Bowser
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- “Count Bleck, Floro Sapiens, whatever... Stomping fools is my business! Show me a fool, I'll stomp it! I don't even need a reason!”
- —Bowser, Super Paper Mario
King Bowser Koopa (Japanese 大魔王クッパ Daimaō Kuppa "Great Demon King Koopa", in English also Lord Bowser, King Koopa commonly in other media) is the main antagonist of the Mario series, the supreme leader of the Koopa Troop, King of the Koopas, and the arch-nemesis of Mario. He has repeatedly kidnapped or attempted to kidnap Princess Peach and take over the Mushroom Kingdom. He has on other occasions attempted to conquer the entire Mushroom World, as well as the entire universe. Despite his villainous nature, he has on occasion helped the heroes of the Mushroom Kingdom against other threats, and frequently socializes with them peacefully in their numerous sporting events.
Since his debut, Bowser has been in nearly every Mario game, including the main series, spin-offs, and crossovers. Due to his role as the primary villain of the Mario series, he is mostly the final or penultimate boss in his appearances, if not as the main antagonist (an example being Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga). In the Mario RPGs, Bowser is generally cast as an anti-hero or a minor villain, with the exception of Paper Mario.
Creation
Bowser was created by Shigeru Miyamoto as the villain of Super Mario Bros. Miyamoto stated that they considered naming him either Kuppa, Yukke, or Bibinba, which are all Korean dishes as they are known in Japanese. At the end, Kuppa was chosen[1]. For the later North American release of the game, which also introduced the anglicized spelling Koopa, the character was renamed Bowser.
During the development of Super Mario Bros., Miyamoto considered asking a manga artist or illustrator to do the art for the game. However, time was running short, so he drew the game's original box-art himself. This artwork included Bowser (whom Miyamoto depicted notably different from later designs), with gray-blue skin and lacking horns. For the character's appearance, Miyamoto drew inspiration from an anime film adaptation of the Chinese novel Journey to the West, renamed Alakazam the Great during the film's American localization. He liked the film's main antagonist Gyū-Maō (lit. "Ox Demon King," King Gruesome in the dub), so loosely based Bowser on an ox as a homage.[2]
Yoichi Kotabe, an animation artist, later joined Nintendo and was asked to do new illustrations for the Mario series. His only reference was the package illustration for Super Mario Bros., so Kotabe asked Miyamoto many questions on how to draw the characters. However, designing Bowser caused problems, since Miyamoto hadn't drawn him often. He brought up that he liked the Ox King from the film, and this was how he imagined Bowser, but Nintendo designer Takashi Tezuka pointed out that Bowser should be a turtle. Through their discussions, Bowser's appearance gradually came together. Since he was now in the turtle family with the Koopa Troopas, they partly based Bowser's new appearance on them. Finally, the new design was created, and Miyamoto congratulated himself by saying "Wow, I can really make Bowser look cool now!"[2]
History
Background
- Main article: Baby Bowser
Bowser's first chronological appearance in-universe is as Baby Bowser in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. At this age, he is shown to have similar powers to the ones he currently possesses as an adult.
When Baby Mario and Yoshi enters his room in his castle, Baby Bowser is unintentionally and forcibly awakened from his nap by Kamek (who was trying to demand that Yoshi hand over Mario), and pounds him flat in retribution. Bowser then notices Yoshi, and decides he wants to ride the "green donkey." However, he notices Mario is riding Yoshi so he attacks them to get Baby Mario off. Yoshi ends up defeating Baby Bowser, even when Kamek turns him into a giant. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island is also his first meeting with Mario. Baby Bowser later steals the Super Happy Tree from the Yoshis and turns Yoshi's Island into a pop-up book in Yoshi's Story, but is defeated again by a newborn Yoshi. Both incidents quickly define the young Bowser as a selfish character lacking empathy. In Yoshi's Island DS, he teams up with the heroes to defeat future Bowser after being betrayed, but betrays them at the end of the game. Baby Bowser is also one of the Star Children.
In Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time, Baby Bowser once again appears. At the beginning of the game he attempts to kidnap Baby Peach, but ends up evacuating everyone when the Shroobs attack. However, they are shot down by the Shroobs after intercepting a transmission. He later shows up and steals the Cobalt Star Shards the Mario bros have collected, and flees to Yoshi's Island, where he is found by the brothers causing "mayhem" (he is eating Yoshi Cookies he stole from the islanders). After he eats the shards, Baby Bowser, along with everyone else, is eaten by Yoob, though everyone later escapes. After leaving Yoshi's Island he heads to Thwomp Volcano to build a new castle, where he finds future Bowser, and they team up to defeat Mario and Luigi, though are defeated. Later on, he reunites the Cobalt Star Shards, resurrects Elder Princess Shroob, and is turned into a Shroob Mushroom, but is later transformed back and flees.
Super Mario series
Super Mario Bros.
Release-wise, Bowser first appears in Super Mario Bros.. In this game, Bowser and the Koopa Troop are jealous of the Mushroom Kingdom, and it is because of these feelings of jealousy that they decide to invade it, conquering the land and transforming the kingdom's inhabitants into inanimate objects. He also kidnaps the seven Mushroom Retainers, as well as the only person who can reverse the black magic cast over the land: Princess Toadstool. He then transforms seven of his minions into False Bowsers and sends them to guard the retainers in seven different castles while he personally holds Toadstool captive in an eighth castle.
However, Mario and Luigi suddenly appear, and must traverse the Mushroom Kingdom to free the Mushroom Retainers from the seven castles and eventually reach the eighth castle to fight Bowser himself. He waits for them on a bridge, attacking the brothers by spitting Fireballs and throwing Hammers, as well as leaping around. To defeat Bowser, the player must reach the Ax on the other side of the bridge to destroy it and send him careening into the lava. He or she can also do this by shooting Bowser with five fireballs. Once Bowser is defeated, Princess Toadstool is liberated, and she restores her kingdom to its previous state.
In addition to the original game, Bowser also appears in all of the game's variations, including Super Mario Bros. Special, All Night Nippon Super Mario Bros., VS. Super Mario Bros., Super Mario All-Stars, and Super Mario Bros. Deluxe.
Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels
Undeterred by this defeat, Bowser repeats his plan in Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels. He reuses his black magic, kidnaps Princess Toadstool again, takes her to his castle, and sends his Koopa Troop soldiers all over the Mushroom Kingdom, with an increased number of False Bowsers keeping watch of the captured Mushroom Retainers in the other castles. Mario and Luigi must once again traverse through the Mushroom Kingdom, fight the Koopa Troop, free the Toads from the False Bowsers, and eventually reach the eighth castle to fight Bowser himself.
Bowser's attacks in this game are the same as the original: throwing hammers and breathing fireballs at Mario and Luigi. Additionally, despite the arena being aesthetically different, the basic concept of the fight is not; the player must grab the ax at the end of the bridge to destroy it, and Bowser falls into the lava below as a result. However, when he is defeated once, it is revealed that Mario and Luigi must fight him again, so they can save the real Princess Toadstool in the fifteenth castle.
In the final castle, located in World D, the brothers once again find Bowser, who fights them with the same attacks as before. Again, despite the arena changing, the battle itself not. With his defeat, Princess Toadstool is once again rescued by the Mario Bros. in the same way as the game's predecessor.
Super Mario Bros. 3 / Super Mario Advance 4
After his hiatus during the events of Subcon in Super Mario Bros. 2, Bowser returns with his henchman Boom Boom and his children, the Koopalings, composed of Larry, Morton, Wendy, Iggy, Roy, Lemmy and Ludwig in Super Mario Bros. 3. Each of the Koopalings conquer a different land in the Mushroom World and turn the king of their respective lands into various creatures while Bowser resides in his home territory of Dark Land. Mario and Luigi set out to free the kingdoms, all while receiving helpful letters from Princess Toadstool throughout their journey.
After freeing the seventh land and restoring its king, the brothers receive a letter from Bowser, informing them that he has kidnapped the Princess while they were saving the seven kingdoms. After reaching and traversing Bowser's castle, the brothers find the room Bowser is located in, where he descends from above to begin the final battle.
Bowser's attack pattern involves breathing two fireballs at the player, then leaping into the air and and attempting to ground pound him or her from above. Whenever Bowser ground pounds a pair of blocks, they are destroyed beneath him. After destroying an entire column of blocks, he plummets down the massive pit below and seconds later hit the ground. Bowser could also be defeated with 35 fireballs. Hammers can cause multiple damage so depending on the angle of impact, Bowser can be defeated with as little as three hammers. The door at the back of the room then opens, allowing Mario to rescue Princess Toadstool.
In Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3, Bowser's appearance in the main game is the same as the original (besides the fact that shooting him with fireballs causes him to turn red and quickly change back), but his first appearance in the e-Reader levels is in the twenty-seventh level, Kakushi Kuppa Jō, (Hidden Koopa Castle) which is a compilation of obstacles from the previous Bowser's Castles, ending with a Super Mario Bros. 3-style Bowser fight. However, a set of blocks are placed above the ground that Bowser must smash through before he can reach the ones on the floor. He later appears in the thirtieth and final e-Reader level Kuppa no Hikōsen Kōhen (Koopa's Airship Part 2), in which he is fought at the end of the airship. However, this time, the entire room is composed of the blocks seen in the original room, as well blocks that he cannot break.
Super Mario World
Bowser and the Koopalings reappear in Super Mario World, in which he kidnaps Princess Toadstool while she is on vacation in Dinosaur Land with the Mario Bros. He also captures several of the native Yoshis, trapping them in eggs and giving each one to one of the Koopalings to guard in the seven castles scattered around the continent. One Yoshi named Yoshi attempts to go after them, but Bowser traps him in an egg as well. Predictably, Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi head off to save the Princess and the imprisoned Yoshis by defeating Bowser's forces.
When the player reaches Bowser's Castle, Bowser himself is located on the roof of his castle. When Mario reaches him, he appears in his Koopa Clown Car from above, and the battle commences. During the battle, he moves back and forth in his car, and then throws Mecha-Koopas at the hero. However, Mario can use the Mecha-Koopas to his advantage by tossing them back at Bowser, which damage him if they hit his head. After two hits, Bowser disappears for a while, casting flames at Mario. If he hits one of the flames, the attack can be "negated" by Princess Peach, who throws a Super Mushroom to Mario or Luigi. Bowser then returns and first tries to fly around above Mario or Luigi and drops Big Steelies and later Mecha-Koopas at them, and after having Mecha-Koopas thrown at him a second time attempts to ram into Mario with his Koopa Clown Car before resting to throw out two Mecha-Koopas. When the player hits him twice more, he loses control of the Clown Car, allowing Peach to float down to the roof and her rescuers while Bowser himself spirals away into the distance.
While his art is similar to his normal appearance, his in-game appearance is different. He is primarily green, being more similar to his cartoon appearance.
Super Mario 64/Super Mario 64 DS
- “Welcome. No one's home. Now scram--and don't come back! Gwa ha ha ha!”
- —Bowser, Super Mario 64
In Super Mario 64 and its remake, Super Mario 64 DS, Bowser invades Princess Peach's Castle and steals the castle's Power Stars, using them to create worlds inside many of the paintings and walls of the castle. He then kidnaps Princess Peach and holds the Toads inhabiting her castle hostage. To ensure that Mario does not disrupt his plans, Bowser seals off the doors in the castle with the stars and even creates doors that only open with his keys. However, Mario uses one door that is not sealed to enter a painting world and collect Power Stars from it. Using the stars collected from that painting, he is able to open the other doors and systematically sweep through the castle towards Bowser.
Super Mario 64 DS retains the original game's basic plot, but parts of it have been changed. Bowser steals the castle's Power Stars, hides them in paintings, kidnaps the princess, and seals everyone in the castle. Mario, as well as Luigi, and Wario, head inside the castle and chase after Bowser, jumping into a painting with a Bob-omb on it. However, the trio are ambushed, and Bowser's minions throw them into locked doors. He then locks the castle entrance and places the key in the hands of a rabbit. Afterward, Yoshi, who is sleeping on the castle's roof while this is happening, is able to enter the castle and, using the one room Bowser did not seal, collects Power Stars from the painting in that room. He then uses those stars to unlock more doors and collect more stars, as well as free Mario, Luigi, and Wario.
In these games, Bowser is battled three times: once in the Dark World, once in the Fire Sea and once in the Sky. During each battle, Bowser can only be attacked by grabbing him by the tail, and can only be defeated by tossing him at one of several spiked-bombs surrounding the arena. In the first two battles, Bowser is defeated after being thrown into one bomb; during the final battle, the player must throw Bowser into three bombs to defeat him. When Bowser is defeated the first two times, he gives the player a special key, allowing them to open the door to another area of the castle; when he is defeated the third time, Bowser surrenders, giving Mario the Giant Star before retreating.
Tossing Bowser off the platform results in him leaping out of the abyss below seconds later; during the battle in The Sky, he uses a shockwave attack when doing so. During the Fire Sea battle, Bowser can warp from one section of the platform to another, and can also pound the platform to force it off balance. During the final battle, Bowser leaping out of the abyss can result in part of the platform breaking, and after taking two hits, he causes the entire platform to break apart, creating a star-shaped arena. He also attacks Mario by dashing in his direction. Bowser also has various fire-based attacks: one involves breathing fire into the air, causing several small fireballs to fall from the sky that after a while disappear; another involves Bowser spitting a number of fireballs that disappear after a while; and the third involves shooting a continuous stream of fire for a short time.
In Super Mario 64, Bowser is solely defeated by the efforts of Mario. However, the remake Super Mario 64 DS differs in that the player is required to be both Yoshi and Mario to prove victorious. Luigi and Wario are available to be unlocked in Big Boo's Haunt and Chief Chilly Challenge respectively, but, keeping true to his rivalry, Bowser only accepts Mario as his opponent in the final battle.
Super Mario Sunshine
In Super Mario Sunshine, Bowser Jr. is introduced. Bowser tells his son that Peach is his mother and that Mario has kidnapped her. Bowser Jr. takes on the disguise of Shadow Mario and vandalizes Isle Delfino with Graffiti, framing Mario as a graffiti criminal, in order to put Mario in prison and get Peach back to Bowser. Mario, however, determined to prove his innocence, begins to clean the mess with the aid of F.L.U.D.D., a water pump he finds on the airstrip.
Once Bowser Jr. kidnaps Princess Peach, he heads to Pinna Park; after Mecha Bowser loses to Mario there, Bowser Jr. uses the head to flee to Corona Mountain. Bowser, his son, and Peach (who is sitting on a massive rubber duck) are then relaxing in a floating, sun-shaped, slime-filled bathtub just above the peak of Corona Mountain before Mario arrives. Angered by his sudden intrusion during their "family vacation," Bowser decides to attempt to destroy him. He is giant during this battle, attacking Mario by breathing enormous gusts of flame over the section Mario is traversing and splashing the slime in the tub at him, while Bowser Jr. assaults him with Bullet Bills. The player must use F.L.U.D.D.'s Rocket Nozzle to deliver massive Ground Pounds to the edges of the tub, which, when done, cause the bowl to tip over, sending everyone falling to the world below.
During the ending, it is shown that Bowser and Bowser Jr. land on the flipped tub, which is in the ocean near Isle Delfino. While out at sea, Bowser attempts to confess to his son that he had used him as a pawn, but Bowser Jr. then reveals to his father that he knew all along that Peach is not his mother, and that he is eager to challenge Mario again sometime in the future, which fills Bowser with pride. They then decide to continue their vacation together.
New Super Mario Bros.
In New Super Mario Bros., Bowser is again responsible for the kidnapping of Princess Peach. He first appears as the boss of the World 1 castle, and the battle is similar to that of the battle in Super Mario Bros.. He attacks Mario by shooting fireballs at him and leaping into the air. Once the player reaches the switch on the other side of the bridge, Bowser desperately tries to stop Mario from pressing it, but fails when the player does. Shockingly, Bowser perishes in the first world when he falls into the lava, becoming an undead monster with an appearance similar to that of a Dry Bones, known as Dry Bowser. Bowser Jr. runs from Mario's pursuit for the rest of the game.
Bowser's undead form called later appears as the boss of the World 8 castle. His attacks are similar to the World 1 battle, but he is also able to throw bones at Mario, a tactic similar to the later boss battles in Super Mario Bros. and the Dry Bones attack. Additionally, he is immune to fireballs in this form. However, pressing the switch on the other end of the room once again causes the bridge to fall from under him and Dry Bowser to crash to the ground. He can also be defeated by using a Mega Mushroom or as Shell Mario.
After beating the castle, the second portion of World 8 can be accessed, and beating the second Tower allows Bowser's Castle to be accessed. Once the player reaches the boss room, Bowser Jr. is there, standing in front of a cauldron with the skeleton of his father. Bowser Jr. throws the bones into the cauldron, and it explodes, Bowser having been revived. However, Bowser is slightly bigger than before, making it harder to leap over him. The then duo fight Mario one last time.
During this battle, Bowser attacks by walking and leaping around and shooting fireballs. He eventually starts to shoot out multiple barrages of blue fire, making it harder for Mario to dodge. However, they once again can be defeated by pressing the Skull Switch located on the other side of the room, which sends both of his enemies into the pit below. In addition to the normal way of defeating him, Bowser can also be thrown into the lava if the player knocks into him with a Blue Shell while in Shell Mario form, or if they use enough fireballs as Fire Mario. The player can also keep a Mega Mushroom in his item dock and use it in the battles to easily defeat him. Bowser will still do his defeat animation, but Mario will not do a victory pose until he presses the switch.
After the credits, Bowser and Bowser Jr. are seen at the bottom of the pit, with Jr. dragging his unconscious father away.
Super Mario Galaxy
Prior to the events of Super Mario Galaxy, Bowser attacks Rosalina's Comet Observatory and steals all the Power Stars, as well as the Seven Grand Stars that power the observatory. Bowser uses these incredible stars to bring his entire fleet to the cosmos and take over many galaxies, planning to construct a galaxy reactor powered by the Grand Stars to create his own galaxy at the center of the universe. Once the reactor is completed, he can proceed to conquer the entire universe, establishing an eternal galactic empire with Peach as Bowser's empress. He then kidnaps Peach during the Star Festival, using a UFO and several airships to uproot her castle and taking it to the center of the universe.
Mario, helped by Rosalina, collects many Grand and Power Stars and destroys much of the Koopa Troop, encountering Bowser twice in his attempt to rescue Peach, once at Bowser's Star Reactor and the second time at Bowser's Dark Matter Plant. At the Star Reactor, before the player can reach him, Bowser attempts to stop Mario by destroying the staircase leading to him by breathing meteors at him. During battle, Bowser's attacks include stomping the ground, which creates a shock wave, and ground pounding the plumber; however, if the player can cause Bowser to ground pound the glass, it breaks; he instead strikes the magma inside and burns his tail. Mario can then Spin attack him, causing Bowser to spin around the planet inside his shell, much like a normal Koopa. When Mario does this again, he falls unconscious, only to recover seconds later. Bowser is defeated when this is done again
At the Dark Matter plant, Bowser uses the same tactics as before, but can generate more shock waves and even has his own version of the spin attack, but can be defeated by using the same method as the first battle. Regardless of these drawbacks, Bowser remains confident in his victory and the follow-through of his main goal to construct his own galaxy.
Mario eventually battles Bowser at the almost-completed galaxy reactor. During the final battle, Bowser Jr. holds Peach captive in an airship while Mario fights Bowser on multiple planets. On the first planet, Bowser attacks by using his shock waves, and then curling into a stone ball; Mario can attack his stone form by spin attacking his head, the only exposed part of him, causing him to roll on his back around the planet, and then defeat him by spinning again.
On the second planet, Bowser's attacks include curling up into two combined shells and rolling around the planet, as well as fireballs. By hitting him with a Stretch Plant, Bowser is knocked onto his back and begins moving around the planet; he can then be defeated as normal.
After defeating him twice, the gravity of the nearby sun then pulls them toward it, and they begin the actual final battle at the core of Bowser's soon-to-be galaxy. Bowser's attacks are simply improved tactics from the previous battles, meaning that he can once again be trumped by ground pounding the glass and burning himself, allowing Mario to spin attack him. The defeated Bowser then flies into into the magma of the sun. Afterward, the final Grand Star frees itself from the galaxy reactor. However, the lack of the Grand Star causes the sun to collapse in on itself, resulting in the formation of a massive Black Hole that begins to devour the universe. Bowser is not dead when he is defeated, as shown before the formation of the black hole, but he most likely is when the sun explodes. The Lumas, however, head into the black hole, and destroy it from the inside. Bowser later awakens in Toad Town, near Mario and Peach.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Bowser appears, once again as the final boss, in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Here, he appears together with eight youths, the Koopalings and Bowser Jr.. In the last castle of World 8, Bowser is located in the final chamber, sending out fireballs toward Mario, similar to his appearance in the original Super Mario Bros.. When the battle begins, Bowser is fought in a similar manner as in Super Mario Bros., as well as in the first and final castles in the original New Super Mario Bros., attacking by shooting fireballs and leaping into the air.
