Talk:Goal Pole

I always thought it was a skull, and the remakes in Super Mario All-Stars clearly indicate that it is a skull. This skull likely represents that a fort or castle is under the control of the Koopa Troop. When Mario brings the flag down, he is performing a symbolic gesture signifying Bowser's rule in this location is over. -- Son of Suns

Hmmm... you're probably right. You can add that if you want. CrystalYoshi 14:36, 6 April 2008 (EDT)

Aren't flagpoles in SMG and SMG2? Revenge Of Kurbio (talk) 19:29, 4 August 2012 (EDT)

They are but don't work like these. They I think only appear in Throwback and Bowser's Galaxy Generator. YoshiGo99

Move Flagpole to Goal Pole

This talk page proposal has already been settled. Please do not edit this section or its subsections. If you wish to discuss the article, please do so in a new section below the proposal.

passed 11-1
It's the newer name. According to this, we should always use the newer name.

Proposer: Technickal (talk)
Deadline: September 3, 2012 23:59 GMT

Support

1. Technickal (talk) Per above.
2. JORDAN DEBONO (talk) Goal Pole is used in NSMB2 and we should always update our info. Times change, and so do names of items, characters, etc. If we leave this to remain Flagpole, we might as well rename the article Mario to Jumpman with a redirect to take care of things.
3. ToastUltimatum (talk) Flagpole has clearly been ditched in favour of Goal Pole, which is undisputably a cooler name anyway. Strongly Support the move.
4. Electrical Bowser jr. (talk) If it's the new name, I'll support.
5. MarioSmasher (talk) – WHAT DOES COUNT IN ENCYCLOPEDIAS LIKE THIS ONE? Recent names! And what we do? Move to the most recent names! This is it, not keeping to the old name just because it's "moar popular".
6. Raven Effect (talk) having consulted the manual for New Super Mario Bros. 2 and seeing that they do indeed call it goal pole I have decided to change my vote based on the growing trend that Flagpole has indeed been renamed Goal Pole due to the consitancy of the rename.
7. New Super Yoshi (talk) Per all.
8. Koopa K (talk) I now think we should do it, if we keep consistency and rename all the articles who's names have been consistently replaced.
9. Tails777 (talk) Per consistency I guess. We should follow that kind of stuff.
10. LuigiBlubber (talk)It's da new name!
11. yoshiyoshiyoshi (talk) per all

Oppose

#Raven Effect (talk) this proposal [1] sets a precedent that we should use the most commonly used name which in this case would be flag pole.
#Koopa K (talk) Per Prince Ludwig, I think the most common name should be used.
#Tails777 (talk) Per all.

1. Prince Ludwig (talk) Thinking about Queen Bee and Star, I don't know. The Flagpole's old name can be remained like this. Even newer names are born after a recent release of a new game, we often keep the old name which we are used to the most.

Comments

Hmmm this one is tough, I can't decide, you've both made good arguments. At this point I am 50.01/49.99 for support. Koopa K (talk) August 21 2012 8:25 (EDT)

Question: In the proposal you mentioned Raven, someone mentioned that if she is called Honey Queen in another game, we should change it. As far as I know, the name "Goal Pole" was first used in Super Mario 3D Land (does someone have a NSMBWii manual?) and was later used in Mario Tennis Open and New Super Mario Bros. 2. It seems that Goal Pole is used more often than Flagpole. Even if they didn't read the instruction manual for Super Mario Bros., "flagpole" is often used by fans even after the name change.

Flagpole: used in Super Mario Bros., Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix
Goal Pole: used in Super Mario 3D Land, Mario Tennis Open, New Super Mario Bros. 2

And in New Super Mario Bros. DS it's just called a "Goal". Technickal (talk)

Flagpole is also called that in The Lost Levels, BiS, MP8 and TTYD.Koopa K (talk)

I've beaten TTYD and never seen it referred to by name...searched the script and couldn't find it. And in MP8 it's called "flag". I don't know about BiS though but you're probably right about Lost Levels. Technickal (talk)

In NSMBW it is just called the "Goal" I have the manual I know... Koopa K (talk)

@JORDAN DEBONO We don't always have to use the new name. Most of the time we just use the most common name, a good example of this is the Star which in recent games has been called the Super Star, but we didn't change the article. Koopa K (talk)

I say wait 1 more game, if it is confirmed to be Goal Pole in NSMBU then I will support. Koopa K (talk)

About that. New Super Mario Bros. U is coming out in December, and the deadline for this is September. So if you want to support or oppose, you need to do it now. Hi! I'm Electrical Bowser jr.!

