Splunk
- Not to be confused with Splunkin.
| Splunk | |
|---|---|
 Three Splunks confronting Wario | |
| First appearance | WarioWare: Smooth Moves (2006) |
- “Give it back!”
- —Splunk, WarioWare: Smooth Moves
Splunks are a strange species that appear in WarioWare: Smooth Moves. They are small, alienlike ancient creatures associated with the Temple of Form. Their name comes from the word "spelunk", which means "to explore a cave".
They first appear at the very beginning of the story, in Wario's stage. One Splunk sneaks into Wario's house while he is eating a pile of snacks, and steals them. Wario angrily chases him through Diamond City until they reach the Temple of Form, where Wario finds the Form Baton. A large boulder crashes down and he runs away. Once he escapes the temple, he decides that the Form Baton will be a part of his next money-making scheme.
At the end of Tiny Wario's stage (as well as the story), a group of Splunks confront Wario, wanting the Form Baton back. Wario flees to the Temple of Form, where he trips and the Form Baton falls back into its place. A Splunk standing before him simply says "Thanks!", and the story ends.
They also appear in the ending of Orbulon's stage, who finds the Form Baton in the Temple of Form after his spaceship crashes. He tries to rule the Temple as his new spaceship, before the Splunks appear, take the Form Baton (and the Balance Stone) back, and throw him out.
Not much information about the species itself is given in-game, except for showing that they used to live with the ancient people of Diamond City. The Japanese WarioWare: Smooth Moves website dedicates a section to the Splunks on its "Introduction to the Temple of Form" page,[1] largely consisting of uncertain data and speculation:
The mysterious creatures living in the Temple of Form are called Splunks.
While three different color variations are confirmed to exist, ecological aspects like sexes and lifespan are completely unidentified. Researchers claim that the disks attached to their heads are similar in structure to an optical disk and execute the functions of the brain, but this statement has no basis whatsoever.
There are several theories on their relationship with the ancient people, such as being guardian deities of the Temple of Form, the ancients’ pets or merely animals settled in the Temple of Form.
Even now they occasionally come to hang around at the building, but please do not approach them as they can be dangerous.
Also, please absolutely do not feed them.
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | スプランク[?] Supuranku |
Splunk | |
| French | Splunk[?] | - | |
| Italian | Splunk[?] | - | |
| Korean | 스플랑크[?] Seupeullangkeu |
Splunk |
References[edit]
- ^ Introduction to the Temple of Form at the official Japanese WarioWare: Smooth Moves website. "作法殿に生息する不思議な生き物はスプランクスと呼ばれています。 三種類の色ちがいが確認されておりますが、性別があるのか、寿命はどれくらいなのかなど、その生態に関しては一切が不明です。頭についた円盤は光ディスクと似た構造を持っており、脳の役割を果たしていると主張する研究者がいますが、なんら根拠はありません。 また、古代人との関わりについても諸説あり、作法殿の守り神という説や古代人のペットという説、単に作法殿に住み着いた動物という説など様々です。 現在も館内をたまにウロチョロしておりますが、危険ですので近寄らないようにしてください。 また、絶対にエサをやらないでください。" Nintendo. Retrieved April 03, 2018.