After the player presses the switch, the bridge collapses beneath Bowser, sending him falling into a pit once again. However, the Princess Peach in the cage nearby turns out to be Kamek in disguise. He escapes from the cage and casts a spell over the chasm that Bowser has fallen down. After several moments, Bowser reappears, now at a gigantic size, knocking Kamek off his broom, and proceeds to chase after Mario. The player must advance on to the area beyond, luring Bowser into launching fireballs at walls to destroy them so he or she can proceed. However, he can hack away at the walls behind him with his claws, as well as jumping to where the player is. By jumping on the switch at the end of the area, a humongous chasm opens up right underneath Bowser that drains the lava from the room, taking the Koopa King with it and defeating him for good.
During the credits roll, the player can hear various pitched growls from Bowser in a conversation with Peach. After this sequence, Bowser is seen unconscious and outside his castle, having survived the drop and returning to normal size. Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings are trying to push him over, and succeed, resulting in him waking up. However, pushing him over causes the entire castle to fall over onto them. The screen is black when it lands, but Bowser can be heard giving two growls of pain.
Super Mario Galaxy 2
- “I'm HUUUUGE! Even scarier up close, huh?”
- —Bowser, Super Mario Galaxy 2
Bowser appears in Super Mario Galaxy 2, once again as the main antagonist. At the beginning of the game, he invades the Mushroom Kingdom again, but this time at a gigantic size, due to the power of the Power Stars that he stole earlier. He kidnaps Princess Peach and flees into space again, claiming to build a galactic empire to suit his new size and put it's capital at the center of the universe.
Additionally, he attacks and destroys Lubba's starship prior to the game, causing the Lumas to rebuild it in Mario's image when they team up with him. Using the Starship Mario to pursue Bowser, the player has to collect the Power Stars and save Princess Peach as he or she has done before. Bowser also orders a Magikoopa to get rid of Yoshi, as he does not want Mario teaming up with his dinosaur friend.
Bowser is faced three times in the game. The fights take place on a spherical planetoid, where Bowser, in his gigantic size, attempts to crush Mario with his fists, and by sending meteors crashing down. He also uses his Fire Breath. When using his fists, Bowser's hand gets stuck in the planetoid briefly, and any meteors on the battlefield at the time rise and turn yellow. Mario has to Ground Pound the meteors so that they hit Bowser. After each battle, when Bowser is defeated, he coughs up a Grand Star, causing him to shrink back down to his normal size and fall to the ground, but he is not discouraged at all and flees, telling Mario each time that his plan is too far along to stop.
The final battle at Bowser's Galaxy Generator has two phases. When Bowser is defeated once, Mario attempts to collect the Grand Star coughed up by Bowser, but the Koopa King reappears, eats the Grand Star, regains his gigantic size, and then the two fall into a vortex and begin the second phase of their battle. This part requires Mario to send yellow meteors at Bowser before he gets close enough to punch him. After Mario defeats Bowser for the final time, Bowser is sucked into the vortex, and is not seen again until Mario, Peach, and the Toad Brigade return to Mushroom World near the end of the credits, where it is shown that he has become smaller than normal, and is unconscious when he is first seen. Mario can jump on top of Bowser or spin him, waking him up and causing him to become angry.
Super Mario 3D Land
Bowser appears once again as the main antagonist of Super Mario 3D Land. He once again abducts Princess Peach, along with his henchmen, Boom Boom and Pom Pom. One day, a storm blows off all the Super Leaves on the Tail Tree in the Mushroom Kingdom. When Princess Peach goes to check the tree, Bowser catches Peach off guard and grabs her along with all the Tanooki leaves. He takes her to his castle while he has his minions, some of which he powers up with the Super Leaves, fight Mario on his quest.
It is revealed through the letters found after each world that Peach tries to escape, but Bowser's forces eventually overpower her. Bowser then holds her in a cage and keeps her next to his throne. The player must then get through World 8 to reach Bowser's Castle, where he or she fights Bowser by attempting to pass by him, cross the bridge, and push the button on the other side. When the player does this, Bowser falls into the lava. However, Bowser had planned ahead; he set up a wooden cutout of Peach on the top of a tower. After Mario discovers this, Bowser appears from above, holding the real Princess Peach, and heads to his second castle.
After facing one last level, the player is able to access Bowser's second castle. When the player reaches Bowser's quarters, Mario discovers the princess bound to the flagpole, but Bowser falls out of the sky, attempting to pound him from above, and roars, which causes the floor beneath them to fall.
During the second battle, instead of fighting him, the player has to dodge various obstacles until the switch at the end of the area is reached. Bowser attacks Mario with spiked balls at the beginning, with fireballs for the second portion of the area, and with barrels near the end. After all this, the player must finally pass by Bowser once again in order to push the button. Once this is accomplished, Bowser falls to the lava below.
However, when the player passes on to the next section, Bowser to reemerges from below and continues to chase the player. While progressing through a second obstacle course-like area, Bowser leaps across to various platforms, shooting massive white fireballs at Mario. At the very end of this area is another bridge with the switch on the other side. Once the player reaches this point, Bowser attempts to stop him or her from crossing by chasing the player across the bridge. If the player pushes this button, Bowser is sent careening into the lava once more, truly defeating him.
After defeating Bowser, Peach is returned to her castle with the help of Tanooki Mario and three Tanooki Toads. The credits show Bowser trying to reach Mario with the help of a massive Goomba Tower, but failing.
After completing all the special worlds, it is revealed that Bowser has once again captured Peach. The player (as Mario or Luigi) must then go back to Bowser's Castle to rescue Peach a second time.
New Super Mario Bros. 2
Bowser appears as the main antagonist in New Super Mario Bros. 2. He is the final boss of World 6, and he attacks using fire and iron mallets in a battle reminiscent of the original Super Mario Bros. On the other side of him is a switch that must be pressed in order to defeat him. The bridge beneath him collapses and he falls into the pit below as soon as it is. However, after he is defeated, the Koopalings appear in the Koopa Clown and use their wands' magic on Bowser. This causes him to grow to a massive size, also knocking the Koopalings down into the rising lava pit in the process, and making the player have to move upwards via platforms and evade Bowser, who attempts to break them. In two segments of the battle, the platforms disappear, and the player must avoid Bowser's streams of fire breath. On the roof of Bowser's Castle, there is a massive ! Switch, similar to the one from New Super Mario Bros. When the switch is pressed, Bowser plummets to his doom and the game is won.
He and the Koopalings later appear during the credits. Bowser is normal-sized again, and the Koopalings are carrying him away, Bowser being held outside of the car by his tail. However, the added weight causes the car to plummet to the ground, scattering the occupants around the area. Bowser himself was seen with his head stuck in the ground.
New Super Mario Bros. U
Template:Newsubject-section Bowser is set to return in New Super Mario Bros. U, as the main antagonist and final boss. In the game's intro, Bowser, along with his Koopalings, invade the Mushroom Kingdom in their airships. Bowser's ship then uses a mechanical hand to grab the Mario Brothers and two Toads, who are having lunch with Princess Peach, and fling them out of the castle. Afterward, he lays siege to Peach's Castle.
Super Mario Bros.: Peach-hime Kyushutsu Dai Sakusen!
Bowser is featured as the main villain in the Japan-exclusive movie Super Mario Bros.: Peach-hime Kyushutsu Dai Sakusen!. The plot of the film is similar to that of Super Mario Bros. in that Bowser is trying to conquer the kingdom, turning its inhabitants into inanimate objects; he even turns Princess Peach's fiancé, Prince Haru, into a dog going by the name Kibidango. Bowser is also trying to marry Peach, making this film the first instance in which Bowser has shown a love interest in her.
Bowser appears on Mario's television soon after Peach heads through it. He also walks through the screen after Peach explains his motives, and Mario and Bowser have a brief confrontation. However, this ends with him knocking Mario through the floor, grabbing Peach, and walking back through the TV.
While she is at Bowser's castle, staying in one of the many rooms in the castle, Bowser attempts to convince Peach to love him. However, Peach uses this as an opportunity to trick him, stating that she would like him if he were cute. He then transforms himself into a scarecrow, a dancer, and then a teddy bear. While in this form, Peach takes him and locks him in a box, which he escapes by transforming back into his normal form. He then walks out and locks Peach in her room.
Later, Bowser commences his wedding with Peach. However, Peach still refuses to be married to Bowser, and he is surprised to hear that she loves Mario; at that moment, the brothers and Kibidango arrive on a flying ship they found earlier. Angered upon learning that the brothers have arrived, he demands that his minions destroy the brothers. He then grabs Peach and escapes with the priest. Thinking that the brothers and Kibidango are now dead, Bowser and the priest continue the ceremony, but she once again refuses. However, the castle then begins to fall apart on top of them.
Upon emerging from the rubble, Mario and Bowser begin their second fight, but Bowser once again has the upper hand. As they fight, Kibidango attempts to distract Bowser so Mario can use the power-ups, but before he can eat the star, Bowser notices him and conjures some rice and a flavoring packet in thin air. Mario sees the food and tosses the star away in favor of the rice. Bowser uses the distraction to try and stomp him, but fails when Mario moves away. He then sees the Star fall down a hole in the ground, and Bowser takes the opportunity to try and stomp Mario again; he fails once more, but his enemy falls off the cliff. At this moment, Peach begs him to end the quarrel, stating that she will marry him if he spares his life. Luigi then appears, having dug up the starman, but before he can feed it to Mario, Bowser notices and stomps them both. However, Mario, having been able to eat the item, lifts Bowser's foot off of him and uses his increased strength to beat him up, grabbing him by the tail and flinging him far away. As Mario's power wears off, Bowser can be seen flying away using a parachute, waving a white flag of surrender.
The ending of the movie shows Bowser and several members of the Koopa Troop working at Mario Bros. Grocery, appearing to be content with their current jobs.
Game & Watch series
Bowser's appearances in the Game & Watch games are very minor compared to his roles in other titles. His appearances are mostly in the ports included in the four Game & Watch Gallery games.
Bowser's first appearance in a game for Game & Watch is the remake of Super Mario Bros.. Because it is a remake of the game, the game has the same plot as the original.
Game & Watch Gallery's modern version of Oil Panic features Bowser dropping oil from the top of a tower. Below, the player must try to catch the oil and hand the buckets to Yoshi for disposal. Occasionally, Yoshi can knock Bowser from his position.
The modern version of Ball from Game & Watch Gallery 2 features Bowser as one of the four playable characters; the objective of the game is to control him as he attempts to juggle a Goomba, a Boo, and a Koopa Shell, as well as collecting coins and avoiding Bob-ombs.
He also appears in the modern port of Mario Bros. in Game & Watch Gallery 3 and Game & Watch Gallery 4. His role in this game is to hinder the player's progress by reversing the directions of the conveyer belts they are working on; however, he or she can switch the flow of the belts back to normal by flipping a switch.
Game & Watch Gallery 4 also has Bowser in the modern Rain Shower. Here, he is seen in a tree, trying to throw balloons filled with paint at Mario's friends, who are relaxing on various objects attached to the ropes. Mario is able to help his friends avoid the balloons by using the ropes to move them out of the way.
Super Mario Bros.: Trapped in the Perilous Pit
In the Golden Look-Look Book Super Mario Bros.: Trapped in the Perilous Pit, Bowser heads down to the basement of Peach's castle to kidnap the princess while Mario and Luigi, who are working on the castle's plumbing, are with her. Mario tries to fight him, but is defeated; it is when Luigi takes a Fire Flower and fights him that Bowser is defeated. Bowser escapes, however, and the bros try to chase after him, but fall down a large pit. Bowser also throws the princess into the pit, then escapes, locking the basement door behind him. At the end of the book, however, the three escape the basement and force Bowser out of the castle.
Super Mario anime series
Bowser is also featured as the main antagonist in all three shorts in the Super Mario anime series, which had him taking on the guise of various fairy tale villains. In the first story, Momotarō, Bowser acts as an ogre that steals rare treasures from other areas of the galaxy. He hears of the beauty of Princess Peach, and, with the help of his henchmen, the Koopalings, she is kidnapped. Peach's grandparents try to stop him, but fail. During the time that the princess is kidnapped, Bowser attempts to propose to her, but she refuses. Afterward, he holds Peach prisoner in a cave until she accepts. Eventually, Mario and his friends, a Boomerang Bro., a Spike, and a Parabeetle, arrive at Bowser's Castle, defeat the Koopa King, and take Peach and his treasure back.
The second story, Issun-bōshi, features Bowser with a somewhat minimal role, as a bully to both Princess Peach and Mario. While harassing Princess Peach, Mario tries to stand up for her, but Bowser simply tries to stomp him, which later leads to him eating Mario. However, Mario then begins to slash and stab at his insides with the makeshift sword he was given by his father. This causes Bowser to experience a horrific stomachache and regurgitate Mario, falling unconscious. However, when Bowser wakes up, Mario is on his head, but he slices off his horns and eyebrows as he leaps off. Embarrassed, Bowser runs away from the two, dropping a magical hammer on the way. This hammer allowed Mario to be grown to a normal size.
The final story, Shirayuki-hime (Snow White), has Bowser playing the role of the Wicked Queen. He is a selfish tyrant, who often asks his mirror who is the most beautiful in the land, with the mirror's response being an image of himself. However, one day, when asking the mirror the question, Bowser is shocked to see the image of Princess Peach has appeared on the mirror; this casts him into an angered state. Eventually, he has four of his Koopalings attack her, but she is saved by Mario, who defeats the Koopalings. However, thinking his minions had succeeded, Bowser asks the mirror his question again, but the response is still the image of Peach. He is once again angered by this, and, using various chemicals in a laboratory, Bowser creates a poison, which he injects into an apple. While both the Toads and Mario are gone from their house, Bowser, disguising himself using a cloak, gives Peach a poisoned apple, which causes her to fall into a coma-like state, and flies back to his castle.
Once Mario, Peach, and the Toads arrive at Bowser's castle, he has his Koopalings attack Mario. They succeed with their attack, but the Toads combine with Mario, increasing his strength and allowing him to once again defeat them. Bowser attempts to escape, but Mario chases after him. However, Mario stops in his tracks when he sees Bowser holding a knife at Peach. At that moment, Luigi unexpectedly enters the scene with a hammer and attacks Bowser. The brothers then take him and throw him head first into his mirror to defeat him.
DIC Cartoons
Bowser, though only commonly referred to by the name of King Koopa, is featured as the main antagonist of all three of DIC Entertainment's Super Mario cartoons, The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World. He later gets his own show in King Koopa's Kool Kartoons, a live-action DIC production. Bowser's appearance in the shows is based on his in-game sprite from the original Super Mario Bros. and also bears some resemblance to Wart from Super Mario Bros. 2, whose army, the 8 Bits, are loyal to Koopa in the shows along with the original Koopa Troop.
The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!
- “Koopa Pack, attack!”
- —Bowser, The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!
In The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, Bowser often takes on various aliases and costumes and try to enact a dastardly plot of some sort, most commonly trying to conquer a kingdom or steal an ancient treasure and/or artifact; aiding Bowser in these plots are his Koopa Pack and a sidekick of sorts, most commonly Mouser. In several episodes, Bowser captures Princess Toadstool and attempts to blackmail her into giving him the Mushroom Kingdom, although some other episodes imply that he already has some measure of control over the kingdom.
The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3
In The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3, Bowser, having seemingly been banished from the Mushroom Kingdom sometime after the events of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, returns to it to cause havoc, with the aid of his seven Koopalings (referred to as the "Koopa Kids"). In The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3, Bowser stops his use of aliases and costumes and his plans became somewhat odd in nature, such as turning his children into giant, ninja warriors for the sole purpose of kidnapping Prince Hugo, only to end up transforming him into a poodle.
Super Mario World television series
In Super Mario World television series, Bowser makes somewhat infrequent appearances. He was, as revealed in the episode "Mama Luigi", once again banished from the Mushroom Kingdom, which results in him moving to Dinosaur Land, where he, along with his Koopa Kids, cause trouble. Bowser's fate at the end of the cartoons is never actually disclosed, as his final appearance shows him trapped in his bedroom, which is rapidly filling with lava.
King Koopa's Kool Kartoons
After The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, Bowser received his first live-action appearance in King Koopa's Kool Kartoons, a show starring Bowser that only aired for one season between 1989 and 1990. His appearance, as well as his personality and demeanor, is based off of his cartoon appearance in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, but changed to make him look more believable for a live action TV show. Like the cartoons, King Koopa's Kool Kartoons was produced by DIC. During the show, Bower hosts a quiz, to which any viewer can send their answers through the mail, and answers fan mail. He then shows public-domain cartoons unrelated to the Mario series. At the end of each episode, Koopa gives away Nintendo merchandise to the child-exclusive studio audience.
Mario Ice Capades
In the real-life Mario Ice Capades production, Bowser, known as King Koopa (but referred to as Bowser only once), appears while Jason Bateman is explaining Super Mario Bros. to Alyssa Milano. He plans to use the NES they are playing to spread a computer virus and take over the world. He then has his minions head out to infect the system's hardware.
When the Mario brothers show up, Bowser sends his minions after them, but Luigi easily defeats them with a fire-shooting weapon. After most of his minions are defeated, Bowser, accompanied by a Spiny, attempt to attack the Mario bros. and some children from the audience, but they are defeated as well.
White Knuckle Scorin'
In the comic included with the White Knuckle Scorin' album released by MCA records, Bowser appears as the main antagonist. His plan is to turn the dinosaurs on Dinosaur Land into fossil fuel, and join OPEC as an oil tycoon. As soon as he kidnaps Princess Toadstool and brings her to his castle, he explains his plan to her, but the princess tells Bowser that he is not smart enough to be an oil tycoon. However, Bowser replies by telling her that he would rather have "brute force and a bad attitude over smarts and education", informing her (in song) that "ignorance is bliss."
Later, Bowser's spies tell him that the Mario Bros. and their ally Yoshi are approaching his castle. Wishing to show off the reading skills the princess taught him earlier, Lemmy helps Bowser in reciting a spell he believes has a nasty effect (he cannot do it himself because he states to have left his reading glasses in the pantry when he was reading the nutritional label on a bag of "toasted lard chips"), but instead creates an illusion in which the entire countryside is given a medieval motif; Mario and Luigi are given suits of armor, which boosts their confidence.
The spell wears off as soon as Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi arrive at the castle, but Bowser has his Mecha-Koopas attack them. He then places Toadstool in a cage, which begins to lower into a vat of lava. They cannot save her in time, and the princess is killed. Mario attempts to claim vengeance, but his grief over the situation allows Bowser to easily beat him. However, Princess Toadstool suddenly appears out of the shadows and strikes Bowser. Revitalized by her sudden appearance, Mario is able to take on Bowser again, while the princess explains that she escaped due to Bowser leaving the operating manual inside the cage. (Bowser states that he never thought about the instructions, since he is illiterate.) The heroes then work together and defeat Bowser and his Mecha-Koopas; Lemmy even helps them out, telling the princess that the Mecha-Koopas hurt Bowser even more. Despite his defeat, however, Bowser orders his minions to sever any Warp Pipes leading outside Dinosaur Land, supposedly leaving the heroes trapped there, but Princess Toadstool then reveals that she has Bowser's spell book, and Yoshi recites the spell that transports the others back home.
Super Mario-Kun
Bowser also appears as a prominent character in the Super Mario-Kun Japan-exclusive manga. With each novel being based upon the Mario games, Bowser's appearances in Super Mario-Kun give him the same role he has in the game each volume is based on. However, Bowser has also appeared in novels based upon games he does not appear in, such as volume 7, which is based upon Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins.
Yoshi series
Yoshi's Cookie
In Yoshi's Cookie, Bowser appears as one of the four playable characters in versus mode. He has the highest attack of the four, but his other stats are average.
The Nintendo Puzzle Collection version of the game features a story mode. Yoshi and Mario have made Yoshi Cookies and are delivering them, but decide to rest due to the nonstop deliveries they are making. Bowser, however, notices the sleeping pair and gets the idea to steal the Yoshi Cookies for himself. Upon waking, Yoshi and Mario head after Bowser to retrieve the cookies.
Bowser is faced on stage seven on every difficulty, after the player defeats Thwomp and Kamek. The player must defeat him three out of five times to win.
Tetris Attack
Bowser also appears in Tetris Attack, a game that is based on the Japanese Panel de Pon. The remake replaces several characters of the game with characters from the Mario series and the Yoshi series. Bowser takes the role of Cordelia, as the game’s final boss.
During VS. Mode, the game's story mode, Bowser has Kamek cast a spell over the inhabitants of Yoshi's Island, brainwashing them into working for him and his Koopa Troop. He also has a massive rain created, threatening to flood the world. He is faced in Mt. Wickedness on hard mode, on the twelfth and final stage, after Kamek is defeated.
Bowser is also faced on the final stage and special stage on Stage Clear mode. Stringing together combos and chains depletes his health points. The special stage, however, is only meant to test the player, and the player can retry the final stage if he or she loses.