Good idea Koopa K but unfortunately the deadline is before. However, I think we (or Technickal) should make an exception here, letting the deadline stretch out to lets say Christmas eve or something. JORDAN DEBONO (talk)

Two mistakes in that comment Electrical Bowser jr. some stuff can be confirmed before the release date and 2. I already opposed. Koopa K (talk)

I'll extend the deadline, but am I allowed to do that? Technickal (talk)

I don't think your allowed to unless it is a tie. Koopa K (talk)

Quote from New Super Mario Bros manual: "Every course has a goal at the end. When you reach the end of a course, face the pole and jump as high as you can. The higher Mario grabs on to the pole, the more points you'll earn." While it is not directly stated, it seems the name is Goal Pole. Technickal (talk)

Yeah but couldn't pole also mean Flagpole. Also your speculating quite a bit that just because it says Goal and Pole that means it's called goal pole. None the less I'm going to support due to the recent trend that the last 3 games have all called it Goal Pole.

— The preceding unsigned comment was added by Raven Effect (talk).

Flagpole: SMB, SMBS, SMBLL, DDRMM, possibly TTYD, NSMBW and BIS. Goal Pole: SM3DL, MTO, NSMB2, possibly NSMBW. Goal: NSMB, possibly NSMBW Points system: 1pt for a know game, .5 for possibly Flagpole: 5.5pts Goal Pole: 3.5pts Goal: 1.5pts (note: SMBS stands for Super Mario Bros. Special which is a mini-sequel to SMB. Koopa K (talk)

Where are they called that in Bowser's Inside Story? Technickal (talk)

He said possibly, also to some of the people supporting you shouldn't just support because it's the most recent name you should support a name change because the new name has been consistently applied. Raven Effect (talk)

I agree with Raven, Flagpole is being phased out in favor of Goal Pole which has been constantly used in later games. Technickal (talk)

Are you saying we should call the Star article Super Star because that name has been consistently used (NSMBW, SM3DL, NSMB2.) Koopa K (talk)

Perhaps, but that requires another proposal. Technickal (talk)

Star to super star is a little different since MK7 calls it the star and since the name has varied from game to game with the star being called at least 3 different things. Raven Effect (talk)

Perhaps we should split Star and Super Star, since we did the same with Dash Mushroom and Super Mushroom. It was last referred to as a Starman in NSMB. But I'm getting off topic here, so let's leave it at that. Technickal (talk)

That's because those things do different things...But your right spitting something that does the exact same thing in every game into two different articles makes so much sense. Raven Effect (talk)

Should we rename Goomba's Shoe Kuribo's Shoe since it's more popular among fans? Technickal (talk)

Technickal you know better than to write things like this on a totally different TPP and overall subject. Put your comment in its respective talk page. JORDAN DEBONO (talk)

What I mean is, we used the more recent name instead of the more common name on this, so keeping this as Flagpole would be inconsistency. Technickal (talk)

Actually we already had a proposal about that [2]. And I voted for this proposal because of a trend in the names well said trend doesn't exist with the goomba's shoe. Raven Effect (talk)

Adding Headers?

Goal Pole page is a bit uncategorized... should we add all the sections for every game where it appears like in Boost Pad page? Tsunami (talk)

3D games

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The flags seen at the end of race/obstacle courses in the 3D games are, for all intents and purposes, an adaptation of the same object. Not only are they flagpoles that functionally act as a goal, Mario can climb up and slide down them. This goes extra for the Galaxy ones, considering the design of that block at the bottom is a pretty clear reference to the "stairblocks" from Super Mario Bros. that appear beneath them. I also wouldn't consider the symbol on the flag itself to matter in this case, as in many spinoff games, they're blank or have a mushroom design. At the very least, if the "level up" flags from the M&L games and the MP8 thing are to be included here, these should as well. Doc von Schmeltwick (talk) 20:29, January 10, 2025 (EST)

To begin with, I apologize if my removal of your contributions to the Goal Pole article seemed hasty. They were well-written and I appreciate the work you did. But I disagree on these specific flagpoles being the same exact object. The impression I have is that the Goal Pole is a very specific type of object like a Super Mushroom, ? Block, or Warp Pipe. It is important to the series iconography and has very specific mechanical connotations that are not met by these poles at all. Beyond our own guidelines on kitchen sinks, I think it would be misrepresentative of what a Goal Pole is to include these flagpoles from Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and Super Mario Galaxy. It is more than just looks, in the same way not every red amanita-adjacent mushroom in the franchise (or even every red amanita-adjacent mushroom power-up) is the Super Mushroom.

