss)

**[[Big Blaster]]

**[[Boomer (Super Mario RPG)|Boomer]] (boss)

***[[Shyndelier]] (background cameo, unfought)

===''Yoshi's Story''===

{{main|P. 6-Finale}}

[[File:Bowser's Castle (YS).png|thumb|left|Bowser's Castle in ''Yoshi's Story'']]

In ''[[Yoshi's Story]]'', Baby Bowser's Castle is split into four different areas: [[Mecha Castle]], [[Lift Castle]], [[Ghost Castle]], and [[Magma Castle]]. No matter what part of the castle Yoshi decides to go to, he will always meet up with Baby Bowser. The outside of the castle will also be seen whenever one of the Yoshis gets defeated, captured and brought to the castle, along with when [[White Shy Guy]] retrieves one. It is also seen in the ending sequence when Baby Bowser's minions carry him away.

Compared to most of the castle's other appearances, which at least look cartoonish in some way, this iteration of the castle looks much more ominous and menacing.

===''Mario Tennis'' series===

[[File:BowsercastleMTO.jpg|thumb|Bowser's Castle is a tennis court in ''Mario Tennis Open'']]

Bowser's Castle has made various appearances throughout the [[Mario Tennis (series)|''Mario Tennis'' series]], usually as the setting of various tennis courses. In  ''[[Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64)|Mario Tennis]]'' for [[Nintendo 64]], Bowser's Castle is the location of the [[Bowser Court]]. In ''[[Mario Power Tennis]]'', the [[Bowser Castle Court]] takes place here, and unlike the Bowser Stage in the previous game, it functions as a standard court. In ''[[Mario Tennis Open]]'', Bowser's Castle directly appears as a tennis court of the [[Bowser's Castle (Mario Tennis Open)|same name]]. In ''[[Mario Tennis Aces]]'', Bowser's Castle is located in the center of [[Inferno Island]], and it unusually has a temple-like structure; it is where the [[Battle the Treasure Guardian!]] mission takes place.

===''Paper Mario'' series===

====''Paper Mario''====

[[File:PM Bowserscastle.png|thumb|left|Bowser's Castle in the sky]]

In ''[[Paper Mario]]'', a new Bowser's Castle is secretly built right underneath [[Peach's Castle]] and Bowser lifts it into the sky, kidnapping Princess Peach, along with her castle. The power used to lift the whole castle into the sky is the [[Star Spirits]]' and the [[Star Rod (Paper Mario)|Star Rod's]] power, both of which Bowser had stolen from [[Star Haven]]. Bowser also jails the [[Chancellor|Toad Minister]] and nine other [[Toad (species)|Toad]]s, a [[Dryite]] and a [[Bumpty]] who failed to escape during [[Princess Peach]]'s party. There are two [[Toad House]]s (made from the slate in the prison), a shop run by a [[Spiked Goomba]], [[Storehouse]] and three [[Guard Door]]s. In the end, Mario manages to take back the Star Rod as well as save Princess Peach and her castle. Bowser's Castle, meanwhile, ended up destroyed alongside the nearby [[Power Platform]], the latter due to it undergoing a meltdown due to the intensity of Mario and Bowser's fight. In this game, Bowser's Castle looks bigger than Peach's.

 

Some notable residents of Bowser's Castle include [[Guard Door]], [[Mr. Hammer]], [[Spiky John]], [[Spiky Tom]], and [[Chancellor|Toad Minister]]. There is also a bored [[Spiked Goomba]] who sells items without Bowser's consent ([[Storehouse]]), and two [[Toad (species)|Toad]]s who make [[Toad House]]s with the slate in the prisons.

Like in the first ''Paper Mario'', Bowser's castle is the final area in ''[[Paper Mario: Sticker Star]]''. It is initially disguised as a cliffhead. However, after Mario collects all Royal Stickers, he manages to reveal via paperization the true form of the cliff. Bowser causes castle to float to prevent Mario from entering, although [[Wiggler #Paper Mario: Sticker Star|Flutter]] helps Mario arrive. Mario later defeats Kamek in this castle and later defeated Bowser (who is currently using the sixth Royal Sticker after he accidentally obtained it).

