Freezing water
- “BRRR! Frostbite Danger! Do not swim here. I'm serious. --The Penguin”
- —Sign in Snowman's Land, Super Mario 64
Freezing water,[1] originally called cold water,[2] appears in the Super Mario franchise as hazardous water that hurts the player character on contact, due to having a low temperature.
History[edit]
Super Mario series[edit]
Super Mario 64 / Super Mario 64 DS[edit]
- “Snowman Mountain ahead. Keep out! And don't try the Triple Jump over the ice block shooter. If you fall into the freezing pond, your power decreases quickly, and you won't recover automatically. --The Snowman”
- —Sign in Snowman's Land, Super Mario 64
Cold water in Super Mario 64 and its remake, Super Mario 64 DS (the latter where it is known under its current name) appears in two forms in Snowman's Land. Touching the first type of water takes away three wedges from a player character's health (or four and a half wedges if Mario, Luigi, or Wario has no cap) and bounces away, in a similar manner to lava. Cold water is found only in a large pool underneath the Chill Bully's platform, and in the Chief Chilly battle inside Chief Chilly Challenge in the remake. When pushed off, the Chill Bully will melt in the cold water and be defeated. In Super Mario 64 DS, Wario is able to withstand this cold water with his metal power-up. When walking on this water, he will move as if he is in quicksand. The second type makes up the freezing pond and acts much like regular water; unlike in regular water, however, this water is so cold that the player will begin to lose a wedge of their Health Meter for about every three seconds they are in it, and will not recover health automatically. If the player loses their last piece of health in the freezing pond, the drowning animation is still used. Also, the low health alarm will be heard when the player has one or two wedges left. In Super Mario 64, if mods are used to fill Cool, Cool Mountain and Wing Mario Over the Rainbow with water (due to their being "cold" courses and Mario's shivering in his idle animation in these courses), the water would be programmed to be freezing by default.[3]
Super Mario Galaxy[edit]
- “The water here is cold! Really, really cold. Seriously! If you fall in, it's going to hurt!”
- —Sign in Freezeflame Galaxy, Super Mario Galaxy
Freezing water in Super Mario Galaxy can be swum in, like with regular water, but if Mario or Luigi stays in it for too long, they will lose one slice of their Health Meter. Therefore, to traverse it, an Ice Flower is required. When jumping into this water, the screen will "tingle" for a split-second. Freezing water appears in Freezeflame Galaxy.
There is an exploit that allows Mario or Luigi to traverse freezing water without using an Ice Flower or taking damage over time. Usually, Mario or Luigi cannot jump in water unless they are next to land. However, a second player utilizing the Star Pointer can make Mario or Luigi jump, even if they are in water. Jumping out of the freezing water cancels the internal timer for taking damage in freezing water. This means that if the second player makes Mario or Luigi jump consecutively within around 2 seconds of each jump, Mario or Luigi will safely be able to swim across freezing water.
Super Mario Odyssey[edit]
- “Cold! So c-cold! Get out, quick!”
- —Cappy, Super Mario Odyssey
Freezing water in Super Mario Odyssey appears mainly throughout the Snow Kingdom, as well as a bonus area in the Sand Kingdom. Here, the same ticking sound that Bob-ombs make in more recent games plays when Mario is in it. If Mario swims in freezing water, the screen will gradually become covered with frost, and if he stays in too long, he will take damage. However, he can avoid taking damage from the freezing water by capturing one of the kingdom's purple Cheep Cheeps. Gushens can also travel safely across freezing water. One area of the Darker Side course also features a moving block of freezing water, through which Mario must swim in as little time as possible to avoid a set of Fuzzies.
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze[edit]
In Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, freezing water appears throughout the level Seashore War. If the Kongs fall into a body of freezing water, they are flung back to dry land with one heart from their health meter depleted.
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | 冷たい水[4] Tsumetai Mizu |
Cold Water | |
| Italian | Acqua ghiacciata[?] | Chilly water | Super Mario Odyssey |
| Lago Gelato[5] | Frozen Lake | Super Mario 64 | |
| Acqua gelida[6] | Frigid water |
References[edit]
- ^ Knight, Michael (March 16, 2010). Nintendo DS Pocket Guide. Prima Games (American English). ISBN 978-0-307-46760-7. Page 300-301 and 305-306.
- ^ Pelland, Scott and Dan Owsen (1996). The Super Mario 64 Player's Guide. Redmond: Nintendo of America (American English). Page 90.
- ^ SwankyBox. Is it Possible to Beat Super Mario 64 if All Levels are Flooded with Water? (25:02). YouTube (English). Retrieved May 22, 2024.
- ^ Kazuya Sakai (Ambit), kikai, Akinori Sao, Junko Fukuda, Kunio Takayama, and Ko Nakahara (Shogakukan) (ed.) (2015). Encyclopedia Super Mario Bros.. Tokyo: Shogakukan (Japanese). ISBN 978-4-09-106569-8. Page 92.
- ^ Super Mario Bros. Enciclopedia. Page 92.
- ^ Super Mario Odyssey PRIMA Guide. Page 131.
