Carry

Carry
	; Artwork of Mario carrying a Koopa Shell from New Super Mario Bros. Wii
First appearance	Punch Ball Mario Bros. (1984)
Latest appearance	Mario & Luigi: Brothership (2024)
Comparable
	Gulp; Team up

Carrying items and characters is a recurring action in the platforming games of the extended Super Mario franchise. It is used both to deliver entities to specific locations as part of a challenge or to throw them as a projectile weapon. Depending on the game, the holder, and what is being held, the object may be carried in front of or over the head of the holder. In many side-scrolling games, the carry button is shared with the run button, though in free-camera games it is more often shared with the basic attack function, such as punching or spinning. Yoshi is able to perform a similar action where he holds objects or enemies in his mouth rather than in his arms after grabbing them with his tongue.

History[edit]

Mario Bros. series[edit]

Punch Ball Mario Bros.[edit]

Carriable and throwable objects first appear in the Super Mario franchise as a whole in Punch Ball Mario Bros., where the eponymous Punch Balls are grabbed and thrown to defeat enemies due to the bumpable floor from the original Mario Bros. not being present.

Mario Clash[edit]

In Mario Clash, Koopa Shells must be thrown to stun enemies to defeat them in a similar manner to the Punch Balls in Punch Ball Mario Bros. They can be thrown to the side or between the foreground and background.

Super Mario series[edit]

Super Mario Bros. 2[edit]

Carrying objects and enemies is introduced to the main Super Mario series in Super Mario Bros. 2, where it is one of the game's primary actions due to stomping being absent. Objects are picked up from below and held over the character's head. They include vegetables, enemies, bombs, Mushroom Blocks, and keys, among other objects. Different characters pick up and walk while carrying at different speeds, with Toad being the fastest, Mario being second, Luigi being third, and the Princess being slowest.

Super Mario Bros. 3[edit]

Carrying is altered in Super Mario Bros. 3, where objects are now picked up from the side, held in front of the player character while carried, and kicked when let go rather than thrown. Koopa Shells and other shells are the most common things that can be carried, though Bob-ombs and White Blocks are also possible to carry. Carrying is also the only way to give Frog Mario normal movement on land.

In World-e in Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3, a few entities can be carried in the same manner as in Super Mario Bros. 2 instead.

Super Mario World[edit]

In Super Mario World carrying works mostly like it does in Super Mario Bros. 3, but now objects can also be thrown straight upwards into the air instead of just in front of the player. Carryable objects include shells of various types, keys, Grab Blocks, Bob-ombs, Goombas, and Baby Yoshis.

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins[edit]

After being absent in the first Super Mario Land, carrying appears in Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins. Only Koopa Shells can be carried, and Mario holds them diagonally upwards in front of him.

Super Mario 64[edit]

In Super Mario 64, Mario can carry members of the Bob-omb family, crates, MIPS, and Baby Penguins with the punch button, and can also pick up Koopa Shells underwater. When carrying something on land, he moves slower and jumps lower than normal. The non-enemy characters that can be picked up will be gently set down if the button is pressed again while holding still. If pressed while moving or in the air, he will instead throw it, and always throws the other enemies and objects.

In Super Mario 64 DS, anything thrown by Wario will travel much further than when thrown by anyone else. Yoshi instead holds objects in his mouth, and can turn some into eggs.

Super Mario Sunshine[edit]

Carrying objects in Super Mario Sunshine works similar to in Super Mario 64, though he always sets down objects when not moving. He can pick up fruits, Bob-ombs, and barrels. His jumping and other movements are unimpeded while he carries them.

New Super Mario Bros.[edit]

Carrying in New Super Mario Bros. works the same as in Super Mario Bros. 3. Mario and Luigi can carry shells and Bob-ombs.

