Klepto

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This article is about the bird enemy. For the mission in Super Mario 64 DS, see Klepto the Condor. For the boss from Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, see Big Bird.
Not to be confused with Kleptoad.
Klepto
A Klepto in Super Mario Odyssey
Artwork from Super Mario Odyssey
First appearance Super Mario 64 (1996)
Latest appearance Mario Strikers: Battle League (version 1.1.0, cameo) (2022)
Comparable
You didn't lose your hat, did you? If you did, you'll have to stomp on the condor to get it back.”
Narration, Super Mario 64

Kleptos are large condor enemies introduced in Super Mario 64. They are heavy-lidded birds with hooked bills and white ruffs around the base of their necks. They typically are associated with desert-themed areas.

Outside of the Mario Party series and cameos, Kleptos are thieves. They either are encountered carrying Power Stars between their talons or swoop down to steal Mario's cap. In Mario Party, where they have made most of their appearances in the franchise, they typically appear to transport players to other parts of the board. In most games where they appear, they are summoned using Klepto Orbs.

History[edit]

Super Mario series[edit]

Super Mario 64 / Super Mario 64 DS[edit]

KleptoModel render of a Klepto from Super Mario 64 DS
Klepto in Super Mario 64 (left) and Super Mario 64 DS (right)

In Super Mario 64 and Super Mario 64 DS, Klepto, also known as Klepto the Condor[1] or Big Bird,[2] is seen flying around Shifting Sand Land. Klepto begins at the oasis in later missions. Klepto usually flies around the four pillars, especially if it is holding an object.

Klepto has the Power Star of the mission "In the Talons of the Big Bird." Mario can strike Klepto to make it let go of the object it has, though he cannot defeat Klepto outright. Without the Power Star, Klepto attempts to steal Mario's cap by swooping down at Mario.

There are a few more Kleptos in Super Mario 64 DS, including Sunshine Isles and the small version of Tiny-Huge Island. Kleptos also try to steal Luigi's and Wario's Caps. Kleptos can only harm Yoshi, something that is also true for the Klepto of Sunshine Isles to any player character, as well as its inability to steal any cap.

Super Mario Odyssey[edit]

Image from the Lost Kingdom brochure

In Super Mario Odyssey, Klepto is encountered upon reaching the Lost Kingdom. It takes Cappy from Mario and retreats with him on a pedestal, made up of two platforms: one that is raised, and one that is lower. To get Cappy back, Mario must lure Klepto into sitting upon the lower platform, and then Ground Pound the higher one, making the platform Klepto is sitting upon shoot up and defeat it. Klepto appears again in a Moon Pipe sub-area in the same kingdom, and is defeated in the same manner.

Unlike Klepto in Super Mario 64, it here has two toes pointing forward and one pointing backward on each foot. It shares this trait with the Kleptos of Mario Pinball Land. Also, its design is somewhat different from previous games, with two tufts of hair, visible purple bags underneath its eyes, and a shady frown instead of a tired-looking expression.

Mario Party series[edit]

Mario Party 3[edit]

In Mario Party 3, three Kleptos can be seen playing tic-tac-toe on the upper left side of Spiny Desert.

Mario Party 4[edit]

Klepto also appears in Mario Party 4 on Shy Guy's Jungle Jam. Players can pay it five coins to be transported to the other side of the board, collecting coins in the process. In Paths of Peril, Klepto picks up players that fall off the stage.

Mario Party 5[edit]

Fish Upon a Star from Mario Party 5
A Klepto in the minigame Fish Upon a Star in Mario Party 5

Klepto is also used as transportation in Mario Party 5. However, this time, Klepto is featured as an orb where, if landed on, it appears and takes the character to another character's space determined by a roulette. In the instruction guide, Klepto's name is erroneously spelled Clepto. They can be seen in the background of Fish Upon a Star.

Mario Party 6[edit]

In Mario Party 6, Klepto is still a part of the Klepto Orb, except it always returns players back to the Start Space. It also flies in the background of the minigame Pokey Punch-out and the Solo Mode board Thirsty Gulch.

Mario Party Advance[edit]

Klepto in Mario Party Advance.
“Now, for-for-for... for you to solve it!”
Klepto, Mario Party Advance

In Mario Party Advance, Klepto guards a treasure chest at Klepto Ruins. He is encountered alongside Mr. E, who entered the ruins in order to discover the treasure's ruins. Klepto is asked by Mr. E about where the treasure is, and flies up to reveal a treasure chest under his body. He then says that the treasure has a four-digit code, and that the code is his "favorite word." The code is the same word he stutters throughout the conversation, "for", and therefore 4444. If the code is entered incorrectly, Klepto berates the player and bluntly says that "for mean four." If the code is entered correctly, the chest opens to reveal a giant pile of shiny treasure, and Klepto congratulates the player. Klepto offers the treasure to Mr. E, but he refuses as it is not a mystery any more and quickly runs away. Klepto again praises the player for solving his riddle and gives them the Map Maker Gaddget as a reward. The ending reveals that Klepto changed the chest's code in order to better protect the treasure.

Mario Party 7[edit]

Klepto makes a few small appearances in Mario Party 7. Landing on one of the Green Spaces in Bowser's Enchanted Inferno! causes Klepto to grab the Star and move it elsewhere. Klepto can also be seen in cube form as the tops of totem poles on the Neon Heights board.

Mario Party 8[edit]

Test for the Best near the 5000pt score in the game Mario Party 8.
Klepto seen in Mario Party 8.

Klepto makes a minor cameo appearance in Mario Party 8, holding up the sign at the 5000 point mark in Test for the Best.