The castle's entry hall consists of a hallway where Princess Peach's portrait is initially seen, just out of reach. When Mario attempts to lower it, a trapdoor opens, leading to a confrontation with [[Roy|Roy Koopa]]. A door in the pit leads to a factory where all of the stolen paint from [[Prism Island]] is brought and mixed into [[black paint]], which is then used to color weapons such as [[Bomber Bill|Banzai Bills]] and [[Bob-omb|Bob-ombs]], which [[Black Bowser]] intends to use to paint the world black. Mario manages to destroy the tank holding the black paint, flooding the factory. The factory also has a warp pipe leading back to the entry hall.

|enemies=[[Goomba]]s<br>[[Koopa Troopa]]s<br>[[Shy Guy]]s<br>[[Spiny|Spinies]]<br>[[Hammer Bro]]s.<br>[[Buzzy Beetle]]s<br>[[Spike]]s<br>[[Stone Spike]]s<br>[[Snow Spike]]s<br>[[Big Cutout Soldier]]s<br>[[Li'l Cutout Soldier]]s<br>'''[[Handaconda]]'''<br>'''''[[Paper Mistake Buzzy Beetle]]'''''<br>'''[[Scissors (boss)|Scissors]]'''

In ''[[Paper Mario: The Origami King]]'', Bowser's Castle boasts a similar design to that of the previous two games, although the design is about the same as [[Black Bowser's Castle]] from ''[[Paper Mario: Color Splash]]''. When Mario and [[Olivia]] first arrive at [[Shangri-Spa]] on their quest to destroy the green [[streamer]], they catch sight of a fortress with a scary-looking face in the distance that does not blend in with the area, also noticing that the streamer leads into the fortress. They soon meet [[Kamek]], who explains that the fortress is Bowser's Castle, where Bowser had retreated after escaping [[King Olly]]'s attack on [[Peach's Castle]] at the beginning of the game, but it was overrun with [[Folded Soldiers]] upon his arrival. Kamek had attempted to engage an emergency protocol for the castle, but pressed a button that shut down its engines instead, causing the castle to crash-land into Shangri-Spa's banquet hall. As a result, those who managed to avoid getting folded were forced to clean up the spa.

After finding that a door on the castle's second floor (where Bowser Jr. is trying to push himself through) is locked, Kamek guides Mario to his room for a key to the door, but mysteriously vanishes along the way, leaving Mario to find his way to Kamek's room himself. Inside a hallway lined with five doors, each leading to a room for a species of the Koopa Troop (from left to right: Goomba, Koopa Troopa, Kamek, Hammer Bro, and Spike) and with a Bowser portrait right above the door, Mario can peek through a small window to the left of each door for a hint of what he can find inside each room. There is a [[Flashy Mushroom]] behind some crates inside the room for Goombas, an Origami Koopa Troopa behind a [[treasure chest]] inside the room for Koopa Troopas, [[Luigi]] inside Kamek's room, an indicator for a [[Hidden Block|hidden]] [[? Block]] behind a toppled chair inside the room for Hammer Bros., and an Origami [[Spike]] inside another Treasure Chest plus a glimpse of a Collectible Treasure behind that chest inside a room for Spikes. The door to Kamek's room is initially camouflaged into a wall with a portrait of [[King Olly]] right above where the door would be; Mario must dislodge that portrait by hammering the wall right below the portrait repeatedly until it falls to the ground, revealing another portrait of Bowser. By doing so, a [[Magic Circle]] appears for Mario to use the [[1,000-Fold Arms]] to peel off the wall, revealing the door to Kamek's room. After Mario enters the room, Luigi hands him a [[Key to Bowser's Castle]]; Mario uses the key to unlock the door on the second floor that leads into another hallway, which is littered with sliced pieces of the Koopa Troop. Here, he is forced into a battle with [[Handaconda]], which has captured Olivia.

After defeating Fawful, the Mario Bros. make it into the throne room where Bowletta resides. Bowletta reveals she will not only conquer the Beanbean Kingdom, but the Mushroom Kingdom as well, and attacks the Mario Bros. They fight and seemingly defeat Bowletta after a long battle, but a Time Bob-omb suddenly appears and knocks them out, and she then swallows the brothers. Inside her body, the Bros. must fight and defeat [[Cackletta]][[Cackletta#Soul|'s spirit]]; after they defeat her, they are ejected out of Bowletta's body before she is turned back into Bowser and Cackletta's spirit perishes. The Mario Bros., Peasley and Blablanadon then escape the castle before it blows up, courtesy of a time bomb planted by Prince Peasley. Bowser regains consciousness and begins wondering what he has been doing the whole time, only for the castle to explode moments later and send him flying into the camera. The castle's remains crash into [[Oho Ocean]] in the original game, while it simply explodes and disappears in the remake; Bowser is fortunately saved by Prince Peasley.

