Editing Magic ball

{{distinguish|Magical ball|Magic Orb|? Balloon}}

|image=[[File:SMW Magic Ball.png|100px]]<br>Sprite from ''[[Super Mario World]]''

'''Magic balls'''<ref>{{cite|date=1990|title=''Super Mario Bros. 3'' instruction booklet|publisher=Nintendo of America|language=en|page=22}}</ref><ref>{{cite|date=2010|title=''Super Mario All-Stars Limited Edition'' instruction booklet|publisher=Nintendo of America|language=en|page=16}}</ref> (also capitalized),<ref>{{cite|date=1993|title=''Super Mario All-Stars'' instruction booklet|publisher=Nintendo of America|language=en|page=32}}</ref><ref>{{cite|date=2003|title=''Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3'' instruction booklet|publisher=Nintendo of America|language=en|page=23}}</ref> also known as '''Crystals''',<ref>{{cite|date=August 1991|title=Nintendo ''[[Mario Mania]]'' Player's Guide|publisher=Nintendo of America|language=en|page=134, 136-137}}</ref> '''"?" Balls''',<ref>{{cite|author=Hodgson, David S J.|date=2003|title=''Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3'' Prima's Official Strategy Guide|publisher=[[Prima Games]]|language=en-us|isbn=0-7615-4425-9|page=11}}</ref> or '''Orbs''',<ref>''[[Prima Games|Playing With Super Power: Nintendo Super NES Classics eGuide]]'', ''Super Mario World'' Confidential Information Tab.</ref> are [[list of items|items]] introduced in ''[[Super Mario Bros. 3]]''. They have the appearance of round power-up objects with a question mark on each, and certain [[level]]s can be cleared only by touching a magic ball.

Magic balls are dropped by [[Boom Boom]] after he is defeated in a [[fortress]] or vehicle in ''Super Mario Bros. 3''.<ref>{{cite|url=youtu.be/e4lOUab-X1U?feature=shared&t=386|timestamp=06:26|title=NES Classics - Super Mario Bros 3: World 1 Walkthrough (IN HD)|author=Nintendo Base|date=October 4, 2017|publisher=YouTube|language=en|accessdate=December 30, 2024}}</ref> When touched, the magic ball destroys the fortress or vehicle, letting the player complete the level, and opens a corresponding [[Locked Door]] or spawns a corresponding bridge on the [[world]] map; if [[Mario]] gets a [[Game Over]], any Locked Doors magic balls open stay open and any bridges they spawn stay present, thus acting as a both a shortcut and a sort of [[checkpoint]]. Completing a fortress without collecting a magic ball (possible by collecting the [[Recorder|Magic Whistle]] in {{world link|1|fortress|World 1-Fortress}}) causes the Locked Door to remain after the fortress is completed. If [[Invincible Mario]] defeats Boom Boom by touching him, the magic ball spawns upside down in the center of the arena.<ref>{{cite|author=YuRi Sunga|url=youtu.be/uMbfZXcoQ-E?feature=shared&t=39|date=June 2, 2023|timestamp=0:39|title=''Super Mario Bros. 3'' - killing Boom Boom with a star (World 8-Fortress)|publisher=YouTube|language=en|accessdate=December 30, 2024}}</ref> In ''[[Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3]]'', magic balls bounce when hit by attacks.

A magic ball is at the end of the [[Sunken Ghost Ship]] in ''[[Super Mario World]]'', and touching it finishes the level instantly.<ref>{{cite|timestamp=03:03|url=youtu.be/v5W2jooIHrs?feature=shared&t=183|title=''Super Mario World'' - Sunken Ghost Ship|date=September 26, 2019|publisher=YouTube|author=[[User:VideoGamePhenomHD|VideoGamePhenom]]|language=en|accessdate=December 30, 2024}}</ref>

There is also [[list of Super Mario World glitches#Item Stock glitch|a glitch]] to receive a magic ball and use it in any level to instantly complete it. Using the ball in any horizontal level reveals that when Mario collects it, he goes through the same end-of-level motions that he would if he had used the [[Giant Gate]], albeit with the "boss defeated" fanfare and no chance of [[Goal Star|Bonus Stars]]. By contrast, getting the ball in a vertical level causes the screen to freeze.

Magic balls also appear in the Modern version of ''[[Parachute (Game & Watch)|Parachute]]'' in ''[[Game & Watch Gallery 2]]''. If the player has any misses at 200,<ref name=parachute1>{{cite|timestamp=18:57|url=youtu.be/hLFpSOt8Be0?feature=shared&t=1137|title=''Game & Watch Gallery 2'' - Part 1 - Parachute|date=July 1, 2023|author=Treecks van Veluwe|publisher=YouTube|language=en|accessdate=December 30, 2024}}</ref> 500,<ref name=parachute2>{{cite|timestamp=23:04|url=youtu.be/hLFpSOt8Be0?feature=shared&t=1384|title=''Game & Watch Gallery 2'' - Part 1 - Parachute|publisher=YouTube}}</ref> or 700 [[point]]s,<ref name=parachute3>{{cite|timestamp=25:20|url=youtu.be/hLFpSOt8Be0?feature=shared&t=1520|title=''Game & Watch Gallery 2'' - Part 1 - Parachute|publisher=YouTube}}</ref> three magic balls come out of the [[airship|flying ship]], then all of them disappear to reveal a [[1 UP Heart]] for removing a miss in one of them.<ref name=parachute1/><ref name=parachute2/><ref name=parachute3/>

In [[Super Mario-kun Volume 4|Volume 4]] of ''[[Super Mario-kun]]'', whose arc is based on ''Super Mario World'', Mario grabs the magic ball to exit the level, and he and his friends are later found on the top of the entrance to the [[Valley of Bowser]].

SMB3 Magic Ball.png|''Super Mario Bros. 3''

SMB3 Udquestionball.png|The upside down magic ball in ''Super Mario Bros. 3''

|Jpn=マジックボール

|JpnC=<ref>{{cite|date=1988|title=スーパーマリオブラザーズ3 (''Sūpā Mario Burazāzu Surī'') instruction booklet|publisher=Nintendo|language=ja|page=20}}</ref>

|Jpn2=水晶玉

|Jpn2R=Suishōdama

|Jpn2C=<ref>{{cite|author=Sakai, Kazuya (Ambit) et al.|date=October 19, 2015|title=[[Super Mario Bros. Encyclopedia|''Super Mario Bros. Hyakka: Nintendo Kōshiki Guidebook'']], ''Super Mario World'' section|publisher=[[Shogakukan]]|language=ja|isbn=978-4-09-106569-8|page=60}}</ref>

|Ita=Palla magica