To me, within a mainline platformer, a Goal Pole would have to:

1. End the level when touched.
2. Have the flag slide down when grabbed.
3. Provide a certain amount of points or other incentive based on how high the player character is when they touch the flagpole.
4. At minimum, be recognized in official paratext as a ゴールポール (Gōru Pōru, Goal Pole) in Japanese.

Hopefully none of these are nitpicky. The problem with all of these poles is that:

1. None of them end the level when touched. Reaching the ones denoting the end point in the footraces with Koopa the Quick and Il Piantissimo can (but not always) satisfy the requirements of the mission, but you do not finish the level by touching it. You need to touch the Power Star or Shine Sprite respectively to actually complete the level. In Super Mario 64 (I do not remember offhand if this is true in Sunshine), this does not even always happen because Koopa the Quick does not accept the results if you use Warp Points on your way to the pole. In Super Mario Galaxy, the flag near the end the Rolling Green Galaxy and the other ball-rolling galaxies does not even do anything: the Star Ball breaks because it reaches the final hole in the (pretty apparently) golf-course-themed course. I specify that because if one was looking for a true Goal Pole in these 3D platformers, or at least an intentional homage to one, you would probably expect the level it occurs in to be some sort of allusion to the original Super Mario Bros., not golf. After the Star Ball breaks, Mario can touch the pole, climb the pole, jump off of the pole... without anything happening. Its not even the only pole in Super Mario Galaxy with a flag that is fastened to a stairblock, and ones appear in Super Mario Galaxy 2 in groups, and without even being near the end of any galaxies (all the while looking even more like the Goal Poles from the 2D platformers than the golf ones from the first Galaxy). So generally, these are more like "target" poles than legitimate Goal Poles: they are the direction the player should head for, but you are not ending the level by reaching them. Its the Power Star or Shine Sprite that does that.
2. The flag does not slide down when it is touched. Flag is unaffected in these games.
3. None of them provide any rewarding incentive for reaching the top of the pole. This one is pretty important, because in my view this is the most essential characteristic of a Goal Pole regardless of the game. This is why it was invented, and is the basis for other types of goals in the series like the Giant Gate or Bonus Bell. The higher you are on the pole, the bigger the reward. Outside of Super Mario Bros. Wonder, it is a score and 1-Up Mushrooms. Every single one of these flags is missing this trait (again, with the ones in Super Mario Galaxy not even doing anything to finish the level).
4. None of these poles are called "Goal Poles" in Japanese, or at least in the material available to me, which includes Super Mario 64 Complete and the Super Mario Bros. Encyclopedia. I am perfectly open to being wrong if the publisher and developers explicitly clarifies that these are Goal Poles in the material they oversaw for publication. It just means my impression on what defines a Goal Pole is narrower than the actual makers of the games. But if any of these flagpoles were legitimately the same object as Goal Poles, the encyclopedia would probably go to lengths to point this out given it is a compendium for the whole series, and lists Goal Poles for the games in which they unambiguously appear like New Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario 3D World. But they do not do this for Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, or Super Mario Galaxy. I don't think the object section is wholly complete for at least some of the games in the encyclopedia, but given how iconic Goal Poles are to Mario, you'd think this would be one of the ones they'd prioritize highlighting in the text - or at least I would. But they don't do that.

If these were not platformers in the Super Mario series, the same series of games that introduced the Goal Pole in the first place, and it was just a visual homage like we see in Animal Crossing, Super Smash Bros., or LEGO City, that would be one thing. Those are contexts clearly alluding to the first Super Mario Bros. But these specific flagpoles from Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and Super Mario Galaxy are not legitimate Goal Poles: they are just poles that happen to have flags at their tops. I'd be curious to know your thoughts (as well as the thoughts of others) on whether my impression of what differentiates a Goal Pole from just a normal pole is shared. If I were you, I would incorporate the information you compiled into our pole article given it is very recurring object and the article we have for it is quite sparse. - Nintendo101 (talk) 21:29, January 10, 2025 (EST)