Mario Golf series[edit]

In the Mario Golf series, Kleptos are first seen flying on the Shifting Sands course in large numbers in Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, which may also feature Kelpto[sic] as one of the names on the scoreboard. Klepto also appears in Mario Golf: Advance Tour in the back of the Marion Club's training grounds, in which the player must rescue a Koopa Troopa hanging from its claws.

Mario Pinball Land[edit]

Sprite of a Klepto from Mario Pinball Land

In Mario Pinball Land, there are four Kleptos in the Shifting Sands Stage. They are comparable to the Klepto in Super Mario 64, not only for traveling around a pyramid, but also because Mario can get a Star from the Kleptos, this time by defeating them.

Mario Tennis Aces[edit]

In Mario Tennis Aces, Kleptos are in the background of Bask Ruins. Unlike in Super Mario Odyssey, these Kleptos use an updated version of their design from Super Mario 64 DS to Mario Party 8. This is the only game after Mario Party 8 where Kleptos use this design.

Mario Strikers: Battle League[edit]

In Mario Strikers: Battle League, sand statues of Kleptos are depicted as Ruin Decoration 7 of Desert Ruin. These Kleptos retain their appearance from Super Mario Odyssey.

Gallery[edit]

Naming[edit]

The name "Klepto" seems derived from "klepto-," a prefix originating from Ancient Greek that means "theft." The name also creates an alliteration with "condor," with the enemy occasionally referred to as "Klepto the Condor" in English and other languages.[1][3]

Names in other languages[edit]

Language Name Meaning Notes
Japanese ジャンゴ[4][3][5]
Jango
Possibly from「じゃんじゃん」(jan-jan, Japanese onomatopoeic term for flying rapidly) and the Japanese honorific suffix「~御」(-go)
Chinese (simplified) 强哥[6]
Qiánggē
Transliteration of the Japanese name; Also means "strong brother"
French (NOE) Klepto[3][7] -
German Riesengeier[4][8] Giant Vulture Super Mario 64
Klepto[3][9] -
Italian Klepto[10][11][3][12] -
Korean 장고[4][3][14]
Jango
From the Japanese name
Russian Клепто[13]
Klepto
-
Spanish (NOE) Klepto[15] -

Notes[edit]

  • Kleptos' penchant for stealing objects potentially alludes to similar behavior exhibited by real world birds.[16][17]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Pelland, Scott, and Dan Owsen (1996). Super Mario 64 Player's Guide. Nintendo of America (American English). Page 70–71.
  2. ^ Nintendo Power Source. Big Bird - (Course 8). Nintendo: Super Mario 64 Strategy. Archived February 24, 1998, 21:17:20 UTC from the original via Wayback Machine. Retrieved February 23, 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d e f In-game name for "Klepto the Condor."
  4. ^ a b c In-game name for "In the Talons of the Big Bird."
  5. ^ Sakai, Kazuya, and kikai, editors (2018). 『スーバーマリオ オデッセイ 公式設定資料集』. Tokyo: ambit (Japanese). ISBN 978-4-19-864696-7. Page 167.
  6. ^ From the star menu of Super Mario 64 DS as localized by iQue.
  7. ^ "Le majestueux Klepto est le souverain incontesté des airs de Toxîle." – Pays Perdu brochure (2017). Super Mario Odyssey by Nintendo EPD. Nintendo France S.A.R.L. (French). Archived on Fandom's Mario Wiki (French).
  8. ^ Kraft, John D., Thomas Görg, and Marko Hein, editors (1997). Der offizielle Nintendo 64 Spieleberater "Super Mario 64". Großostheim: Nintendo of Europe GmbH (German). Page 8.
  9. ^ "Der unangefochtene Herrscher der Lüfte ist hier der Klepto." – Verlorenes Land Broschüre (2017). Super Mario Odyssey by Nintendo EPD. Nintendo of Europe GmbH (German). Archived by Gregor Thomanek on Eurogamer.
  10. ^ "Klepto" – Character list. Mario Party Advance (Italian).
  11. ^ "Klepto" – Lakitu Star Cup scoreboard. Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour (Italian).
  12. ^ "L'indiscusso re dei cieli del regno è Klepto." – Regno dell'Oblio dépliant (2017). Super Mario Odyssey by Nintendo EPD. Nintendo of Europe GmbH (Italian). Archived on Mario's Castle.
  13. ^ Затерянное царство брочуре (2017). Super Mario Odyssey by Nintendo EPD. Nintendo of Europe GmbH (Russian). Archived by Boyko Play on YouTube.
  14. ^ "음흉해 보이는 얼굴 잊혀진 섬의 하늘은 장고가 장악하고 있다." – 잃어버린 왕국 안내서 (2017). "슈퍼 마리오 오디세이" by Nintendo EPD. Nintendo of Korea Co., Ltd. (Korean). Archived on namu.wiki.
  15. ^ "El Klepto gobierna los cielos del archipiélago." – Reino Perdido folleto (2017). Super Mario Odyssey by Nintendo EPD. Nintendo Ibérica, S.A. (Spanish). Archived on Trucos.
  16. ^ Shephard, T.V., S.E.G. Lea, and N. Hempel de Ibarra (15 Aug. 2014). ‘The thieving magpie’? No evidence for attraction to shiny objects. Animal Cognition, 18. Page 393–397.
  17. ^ Canal, David, Margarita Mulero-Pázmány, Juan José Negro, and Fabrizio Sergio (25 July 2016). Decoration Increases the Conspicuousness of Raptor Nests. PLoS ONE, 11(7).