Yoshi Topsy-Turvy
Yoshi's Island has once again become the target of an adult Bowser's conquests during the events of Yoshi Topsy-Turvy. The Koopa King and his forces attack the island, causing chaos and disorder. In response to this, a spirit named Hongo attempts to contain Bowser and his army by using his magic to place the entire island inside the Forbidden Pop-Up Book, mirroring what Bowser did to Yoshi's Island as a baby. Fortunately, Yoshi manages to convince the powerful spirit to restore Yoshi's Island under the conditions that Yoshi trap Bowser himself; if this is done, than Yoshi's Island does not have to be isolated from the rest of the world. As such, Yoshi set off through the chapters of the storybook version of Yoshi's Island.
Each course is controlled by a different spirit, and each demands that the green dinosaur fulfill a specific task before he or she allows Yoshi to move on. Ultimately, after satisfying the task of every spirit, the spirits allow Yoshi to confront King Bowser. The first part of the battle takes place on a platform. Bowser attacks Yoshi by breathing fire at him, while bombs fall from the sky. Yoshi must lead Bowser into the bombs to damage him; this causes him to fly into the air and fall back onto the ground, which sends two Shy Guys down from above.
When Bowser is damaged enough times, the two fall to a lower platform. Bowser only attacks by leaping and slamming the ground, causing two enemies to fall; other than this, Bowser simply walks toward Yoshi, albeit weaker and slower. Once more, Yoshi must make Bowser walk into the bombs parachuting down from above to damage him. Once this is done enough times, they fall to a pair of even lower platforms over a pit of lava; Bowser's is so small that only one of his feet can fit on it. The player must tilt the screen so that Bowser falls into the lava, which increases in height. Once he falls in, Bowser is defeated. Afterward, with the threat of Bowser eliminated, Hongo keeps true to his word and releases Yoshi's Island, restoring it to its natural state.
Yoshi's Island DS
In Yoshi's Island DS, Bowser travels to the past to find the Star Children, which are said to have the power necessary for Bowser to conquer the universe. Among the many children he takes or attempts to kidnap are Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, Baby Peach, Baby Donkey Kong, Baby Wario, and even Baby Bowser. Bowser from the future uses a scepter to bring him back to the past and invades Baby Bowser's Castle. Bowser later kicks Baby Bowser out of the castle when he insults him.
Baby Bowser teams up with Baby Mario, Baby Wario, Baby Donkey Kong, Baby Peach, and Yoshi to save Baby Luigi and the other babies from the future Bowser out of revenge, since his future self had betrayed him. Near the end of the game, while traversing the castle, Baby Bowser turns on his team because he thought they'd come to try and steal his treasure, but he is outnumbered and defeated. The future Bowser then shows up and attacks them for being rude to his past self (even though he'd booted him out of his castle earlier). During the fight, Bowser attacks Yoshi and the babies by leaping around and blasting them with fireballs. By using the Giant Yoshi Eggs carried by Baron von Zeppelins as projectiles, the player can knock Bowser off his feet. He or she is then able to attack Bowser by ground pounding him.
When the player defeats Bowser, Kamek intervenes and enchants Bowser using his magic. The magic causes Bowser to become a giant in the final battle against Baby Mario, Baby Peach, Baby Donkey Kong, and Baby Wario. During the battle, Bowser moves around to the left and right sides of the area and attacks the Yoshis and babies with fireballs, as well as sending down debris. The player must throw the Giant Yoshi Eggs, once again obtained by Baron von Zeppelins, at Bowser so that they explode in his face. Once he or she defeats him again, the unconscious Bowser is carried away by Toadies while Kamek vows revenge and Baby Bowser follows them. it is revealed that the babies, including Baby Bowser, make up six of the seven Star Children, with a Baby Yoshi that is born soon after Bowser leaves the past, being the seventh.
Club Nintendo comics
Bowser is one of the many characters that appear during the Club Nintendo comics. His appearances are as an antagonist, and are mostly major. His first appearance in one is Wart steht unter Strom (Wart is Tensed Up). During the comic, Bowser, for some reason appearing under the name "Wart", is playing what appears to be "Template:Conjecturaltext" on a Game Boy, when the batteries die. He angrily throws them out, the dead batteries landing at Mario's feet. Mario notices them and tells Bowser that they should be disposed in special containers. Even more infuriated, he attacks Mario, resulting in Bowser being electrified by the dead batteries. Afterward, a still flashing Bowser decides to finally accept Mario's advice and heads off to buy a Battery Set.
In Süße Weihnachten (Sweet Christmas), Bowser first appears outside Mario's house, while he is not at home. Bowser also takes advantage of the fact that their door is unlocked and enters. He notices several treats inside, and starts to eat them; afterward, however, a somewhat overweight Bowser starts feeling sick. He tries to leave, but falls over. Dr. Mario, being told of Bowser's condition by a Toad doctor, rushes over and, along with Nurse Toadstool, checks his condition, then gives him a prescription. He is later seen in bed, still sick, in the background while Mario, Luigi, Princess Toadstool, and Toad sing "Silent Night".
Bowser's appearance in Super Mario: Mario im Wunderland (Super Mario: Mario in Wonderland) is minor. He, along with Wario and Donkey Kong, emerge from a bush in front of Mario, Toad, and Kirby. They claim that the group stole their cookies, and begin to fight. However, they are scared away by Fox McCloud. He also has a minor appearance in Super Mario: Erholung? Nein, danke! (Super Mario: Recreation? No, thanks!), where he works at the front desk of the Gumba Royal Hotel.
In Die Jagd nach dem Nintendo 64: Krawall im All (The Race for the Nintendo 64: Ruckus in Outer Space), Bowser and Wario have teamed up in order to find a special spacecraft on the planet Earth; they are planning to use the spacecraft to rule the universe. Their only opposition on this quest is Mario and Luigi. Upon landing on earth, the duo notice that the Mario bros. landed first, and fly off in their para-gliders. They notice Mario and Luigi in karts, and begin to attack them. Bowser knocks Mario off the road, but he loses control of his glider. Mario, back on the road, grasps the opportunity and throws banana peels in front of him. He slips on one and collides with Wario; the villains are knocked out while the Mario brothers continue.
Even later, in order to reach the island containing the spacecraft, Wario and Bowser use a type of aircraft with rocket boosters. They outrace Mario and Luigi, who are using their karts converted into jet skis. However, Mario tricks them into believing flying straight is boring, and the villains begin to do various midair maneuvers until they run out of fuel and fall into water. They eventually emerge from the water and try to take the craft, shaped like a Nintendo 64, from the Marios, but fail after the brothers put a flag up on top of it. Their friends congratulate them while Bowser and Wario are sulking.
Mario Teaches Typing games
Bowser also makes some minor appearances in the two Mario Teaches Typing games, such as appearing when the letter "B" is typed in the first game's alternate game mode. Additionally, a Bowser portrait also appears in the room where the Koopa Troopas are playing cards in Mario Teaches Typing 2. In both games' story modes, Bowser is not featured, but his castle is, though it is destroyed by Mario and Luigi at the end. In the second game's story mode intro, the Magical Typewriter gives them a message that states it is "the key to beating Bowser."
Super Mario Bros. & Friends: When I Grow Up
Bowser's appearances in the coloring book-based game Super Mario Bros. & Friends: When I Grow Up include the "attorney and judge" page, in which he is the judge, and the "business executive" page, in which he appears as the business executive. It is interesting to note that Bowser appears with his game and cartoon appearance in this game.
Mario Kart series
Bowser is always a default-unlocked heavyweight character in the Mario Kart games. He also always has his own course, aptly named Bowser's Castle. In later games, both a current incarnation and at least one past incarnation of the track appear.
In Super Mario Kart, he and Donkey Kong Jr. have the heaviest weight and highest speed, but at the same time suffer from poor acceleration and steering. If controlled by a computer, Bowser can toss fireballs onto the track. In the Japanese release of the game, every character's awards ceremony victory animation involves a bottle of champagne, but part of Bowser's involves drinking it. This is changed in English releases, in which Bowser simply tosses the bottle into the air and catches it.
In Mario Kart 64, Bowser and the other heavyweight characters have poor speed, acceleration, and steering, but high weight, allowing them to ram lighter racers out of their way.
In Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Bowser has the highest weight, but also the lowest speed in the game.
In Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, Bowser's default partner is Bowser Jr.. Their shared Special Item is the Bowser Shell, and his kart is the Koopa King.
In Mario Kart DS, Bowser's Koopa Clown Car appears as his unlockable kart, the Hurricane. His default karts are a standard kart (Standard BW), like the other racers, and the Tyrant. Once the game is beaten, Bowser can drive any of the thirty-six karts in the game. He also appears as the ghost on Airship Fortress with a time of 2:07:748 on the Hurricane, on Bowser Castle on the Hurricane with a time of 2:19:661, and on GBA Bowser Castle 2 with a time of 1:52:258 on the Standard BW. In Missions Mode, Bowser is the character played as for missions 3-2, 4-5, 5-4, 6-1, 6-8, and 7-7. In addition, he also appears as the opponent to be raced against for mission 7-2.
In Mario Kart Wii, Bowser has the highest weight bonus for his class size, which makes vehicles like the Offroader and Piranha Prowler heavier than normal. The Staff Ghosts that use Bowser are Nin*YABUKI at Bowser's Castle in the Piranha Prowler, with a time of 3:04:836 with no Wii Wheel and manual drift. The expert staff ghost is Nin*Masa with the same settings, except this time, Bowser is on the Flame Runner with a time of 2:42:098.
In Mario Kart 7, Bowser returns as a heavy racer. He has one of the best speed and weight boosts in the game. His Koopa Clown Car also has an appearance as the Koopa Clown, an unlockable kart body. The staff ghosts using Bowser are Ret*Matt M on Bowser's Castle, with the standard kart body, Monster tires, and the Super Glider with a time of 02:34.815; the expert staff ghost also uses Bowser in the Blue Seven with Red Monster tires and the Beast Glider, the time being 02:15.244. He is also both ghosts on GBA Bowser Castle 1; the normal ghost, Nin*Hayata, uses the Pipe Frame with Standard tires and the Beast Glider and has a time of 01:31.030, while the expert, Nin*hokwai, uses the Koopa Clown with the Roller tires and the Super Glider, and has a time of 01:22.221.
Bowser also makes an appearance in the two Mario Kart Arcade GP games; the first has no weight stat to classify characters by, but the second classifies him as a power racer. In both games, Bowser has four special items: Bowser Shell, which has the same effect as Double Dash!!; Shell Body, which makes him invincible; Flaming Tender, which damages any rival that hits it; and Thwomp, which squishes any driver that gets beneath it. Bowser also receives his own two-course cup in each game, both of which consists of Bowser's Castle and Castle Wall, which takes place on the wall surrounding his castle. In the first game, beating the Bowser Cup allows the player to face Bowser in a battle as the challenge stage. The player must leap over the streams of fire Bowser spits at him or her while tossing shells at the supports for his platform. If the player is playing as Bowser for this challenge, they instead face Mecha Bowser.
Mario is Missing!
Bowser causes much trouble on Earth during Mario is Missing!. Bowser plans to use several hairdryers to melt Antarctica, which would result in the Earth flooding. However, because he cannot afford the amount of hairdryers needed to enact the scheme, Bowser sends his Koopa Troop across the world to steal rare and valuable artifacts to sell.
Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi head to Antarctica to stop him, but Mario is captured by Bowser. Mario's kidnapping, however, differs between the three versions. In the PC version, Luigi remains outside with Yoshi, as he is too scared to go in, so Mario enters by himself; Bowser, disguised as a butler, gives Mario some candy, and he is caught in a net afterward. In the SNES version, Mario falls down a pit trap activated by Bowser. In the NES version, Bowser catches him in a sack. Either way, Mario is kidnapped, forcing Luigi to save Mario using the skill of deduction.
The endings differ from the console as well. When the player saves Mario in the NES version, Luigi and Bowser fight, but this Bowser turns out to be a fake. The real Bowser is later seen outside his fortress, crying over his defeat in the snow. In the SNES version, Bowser leaps down from above after Mario is saved. However, Luigi pulls a nearby switch that causes Bowser to fall into a hole, into a cannon. He is then shot out of his castle and into the Antarctic snow; he freezes instantly after, then shatters. In the PC version, Bowser advances toward Luigi, but Luigi forcefully removes his shell, making him a beach Bowser, much to his humiliation. When Bowser returns, Luigi lies to Bowser by saying that he threw his shell off the balcony. When Bowser looks over the ledge, Luigi kicks him off and he lands in the snow. He then emerges from a pile of snow, dazed, and falls into unconsciousness. After Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi leave, Bowser appears in the corner, looking in that direction before the credits roll.
Nintendo Adventure Books
In Double Trouble, Bowser intends on using Iggy's latest invention, a cloning machine called the GLOM, to overrun the Mushroom Kingdom with duplicates made of sand. After encountering Mario in his Koopahari Desert Fortress, Bowser brags about his scheme before giving chase to the plumber, though he quickly loses him. After Mario causes Fort Koopa to collapse by making the GLOM overload and blow up, he spots Bowser, Iggy and Wendy limping off after digging themselves out of the rubble.
Bowser has only a cameo appearance in Leaping Lizards, where he threatens the orchestra performing at the International Mushroom Games (which six of his children are competing in) to play the Koopa Anthem.
In Monster Mix-up, Iggy Koopa builds the Monster Mixer for Bowser, a device that can fuse two or more objects or creatures together. He begins to use it by fusing several of his minions into conglomerations of the two creatures that formed it (such as a Goomerang Bro. and a Buzz-Bomb). However, in the end, Bowser is stopped and the machine is destroyed.
After Wendy disappears in Koopa Capers, Bowser uses a Magic Carpet to abduct Luigi from Brooklyn, so he can force the younger Mario brother into searching for the wayward Koopaling after his own minions prove incapable of finding her. In the best ending, Bowser and the male Koopalings confront Wendy, who had planned on performing a coup, in her secret lair by following Luigi, but they decide to stave off punishing the treacherous Koopaling if she helps search for the hiding Luigi. If Luigi has Boom Boom's socks, he can throw them into Wendy's simmering potion, creating fumes which knock Bowser, his family and their minions out for at least a week.
Bowser's appearance in Doors to Doom is as an enemy in the series of worlds created by Dr. Sporis Von Fungenstein.
In Dinosaur Dilemma, Bowser has his minions begin abducting all the dinosaurs in Dinosaur Island, so he can "prove" his theory that the dinosaurs went extinct due to not looking both ways before they crossed the street; once the dinosaurs and all evidence of their existence are gone and his theory is thus "proven" true, Bowser intends to be awarded the Snowbell Prize (feeding the cooked dinosaurs to the committee awarding it) and be named curator of the Mushroom Kingdom Museum of Natural History, conveniently located across the street from Mushroom Palace, which he plans on pelting with garbage. Mario and Yoshi ultimately crash Bowser's award ceremony, defeat his evil Slimosaurs, rescue the dinosaurs and the kidnapped Luigi, and humiliate the Koopa King in front of the Snowbell Prize committee and the rest of the guests, including Wart.
In Flown the Koopa, Bowser can be found hanging out in the Valley of the Koopas by Mario and Luigi; when asked about the whereabouts of Princess Toadstool and Yoshi, Bowser denies having anything to do with their disappearance, but since the Mario Bros. have annoyed him he sics a quartet of Mecha-Koopas on them. In the best possible outcome, Luigi bludgeons Bowser with a wrench, sending him running and causing him to drop the remote control needed to disable the Mecha-Koopas and defeat a Magikoopa, who is Bowser's cousin and the main antagonist of the book.
Disguised as a Toad named Fungus Cap, Bowser crashes Yoshi's birthday in Unjust Desserts, placing a cherry on the dinosaur's cake that, when eaten, causes Yoshi to go on an eating binge that ends when he devours Luigi. After unsuccessfully trying to dissuade Yoshi's friends from calling dinosaur physician Doc Drake, Bowser sheds his Toad disguise and escapes, but returns later after having Magikoopa shrink him and his forces so he can follow Mario (who intends to rescue Luigi) into Yoshi's body. When Yoshi and Luigi regurgitate everyone they have eaten, Bowser and his forces try to overwhelm Mario, but are defeated and forced to retreat, with the still tiny Bowser being menaced by an ant.
It is interesting to note that, during the earlier books, Bowser's appearances on the covers of Double Trouble and Monster Mix-up show him with his cartoon appearance; on the cover of the later book Unjust Desserts, Bowser, albeit only his face being on the cover, is shown with his game appearance.
Super Mario Adventures
Bowser appears as the primary antagonist in Nintendo Power's comic series Super Mario Adventures. Some time prior to the events of the comics, he has hundreds of Yoshi's captured and enslaved. Yoshi tries to go after them, but he is trapped in an egg and left in the forest. Later, pipes begin to pop out of the princess's castle grounds, and several of Bowser's minions emerge from them. Bowser and his children, in his Koopa Clown Car, later appear out of a massive warp pipe. Bowser explains to Princess Toadstool that he wanted to conquer the kingdom, and that he can only do so by marrying her. Toadstool declines his proposal, but Bowser gives her a week to decide anyway. He then heads back down the pipe, with the princess and several Toads in pursuit, to attempt to compromise with him.
Several of Bowser's Lakitus capture Toadstool, and Bowser places her in the custody of his kids, telling them to keep a video line between his castle and theirs open. She is kept in a jail cell inside their castle. After interrupting them playing a video game, Bowser begins to tell his kids that he proposed to Toadstool, but is interrupted by a Magikoopa who informs him that the model of his cake is finished. Bowser is shown the model, but wants it bigger, and has to interrupt his children's video game again to tell them to keep Toadstool inside the castle.
After the princess escapes, Bowser is furious at his kids for losing his "bride," but the Koopalings show him that they have captured Mario. Bowser then has them send two Mecha-Koopas across the moat dividing the mainland from the castle to blackmail Luigi; if he wants Mario back, he must hand over Princess Toadstool or Mario dies. Luigi tricks Bowser and the Koopalings by sending himself disguised as the princess, and actually says yes to Bowser's proposal when he arrives.
Bowser and his minions later capture Toad when he flies into the Warp Pipe to find Toadstool, Mario, and Luigi a rescue party. He and several Koopas then disguise themselves as Toads and help the princess and the Mario brothers by sending a ladder. However, on the way up Bowser pulls out a knife and severs the ladder, separating himself and the princess from Mario and Luigi. Afterward,sheds the disguise as the ladder is pulled back up the pipe, revealed to be a small airship. Bowser then sends Paratroopas after Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi.
Having defeated the Koopas, the brothers find a house in the middle of the forest, unaware that Bowser and the Koopalings are watching them and that the house is one of his traps. Bowser prematurely believes that the brothers will enter the house, but when he sees they don't, he pushes a button that causes the scent of cheese to emanate from the structure. The smell convinces Luigi to head inside, and Mario rushes after to find him. Afterward, Bowser returns to planning his wedding.
On the date of the wedding, Bowser witnesses a Magikoopa command several hundred enslaved Yoshis to drag the enormus cake into the courtyard. He then watches as they are commanded to enter a special room, where they enter a machine that traps in eggs. As he is preparing for the wedding, he learns that the princess is still resisting. However, he has the Magikoopa hypnotize her into loving him.
Just as the ceremony commences, Mario emerges to stop him. However, he is shocked to hear that the princess loves Bowser. Bowser then has his minions charge after Mario, subduing him. As he is about to continue with their marriage, a gigantic pack of Yoshis charges in, instantly defeating all of Bowser's minions. After the Magikoopa is defeated, the princess is freed from hypnosis. Bowser tries to escape in his Koopa Clown Car, but Mario lassos the car, causing Bowser to fall out of it and into the cake, which the Yoshis start to consume. Bowser tries to continue the wedding, but the cake collapses while he is still on it.
Nintendo Comics System
In the Mario comics of Valiant Comics' Nintendo Comics System, Bowser, known under the name King Koopa at first, is once again featured as the main enemy of the Mushroom Kingdom, which he continues to try and cause chaos in. Though several of his appearances involve him trying to take over the Mushroom Kingdom, he also has a handful of joke comics revolving around him. His appearance in these comics is exactly similar to his appearance in the DIC cartoons. Throughout the comics, it is implied that Bowser, in some way, is affiliated with the Apook Corporation, a large corporation selling most of the Mushroom Kingdom's commercial products, if not the owner. The corporation mainly retails their products at the Koopamart, a store also implied to be owned by Bowser; it is even designed to look like him.
The short comic "The Legend" explains how Bowser originally kidnapped the princess, and how the Mario brothers went on their quest to rescue her.
In "Just Deserts," Koopa creates a mirage machine, which he uses to create a mirage of the Mushroom King splashing around in an oasis in the middle of the desert Mario and Luigi are trapped in, while he stays at his underground base. However, once they reach the spring, Koopa deactivates the mirage, prompting the bros to search for the king. They eventually arrive at the pyramid Koopa's base is in, and Mario rescues the king and presses a "master mirage" button on the machine, destroying the fortress.
Bowser also appears during "Piranha-Round Sue." During the comic, the Piranha Plant Piranha Sue starts a revolution amongst the plants from King Koopa, who transforms the Mushroom King into a lizard. The king then sends Mario and Toad to retrieve a magic wand to turn him back, giving them the Green Gecko Gem, which gives its user a forcefield. Mario gets the wand, but eventually loses both it and the gem to Sue, who then claims that she rules the world; however, Bowser appears then, and Sue states that she got them for Bowser. He disregards this and claims both; however, he tosses the gem aside, deeming it worthless, and notices the wand has the words "Brooklyn Plumbing Novelty Company" inscribed upon it. Bowser then punishes Piranha Sue for being duped.