Super Mario Galaxy[edit]

In Super Mario Galaxy, Mario can again carry shells and Bob-ombs, and is only slightly impeded in movement while he does so. He can pick up the objects simply by walking into them, though spinning can bring them in closer, especially while underwater.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii[edit]

In New Super Mario Bros. Wii, carrying shells and Bob-ombs functions the same as in Super Mario Bros. 3. Heavier objects, such as Ice Blocks, other player characters, and Toad, can only be picked up by shaking the Wii remote next to them, and are held overhead.

Super Mario Galaxy 2[edit]

Carrying in Super Mario Galaxy 2 functions the same as in Super Mario Galaxy. Spin Drills are a powerup that is carried overhead like a throwable object, though they are instead used to dig rather than thrown.

New Super Mario Bros. 2[edit]

Carrying in New Super Mario Bros. 2 once again functions as it does in Super Mario Bros. 3.

New Super Mario Bros. U[edit]

Carrying in New Super Mario Bros. U functions as it does in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Baby Yoshis reappear and can be carried in the same manner as shells, but now have abilities that can be activated while they are carried.

Super Mario 3D World[edit]

In Super Mario 3D World, certain objects again can be carried, as well as other player characters in multiplayer mode.

Super Mario Odyssey[edit]

In Super Mario Odyssey, a few objects such as seeds can be carried and thrown.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder[edit]

Carrying returns as a basic action in Super Mario Bros. Wonder. Every character can perform it, including Yoshi, marking one of the first times Yoshi has been able to carry objects in his arms.

Wario's Woods[edit]

In all versions of Wario's Woods, Toad must pick up and place creatures as part of the game's falling block puzzle theme.

Wario Land series[edit]

In the Wario Land series, carrying is a common ability across each of the games. Both enemies and objects can be carried and thrown, and stunned enemies are picked up simply by walking into them. In Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 and Virtual Boy Wario Land, only large forms of Wario could carry enemies, though items like keys could be carried by any form. The former game also allowed Wario to summon his own coins as projectile weapons or use them to pay tolls. In Wario Land II and onwards, certain large enemies are considered "heavy" and weigh Wario down considerably to carry. In Wario Land 3, Wario's throw can be upgraded to move in a straight horizontal line if charged up. In Wario Land: Shake It!, carried enemies can be shaken to force coins from them.

Donkey Kong series[edit]

Carrying is an important ability in Donkey Kong for the Game Boy and Mario vs. Donkey Kong, with both games taking several gameplay cues from Super Mario Bros. 2. Both objects such as Trash Cans and keys as well as various enemies can be picked up, carried, and thrown, which is done overhead.

Donkey Kong Country and Donkey Kong Land series[edit]

Carrying is a common ability in the Donkey Kong Country series and Donkey Kong Land series. Most carryable objects are barrels, though certain other objects as well as some stunned enemies can also be carried. The team up is a move in some of the games where one character picks up the other to throw them.

Super Smash Bros. series[edit]

Various items can be picked up and thrown or used as weapons in the Super Smash Bros. series. Donkey Kong can also carry large objects such as crates and even other fighters when grabbed due to his strength.

Donkey Kong 64[edit]

Carrying occasionally appears in Donkey Kong 64, though carryable barrels are much rarer than in most Donkey Kong games. Chunky Kong is also able to pick up boulders with relative ease due to his strength.

Wario World[edit]

In Wario World, Wario can pick up enemies and use them as projectiles or blunt weapons against other enemies. The Wild Swing-Ding has him twirl a grabbed enemy in a rapid circle.

Mario & Luigi: Brothership[edit]

Carrying objects appears as an ability in Mario & Luigi: Brothership, often used for carrying giant plugs among other objects. This move is introduced on Rumbla Island when Mario and Luigi carry Willma and her toolbox back to her home. Mario can pick up objects normally while Luigi picks them up and puts them down via Luigi Logic. Mario and Luigi cannot jump while carrying objects, and must pass the object between each other when needing to jump over ledges.

Gallery[edit]

For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Carry.