The "main" grounded Bowser's Castle appears in the credits when the [[Toad Express]] drops the present containing Bowser through its roof. In the remake, only the exterior walls remain here, and the ''Minion Quest'' ending has the castle being rebuilt after Bowser is dropped.

*[[Iggy]] (boss)

*[[Morton]] (boss)

*[[Lemmy]] (boss)

*[[Ludwig]] (boss)

*[[Roy]] (boss)

*[[Wendy]] (boss)

*[[Larry]] (boss)

In ''[[Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story]]'' and ''[[Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey]]'', the castle, here labeled as "Bowser Castle", is taken over by [[Fawful]], with [[Midbus]] taking control of operations. After Bowser helps fire a [[Bomber Bill|Banzai Bill]] at his hijacked castle from [[Dimble Wood]], Midbus commands the castle to elevate, dodging the Banzai Bill, and then lands it on top of Bowser. Mario and Luigi must travel to Bowser's [[Rump Command]] and cause Bowser to [[Super Bowser|grow large enough]] to fight his castle.

In battle, the Castle's main attack is a flying ram, which Bowser must counter by punching. Its main tactic is opening its entrance doors and releasing Spinies, which prevent Bowser from punching. After the castle is defeated, Midbus retreats and the castle is returned to its original location. Later, as Bowser attempts to enter the castle, Midbus commands it to hover out of Bowser's reach. After wandering to the opposite side of the area, Midbus fires a giant cannonball at Bowser, who Mario and Luigi must help by building up energy in his arms. With their assistance, he throws it back at the castle, damaging it badly enough to force it to land. Bowser then gains access to the castle, where he discovers that Fawful has not only brainwashed his minions, but had also turned his training facility into a [[Fawful Theater|theater]]. In the meantime, Bowser decides to see the show Fawful puts on. After a few minutes, the doors to the theater open. Inside, a Goomba acting under the orders of Fawful tricked him into sitting in a VIP chair, which fires Bowser onto the stage and forces him into a fight against Midbus.

The castle is first seen during the first cutscene involving Bowser, where after a disagreement and then a brawl, he and his paper counterpart decide to team up. They proceed to kidnap their respective [[Princess Peach]]es and return to the castle. The castle is later seen in Doop Doop Dunes, where upon entering the area, the Mario Bros. and [[Paper Mario (character)|Paper Mario]] spot Bowser's Castle in the distance, which they must cross the desert to reach. As they come close, the Bowsers notice and decide to blast the gang with [[cannonball]]s. The first shot misses them, but destroys the bridge connecting the castle to the desert, while the second shot knocks them all out cold. [[Wendy]], [[Roy]], [[Larry]] and [[Ludwig]] then arrive to take them to the [[Twinsy Tropics Dungeon]], while the [[Bowser Jr.]] duo collects the book containing Paper Mario's world.

Much later in the game, the group reaches Bowser's Castle in order to rescue the princesses and get the book back. They learn the [[Trio Glider]] before encountering the two [[Kamek]]s and [[Papercraft King Boo]], who is controlled by [[Morton]] and [[Lemmy]]. [[Toadette]] also arrives just in time with a [[Papercraft Yoshi]] to fight the Papercraft King Boo. After the victory, Kamek kidnaps Toadette to bring the production of papercrafts to a stop, then prepares to build [[Papercraft Bowser]]. The gang later rescues Toadette before encountering the Bowser Juniors on guard duty.

The Princess Peaches then escape and greet the team, but are caught by the Bowser Juniors. They mean to fight, but after accidentally revealing they possessed the book the Bros. are after (which they did not know they had), the pair flee. The group eventually catches them and forces them to hand over the book, but the Juniors escape after giving them a decoy book. The gang chases them down and engages in a battle with them, defeating the pair. Before they can get the book back, the two Bowsers enter the room, enraged at their sons' defeat. They then activate "the boosters", lifting Bowser's Castle out of the lava moat and dubbing it "[[Neo Bowser Castle]]". The gang escapes, forgetting the book, and the Bowsers retaliate for their sons' defeat by firing on [[Peach's Castle]] and ravaging it. The castle is presumably returned to ground level after the Bowsers' defeat.

After Bowser's Castle becomes Neo Bowser Castle, its original location at the end of Doop Doop Dunes [[Unrevisitable area|can no longer be explored]], even when the game is completed.