During "Beauty and the Beach," Bowser assumes control of a beach island, giving himself the alias "Ka-Hoopa." His plot is to use bombs to heat up the volcano on the center of the island to the point where it erupts and turns the Toads inhabiting the island into Fryguys. He achieves this by having the residents themselves throw the bombs into the volcano, convincing them that doing so will scare off the Trouters near the island. After Princess Toadstool, Mario, and Toad wash ashore on the island, their boat having been destroyed by the aforementioned Trouters, they eventually encounter Bowser. However, he offers them no trouble, even telling them his plan in its entirety, and leaves, stating the volcano would erupt in a matter of minutes. Out at sea, however, he is shocked to notice that the volcano is not erupting, thanks to Mario's installing of bamboo pipelines to divert the lava.
In "Magic Carpet Madness," Bowser first prank phone calls King Toadstool while he is tending his garden; however, his trip to the phone causes him to track mud across the castle's carpet. Princess Toadstool scolds him for this, then calls a carpet cleaner. He then sends three Pidgets to the castle under the guise of carpet cleaners, while he fills the cleaner with Flying Carpet Juice. Bowser watches from a window and later the roof as Toadstool flies out of her castle's skylight, then into the air. However, the plan falls apart when Toadstool crashes into Bowser's blimp. He is last seen whining on the ground, having crashed into the ground and formed a hole.
Before the events of "Bedtime for Drain-Head," Bowser kidnaps Toad. However, a sleepwalking Mario, believing himself to be his favorite comic book hero Dirk Drain-Head, breaks in to Bowser's Castle and beats him up; not wanting to be beaten any more, he calls for a truce. They then head back to Peach's Castle, where he is seen serving the king, Wooster, and Toad grape sodas with little umbrellas upon Luigi and Princess Toadstool's arrival. The king then commends Mario by giving him a slap on the back, waking him up; realizing that Bowser was defeated by Mario in his sleep, he and the others storm off.
In "Betrayal Most Proper," Bowser only gets a minor appearance. The king's adviser Wooster has apparently committed treason, and is kidnapped by Koopa Troopas. Back at Bowser's Castle, however, he feeds Bowser and his minions so much junk food that they become overweight and enter into a state of hibernation.
In "Duh Stoopid Bomb!," Bowser, along with several minions and an incognito Toad, attend a meeting in which a Shy Guy presents the Stupid Bomb, a device that releases a gas that makes anyone inhaling it stupid for several hours. A Snifit later tells him that Mario and Luigi set off a Stupid Bomb they took on themselves; Bowser is first displeased by this, but then is happy, explaining that they will probably set off more bombs on the rest of the population. He then presents a Smart Bomb, a bomb that will not only reverse the Stupid Bomb, but make the one who inhales its gas highly intelligent. The Snifit takes the bomb, and it explodes in his hands. Using his newfound intelligence, the Snifit usurps Bowser of his power and dumps him into Fryguy Kindergarten, where he is crowned by a group of over-excited Fryguys.
Bowser once again gains a minor appearance in "Cloud Burst," where he is seen explaining to a recently amassed army in "World 3" that he has recently been robbed of several Koopabits and even his crown, and that they should be on the lookout for the traitor. However, it turns out that that Lakitu and his cloud and partner Fluffy had robbed Bowser and, earlier, Princess Toadstool. While on a mission to reclaim Princess Toadstool's crown, Mario runs into Bowser (who is wearing a hat) and several minions. As Bowser interrogates Mario for the location of his crown and money, Luigi, up above, pulls an escape hatch on Fluffy open, causing himself, the Lakitu, and all the stolen items to fall to the ground, Lakitu bonking Bowser on the head and knocking him unconscious.
In "The Buddy System," Bowser's plan is to blow up the underground's main water pipe. He later explains that he is doing this to open a taxi service to replace the soon-to-be useless underground. However, the plan's main flaw is Lemmy's stupidity; he nethier knows how to set up the bombs and where the main water pipe is. On the last section, Lemmy uses four bombs, however; the catastrophic explosion causes Bowser and a nearby Mario to be blown toward a Mouser colony. They capture the pair, chaining them together, and Bowser (after the mice call Mario the more intelligent of the duo) explains his plan. However, the Mousers then show him the real main water pipe, and even blow it up as a demonstration to how they would do it, flooding the underground.
He attempts to escape using a Warp Pipe, but Mario explains that the pipes shut off after the water reaches a certain level. They then head back and work together to shut off the water main, and, once this is done, the emergency drain activates. Upon reaching the above ground, Mario and Bowser fight, using a plunger and a tree branch respectively. However, Lemmy then interrupts the fight by bringing in another bomb, and he clumsily drops it; the bomb misses the duo, but cuts the chain keeping them together. Bowser then angrily chases after Lemmy.
Bowser later appears in the comic "It's Always Fair Weather." Here, he is seen storming around the Mushroom Kingdom fair grounds, annoyed that he is being mistaken for Luigi inside a Bowser suit at the dunk tank. He then notices a group of hot air balloons, and decides to take out his anger by using his helicopter's propeller blades to blow them away; However, they are then rescued by Mario, who has been transformed for the first time into Raccoon Mario. After landing, Mario is given a kiss by Princess Toadstool; however, the lovestruck plumber stumbles into Bowser, causing him to lose his raccoon abilities. However, Mario is still able to defeat him by activating the cyclone once more, sending Bowser flying into the pool for the "Douse the Bowser" attraction.
He is also in "The Revenge of Pipe Ooze!," where he supervising Lemmy's ambush test, which they decide to do at The Annual Dirk Drain-Head Role-Playing Game, under the disguise of hotdog vendors, albeit their only form of disguise being fake mustaches. The Mushroom King and Toad, cosplaying as Pipe Ooze and Muck respectively, head over to their hotdog stand; it is here that Lemmy and Bowser knock them out with magic wands. They then take the pair's costumes, and Lemmy decides to ambush Mario, who is role-playing as Dirk Drain-Head himself.
Later, he uses a catapult to launch Lemmy at Mario, as Bowser questions why his son isn't paying taking in his "evil villain lessons." However, the ambush fails, and Bowser attacks a Piranha Plant who insulted his son earlier. He then takes Lemmy onto a pipe and orders him to attack, but Lemmy asks if he can role-play first. Bowser yells at him, causing his son to feel sad, and then apologizes, granting him two minutes to have fun. He then assists Mario and Luigi in their attempt to act out comic #287 in Dirk's series by beating up Bowser. After this is over, Luigi (who recognizes Pipe Ooze to be Bowser instead of the king) convinces him to help him get Mario's spirit back by pretending to be afraid of him, since Luigi's being Dirk attracted several fans. The ruse works, and Mario proceeds to beat up Bowser. Lemmy and Bowser then leave their costumes and sneak away. Lemmy asks if attacking his own father counts toward passing the ambush test, and Bowser tells him that it does; he also gives him extra credit for attacking a close family member. The two then head off to get some food and rest.
In the comic "Tanooki Suits Me," during the grand opening of an art gallery, Mario pushes a button on his Tanooki Suit, turning him into Statue Mario. Mice then steal the statue, as well the rest of the art at the gallery. They then sell it to Bowser for fifty Koopabits, as part of his plan, which also involves selling the art to Wart for a much higher price. Bowser then hears Wart at the door, and sends the mice off, convincing them that it is the police.
As he is about to sell the entire collection for five million Koopabits, Mario transforms back into Tanooki Mario. Not recognizing the plumber in his Tanooki form, Mario convinces Wart that the paintings and statues are actually worthless products from the Apook Corporation, and that they will transform into raccoons as well in a few minutes. Wart is angered by this, and he and Bowser fight while Mario escapes on a forklift with the stolen art.
Bowser's joke comic appearances include shorts such as "Koopa Kola," in which he is advertising the soda of the same name, and "Koopa's Believe It or Else!," in which he gives several obscure but allegedly true "facts" about the Mushroom Kingdom.
Yoshi's Safari
Bowser and the Koopalings take over the kingdom of Jewelry Land, kidnapping the rulers King Fret and Prince Pine, and steal twelve magical gems in Yoshi's Safari. This causes a disturbance, causing an earthquake that splits Jewelry Land into the Light Realm and the Dark Realm. Mario, riding Yoshi, heads for Jewelry Land with the Super Scope Princess Peach gives them to defeat Bowser.
After traversing every land, the duo arrive at Bowser's Castle. Once all of the minions inside the castle are defeated, Yoshi and Mario fall down a pit leading to a room with Bowser controlling a robotic mech suit. Inside the armor, Bowser attacks by shooting projectiles at them with the blasters on the hands. However, the entire robot is invincible except for the hands; attacking these enough times disables them and cause the robot's actual weak point to be revealed. When this is attacked enough times, the robotic suit is destroyed, revealing Bowser himself. In this state, he attacks Mario and Yoshi by tossing Koopa shells at them. Like with the robot, Bowser's hands are the only venerable part of him at first. Once his hands are shot enough, they are disabled (being wrapped in bandages), and Bowser attacks by breathing flame at them. Yoshi and Mario must shoot Bowser's head in order to damage him at this point. Once he is shot at enough, Bowser surrenders (appearing dazed and holding two white flags). The game's credits state that Bowser and the Koopalings return to their home.
After beating the game, a code for the hard mode is unlocked, increasing the difficulty and changing level colors. The text is also changed, to make it appear as though the events of the game are repeating themselves. Mario must once again save King Fret and Prince Pine, as well as reclaim the twelve gems to save Jewelry Land. After defeating Bowser a second time, the game states that he and the Koopalings have returned home for good this time.
Mario's Time Machine
In Mario's Time Machine, Bowser uses a time machine known as the Timulator to steal valuable artifacts from Earth's past, then places them in his own personal museum. He plans to destroy the Timulator after he is done, which would drastically alter the present. The player must take back Bowser's stolen artifacts and use the Timulator to return them to their proper places, saving the time stream.
If the player fails to return all the artifacts in time or returns at least one of them in the wrong order, Bowser escapes by using the Timulator and setting it for "Paradise", forcing the player to start over. However, if the task is done, Bowser attempts to use the machine to escape, but it overloads, then self-destructs, and he is teleported to the Jurassic era, where a Tyrannosaurus Rex stomps him.
Hotel Mario
In Hotel Mario, Bowser and the Koopalings turn the entire Mushroom Kingdom into their own personal resorts and retain Princess Toadstool as a "permanent guest" in one of the seven Koopa Hotels. At the beginning of the game, Bowser appears at the entrance to the Mushroom Kingdom after the Mario Bros. enter, and laughs ominously. The brothers then discover a note left by Bowser explaining the situation, and Mario and Luigi set off to retrieve her.
After Wendy is defeated and her hotel vanishes, Princess Peach runs over to the Mario Bros., but is teleported away by Bowser, with his laughter being heard by the two. The hotel the brothers find afterward is Bowser's Seizures Palace Hotel. After reaching Bowser's Barbecue Room, the final level in the hotel, the player must first face Iggy, who works at Bowser's hotel rather than run his own.
Once he is defeated, the player moves to the next area to face Bowser. He attacks Mario and Luigi by breathing fire and summoning multiple bolts of lightning. Like Iggy, Bowser does not use the elevators, instead changing floors by jumping between them. However, he can be attacked by jumping on him like the Koopalings, and two stomps to the head temporarily sends him off-screen. Like some of his children, he attempts to put a bitter end to their rivalry by savagely dining on them whole. However, when Mario and Luigi shut all the doors in the hotel, the entire building falls to the ground as the brothers and the princess escape.
Bowser also makes a small cameo during a cutscene in the game, in which his name and face appear on the package for Bowser's Sourpuss Bread.
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
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Bowser serves as Mario's ally in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, making this game the first time they have teamed up. At the beginning of the Super Mario RPG, Bowser kidnaps Princess Toadstool as she is picking flowers outside Mario's Pad. He flies her to his castle, named Bowser's Keep in this game, in his Koopa Clown Car. However, Mario, hearing Toadstool scream, is on his tail. The player must head to Bowser's throne room and fight him atop a pair of chandeliers. During battle, he attacks Mario by swiping him with his claws and launching his back spikes at him. At first, Bowser seems to be unbeatable, but the princess then advises Mario to attack the Kinklink chain holding up the chandelier. Once the Kinklink is damaged enough, it let's go of the chandelier, and Bowser plummets to the ground below. Not giving up, however, he throws Hammers at Mario's chain, bringing him down as well, but before he can hit the ground, Mario jumps off of Bowser's head, giving him a boost up to the princess to free her. After the battle, a huge sword named Exor crashes into Bowser's Keep, sending Mario, Toadstool, and Bowser flying in different directions.
While traveling through Rose Way, Mario and Mallow spot Bowser, with a small army of minions consisting of several Goombas, Magikoopas, and Terrapins; he gives them some pep talk, then they head off to reclaim his keep from the Smithy Gang. Later, at Moleville, Bowser is conveniently there at the same time as Mario once again; however, most of the minions he had earlier are now gone.
When the player arrives at Booster Tower, Bowser is once again encountered; however, he is sulking because all his remaining minions have abandoned him. However, he notices Mario behind him, and awkwardly attempts to starts a conversation when he notices Toadstool on the balcony of the tower, then leaves. However, upon noticing the door is locked, Bowser returns, surprised that Mario is still there; realizing that Mario needs him on the team, Bowser breaks down the door and joins the party, naming him, Geno and Mallow honorary members of the Koopa Troop. Later at Marrymore Bowser helps Mario free Toadstool from Booster, who has the intention of marrying her. After returning her to the Mushroom Kingdom, the Chancellor and fellow Toads are surprised to see that Mario is working with Bowser. Although he is nervous to tell the truth, he is able to stretch it some with the others when they explain what is happening. After explaining that, without Star Road, Princess Toadstool may never be saved if Bowser kidnaps her, he wants to forget the mission. But when Toadstool reminds him that he may not regain his keep if he does, this convinces him to stay and help.
Twice in Monstro Town Bowser can encounter former minions; one is Jagger, who is training with Jinx, and the other is a Goomba who has opened up a shop. However, Bowser wishes them good luck with their current lives, stating that his new "minions" are helping to reclaim his keep. Later, in Nimbus Land, upon finding the door to King Nimbus's room, Bowser attempts to bust the door down. However, he is stopped when Mallow suggests that King Nimbus may really be sick, and that they should not disturb him. Even later, after defeating Exor, Bowser decides to abandon the group to return to his castle, having finally reclaimed it, and telling Mario that, as a Koopa Troop member, he needs to help with repairs. However, Geno stops him and reminds him that, as long as Smithy is still active, his castle is still at risk. This convinces Bowser to rejoin the group.
Upon reaching Smithy, the entire party demands that Smithy hand them his Star Piece, Bowser demanding that he leave his castle. He declines, and the group face him in the final battle. Once Smithy is defeated for good and the seventh Star Piece is claimed, Geno wishes the group goodbye, and they all witness as the Star being possessing the Geno doll, actually named ♥♪!? but going under the name of the doll for the entire game, leaves the doll and returns to the newly repaired Star Road. The credits show that Bowser returns to his castle to help in its repair. Additionally, during the end credits parade, Bowser flies after Croco and a Crook in the Koopa Clown Car after they rob his keep. Some time later in the parade, Booster's Snifits have what Croco stole, Croco and the Crook are chasing after them, Booster is chasing them in the Koopa Clown Car, and Bowser is chasing after him, with several beetles behind him.
Bowser's weapons are mostly variations of Chain Chomps and his claw, as well as tossing Mario at enemies, using the Hurly Gloves (Described as: "A classic Mario-toss attack," though when Bowser tosses Mario any other time is a mystery); Bowser's weapons themselves are Chomp, Chomp Shell, Hurly Gloves, Spiked Link, and Drill Claw. Bowser's special attacks are Terrorize, in which he summons a Big Boo to attack; Poison Gas, in which he summons a Mokura to poison enemies; Crusher, in which he creates a large column of earth that emerges from the ground and strikes enemies; and Bowser Crush, which involves Bowser summoning a giant Mecha-Koopa to attack enemies. Additionally, while fighting the enemies in Bowser's Keep, having Bowser as an active party member can scare away some of the monsters. If he is not, his mood can instead confuse them.
In this game, whenever Bowser uses a Special Move, a diamond is superimposed over his body. In the Japanese version, when Bowser is one of the active party members during battle, he does a gesture similar to giving the middle finger for his victory pose[3]. This was changed before the game was released in America. The theme that plays during Mario's battle with him is a remix of the final battle theme in Super Mario Bros. 3.
Wrecking Crew '98
In Wrecking Crew '98, Bowser begins constructing many new fortresses, greatly deforesting the Mushroom Kingdom. When Mario reaches his house, he notices that one of Bowser's buildings is directly in front of his house, as well as the plants withering due to the lack of sunlight, so he decides to go on a quest to tear them all down. Bowser sends many of his minions to stop the plumber, but they all fall; even Bowser's right-hand construction worker, Foreman Spike, cannot defeat him.
When Mario reaches Bowser's castle, he notices the Koopa King outside, putting the final touches on his fortress. He panics when he notices Mario, but regains his senses and decides to battle him. However, once he is beaten, Bowser is forced to watch as his fortress is destroyed. He is depressed at the sight of his building falling apart, but is then angered at Mario, and vows revenge.
After Bowser is defeated in story mode, both he and Princess Peach are unlocked as playable characters in multiplayer mode.
Mario Party series
Bowser appears as an enemy, and in most cases, as the primary antagonist, in the Mario Party series since the first game. His appearances in the game are mostly to bring misfortune upon the players. In every game he is given his own space, which when landed on by the player causes Bowser to appear and wreak havoc. There are also multiple minigames based around Bowser, where a character's coins, items, or stars are taken if they lose. (In the first game, winning the minigame also results in this.) Throughout the series, Bowser takes many forms, mostly in Mario Party 2. Bowser is only playable in the Beach Volley Folley minigame of Mario Party 4. Another feature in every installment is Bowser being given his own board, which is almost always the final board to be unlocked.
Mario Party
In the original Mario Party, Bowser commonly appears on a random spot on all the boards. When the player runs into him, an event called "Bowser's Bogus Items" is initiated, in which he gives the player completely useless items that usually cost coins. However, there are two exceptions to this; on Luigi's Engine Room, he gives the player one coin at the cost of twenty, and on Wario's Battle Canyon, he uses his claws to launch the player to a completely random space on the board.
When the player lands on a Bowser Space, Bowser appears to the player, then activates a roulette that triggers one of several events. Many of the options on the roulette are simply minigames, but despite the results of the minigame, Bowser always takes someone's coins (or a Star in exchange for ten coins, in some cases). If the roulette stops on "Bowser Revolution", Bowser takes all the competitors' coins and distributes them evenly. If it lands on "Coins for Bowser," Bowser steals some of the player's coins. If the roulette lands on one of the gold-lettered phrases, Bowser does nothing and leaves.
Bowser appears during the ending sequence of two boards. At the end of Luigi's Engine Room, he watches as the loser is continuously burnt by the steam generators. In Wario's Battle Canyon, he launches the loser out of his cannon.
Bowser may also appear when the player hits an Event Block. If the result of hitting the block is Bowser's shell, Bowser appears to the player, then takes twenty coins from him or her; if the player does not have that many, Bowser steals all their coins.
Bowser's board in this game is Bowser's Magma Mountain, consisting of a volcano with one path leading up and can only be unlocked by purchasing it for 980 coins at the shop. The players must collect stars in order to defeat Bowser. Several volcano-head statues, which he speaks through, appear throughout the board. Trying to take an intersection results in Bowser asking if the player wishes to take a shortcut to the top for ten coins. If the player selects yes, a roulette initiates; if the result is a star, the player can take the shortcut, and landing on Bowser's face forces the player to continue on the normal path, with no refunds. Additionally, when the player lands on a Happening Space, Bowser causes the volcano to erupt, turning all Blue Spaces into Red Spaces for two turns; they change back when it is that player's turn. When the player encounters the purple volcano statue, another roulette is initiated. If the result is a star, the player can confront Boo; if the result is Bowser, the player can confront Bowser, who steals a star or twenty coins from the player depending on the result of another roulette.
At the end of the board, the winner's stars form a larger star that destroys the part of the volcano Bowser is in. He then flies into the air and lands back on the ground, followed by the winner jumping on him.
Once the player has won a total of 100 Stars, Bowser steals them all and challenges him or her to a battle on Eternal Star, the final unlockable board, to win them back. This board is a giant Star, broken into pieces and covered in graffiti by Bowser. Landing on a Happening Space results in Bowser using his magic to send every player back to the start. Once the player wins on this board, his or her stars merge into one large star that blasts Bowser and Baby Bowser into space.
It should also be noted that a wanted poster of Bowser appears in the Mushroom Shop, on the bulletin board that briefly appears when the player leaves. Additionally, in the minigame Balloon Burst, the four players are competing to inflate and pop Bowser balloons. The minigame Tug o' War and Bash 'n' Cash feature the solo player in a Bowser suit.
