Editing Mask Gate

|first_appearance=''[[Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic]]'' ([[List of games by date#1987|1987]], overall)<br>''[[Super Mario Bros. 2]]'' ([[List of games by date#1988|1988]], [[Super Mario (franchise)|''Super Mario'' franchise]])

|latest_appearance=''[[Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition]]'' ([[List of games by date#2024|2024]])

'''Mask Gates'''<ref>{{cite|language=en-us|publisher=Nintendo of America|date=1989|title=''Super Mario Bros. 2 Inside Out'', Part I|page=8 and 34}}</ref><ref>{{cite|language=en-us|publisher=Nintendo of America|date=1989|title=''Super Mario Bros. 2 Inside Out'', Part II|page=32}}</ref><ref>{{cite|language=en-us|date=Spring 1991|publisher=Nintendo of America|title=''NES Game Atlas''|page=27}}</ref> (or '''mask gates'''),<ref>''Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition'' Egg Toss description</ref> also known as '''masks'''<ref>{{cite|date=1988|quote=At the end of each area, there is a mask that becomes a gate to the next area.|title=''Super Mario Bros. 2'' instruction booklet|page=22|language=en-us|publisher=Nintendo of America}}</ref> and '''Birdfaces''',<ref>{{cite|language=en-us|publisher=Nintendo of America|date=Spring 2001|title=''Nintendo Power Advance'' Volume 1|page=39}}</ref> are eagle-head gates that appear at the end of every [[level]] in ''[[Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic]]'', ''[[Super Mario Bros. 2]]'', and the latter's [[reissue]]s in ''[[Super Mario All-Stars]]'' and ''[[Super Mario Advance]]''.

 

Originally, in ''Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic'', Mask Gates had the design of a {{wp|kabuki|kabuki theater}} mask, reminiscent to [[Phanto]] or the smaller masks that were replaced by [[Mushroom Block]]s, but were redesigned as a bird head in ''Super Mario Bros. 2''. In both games, Mask Gates are attached to the wall at the end of a level. A Mask Gate allows the player to move on to the next level, or to the [[world]]'s boss if the current level is the last level of the world. Opening a Mask Gate requires the player to pick up a [[Crystal Ball]], which are usually guarded by a [[Birdo]]. All Mask Gates are harmless, except for the one in [[World 7-2 (Super Mario Bros. 2)|World 7-2]]; when the player picks up the Crystal Ball, this Mask Gate detaches itself from the wall and then chases them around in a similar manner to Phanto. It takes away a [[small heart]] from the player upon contact. The player must attack the Mask Gate by throwing Mushroom Blocks (masks in ''Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic'') in the vicinity; after the player throws three Mushroom Blocks at it, the Mask Gate is temporarily stunned, allowing entry into Wart's throne room. However, if the player does not enter into the Mask Gate while it is stunned, it eventually reanimates itself and resumes attacking, forcing the player to throw three more Mushroom Blocks at it.