Bowser's Castle sometimes appears in the [[Super Smash Bros. (series)|''Super Smash Bros.'' series]]. In ''[[Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS]]'' and later also ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'', a stage based on [[Bowser's Sky Castle]] from ''Paper Mario: Sticker Star'' appears in the [[Paper Mario (stage)|Paper Mario]] stage, where at certain intervals, the castle's eyes may light up and the castle entrance (modeled after Bowser's head) may turn or close its mouth, heavily damaging any character inside. Additionally, in ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'', the [[smashwiki:Molten Fortress|Molten Fortress]] sub-area in [[smashwiki:Adventure Mode: World of Light|World of Light]] is modeled after Bowser's Castle.

Bowser's Castle appears as a basketball court in ''[[Mario Hoops 3-on-3]]''. The court has many gimmicks, including [[Thwomp]]s, [[Lava Bubble]]s, and [[Bomb (species)|Bomb]]s.

Bowser's Castle has made various appearances in the [[Mario & Sonic (series)|''Mario & Sonic'' series]]. In the [[Wii]] version of ''[[Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (Wii)|Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games]]'', Bowser's Castle is where [[Dream Ice Hockey]] takes place, and a background based on it is in the second segment of the Mario World routine in [[Dream Figure Skating]]. In the [[Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (Nintendo DS)|Nintendo DS version]], [[Blizland]] has elements of Bowser's Castle, combined with elements of Dr. Eggman's factories. In ''[[Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games]]'', a large portion of [[Mario's Figure Skating Spectacular]] features a layout inspired by Bowser's Castle based on its appearance in ''Super Mario 3D Land''. In the Nintendo 3DS version of ''[[Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games (Nintendo 3DS)|Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games]]'', Bowser's Castle appears only on the overworld in the [[Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games (Nintendo 3DS)#Road to Rio|Road to Rio]] mode.

===''Yoshi's Woolly World'' / ''Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World''===

{{main|King Bowser's Castle (Yoshi's Woolly World)}}

[[File:KingBowserCastle YWW.png|thumb|Yoshi in Bowser's Castle in ''Yoshi's Woolly World'']]

In ''[[Yoshi's Woolly World]]'' and ''[[Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World]]'', Yoshi chases after Kamek to Bowser's Castle to save his fellow Yoshis. Once he enters the castle, he must seek [[yarn ball]]s of four different colors to open the door to Baby Bowser. The first phase of the boss fight is very similar to that of previous games. Yoshi must throw a yarn ball at Baby Bowser, stomp him, and repeat the process two more times to proceed. In the second phase, Baby Bowser grows giant and becomes Mega Baby Bowser. He jumps into the background and hurls big yarn balls at Yoshi. To win, Yoshi must throw these big yarn balls back at Mega Baby Bowser. Upon victory, the player unlocks eight new Yoshi colors, as well as [[List of Yoshi designs in Yoshi's Woolly World|Baby Bowser Yoshi]] if all five [[Wonder Wool]] in the level were collected.

In ''[[The Super Mario Bros. Movie]]'', Bowser's Castle is located on a giant floating [[airship]] (referred to as '''Bowser's ship''' by [[Cranky Kong]], '''Bowser's airship''' in the bonus features,<ref>"Leveling Up: Making ''The Super Mario Bros. Movie''" bonus feature subtitles</ref> and '''Bowser's Island Castle''' in a [[Jakks Pacific]] playset<ref>{{file link|TSMBM Bowser Island Castle Toy.jpg}}</ref>) that [[Bowser]] and [[Bowser's Minions|his forces]] use to travel between kingdoms. The ship consists of a volcano and [[lava]] similar to those seen in the [[Dark Land]]s, as well as a massive figurehead depicting Bowser's head and a giant pool of lava, resembling depictions of Bowser's Castle from ''[[Paper Mario]]'' and ''[[Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga]]'', respectively, complete with [[Spike Ball]]s attached to [[Ball and chain (windup)|chains]] like the former acting as [[anchor]]s to help it descend. Additionally, the volcano's crater, as seen during Peach and Bowser's wedding held at the castle, is later revealed to also double as a missile silo used to launch the Bomber Bill that Bowser plans to use to destroy the Mushroom Kingdom once the wedding gets thwarted by the heroes.

After Bowser obtains the [[Super Star]] from the [[penguin]] army, he holds a celebration in his castle with his minions. Later in the film, [[Luigi]] is captured by the [[Shy Guy]]s and [[Snifit]] and transported to Bowser's Castle, where he is imprisoned along with the penguin army. The [[Kong army]] is also later captured and imprisoned at the castle after being ambushed by Bowser's minions. After getting sucked into [[Brooklyn]] through the [[mysterious pipe]], the ship and castle are destroyed by [[Mario]] and Luigi with the use of the Super Star.