Mario Party 2
During Mario Party 2, while the characters argue over what to call the land they created, Bowser invades Mario Land. Because of this, Toad decides to settle the character's argument, stating that whoever defeats Bowser earns the right to name the land. Like the characters, Bowser also wears a costume and has an alias to fit the theme of each land; in Pirate Land, Bowser becomes Capt. Bowser; in Western Land, he becomes Bowser the Brash; in Mystery Land, he becomes Bowser Sphinx; In Horror Land, he is Wizard Bowser; and in Space Land, Bowser becomes Black Hole Bowser.
At the end of each board is cutscene featuring the winner of each board defeating Bowser in some way. In Pirate Land, a Koopa Troopa finds the treasure in a cave, but Cap'n Bowser then shows up and and attempts to claim it when the winner emerges and challenges him for it. They sword fight, which ends with Bowser being poked in the stomach and running off.
At the end of Western Land, Bowser the Brash is robbing the Koopa Bank when the victor arrives to confront him. Bowser then engages with the winner in a quick-draw. The two draw at the same time, but Bowser misses the character and is hit by their cork, then falls over in pain.
The ending of Space Land features Black Hole Bowser attacking Koopa Troopas with lasers when the winner arrives and blasts him with their own, but to no avail. They try running behind him and attacking, but Bowser blocks their attacks once more. He or she then runs around him in a circle, making him dizzy and open to attack. The winner successfully blasts Bowser, launching him into space.
In Mystery Land, Bowser Sphinx is seen attempting to steal the treasure, a golden Bob-omb statue, from a green Koopa. Bowser Sphinx has him guess what the silhouetted figure is, and the Koopa guesses incorrectly, causing Bowser to put him in a rock. The victor then arrives and correctly guesses the figure: it is Bowser himself. Bowser Sphinx then disappears.
The end of Horror Land features Bowser appearing to a Koopa after it is scared by a Boo. Wizard Bowser offers to help him, but he instead transforms the Koopa into a frog. The player then arrives, reverses Bowser's spell on the Koopa, and engages in a magical duel with him. Bowser loses, and is turned into a frog by the player's magic. Bowser then hops away.
The characters then arrive at the territory Bowser conquered, aptly named Bowser Land. After beating this board, Bowser disappears, and the players heads off to search for him. He reappears behind a Koopa and attempts to harm it, but is confronted by the winner before he can. He breathes fire at him or her, which they dodge. He or she tries to throw him by the tail, but Bowser utilizes his Metal Bowser power-up, preventing them from throwing him. Toad then uses the winner's Power Stars to strengthen him or her, giving the character the necessary power to throw Bowser across the world and landing where he started, defeating him.
During the event in which a player lands on a Bowser Space, one of many things can happen. In addition to every non-minigame event from the original, several other possible events were added: Bowser's Coin Potluck, Bowser's Multiplying Toads, and Bowser's Appearing Act. Another new option, Stars-Packed to Go, was added, but this is in gold font, and Bowser leaves like in the original if this is the result of the roulette.
In addition, during the Last Five Turns Event, Bowser predicts who the winner may be in Bowser Land.
Bowser is also one of the options the player can choose in Rock, Paper, Mario. In the game, Bowser beats Peach, but Mario beats Bowser. In addition, the minigame Balloon Burst returns, but as a 2-vs-2 minigame.
Mario Party 3
In Mario Party 3, Bowser attempts to become the Superstar by collecting the seven Star Stamps. However, he is always behind the player and never gets any stamps. He attempts to steal the Beauty Star Stamp, but is beaten by Daisy. When the Mischief Star Stamp appears, Bowser unknowingly sends it flying into the castle when he appears and demands the player battle him to gain the stamp. Waluigi then emerges from the castle with the stamp, and Bowser attacks Waluigi but is easily defeated. A weakened Bowser then begs the player to defeat Waluigi in his name.
For Bowser Space events, several of the options for events were carried over to this game, with several more being added. Several of the events cause hindrance to the competitors, but there are two events that help the player: Bowser Phone Giveaway and Bowser Suit Giveaway. Bowser Suit Giveaway causes Bowser to give the player a free Bowser Suit, and Bowser Phone Giveaway causes Bowser to give him or her a free Bowser Phone, which allows the player to call Bowser and initiate a Bowser event upon one of the players upon its use. Additionally, during the final five turns event, Koopa Kid occasionally hosts the event, and lets Bowser predict the loser.
Mario Party 4
In Mario Party 4, Bowser claims to have stolen the player's birthday presents, stating that he or she must win on his board, Bowser's Gnarly Party, to win them back. The final minigame, The Final Battle!, involves chasing Bowser around a cube-shaped arena, until the player finally reaches the actual arena. Once there, the player must press the various buttons around the arena to trigger lightning strikes that electrocute Bowser. Upon defeat, Bowser is in disbelief that he lost to the player and grudgingly leaves, leaving behind something. Koopa Kid then appears and explains that the object is a present from Bowser, as well as that he really didn't take the player's presents. Afterward, as he is trudging away, he wishes the player a happy birthday. As stated above, Bowser is also a playable character in the Beach Volley Folley minigame.
When players land on a Bowser space, he occasionally shows up, flattening the player who lands on his space and triggers an event. In addition to Bowser Revolution, Bowser Shuffle, and Bowser Suit Giveaway, there is also a new event: Bowser Mini-game, in which the player plays a minigame with Bowser.
On the board Bowser's Gnarly Party, Bowser is located at a certain point on the board that changes when a Star is collected, waiting for a player to pass by him and do various things to them depending on their current size. If the player is normal size, Bowser spits flame at him or her, causing the player to lose half their coins. If he or she is miniature size, Bowser uses his fire to send the player to a different starting point. If the player is mega-sized, Bowser challenges him or her to a game of Bowser Wrestling or Panels of Doom; winning causes Bowser to leave until the next Star is claimed, and losing causes Bowser to take half the player's coins. He also occasionally miniaturizes everyone for one turn.
He also has roles in the three Bowser minigames in the game. In Balloon of Doom, he burns any player that ends up popping the balloon, resulting in them losing. In Fruits of Doom, Bowser demands that the players bring him a piece of fruit in the order he demands one at a time; the players who fail to do so lose. He also announces the loser of Darts of Doom.
Mario Party-e
Bowser makes two appearances in the Game Boy Advance e-reader portion of Mario Party-e. The first is a cameo appearance in Daisy's Rodeo!, in which he is the mechanical bull Daisy has to stay on. The second is in the Wonder Challenge minigame Spinister Bowser, in which he stands atop the roulette.
Mario Party 5
In Mario Party 5, Bowser's plan is to take over Dream Depot and have only his dreams come true. In each of the first four dream boards, Bowser attempts to destroy each dream by filling them with his own dreams. However, the player then arrives to stop him. Bowser, however, has his three Koopa Kids (really Koopa Kid divided into three, distinguished by color) take them on. After beating them, the two move on to the next dream. After being beaten at all the dreams, Bowser challenges the player to a duel at his own dream, Bowser Nightmare. Toward the end, Bowser states that his dream is actually coming true, and that it involves the player.
After defeating the Koopa Kids at Bowser Nightmare, the player must defeat Bowser in his final minigame, Frightmare. During the game, Bowser sends various obstacles after the player, and when he or she clears these Bowser takes on the player himself. During this Bowser portion, he attacks by romping around the board in the players direction, sometimes breathing fire, then leaping up and pounding the tile the player is on. He may also charge directly at them. Upon pounding a floor tile three times, the entire floor crumbles, and he and the player fall onto another arena, where Bowser drinks an elixir and grows giant in size; however, his increased mass causes him to fall through the floor. Despite this, he attacks the player with energy orbs, as well as by breathing fire. By using these orbs when heated by the flames as projectiles, the player can defeat Bowser. Once defeated, Bowser tells the player that his dream did come true, his dream being to have a strong opponent.
All of the Bowser Space events in this game are the same as the previous installment, with the exception of Bowser Suit Giveaway, which was replaced with Bowser Bonus. In this event, Bowser has a Ztar steal a star and give it to him. However, sometimes Donkey Kong will intervene, causing Bowser to run off with twenty of the player's coins. The Last Five Turns Event is also run by Bowser. He gives the standings, and has the last place player spin the roulette, which can cause good and bad things to happen.
Bowser Capsules are also collectable items in the game. If the player receives one, Bowser lands on and squashes him or her, then throws it on a Red Space, resulting in that space turning into a Bowser Space.
The Event Spaces on Bowser Nightmare also trigger various Bowser-based events. The ones on the bottom left and right sides cause Bowser to go for a stroll, turning all red spaces into Bowser spaces and flattening every player he runs in to, causing them to lose ten coins. When the player lands on the space on the top right, Bowser appears and forces the player to hit a blue or red block; red causes the player to lose half their coins, and blue sends him or her back to the start. The two spaces near the top center forces the player to warp to a circular area with only Red Spaces and Bowser Spaces. Finally, the one on the top of the board causes Bowser to take control of the flamethrower and burn the player, causing him or her to lose all their capsules.
Bowser also seemingly hosts the final five turns event. After giving the standings, the last place player stops a roulette, which causes one of four events to occur.
Bowser is also given a role in the three Bowser minigames. In Cage-in Cookin', Bowser roasts any players that fail to escape their cage in time. In Rain of Fire, Bowser uses his fire breath to activate the cannon that shoots several flaming rocks down upon the player. Finally, in Scaldin' Cauldron, after all the players jump into one of the three cauldrons, Bowser enters the room and breathes fire upon two of them; players inside the cauldrons he burns lose.
Mario Party 6
In Mario Party 6, Bowser appears as one of the hosts of the quiz minigame Speak Up, where he changes the rules and the scenery of the game. Bowser also appears in the rare minigame Seer Terror, where players can have their "fortune" told by pulling a rope. However, many of the fortunes are spoken after an unfortunate event happens to the player, which greatly amuses him. There is one fortune in which Bowser is sucked into a black hole; the player "wins" the minigame if they happen to get this fortune.
Bowser is also involved in two of his Bowser minigames. The first is Pit Boss, in which players must dodge spiked balls tossed into an arena by Bowser. The second is Dark 'n' Crispy, in which the players must avoid Bowser's fiery breath in the dark. He is not involved in Dizzy Rotisserie, the third Bowser minigame, but is watching from a platform overhead.
Bowser Spaces cause him to appear and perform one of two actions. The first forces the player to play one of three Bowser minigames. The second Bowser space event involves Bowser rolling a die to determine what the player loses. Bowser Spaces can only be landed on at night, with DK Spaces appearing in their place during the day. In Solo Mode, Bowser pits the player against his Koopa Kids in a minigame; losing causes him to take the player's minigames that he or she has earned so far, and winning gives the player the minigame and ten coins. Additionally, in the final five turns event, one of the options the roulette may land on is Bowser Revolution.
Aside from Bowser spaces, Bowser also appears on three boards. The first is Clockwork Castle, in which he only appears at night to replace DK, who appears during the day. After all the players take a turn, Bowser gets to take a turn as well, rolling two dice blocks instead of one if he breathes fire. Anybody he encounters during his turn is given a Shadow Star, which deducts the player's current Star total by one. If the player runs into him during their turns, Bowser forcibly gives them a Shadow Star, then leaps to another random space on the board.
The second board is Castaway Bay, in which he can be the boat docked at the Star Space. If the player reaches Bowser's Battle Yacht, he "rewards" the player by giving him or her a Shadow Star, which takes one Star or twenty coins if they have none. Additionally, if DK's Boat is docked at the Star Space while the player is participating in the rafting activity, Bowser fires three cannonballs at him or her, causing the player to lose five coins if hit.
The third board he appears on is the Bowser-themed board of the game, Infernal Tower, one of the Solo Mode boards. If the player passes the final space, a cage falls on him or her, which Bowser, in his Koopa Clown Car, then carries away.
Mario Party Advance
In Mario Party Advance, Bowser arrives while Toad is explaining the game and scatters the numerous Gaddgets and minigames throughout Shroom City. After completing the first quest, Bowser seals off the eight pipes in the Pipe House. He also has a slight role on the actual game board; whenever Koopa Kid randomly shows up while traveling through Shroom City, he can use lava to fling the player somewhere else in the city. He can also appear and challenge them to rochambeau (rock, paper, scissors). If he wins, Koopa Kid can choose to block the path, which causes Bowser to drop a statue of him similar to the ones he placed on the pipes on top of Koopa Kid, blocking that section of the board.
As the player completes quests, Bowser destroys the statues covering the pipes. These pipes lead to one of the eight areas Bowser owns around the city.
In Bowser Stadium, Bowser challenges the player to a game of soccer, and, after he is defeated, is forced to play Splatterball. When this game is won, the player wins the game Splatterball, to play any time in minigame mode, and the Gaddget Snooze Ewes.
At Mt. Frostbite, Bowser and Koopa Kid are freezing on the mountain top. When the player arrives, he believes that he or she can warm him up by answering his jokes with the correct punchlines. Once he feels better, he challenges them to play Crushed Ice. After the game is won, Bowser gives him or her the minigame and the Gaddget Breeze Buddy.
At Bowser Mansion, Bowser is accused of stealing a painting from the museum, and the player, along with Shroomlock, must prove whether Bowser is guilty or not by finding faults in his alibi. Bowser tells them that he stayed home all day that day, that he hadn't even seen the painting due to his hatred of Toads and twilight, and that is impossible to hide the painting in the mansion. The player proves Bowser's alibi false by questioning that nothing in the house is big enough to hide the painting, which he could only know if he had seen it. Bowser then states that he hid the painting somewhere outside, and, once Koopa Kid and Shroomlock leave, he forces the player to play Mush Rush Once the game is won, the prize given to him or her is the game and the Gaddget Lip Sync.
At Bowser Toy Shop, the player is challenged by Bowser and Koopa Kid to answer five trivia questions about his favorite show, Toad Force V. If player answers the questions correctly, he has him or her play the minigame Slammer. Once the player wins, they win the minigame.
In Bowser Hideout, Bowser challenges the player to a game of luck: guessing whether the value on the upside-down card is higher or lower than the one preceding it. When he or she wins that game, the player is forced into playing Koopa Kappa. Victory results in receiving the minigame and two Gaddgets: Faux Flame and Hourglass.
At Bowser Pad, Bowser wants the player to get him a gift according to his tastes. The gift either has to be a bracelet, a ring, or a necklace, though the one bought must be the one Bowser truly desires. As a hint, he states that he likes necklaces as much as bracelets, but he likes rings more than bracelets. After retrieving the correct gift and delivering it to him, the gang is challenged to the game Peek-N-Sneak. When the minigame is won, the prize is the game and the Gaddget Shroom Bloom.
In Bowser Game Hall, Bowser brags about himself being the Game King. At the Pyramid, Kamek states that he gave him the title long ago, but that he became too arrogant because of it afterward. Upon hearing the player state that he or she is the King of Games, Bowser challenges him or her to the minigame Watch 'Em, which he states to have created, to determine the true king of games. Winning forces Bower to give the player the title, the minigame, and the Gaddget Jewelry Case.
At Bowser Lab, Bowser allows the player to select one of the two monsters he created and duel it. Choosing the scary monster challenges Naval Piranha to the game Koopa Kurl; choosing the very scary monster only releases Huffin' Puffin, embarrassing Bowser and forcing the player to leave. Once the Piranha is defeated, the minigame is the prize won.
Once the player accomplishes forty-nine out of the fifty quests, Bowser opens the gate in the back of the Pipe House, revealing his lair. After arriving at the house, Bowser challenges Mario to a showdown for the final Gaddget. The showdown is the minigame Trap Floor. After the minigame is beaten, the player receives it, as well as the Gaddget Bowser Print. The end credits state that he wants to make a clean slate at defeating Mario.
Bowser also has his own mode, as a part of Challenge Land, known as Bowser Land, which he hosts. The mode involves the player advancing on a roller coaster to get to the end, playing Bowser minigames every time the coaster stops at a designated checkpoint. Once the player reaches the end, Bowser rewards the player coins based upon how long it took him or her to reach him. However, if the player takes too long, Bowser automatically ends the game.
Mario Party 7
In Mario Party 7, Toadsworth invites Mario and friends to go on a vacation around the world. This causes Bowser to be filled with rage due to the fact that they didn't invite him. Because of this, Bowser tries to ruin everyone's fun during their time off. Eventually, the players arrive at Bowser's Enchanted Inferno!, Bowser's own board. Upon obtaining a Star and reaching him, Bowser takes the player to his castle to play Bowser's Lovely Lift!. Here, the player has to use dice blocks to reach the one hundredth floor of the castle while avoiding Bowser's attacks. If the player loses, then he or she loses their Star their turn is over. If the player wins, then Bowser and Koopa Kid are pelted with Stars, their vehicles being destroyed. The pair are then blasted onto an island in the middle of the ocean. After recovering from being dazed, Koopa Kid points out the player on the cruise ship in the distance. Enraged, Bowser demands revenge, but does admit that he had fun before Koopa Kid points this out, causing Bowser to return to his enraged state.
Whenever the player begins a party, Bowser arrives and throws three Koopa Kid Orbs onto three random spaces. During a party, a special Bowser-based event occurs every five turns, named Bowser Time. This event causes Bowser to appear and trigger something that hinders the competitors. On every board minus his own, one of the possible events that can occur is that he takes a photograph of him and the player and forcibly takes coins from them as payment (without giving them the photo). On most boards, he destroys one of the orb shops, only to replace it with his own. Whenever a player passes by the shop, they are forcibly sold a Koopa Kid Orb for twenty coins. In addition to these, there are also some board-exclusive events. On Grand Canal, he can also destroy the bridges and rebuild them, this time with only Bowser spaces on them. On Pagoda Peak, Bowser can destroy the bridges, ending the turn of any player that reaches them, or slam the mountain and knock the players back several spaces. On Pyramid Park, Bowser can either destroy the bridges for three turns or steal one of the leading player's stars and give it to Koopa Kid. (though it can be claimed back with a Chain Chomp.) On Neon Heights, he can steal all the player's coins or a Star from the first place player and put them in the chest containing twenty coins or the star, or put a Ztar in a chest for the players to find. On Windmillville, he can destroy one of the windmills, along with all coins deposited, or send Koopa Kid to rob a windmill. As for Bowser's Enchanted Inferno!, only one event occurs during Bowser Time, and that is for Bowser to sink the platform currently containing the Star; the Star moves elsewhere, and players on the platform at the time are sent back to the start of the board. The same event occurs whenever the player lands on an Event Space on the board. Landing on one of the Event Spaces near a Mecha Bowser head causes Bowser to activate it, spreading flames across the surrounding area and causing anyone in the radius to lose ten coins. Bowser also hosts the final four turns event in the game. He gives the standings, then lets the last place player stop a roulette, which may cause various events to happen.
Bowser Spaces cause the player to either play a single or multiplayer minigame, and Bowser takes coins or stars if they lose. He also runs the final four turns event in this game. He spins a roulette, which causes one of many things to happen. The events on the roulette can bring fortune or misfortune upon the competitors.
Mario Party 8
In Mario Party 8, after defeating Star Battle Arena, Bowser steals the Star Rod right as it is about to be rewarded to the player for defeating the other competitors. Bowser and the player then files off to Bowser's Warped Orbit, where he has either a Hammer Bro. or Blooper face against him or her in order to win the rod back. Once the opponent is defeated, Bowser honors his word and returns the Star Rod, but challenges the player to a battle in the minigame Superstar Showdown. During the minigame, Bowser first attacks the player with fireballs. The player can attack him by using the Star Rod to create and launch projectiles that damage him. When he is hit a certain number of times, Bullet Bill launchers appear on the sides of his Koopa Clown Car. After causing him more harm, Bowser's car gains the ability to fire numerous lasers. He also gains the ability to shoot a massive fireball when his health reaches two points. When Bowser's health reaches zero, the car, with Bowser in it, flies into the vortex below.
Landing on a Bowser space causes an event based on the setting of the board to occur. On King Boo's Haunted Hideaway and Shy Guy's Perplex Express, where Bowser remains until reached, he can be negated by landing on a DK Space, or, in the case of King Boo's board, by shuffling the mansion. On DK's Treetop Temple, Bowser moves the Star. On Goomba's Booty Boardwalk, Bowser has the player dodge three Podoboos for ten seconds; hitting them causes the player to lose ten coins. On Shy Guy's Perplex Express, he replaces the current train with his Bad Breath Express, which causes the player who reaches him to lose a Star. On King Boo's Haunted Hideaway, he covers the pitfalls with his own platform; finding him causes whoever does so to lose a Star. On Bowser's Warped Orbit, he steals a Star from the player. On the latter three boards, if the player has no stars when he or she lands on a Bowser Space, Bowser gives them ten coins.
Also on Bowser's Warped Orbit, when the player lands on one of the Happening Spaces, Bowser come down from his observation tower and chase the player (as well as anyone else he runs in to) across the board. Another set of ? Spaces make Bowser reverse the flow of the board, causing the players to move in the other direction.
Bowser is also one of the thirty racers in Moped Mayhem.
Mario Party DS
In Mario Party DS, Bowser shows his less goofy and more sinister side when he invites the Mario gang, Donkey Kong, and Diddy Kong to his castle for a banquet, stating in the invitation that it is an apology for his wrongdoings. When Mario and his friends arrive at the castle, however, they are captured. Bowser then uses his Minimizer to shrink them to the size of chess pieces for the purpose of obtaining Mario's Sky Crystal. Afterward, he has Kamek throw them out.
At Bowser's Castle, Bowser and Bowser Jr. take the group and place them inside their pinball machine. After collecting enough stars, the player breaks out of the machine to fight him. Bowser wants to shrink them more, but at that moment Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong barge into the castle and ram into Bowser. DK trips on the device and breaks it, causing Mario and friends to grow back to normal size to fight Bowser. However, Bowser uses his Megamorph Belt to turn himself into Blockhead Bowser. In this form, Bowser takes on three forms: a top, a cube, and a snake. In every form, Bowser shoots fireballs at the player, as well has having another unique attack for every form. However, each one also has one golden block that is Bowser's weak spot; After hitting this multiple times, Bowser shifts forms, and after three times he is defeated.
When he is beaten, Bowser and Bowser Jr. are captured and bound in ropes. With all five Sky Crystals in their possession, they combine to form a DS to play Triangle Twisters. Bowser admits that he only wanted the crystals to obtain the game all for himself, but his plans were ruined. However, despite his actions the group offer Bowser the opportunity to play as well. He accepts their offer, and everyone has fun playing the challenge.
Landing on a Bowser Space in this game results in Bowser appearing and causing havoc by choosing an event at random. If he chooses "Gimme Stars!", he steals a number of stars from the player; if he or she has none, he gives them coins. If the option is "Gimme Coins!", he steals 10 or 20 coins from the player. If he chooses "Gimme Charity!", he forces the player to give 10 coins to the others (if they don't have at least 30, Bowser divides their coins equally amongst the others). If he decides on "Gimme Equality!", he takes everyone's coins and redistributes them evenly. Bowser also once again runs the last five turns event, in which he helps the last place player by spinning a roulette. He is also involved in two board events, both on his own board; Landing on one of the ? Spaces near the start of the board causes him to launch the player into the Bowser Zone (though they may occasionally land in the Star Zone). The ? Spaces in the Bowser Zone have Bowser launch his Zero Flame at the player, causing them to lose all their coins and Stars.
Bowser targets also appear in the minigame Hot Shots. Hitting one causes the player who does so to earn one hundred points.
Mario Party Fushigi no Korokoro Catcher
Bowser is one of the characters that appears in the Japanese-exclusive arcade game Mario Party Fushigi no Korokoro Catcher. During Fever Chance, if one of the player's results is Bowser, he appears. With the game being based upon Mario Party 8, Superstar Showdown is also a playable minigame in this game.
Mario Party 9
Bowser appears in Mario Party 9 as the primary antagonist and the boss of his own board, Bowser Station. During the game, he and Bowser Jr. use a device from the station to suck the Mini Stars out of the sky.
Before each board in Solo Mode, there is a cutscene featuring Bowser and Bowser Jr. Bowser is admiring the Mini Stars that he has captured when Bowser Jr. tells him that the player is advancing, and Bowser is shocked by this. He then sends two of his minions to their next destination. However, on Bowser Station, Bowser instead decides to take on the player himself with Bowser Jr.'s help.
When Bowser Jr. is defeated, he flies down in his Koopa Clown Car, creates a Boss Battle Space and Bowser gate at the beginning of the stage, and waits for the players to challenge him there. When the player reach this space, they are forced to face him in his boss minigame, Bowser's Block Battle. The boss battle involves the players throwing blocks with their faces on them to damage Bowser. He is damaged when the player tosses a block which lands face-up with their heads on them; however, if they land on a Bowser symbol, Bowser can use these to attack by spitting a trio of fireballs a number of times equal to the number of blocks with his logos rolled. Once Bowser's health reaches the midway point, Bowser increases his size again. He still uses the fireball attack, but he spits larger fireballs each time. He also attacks by tossing one large block with the faces of six previous bosses on it, which summons one of said bosses to the battlefield so they can rampage and damage the player; the boss depends on what is rolled when the block lands. If the block lands on Bowser himself, he attacks the players with a barrage of fireballs. Bowser also tilts the battlefield when the competitors are tossing the blocks.
Once Bowser's health reaches zero, the ending cutscene reveals that Bowser simply wanted the Mini Stars to decorate his castle as he and Bowser Jr. fly off in their Koopa Clown Cars. Out of anger, Bowser chases off the Mini Stars that approach him, but he falls out of his car, with Bowser Jr. flying after him.
Landing on a Bowser Space in this game causes one of eight events to happen to the current captain (though the roulette result can also affect other players). Bowser Revolution returns from previous games, but Mini Stars are taken and divided equally since coins were excluded from this game. The seven new events are Lose Half of Your Mini Stars (though if the captain is in last place, Bowser doubles their Mini-Stars); Battle for Half of your Mini Stars, in which half of everyone's Mini Stars are taken, fought in a minigame for, and distributed based on the results; Reverse Minigame, in which the players compete in a minigame, but Bowser gives Mini Stars to the player who places last; Give 5/10 Mini Stars to Last Place, (depending on the event landed on, though Bowser gives the captain Mini Stars if they are in last place) Everyone Loses Special Dice Blocks, and Get 10,000 Mini Stars, in which the player is given ten Mini Stars instead (with Bowser stating that he does not have ten thousand).
Bowser also appears during the "Almost There!" event, in which he asks the captain if he or she wants some "presents." Even if the player selects "no," Bowser still converts several spaces into Bowser Spaces. On Bowser Station, Bowser changes several spaces without the player's consent.
Bowser is also given his own constellation, known as "Koopa Major".
Mario Golf series
Bowser is usually a default playable character in the Mario Golf games, though in Mario Golf: Advance Tour, he is unlockable and can only be unlocked by transferring data to and from Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour. He also must be unlocked in Mario Golf, by completing character match seven. In the Game Boy Color version of Mario Golf, Bowser appears as a non-playable character. In the Nintendo 64 version of Mario Golf, hole nine of the Mario's Star course is designed after Bowser. Additionally, beating him or Metal Mario on the course unlocks an alternate credits sequence.
In Mario Golf: Advance Tour, he is present to compete against the characters Neil and Ella. He is very rude towards them and almost gets into a fight with Mario as a result, but they are stopped by Peach, who reminds them of their manners. Bowser has the longest hit ratio of all characters but has low control. He hosts a tournament like Peach in Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour.
During the opening of Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, Wario and Waluigi attempt to outdo Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong when Wario manages to hit his golf ball across the field and into the forest. However, they hear a cry of pain, and, after the golf ball flies back at them, Bowser emerges on the other side of the hole, breathing fire and with a black eye where the ball hit him. He tries to chase after them on foot, but summons his Koopa Clown Car and begins firing Bullet Bills at them as he chases them. After a while, Wario and Waluigi enter a Warp Pipe to escape; Bowser tries following them through, but the car instead jams the pipe. They think they are safe, but Bowser then flies up to them and pulls out a lit Bob-omb. Wario and Waluigi try to escape by opening a massive door, and they do, but the golf ball Mario hits at this point bounces off their heads and knocks the bomb out of Bowser's hands. The bomb then explodes on the three of them.
Mario Tennis series
Bowser also appears as a playable character in almost every title in the Mario Tennis series, (Mario's Tennis for the Virtual Boy being the lone exception). He is a power character who can make service and return aces easily; he lacks speed, though.
In the opening for Mario Tennis, Right before Mario and Luigi and Wario and Waluigi are about to fight, a spotlight appears right in the middle of them. Bowser and a Boo then descend from above onto the court. Everyone present thinks they are there to cause trouble, but they reveal that they simply wish to play tennis, which the others let them. However, out of nowhere, a Bob-omb appears, about to explode. Unable to react in time, Wario, Waluigi, Mario, Luigi, Bowser, and the Boo are caught in the explosion.
He is also playable in the Game Boy Color version of Mario Tennis, but can only be unlocked through transfer with the Nintendo 64 game. Additionally, by winning three rounds of Two-on-One matches in the Game Boy Color version, then transferring with the Nintendo 64 version, Bowser Court is unlocked.
In the opening for Mario Power Tennis, Bowser has a more dastardly scheme. Near the beginning, he is watching from an unknown location as Wario and Waluigi lose to the Mario Bros.. After vandalizing a poster as revenge, the duo enter a room in the stadium to escape the Bucketheads; this room turns out to be a pit leading to Bowser's lair. Bowser decides to ally with the two, and he trains them to become better at tennis.
That night, the trio interrupt the final match of the tournament. Wario and Waluigi shoot Bob-ombs at the Mario bros., but Mario, along with other players, hit the bombs back with their rackets. Bowser fires a Bullet Bill from his balloon, but Mario deflects it, and it hits the Bob-omb launcher. The launcher, now aimed upward, shoots a Bob-omb at Bowser's balloon, popping it and not only causing it to descend but also exposing several dozen Bob-ombs. Upon seeing this, Wario and Waluigi attempt to run away, but the balloon crashes on them, resulting in a massive explosion.
In both Mario Power Tennis and Mario Tennis: Power Tour, Bowser uses his Fire Breath for his Offensive Power Shot and his Defensive Power Shot is Spinning Shell Dash, where he ducks into his shell and spins around to recover the ball.
Bowser also appears in Mario Tennis Open. In addition, one of the unlockable Mii costumes in the game is a Bowser costume; it can be unlocked either by beating fifty players online, or by earning fifty victory medals. Several Bowser-based accessories can also be purchased to be equipped to the player's Mii.
Paper Mario series
Paper Mario
- “Mario defeated me...again... He always defeats me... This time I became invincible! And I STILL couldn't beat him!”
- —Bowser, Paper Mario
During the events of Paper Mario, Bowser and his minion Kammy Koopa invade Star Haven and steal the Star Rod, which can grant any wish of the holder. With this object, Bowser imprisons the seven Star Spirits in cards and then places them under the guard of seven of his minions. The next day, Bowser uses his flying fortress to lift Peach's castle up into the sky. Mario attempts to stop him, but Bowser uses the Star Rod to make himself invincible during their fight. Mario's attacks can no longer harm Bowser, and he is able to defeat Mario, ending the fight with his fire breath. Believing his rival to be dead, Bowser summons lightning using the Star Rod to knock Mario out the window and to the ground, locks the party guests in the dungeons of his castle, and puts Peach under heavy guard in her bedroom.
After each chapter, the player has the opportunity to play as Peach. She can sneak out of her room and learn information on where Mario needs to head next. When Peach first escapes her room, she and Twink, the Star Kid with her at the time, find and read Bowser's diary. However, when Bowser enters the room, he sees the he left his diary out and that Peach has read it. Two Koopatrols then enter the room, and Bowser has them take Peach back to her room.
After Mario defeats Tutankoopa, Bowser enters her room. Here, she is told that he is going to send "the Invincible Tubba Blubba" to fight Mario; he is only invincible, however, because his heart has been separated from his body by Bowser at an earlier point. It is at this point that Kammy enters the room and informs Bowser that the Star Spirit escaped from Tubba Blubba's Castle. The two then leave to discuss the matter.
On one occasion when Peach is out of her room, she hears a conversation between Bowser and Kammy. Kammy reports that Tubba Blubba has been defeated, as well as that Mario may be heading to Shy Guy's Toy Box next. Bowser suggests setting something up for him there when he notices Peach. Instead of immediately sending her back to her room, he instead asks her what Mario hates; however, some of the answers she can choose are actually items that benefit Mario. After receiving the answers, Bowser has Kammy place the chosen items in Shy Guy's Toy Box, Mario's next destination, while the guards take Peach back to her room.
After competing in the 64th Trivia Quiz-Off, Bowser enters the room and sees the set, and wishes to participate. However, since the game show is over when he enters, he cannot. He then sees Princess Peach trying to sneak away from the area, and has the Koopatrol and Hammer Bro. take her back to her room.
Even later, Bowser enters Peach's room and attempts to make friendly conversation, though Peach ignores him, stating that Mario will defeat him. However, Bowser denies this when Kammy shows up and informs Bowser that Mario has freed all seven Star Spirits and can use them to get to the castle. In response, Bowser has Kammy inform his minions take up positions across the castle, and has the princess bound to keep her out of trouble. Out of anger for this, Twink tries to attack Bowser, but the attack proves ineffective and Bowser easily swats him out the window. He then leaves to prepare himself for Mario's arrival.
After reaching the location where Mario was defeated by Bowser when he first uprooted Peach's Castle, Bowser enters the room, and the two battle again. During the battle, Bowser uses the Star Rod, but using the Star Beam allows the player to negate this. Once he is defeated, Bowser takes Peach and retreats to the roof of the castle.
Once Mario reaches the castle's roof, Kammy activates her Power Platform, which increases Bowser's size and strength; with his increased power, the Star Beam is rendered useless against him. However, Princess Peach and Twink defeat Kammy Koopa and, by wishing on everyone in the Mushroom Kingdom, Peach increases the Star Spirits' power. With this extra power, they create an even more powerful Star Beam known as the Peach Beam, which is strong enough to once again cancel the powers of the Star Rod every time Bowser uses it. With Bowser vulnerable once again, Mario can defeat Bowser and reclaim the Star Rod. After the battle, however, the Power Platform starts to malfunction due to the intensity of the fight and is about to explode; while it is doing so, one of the smaller-scale explosions sends Bowser and Kammy flying away. Bowser, upon learning of this development, attempts to issue an evacuation order, but the earlier explosion prevented him from doing so. The Star Rod is returned to the Star Spirits, Peach's castle is put back in place, and peace returns to Star Haven and the Mushroom Kingdom.
Bowser is also present in the parade at the end of the game, in his Koopa Clown Car. While he is floating on, Kammy and Jr. Troopa are blasting magic at each other around him, which ends with Bowser being caught in the middle and struck by both of them at the same time. Bowser chases them off and roasts the pair with his fire breath.
During the battle at the beginning of the game, Bowser only attacks by hitting Mario with his claws. However, at the end of the battle, he breathes fire on Mario. During their second battle, he once again attacks with a claw swipe, which can poison Mario. He also has the ability to breath fire, as well as attacking by jumping on Mario. During the battle on the Power Platform, Bowser still uses his jumping, claw swipe, and fire breath attacks, and he can also use the Star Rod to recover 30 HP, as well as using it to send out a beam that can damage Mario and his partner. Bowser can also use the rod to summon bolts of lightning to damage Mario.
Paper Mario is also significant because it reveals another of Bowser's motives for kidnapping Peach: he has a crush on her and hopes to steal her away from Mario.
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
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Bowser also appears as a minor villain in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. In this game, Kammy Koopa summons Bowser to tell him that Mario his attempting to find treasures known as the Crystal Stars. Bowser decides to find them himself because he believes they are "good world-conquering tools." She also states that Princess Peach has been taken by someone else, after having just been told herself, so he makes it his mission to find and kidnap her himself. Accompanied by Kammy, Bowser appears in many cutscenes, in which he is a playable character. These scenes sometimes involve Bowser traveling through a side-scrolling world similar to the ones in Super Mario Bros. (these levels partially inspired Super Paper Mario). During these segments, Bowser can breathe fire or jump to defeat enemies, and can collect the Meat found in blocks to increase in size, becoming invincible and being able to destroy blocks and pipes after eating three. He also has infinite lives. Throughout these cutscenes, Bowser always appears to be a step behind Mario, and ultimately fails to find a single Crystal Star.
At Petalburg, Bowser finds what he thinks is Peach and talks to her, but eventually finds out that he is really speaking to a poster.
After Mario defeats the Magikoopa Masters in the Glitz Pit, Bowser enters the ring, having heard about a man with a mustache fighting in the arena, and faces him in front of the large crowd. Bowser can attack by either breathing fire, ground-pounding the player, or biting them. This fight can either result in Bowser's defeat or victory, but no matter the outcome he leaves Glitzville afterward.
Later, at The Great Tree, Bowser and Kammy find the Puni Elder, who believes that they desire the Crystal Star. Bowser asks where it is, but the elder informs him that Mario took the "legendary treasure" to save Peach. Kammy automatically assumes that Peach and the treasure are connected, and that Mario is going to get them both, prompting Bowser's rage.
He later attempts to return to Glitzville to search for one of the Crystal Stars, choosing his Koopa Clown Car as transportation over the Cheep-Cheep Blimp. Unfortunately, the airborne vehicle breaks down during flight, sending him plummeting into the ocean below and forcing him to swim back to Rogueport. Upon arriving, Bowser is enraged to see that Kammy went to Glitzville without him, and has her obtain information on Peach and the Crystal Stars.
In Twilight Town, Bowser overhears X-Naut second-in-command Lord Crump mention the Crystal Stars after finding the Superbombomb. When Kammy asks him about the stars, Crump demands that Bowser tell him all that he knows about the Crystal Stars, though Bowser demands the same. In response, Crump summons the X-Naut army to deal with the Koopa King, but Kammy summons the Koopa Troop. Crump throws the Superbombomb at Bowser, though it doesn't explode. Bowser, however, breathes fire at Grodus, accidentally detonating the weapon.
After the incident, Bowser returns to Rogueport, and is sulking when Kammy informs him that their scouts found a hidden underground chamber in Rogueport Sewers. Kammy directs him to the chamber, which turns out to be a workout room, and they find what they believe to be the Gold Star on a belt. Rawk Hawk then enters the room, and is impressed that Bowser was able to infiltrate his workout room, but refuses to let him take his championship belt. Bowser, however, calls him weak, and Rawk Hawk attempts to attack Bowser, but fails when he jumps on him. However, his attack does hit Kammy. She is knocked into to the champ belt, resulting in the star on the belt breaking. They are shocked at first, but Kammy realizes that it is a fake, and Rawk Hawk tells Bowser that the "Great Gonzales" possesses the real one.
Some time later, at Poshley Heights, Bowser and Kammy arrive at Poshley Sanctum after hearing that a Crystal Star is inside. Bowser attempts to enter, but finds the door is locked, but in his rage he breaks the lock, granting him access. Inside, Bowser finds the Garnet Star on a pedestal, and is excited to finally obtain one. However, Pennington then arrives and informs Bowser that what he is holding is a duplicate created to trick thieves, as well as that "Luigi" already obtained the real one. A Paragoomba then flies in and informs Bowser that Mario has collected all seven Crystal Stars and is heading for the the Thousand-Year Door. Bowser and Kammy leave to head after him.
After Mario opens the Thousand-Year Door, Bowser and Kammy Koopa enter the Palace of Shadow to take Peach and steal the treasure that is rumored to be held behind the door. Meanwhile, Sir Grodus threatens to murder Princess Peach after his defeat at the hands of Mario, but Bowser's weight causes him to crash through the floor above them and landing on the X-Naut leader. Bowser admits that he has no idea as to what is going on, but that he is going to "end it right NOW!" Bowser and Kammy are battled before the player gets a chance to save after battling Grodus, and they are the last bosses before the final one. His attacks are the same as when he is fought in the Glitz Pit. When the two are beaten, they are left dazed on the floor of the Palace of Shadow. If the player leaves the room and re-enters, they are gone.
Bowser also has a small cameo appearance in the game; his face is used for the Fright Mask item. As the name states, its use scares enemies away.
Super Paper Mario
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Bowser joins forces with Mario in Super Paper Mario as one of the four heroes destined to save all dimensions from destruction. During the opening for the game, Mario and Luigi hear from Toad that Princess Peach has been kidnapped, and they head to Bowser's Castle, thinking that he is the perpetrator. However, when they accuse him for this, he surprised as well, for he is still only preparing to kidnap Peach at the time. A mysterious figure named Count Bleck then appears, knocks Mario unconscious, and abducts Luigi, Bowser, and his minions. Count Bleck warps everyone to Castle Bleck, his base of operations, where he forcefully marries Bowser and Peach in order to unleash the Chaos Heart. The heart's purpose is to open The Void, to end all worlds, although Bowser is unaware of his plans.
After the wedding, most of Bowser's minions are brainwashed by Nastasia, Bleck's secretary. Bowser is removed from Count Bleck's Castle and wakes up in a field in The Bitlands. With a handful of minions at his side, Bowser establishes a stronghold in an abandoned castle and fortifies the defenses by stationing his forces throughout the area. However, the fortress is destroyed when Mario and Peach, while on the way to Fort Francis, use their Pixl Boomer to blast the red "X" on the side of the castle. Enraged that Mario has once again ruined his plans, Bowser engages Mario in combat, putting up two barriers so that he cannot escape. Bowser attacks Mario by breathing fire, as well as trying to jump on him. Normal attacks do not affect him; Boomer is the only way to damage him.
It is after the battle that Bowser learns the true purpose behind his marriage to Princess Peach. While he initially refuses to help them, Bowser is told by the pair that he can't take over the world if it is destroyed and that his minions now obey Count Bleck, and agrees to come with them. (However, he states that he is only doing so for the purpose of one day conquering the world himself.) With Bowser as a party member, the group continues to Fort Francis.
Before the group can claim the sixth Pure Heart at Sammer's Kingdom, the entire dimension is destroyed by the Void. Afterward, they return to the dimension, but find that it has been reduced to an empty world. After claiming the rock-like Pure Heart of that dimension from Mr. L, Luigi's alter-ego created by Nastasia's hypnotism, they return to Flipside, where Dimentio appears and "kills" Mario, Princess Peach, and Bowser in front of Merlon and Tippi. Mario and Bowser are both sent to the Underwhere, while Peach is sent to the Overthere.
In the Underwhere, Bowser is found by some of Queen Jaydes' D-Men. Thinking him to be a highly deadly and horrific creature that escaped its prison earlier, they subdue him and throw him in a room along the Underwhere Road. When Mario and Luigi, who is also sent to the Underwhere by Dimentio, while escorting Luvbi, a Nimbi, to the Overthere due to the actual creature that escaped, are traveling along the Underwhere Road, they encounter three D-Men, and Mario and Luigi offer to handle the "monster" that they contained for them. They head into the room, and find Bowser, asking himself about his current situation, inside. He asks where Peach is, and Mario, Luigi, and Tippi tell him they do not know where she is, but Bowser immediately assumes Mario and Luigi are going to ditch him and take Peach for themselves. Angry, Bowser once again engages them in battle. During this fight, he uses the same attacks he uses in the earlier fight. He can also charge directly at the player. It is when he is defeated a second time that Mario and Tippi are able to explain that they are in the Underwhere and that Peach's location truly is unknown to them, (though Bowser, ironically, chastises them for not telling him in the first place) and rejoins Mario's party. Eventually, they find Peach asleep on the Overthere Stair, and wake her up with a Black Apple. After an adventure in the Overthere, Luvbi reveals to them that she is the eight Pure Heart.
Having claimed all the Pure Hearts, Bowser, Mario, Peach, and Luigi finally arrive at Castle Bleck. After passing through the massive entrance to the castle, the group encounters O'Chunks once more, who transforms into Super O'Chunks; instead of fighting together, however, Bowser wishes to fight him alone. Upon defeat, O'Chunks demands that he finish him, but the victory cannot be relished, as the ceiling starts to fall. As they prepare for the worst, Bowser and the others are shocked to see that O'Chunks is stopping the ceiling from crushing them by holding it up; he explains that, because Bowser defeated him, the heroes have earned the right to move on, and is taking matters into his own hands to make sure they do. However, instead of passing, Bowser decides to help lift the ceiling as well, telling Mario and Luigi to take Peach to safety. He also attempts to get O'Chunks out of there as well, sparking an argument between them as to who should leave and who should remain, resulting in both apparently being crushed, although Tippi and Luigi suspect that Bowser might have survived, the latter also pointing out that Bowser has "survived far worse." Interestingly, this causes Bowser to be conveniently left behind during two crucial scenes, the first one being the part where Mimi disguises herself as Merlee and asks Mario and company about their weak-points, and the second being when Dimentio asks Mario and company to join him, stating that they can rule every world with the Chaos Heart in their possession.
It is later revealed that Bowser is still alive because he (and apparently O'Chunks as well) fell through the floor before the ceiling could crush them. He, Peach, and Luigi then interrupt Count Bleck as he prepares an attack to kill Mario, the uniting of the four heroes causing the eights Pure Hearts to appear and negate the effects of the Chaos Heart, making Count Bleck venerable.
Once Count Bleck is defeated, Bowser witnesses as Dimentio appears and, after knocking out Nastasia, takes control of the Chaos Heart and fuses with Luigi, whom he enslaves with a Floro Sprout while he is unconscious after Dimentio's "last ditch effort", to form Super Dimentio, who makes himself invincible and teleports Nastasia, Bleck, and Tippi to Dimension D. However, from within the dimension, Bleck and Tippi's love for each other allows the Pure Hearts to power up the heroes. After defeating the powered-up Dimentio, Bowser witnesses as Bleck and Tippi conduct their own marriage ceremony to permanently destroy the Chaos Heart and the Void. The heroes and Bleck's minions are then teleported to Flipside, where they are given a congratulatory feast by Saffron.
Strangely, Mario cannot jump on Bowser when battling him without getting hurt due to his horns and spikes, but he can in the other RPGs. The theme that can be heard during the boss fights with Bowser is notable for being a remix of both the Super Mario Bros. 3 Dark World map music and his boss theme from the first two fights with him in Super Mario 64. When Piccolo is the active Pixl, Bowser's jump sound effect, as with the other characters, is the same as the Mario jump sound effect from Super Mario Bros., and his fire breath sound effect is the one from Super Mario Bros. as well. His theme heard whenever Piccolo's ability is activated is a metal song.
As a playable character, he moves slower than the others; however, he can not only jump but also breathe fire if the player pushes 
on the Wii Remote, and his attack stat is double the stat of the other heroes. The fire attack is especially useful on the Underwhere Road, in which it can light the torches along the path. Also, unlike the other characters, Bowser cannot climb ladders or vines; he grows tired if the player tries.
Paper Mario: Sticker Star
Template:Newsubject-section Bowser is set to appear in Paper Mario: Sticker Star as the main antagonist. At the beginning of the game, Bowser invades Decalburg on the night of the Sticker Fest, the one day on which the Sticker Comet appears. He attempts to claim it for himself, but several Toads attempt to pull him away. The Toads lose their grip on him, however, which sends him flying into the comet; his touching the star results in it splitting into several pieces that are spread across the Mushroom Kingdom. One of the fragments in the shape of a crown falls onto Bowser's head, which increases his power. Mario appears while he is attempting to kidnap Princess Peach again, but he is defeated.
Super Mario Advance series
Bowser appears in the 2-player battle mode in the remake of Mario Bros. included in all four Super Mario Advance games. He moves around on the middle platform, and only attacks by breathing fire. He cannot be defeated; hitting him from underneath only stuns him briefly.
Super Smash Bros. series
- Main articles: SmashWiki:Bowser (SSBM), SmashWiki:Bowser (SSBB)
Template:SSB Infobox Bowser is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Melee and Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Bowser is very strong, making him a key character to deliver strong attacks. His massiveness makes him incredibly hard to launch out of the arena, though he is very slow as a result. However, his throwing ability is on par with the faster characters. He is also one of the few who can crawl and is also a good edge guarder. Melee also introduces Giga Bowser, a more monstrous version of Bowser. Bowser transforms into Giga Bowser with his Final Smash in Brawl.
Bowser is given a more realistic animal voice in the Super Smash Bros. series, with his Melee voice being similar to his voice effects from the games before Melee's release (such as Mario Kart 64). Bowser's voice effects in Brawl are different than in Melee, but are still more realistic than his cartoonish voice.
Solid Snake Codec Conversation
- Colonel: Careful, Snake! That's the great and terrible Bowser!
- Snake: Bowser? Looks like a cheap movie monster.
- Colonel: Hardly. Bowser leads an entire army of monsters. But I'd worry more about his claws and fire if I were you.
- Snake: Doesn't look that tough to me. Seems kind of slow, actually.
- Colonel: Well, he is the king of Koopas. It's only natural he'd be slow. But that's only because he's the heaviest fighter here--by far. He's a powerhouse of destruction. Careful he doesn't flatten you.
The Subspace Emissary
In the Subspace Emissary storyline of Brawl, Bowser, a leader of the Subspace Army, orders his minions to steal Donkey Kong's Banana Hoard. After Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong have recovered it, he faces them himself. He reveals his Dark Cannon and turns Donkey Kong into a trophy, though not before Diddy is sent to safety with Donkey's Giant Punch. Bowser claims Donkey Kong's trophy, then pursues Diddy and Fox McCloud with the assistance of a Shadow Bug clone and the Koopa Troop. After his clone is defeated by them, he attempts to blast them with the Dark Cannon, but misses.
Later, he encounters the princess Kirby saved (either Peach or Zelda), having been left behind when Kirby heads off to check out an ominous noise. Bowser blasts her from behind using his Dark Cannon, and his shadow bug clone dissolves and forms into the princess, while he retreats with the trophy of the real princess.
It is later shown that Bowser is working closely with Ganondorf in running the Subspace Army, though he dislikes him and prefers Master Hand. He reluctantly follows his orders, however, and heads to King Dedede's castle upon receiving info from Ganon that the king has some trophies there. Bowser arrives at the castle by falling through the ceiling, chunks of which knocking Dedede out cold and burying the Luigi and Ness trophies. However, Bowser instantly finds the trophy of the other princess, and takes it. Mario, Link, Pit, Kirby, and Yoshi catch up to him at this point, and Mario attempts to punch Bowser, but he intentionally misses when he holds up the princess trophy as a shield. Pit fires an arrow, which Bowser dodges, but falls off the cliff nearby and into his Koopa Clown Car, flying off to the Halberd.
He later appears a third time to Fox and Diddy Kong, this time turning Diddy into a trophy. He tries to blast Fox, but misses. Shadow Bugs then crawl over it upon his command and assume the form of Diddy. He once again attempts to blast Fox with his Dark Cannon, but it is kicked out of his hands by Falco Lombardi and destroyed when he blasts it multiple times. Bowser then decides to retreat in his Koopa Clown Car, leaving a mega-sized Diddy Kong clone to deal with him, Fox, and Diddy, but it is defeated.
Eventually, Bowser and Ganondorf fly a Subspace Gunship into the other world and use it's massive primary cannon to bring pieces of the world into Subspace. They see the recently liberated Halberd flying toward the ship and use the Subspace Gunship's defense systems to destroy it, but are unable to hit the smaller, more maneuverable ships that emerge from the wreckage until the Subspace Gunship is destroyed by Kirby's Dragoon. The two then head into Subspace to report the failure, but Bowser is betrayed when Ganondorf blasts him with a Dark Cannon, transforming him into a trophy. Master Hand then appears to them, but it is revealed that Master Hand is being controlled by the being Tabuu; Master Hand breaks free afterward and attempts to attack him, but is defeated easily and left unconscious.
Upon being revived by King Dedede, Bowser is still enraged by Ganon's betrayal, and fights him out of anger, but is soundly defeated. He is turned back to normal once more, and this time learns the truth behind the Subspace mission and, upon taking in the situation, joins the heroes in the fight against Tabuu. Upon finding Ganondorf's trophy (just after Kirby's discovery of it), he furiously attacks it, as retribution for the treason of which he was victim earlier.
Eventually, Tabuu is defeated by the combined power of the heroes, and they all return to the World of Trophies. The credits depict the entire group on a cliff, looking out at sea towards a large "X" formed out of light, the location of what once was the Isle of Ancients.
Special Moves
Fire Breath
- Main article: SmashWiki:Fire Breath
- Main article: Fire Breath
Fire Breath is one of Bowser's special moves in Super Smash Bros. Melee and Brawl. Bowser uses this move when 
is pressed. It is exactly the same as a Fire Flower, except that the flames get smaller the more it is used. The attack is somewhat of a long-distance move, and is usually best to use when the enemy is coming in for close-range combat. However, the move leaves Bowser motionless while using the attack, and also leaves his back open for attack. If Kirby copies Bowser's abilities, he gains the Fire Breath attack.
Koopa Klaw
- Main article: SmashWiki:Koopa Klaw
Koopa Klaw is one of Bowser's special moves in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Bowser uses this move when is pressed in conjunction with either left or right on 
. This move has two variations, based on Bowser's distance from his opponent. If the two are sufficiently far apart, he simply lashes out with his claws, leaving a visible trail in the air. If Bowser is near enough to his opponent, however, he grabs a hold of his foe, allowing him to either gnaw on them or execute a throw move. If Bowser grabs them, he can bite them repeatedly, until they manage to escape from his grasp.
Flying Slam
- Main article: SmashWiki:Flying Slam
Flying Slam is Bowser's Side Special Move in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, replacing the Koopa Klaw from Super Smash Bros. Melee. In essence, Flying Slam is essentially the same move as Koopa Klaw, with one fundamental difference: Bowser claws at his opponent and if he connects, he performs a flying suplex, rather than throwing them over his shoulder as he does with the Koopa Klaw. Bowser's air movement can be controlled somewhat during this move. If connecting midair, Bowser lands with the enemy, and can KO himself as well as the enemy. The enemy can, however, control the movement of the two, and fight back, depending on both the enemy's and Bowser's damage percentages. Bowser doesn't bite his enemy with this move, unlike with the Koopa Klaw.
Whirling Fortress
- Main article: SmashWiki:Whirling Fortress
Whirling Fortress is a move that can only be used by Bowser in both Super Smash Bros. Melee and its sequel, Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Bowser activates this move when a player presses Up and simultaneously. Bowser conceals himself inside his shell and spins around with it in the air. If it hits any of the other players, they take a relatively large amount of damage, depending on how long they are in contact with the spinning shell. The attack can also be used on the ground, instead of just in the air.
Bowser Bomb
- Main article: SmashWiki:Bowser Bomb
Bowser Bomb is an attack that is used by Bowser in Super Smash Bros. Melee and Super Smash Bros. Brawl. It is executed by pressing down+, however, there are several different control types for Super Smash Bros. Brawl (see here). Bowser jumps up to the right, and smashes down on the ground, damaging any players under him and launches them into the air. Like the Yoshi Bomb, this always result in an SD if used off the edge as this attack is a stall-then-fall. It is called the Bowser Bomb because it is like a bomb coming down at a high speed, and when Bowser hits the ground, the move's power is quite explosive. This is one of the things that separates the Bowser Bomb from the Ground Pound move. Yoshi has a similar move called the Yoshi Bomb.
The move is a reference to one of Bowser's attacks in Super Mario Bros. 3, in which the Koopa King Ground Pounds where Mario or Luigi is standing. In fact, the position Bowser gets into when using Bowser Bomb is even borrowed from Super Mario Bros. 3.
Giga Bowser
- Main article: Giga Bowser
- Main article: SmashWiki:Giga Bowser
Although not normally playable in Super Smash Bros. Melee, Giga Bowser appears in Super Smash Bros. Brawl as Bowser's Final Smash. He still takes damage from hits but does not flinch, making him nearly impossible to KO. Because of his large size, he is able to easily attack and KO an opponent. The duration of this move is very short. While Giga Bowser is activated, Bowser's icon doesn't change. It's also noted that when Giga Bowser performs a Smash-based attack, it can turn into several Elements, such as Flame, Darkness, Ice, or Lightning.
Giga Bowser is a Smash Bros.-exclusive creation, but the concept of Bowser growing in size is not unheard of. In several games, including Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, Super Mario Sunshine, Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, Super Mario Galaxy 2, and New Super Mario Bros. Wii, he has changed his size at different points. The method of this, though, varies from game to game.
Mario & Luigi series
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
In Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, Princess Peach's voice is replaced with a literally explosive vocabulary by the evil witch Cackletta and her minion Fawful. Some time after this, Bowser arrives at the castle to kidnap the princess. However, Mario and Luigi enter soon after, and Mario engages in battle with Bowser. However, once the fight is over, Bowser states that it isn't the time for a battle, and a Toad tells the two of the situation. Realizing that, if he kidnaps Peach now, her voice will destroy his castle, he and the Mario Bros. venture to the Beanbean Kingdom to recover Peach's voice on Bowser's Koopa Cruiser, Bowser only wanting to kidnap her afterward. On the way, however, Fawful and Cackletta herself show up, and she has Fawful destroy the group. One of Fawful's attacks from his helmet defeats Bowser, leaving the brothers to fight him. Nonetheless, Bowser gives the Mario Bros. some hints on how to evade/counter Fawful's attacks. When the player defeats him, Fawful uses his helmet to attack the cruiser once more, sending it plummeting to the ground, specifically Stardust Fields.
Bowser falls into a large cannon. When the player locates him, Tolstar, the owner of the cannon, appears and demands 100 Beanbean Coins in order to free Bowser and keep the incident a secret. Even after the player gathers the coins, Tolstar does not uphold his end of the bargain and attacks Mario and Luigi. When he is defeated, however, Bowser's griping annoys Sergeant Starshade, one of the Starshade Bros., enough to the point where he appears and shoots him out of the cannon. Bowser is shot into the mountains, with Bowser hurriedly requesting that the Mario Bros. continue their journey to save Peach's voice, the impact giving him amnesia. He is later found by Popple, the Shadow Thief. Popple decides to take him under his wing, renaming him "Rookie".
As Rookie, Bowser and Popple fight the Mario Bros. twice, not remembering them but seeming familiar to him. Rookie's attacks, which involve throwing hammers and breathing fire, are a reference to Super Mario Bros., where Bowser performs both of those moves during later boss battles. They are first fought at Chateau de Chucklehuck, Popple wanting the Chuckola Reserve for himself, and later at Woohoo Hooniversity, after the Beanstar randomly lands right in front of Popple.
After the Beanstar battle, a Peach-bot head falls in front of the group, the noise it generates disturbing the Beanstar. Mario, Luigi, Popple, and "Rookie" all grab onto the star before it flies into the air, the group falling off in different directions before it splits into four pieces. However, before he falls off, Bowser recovers from his amnesia.
Bowser lands near the border between the Beanbean and Mushroom Kingdoms. Fawful, who is carrying around Cackletta's soul inside a helmet, releases her spirit to possess the unconscious Bowser, transforming him into Bowletta. Bowletta takes command of the Koopa Troop, kidnaps Princess Peach, and launches a massive military strike against the Beanbean Kingdom from Bowser's Castle. After Mario and Luigi defeat Bowletta, the brothers are taken into its stomach to fight Cackletta's spirit for the final battle. Bowletta's stomach is full of flames. When Cackletta is completely destroyed, Bowser returns to normal. Still a bit bedazzled, Bowser gets no break, as his castle explodes shortly afterward (literally flying toward the screen of the Game Boy Advance). Bowser falls into Oho Ocean, but is rescued by Prince Peasley. He later awakens with a cold, inside a present box (attached to Peach's Plane) given to Peach and the Mario Bros by Prince Peasley. During their flight back to the Mushroom Kingdom, he is dropped off at his castle while his minions watch.
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
Bowser first appears in Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time after Princess Shroob (disguised as Princess Peach) is brought to the present. In Peach's room, he easily defeats the Toad guarding the princess and is about to take her when Mario and Luigi show up. As they are about to battle, a part of the Shroob Mushroom covering her face separates and flies into Bowser's face. He plies it off and eats it, though it tastes awful, with a purple gas spewing out of his mouth which incapacitates Mario and Luigi. Using this to his advantage, he grabs the princess and runs off. As he is fleeing, he stops upon hearing Toadsworth the Younger behind him, and turns to see him charging toward him in Baby Peach's carriage, but he avoids them by jumping over them. However, Bowser's landing causes the chunk of the balcony he is standing on to break, and both him and the princess fall into the Time Hole underneath.
The time hole sends both of them to Thwomp Volcano. At the bottom of the volcano's interior, he declares it the perfect place to build another castle when Baby Bowser suddenly falls down into the area, stating the same thing. The two then spot each other and argue over ownership of the volcano, claiming that they are both the real Bowser and that the other one is an imposter (neither of them realizing that they are both the same being but from different time periods).
When Mario and Luigi and their baby forms reach the bottom of the volcano, Bowser and Baby Bowser appear before they can save "Princess Peach", reveal that they have teamed up, and challenge them. Bowser can attack the four heroes by jumping, which both creates a shockwave and sends down debris to be avoided. He also attacks by breathing bursts of flame at them, though he may sometimes fake it; the player can tell if he is when Bowser laughs before he attacks. Baby Bowser's attacks also involve Bowser. His first attack involves ground pounding Bowser to have him spit flames at them, and his second involves Bowser retreating into his shell, and Bowser Jr. using his hammer to smack him at Mario and Luigi; once Baby Bowser misses, Bowser does not return for another turn. When the duo are defeated, a geyser of lava emerges from under the Thwomp they stand on at the beginning of the battle, sending the past and present Bowsers flying out of the volcano. Bowser is then knocked off the Thwomp by a Shroob UFO, and is sent into another Time Hole.
After defeating Elder Princess Shroob and returning to the present, Toadsworth and Toadsworth the Younger lead Mario and Luigi to an unconscious Bowser in Peach's throne room; Toadsworth explains that they found him unconscious in the castle's backyard after emerging from the Time Hole. While trying to wake him up, Elder Princess Shroob, in the form of a mushroom which was claimed by Baby Luigi, levitates toward Bowser and forces him to eat her; this results in Bowser's body being inhabited by the spirit of Elder Princess Shroob, a combination named Shrowser. He awakens, feeling revitalized, and engages Mario, Luigi, and their past selves in battle. However, he does not give the Mario bros. any opportunity to attack, instead barraging them multiple times with fireballs. The fireballs can either be jumped over or deflected back at Bowser with the hammer, whichever is indicated, though both counters result in Elder Princess Shroob, whose spirit emerges from Bowser at the beginning of the fight, being damaged. Once her health is depleted, Elder Princess Shroob is destroyed and Bowser once again falls into a state of unconsciousness.
It should also be noted that one of the signs the Handfake enemy can hold up is a Bowser sign, based upon his Super Mario World artwork.
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
- “You got THAT right, buddy! I'm Bowser, the Koopa king!”
- —Bowser, Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
In the third Mario and Luigi game, Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, Bowser's playability is a major plot point, and the namesake of the game; much of Mario and Luigi's gameplay also takes place inside Bowser's body. At the beginning, Bowser interrupts a conference on the Blorbs by barging into the room, to once again kidnap Peach, but Mario stands in his way. During the resulting battle, Bowser only attacks by spitting fireballs at the player. When the player defeats him, Bowser is surprised to see that he has fallen to Mario so easily; Starlow explains that she and Peach used their power to weaken him. Peach and Starlow then use their power to fling him out of the castle and into Dimble Wood.
Bowser is awakened in a forest by a Magikoopa, who uses recovery spells on him. Bowser resolves to go back to Peach's castle so that he can defeat Mario and kidnap Peach, though he does not know his current location. After the player traverses the forest for a while, Bowser arrives at a shop, run by a cloaked being, who gives him a "Lucky Mushroom", claiming it can give him the power to defeat Mario. The Magikoopa advises him not to accept it, but Bowser does so and eats the mushroom anyway, resulting in him being placed under Fawful's control, as well as inhaling his surroundings.
Afterwards, he breaks back into Peach's castle a second time and inhales Mario, Luigi, Toadsworth, Starlow, Toadbert, Princess Peach, and several other Toads, passing out after doing so. Fawful then has Midbus remove Bowser's body from the premises. By hitting a large, yellow Nubbin in Bowser's Funny Bone, Mario and Luigi are able to awaken Bowser. He is awakened in Cavi Cape Cave. He is extremely angered by the events that happened, but is unaware that he inhaled everyone at Peach's castle. After the player wanders about the cave, Bowser encounters a piece of flimsy material covering an exit. He attempts to destroy it with his fire breath, but finds that he cannot use this ability. When the player does exit the cave, Bowser meets Fawful, who proclaims that he is going to take over his castle and the entire Mushroom Kingdom. Before Bowser can chase after Fawful, his minion Midbus appears. Bowser attempts to face him (which is actually a tutorial for learning Bowser's Action Commands), but finds he is still too weak. Midbus leaves him, and Bowser resolves to head to his castle.
At one point, Bowser starts hearing a voice inside his head. This voice instructs him to smash a nearby boulder, unveiling a Chakroad, portals allowing the user to teleport to a location he or she has visited and has discovered the Chakroad for. The voice then gives him a tutorial for their use.
After the player traverses Plack Beach for a while, Bowser meets Broque Monsieur, a living block and block collector, stuck on a nearby island. Broque asks Bowser to free him, though the latter does not care to do so. Broque then offers him the Vacuum Block, a block which can give its user the vacuum attack, in exchange for help. Bowser accepts, and attempts to use a nearby rope to pull the island over to the mainland. By heading to Arm Center and stimulating his arm muscle, Bowser's strength is increased, which gives him enough power to yank the entire island to the beach. Having saved Broque, he is given the block, as well as teaching the player how to use the command.
At the north end of the beach, Bowser encounters the Sea Pipe Statue. After hearing from Starlow that it was made in honor of a hero, Bowser believes it to be him, but attempts to destroy it because he believes it is ugly, though Starlow stops him. However, the statue starts to move. Fawful, using a Fawfulcopter, explains to him that he animated the statue, and it engages Bowser in battle. Once the statue is defeated, Bowser becomes thirsty and begins to drink the water flowing out of it, allowing the player to access the Pump Works. In there, Mario and Luigi must recover the Stingler, the key to a door allowing the player to access the Flame Pipe. In the pipe, they find that it is a Scutlet that is blocking the pipe. Upon its defeat, Bowser regains his ability to breathe fire.
Upon advancing in Plack Beach, Bowser encounters Broque Monsieur once again. This time, his dog has gone missing. They find his dog Broggy, but he is temperamental, so Broque asks Bowser to "teach him zee manners." Bowser agrees, and must defeat Broggy in battle by using his recently recovered fire attack. After discovering Broque Monsieur's shop in the woods, Bowser is asked to bring him fifteen Blitties, in exchange for allowing Broggy to travel with Bowser, allowing him to use the Broggy Bonker attack.
Near the end of the forest, Bowser notices a cage full of Goombas, trapped there by Fawful. He decides to help them, first by making a bridge to the island they are trapped on by using a Wiggler statue, which he is only able to lift once Mario and Luigi boost his arm muscle a second time. Upon freeing them, Bowser can perform the attack Goomba Storm. Fawful then appears to him and explains that several of his other minions have also been trapped in various locations.
He later runs into three more of his minions: Sergeant Guy, Corporal Paraplonk, and Private Goomp. The three tell him that they are attempting to recapture Bowser's castle by launching a Banzai Bill at it; they then inform him that they have the launcher, but no Banzai Bills. He sends them out to retrieve one, then heads off on his own for the same purpose. Instead, at Wiggler's garden, he finds a massive carrot. Deeming it a suitable substitute, he is able to pull it out of the ground when Mario and Luigi once again increase his muscle mass. Wiggler then appears, angered over Bowser removing the carrot from the ground. Bowser does not care, though, and asks if it has any Banzai Bills, to which the Wiggler replies that it does; however, he only agrees to hand it over if Bowser can eat the carrot in less than one minute. Inside Bowser's body, Mario and Luigi must help to digest the carrot in his Gut Check. After eating the carrot, Wiggler gives him the option to save. When Bowser asks for the Banzai Bill, the Wiggler is enraged that Bowser has eaten the carrot, apparently having forgotten what had happened earlier, and fights him. When Bowser emerges victorious, the Wiggler surrenders the Banzai Bill. On the way back to his minions, however, he starts feeling stomach aches. Inside the Nerve Cluster, Mario and Luigi discover the cause of Bowser's pains: Durmite, running rampant inside his body. After defeating Durmite, they travel on, but are attacked by Biffidus, Bowser's antibodies. In this area, they discover a blocked passage and Toadbert. Luigi then hits the Nubbin nearby, which not only unveils the passage but also gives Bowser the Sliding Punch ability.
After arriving back at the site of the launcher, Bowser and his minions launch the bullet at the castle. Midbus, however, takes notice of the Banzai Bill and flies the castle into the air. He then flies it to Dimble Woods and lands the castle on top of Bowser. In order to revive him, the Mario bros. must head to Rump Command, where they can give Bowser an adrenaline boost. The boost not only revives him but also causes him to grow to a gigantic size. With his increased height, Bowser fights his castle, damaging it to the point where Midbus retreats, flying it back to its original position. After the battle, Bowser decreases in size again and continues his journey to his castle. On the Bowser Path, when Bowser approaches his castle, Midbus once again flies it away. He chases the castle once more and reaches a ledge when Midbus fires a massive cannonball at him. He is able to catch the projectile, but Mario and Luigi must once again increase his arm's strength, which causes Bowser to hurl the projectile back at the castle and permanently ground it.
Once Bowser arrives in his castle, he sees that his minions have been enslaved, and that the entire building has been converted into Fawful Theater. Bowser enters the theater itself, but finds no available seats. While lodging a complaint, one of the Goombas realizes that he is Bowser, and leads him to the "VIP" chair. After Fawful introduces the show, he announces that Bowser is the show's "special guest", and the chair rockets forward, throwing him on the stage when it stops. Midbus then arrives onstage, and a cage is dropped over the two, forcing them to battle. Once Bowser emerges victorious, Fawful has several Boos lead him to a winner's feast. He eats some, and when he attempts to leave, he is forced to stay by the Boos. At this point, they feed him so much "high-fat, high-calorie" food that he becomes severely obese. The Boos leave, and he attempts to follow them, but falls through the floor and becomes stuck, allowing Mario and Luigi to access the Flab Zone.
Some time later, Fawful uses a ray gun to remove Peach from Bowser's body. After retrieving Peach, Bowser falls through the floor and onto a treadmill brought out by Midbus; he then uses it to literally burn the fat he gained. However, curious as to what room he is in, Bowser walks over to a sign and notes that he is in the Bob-omb storage facility; while doing so, he unintentionally lights a Bob-omb, which leaps into a crate filled with others. This results in a chain reaction, the explosion sending Bowser flying out of his castle and into the Underground Tunnel. Some time after landing, Bowser finds a group of Monty Moles digging a tunnel; they explain that the project was commissioned by Bowser himself to dig an escape tunnel from Toad Town to his castle. However, since they cannot dig ahead anymore, Bowser decides to help by pushing the drill from behind; as Mario and Luigi, the player must head to the Leg Outpost to stimulate Bowser's legs so that he can drill through the earth and reach Toad Town before the drill's battery dies. Once this is accomplished, he wanders down a path which results in a security system activating. The system electrocutes him, knocking him unconscious.
He later regains consciousness and travels to Doctor Toadley's office, where he encounters the Mario brothers and battles them. Bowser uses the same attacks as when the player battles with him: punching, breathing fire, Goomba Storm, and Shy Guy Squad, though he does not use the second until later in the battle. The player can dodge the punch by jumping, and if Bowser huffs before, he will instead slip and leap over one of the brothers; the fire is avoided by grabbing onto Starlow while he is charging the blast, Goomba Storm can be avoided by jumping over them and hammering the ones he burns back at Bowser, which damages him; and Shy Guy Squad is stopped by deflecting Bowser with the hammer as he approaches one of the brothers. Once Mario and Luigi defeat him, the doctor tells the trio that they need to find the three Star Cures to cure the Blorbs and gain access to the castle. He then tells them that the first cure is held by Durmite, whom he states to be located in Dimble Wood. Overhearing this, Bowser rushes off toward the woods.
Bowser is at Bubble Lake when the brothers lose Durmite in the Energy Hold of Bowser's body. While advancing through the lake, he hears several of his Koopa Troopas, who have also been imprisoned; however, he cannot destroy the rock wall dividing them. While searching for something, Bowser happens across a ship and some flowers giving off pollen, and smells them. By heading to the Nose Deck, Mario and Luigi can cause Bowser to give off a very strong sneeze, sending the ship flying back. A second sneeze from the opposite side causes the ship to fly through the rocks and create a bridge leading to the trapped Koopas, with Bowser on it, allowing him to advance.
Upon reaching the Tower of Yikk, Bowser notes the propeller on top of the structure, and figures that it can fly him to Dimble Woods. He once again sniffs the flowers nearby, and the Mario brothers must stimulate his sinuses to unleash another powerful sneeze. The gust from said sneeze causes the entire Tower of Yikk to emerge from the lake, come to life, and step on Bowser. The Mario bros. must then head to Rump Command again to revive him and increase his size. After defeating the tower, it is immobilized, allowing Bowser to enter.
At the top of the tower, Bowser finds a book on a desk, but notes that it is empty when he opens it. The book then begins moving on its own, and is revealed to be possessed by the spirit of a scientist named Yikk, who proceeds to guide Bowser through the use of his Boo-ray Machine. By using this machine, Bowser is able to help the brothers access the Energy Hold to get the Star Cure from Durmite. Afterward, by heading to the Joint Tower, Mario and Luigi can stimulate Bowser's pressure points and enable the Body Slam technique, which allows him to escape the tower.
Once outside, Bowser encounters Private Goomp, who is alone due to running away from Bowser as a giant in Dimble Woods. After Bowser informs the Goomba of his current objective, Goomp states that Bowser has a Star Cure in his underground treasure chamber; he had apparently won it from a Koopa named Kuzzle (however, Kuzzle states otherwise; he explains to Mario and Luigi that Bowser was confused by his puzzles and stole the cure). However, when he reaches the entrance to the underground, he finds it to be sealed. Out on the balcony, Bowser finds a massive Fawful statue, and decides to use it to gain access to the underground. However, when he attempts to push it, several of Bowser's hypnotized minions appear and try to stop him. Mario and Luigi must help by once again going to the leg outpost and strengthening Bowser so that he can push the statue over and access the castle's basement. While on the way to the vault once more, Bowser encounters an imprisoned Bob-omb squadron; freeing them results in him gaining the Bob-omb Blitz attack.
Upon reaching and entering the vault, Bowser is shocked to see a train track running straight through it. Sergeant Guy, Corporal Paraplonk, and Private Goomp then arrive, apparently having done a sweep of the castle, and report that it is intact. As Bowser shows them the train track, a train then arrives, and the four Monty Moles digging the tunnel earlier leap out of it. Bowser demands an explanation, and the moles tell him that the tunnel is finished, but that it was commandeered by Fawful, and it is in use for the Fawful Express. As Bowser attempts to obtain the cure from a safe, the express departs as he is standing on the tracks, and it eventually rams him into a massive rock. Mario and Luigi once again must go to Rump Command, revive Bowser, and increase his size. He must then destroy the train before it reaches a rock bridge unable to support his weight. When he does this, he shrinks back down to his normal size. Once he returns to the vault, he attempts to open the safe, but cannot remember the combination. The Mario brothers then journey to Bowser's Memory Banks and, after defeating the guardian, must jog Bowser's memory by reassembling the memory containing the combination. He opens the safe once this is done and claims the second Star Cure, but Private Goomp, Corporal Paraplunk, and Sergeant Guy, who now work for Fawful, shove him into the safe. Bowser then eats the Star Cure, which is found by Mario and Luigi in the Gut Check.
After Mario and Luigi defeat Junker, the robot's rampage frees Bowser from the safe, but his back hurts after being crammed inside it for too long. Inside the Lumbar Nook, Mario and Luigi are able loosen his back, revitalizing Bowser enabling him to use the Spike Ball move. He then continues his search for Fawful inside Peach's castle. However, during his search, he flies out of the castle and into the air while in his Spike Ball form. Up above, however, there is a pair of giant Piranha Plants that burn him. The brothers travel to the Chest Station and give impulses that allow Bowser to fly into the air.
Back inside the castle, the player must traverse the first floor until Bowser encounters Fawful and Midbus, who are using Princess Peach to awaken the Dark Star. Midbus asks Fawful to allow him to face Bowser, and, for the sake of his pride, Fawful allows this, but powers him up into Blizzard Midbus before he departs. After defeating him, though, Peach's container shatters and she falls unconscious, and the Dark Star awakens. Fawful uses his Vacuum Helmet to absorb it's power, but Bowser interrupts the process by punching him away; however, he absorbs enough power to transform himself into a more powerful form. Bowser then desires to use it to rule the world himself, but the Dark Star floats toward him and down his throat. Swallowing the star gives him chest pains, and he uses the icy breath Midbus is emitting from his nostrils to quell the pain. This allows Mario and Luigi to travel through the Airway. After the bros. defeat the Dark Star in battle, it leaves Bowser's body and, having absorbed some of Bowser's DNA, transforms into Dark Bowser; however, since it only has a portion of its power at the moment, the transformation is incomplete. Wanting more Dark Power, it inhales the still unconscious Princess Peach, but she is not adequate enough. It then hears Fawful's voice, and recognizes it as the being who took the rest of its power. Dark Bowser heads off after him, with Bowser in tow.
The Dark Star leads Bowser to the courtyard of Peach's Castle, where Fawful is also present. Wanting to get rid of Bowser, he has the castle transform into a robot, which immediately after stomps Bowser. At Rump Command, Mario and Luigi must for the final time revive Bowser and make him giant. After defeating the castle, Dark Bowser shows up again. Bowser demands Peach, but the Dark Star simply heads back inside the castle. Bowser is intent on continuing the chase, only to find Fawful in the Conference Room from the beginning of the game. Desiring to eliminate him, Fawful faces Bowser himself. Fawful's body is destroyed when he loses, but he survives as a mass of dark energy, which escapes. However, Dark Bowser appears right outside and inhales the remains of Fawful, completing his transformation into Dark Bowser. He then punches through the throne, revealing a secret passage
While chasing him, Dark Bowser appears before him and the two breathe fire at each other; the player must press 
to overpower him. While Bowser wins this, Dark Bowser breathes fire at Bowser again, forcing him to curl into his shell. To engage Dark Bowser once again, Mario and Luigi must propel him into the air at the Chest Station, and Bowser must hit Dark Bowser five times to win; however, Bowser can also only take five hits. After claiming victory a second time, Dark Bowser flees to the top of the tower, with Bowser continuing after him by keeping him propelled into the air from the Chest Station.
After chasing Dark Bowser to a high tower above the castle, the real Bowser encounters him on the opposite end, an unconscious Peach nest to him. Dark Bowser then claims that he is going to rule the world, and covers the Mushroom Kingdom in a veil of darkness, several inhabitants being trapped in bubbles. Starlow reminds Bowser that they can help in in the battle, and attempts to reveal that Mario and Luigi are inside his body at this point, but Bowser cannot hear her. He then engages in the final battle with Dark Bowser. During the battle, Bowser must defeat Dark Bowser, causing Fawful to revive him. He must then knock Fawful out of Dark Bowser and use the Vacuum Block, allowing Mario and Luigi to defeat him from the inside. After Fawful and the Dark Star are defeated, Bowser is able to destroy his now unstable dark counterpart, depleting his HP with a series of punches followed by one even more powerful punch.
Bowser then witnesses as the Dark Star is destroyed. Afterward, Starlow desires to know the status of Princess Peach; Bowser had apparently forgotten her during the fight, and figures that he can kidnap her now. However, inside Bowser's body, Fawful is still alive, and self-destructs in a last ditch effort to destroy Mario and Luigi. This does not kill them, and instead sends them and everyone else inside Bowser's body flying to the outside world once more. He is angered by the fact that Mario and Luigi were inside his body the whole time, and is even more outraged when he discovers the identity of "Chippy." Everyone leaves, and Mario and Luigi face Bowser once again, their battle being shown as the credits roll. Bowser loses the fight, and his minions carry him back to his castle, where he is bedridden.
Back at the castle, Private Goomp, Corporal Paraplonk, and Sergeant Guy are present in Bowser's room, asking for their positions back when Birdley, Dr. Toadley's bird, flies in and drops a box onto Bowser's bed, while a Magikoopa who enters informs him that it is from Peach. Starlow emerges from inside, wanting to check on him out of fear that he may attack Peach's castle again, though Bowser informs her that he is focusing on rebuilding his own castle at the moment. Still angry about the truth, he yells at her to leave. After she does so, he has everyone else leave and return to their duties. Once Bowser is alone, he opens the box, revealing a cake with Bowser's face in frosting, Mario, Luigi, and Peach figurines, and various other decorations
Bowser's normal battle system is mostly the same as Mario and Luigi's; his fire breath and punch are his equivalent of the Mario bros. hammer and jump attacks, respectively. Bowser's special attacks involve various Koopa Troop soldiers coming to his aid. Replacing Mario and Luigi's Bros. Badges is the Vacuum Block, which allows Bowser to inhale small enemies, items and parts of enemies, and sometimes Blitties. Any enemies that are inhaled are fought by Mario and Luigi. When being attacked, Bowser has two forms of defense: He can curl into his shell, or he can counterattack by punching.
Bowser also has a unique form of battle in that the player can fight while he is giant. During these battles, the player must hold the DS on its side. His health is also represented by a bar rather than a number. Bowser only has two attacks: punching, achieved by swiping the stylus across the Touch Screen, and breathing fire, achieved by the player blowing into the microphone. Occasionally, Mushrooms also appear during battle, which can be used to heal him. When counterattacking, Bowser can punch in the same way, or breathe fireballs by tapping the desired direction on the Touch Screen; however, the more fireballs spit, the smaller they are.
Bowser's ranking system is also different. It starts at Bronze Boss as the default and changes to Silver Boss at level 10, Gold Boss at level 20, and Final Boss at level 40.
Bowser's out-of-battle gameplay is also similar to the bros. Pressing causes him to punch, allowing him to break objects such as large rocks as well as hitting blocks, and holding down 
allows him to breathe fire in a continuous stream, letting him burn flammable objects; however, doing so for a prolonged time causes him to tire. At Bubble Lake, Bowser can go underwater, and the switches functions to allow Bowser to swim. As the game progresses, Bowser gains two more abilities, giving these buttons alternative functions; by pressing 
, the allows Bowser to perform the Body Slam, and allows him to use the Shell Spin. He can also kick away small enemies and defeat them instantly. Bowser may also use special portals called Chakroads, allowing him to teleport to any location with a Chakroad that has been discovered.
Additionally, in the Flab Zone, the brothers occasionally encounter Nutsoglobins, who are not mandatory, but can help in navigating the area. Nutsglobins ask the player trivia questions about Bowser, but, before they so, they allow him or her to ask Bowser questions, with the Nutsoglobin being the mediator; each question asked costs five coins. They then ask the player the questions, which are based upon what Bowser says in response to the possible he or she can ask him. Whenever a Nutsoglobin talks to Bowser from inside his body, Bowser does not know who it is that is speaking.
Bowser X
Template:Bisenemy A boss called Bowser X appears in the Challenge Node in Bowser's body and can be fought by Mario and Luigi. To get to him, the player must beat all X bosses, and then face all the other X bosses in a row before facing Bowser X. He is, by far, the strongest boss in the game. He is also the only X boss without a color change from the original. While this is clearly not the real Bowser, such an entity existing inside of him may have been the result of the Emoglobin at the Gauntlet within creating it to challenge the Bros. further, after besting all of the other X bosses.
Like all the other X Bosses in the Challenge Node, Bowser X has upgraded stats and additionally, he is capable of performing all of original Bowser's attacks, plus three new ones. However, Bowser X does not use the remaining troops later on in the battle. Attacks Bowser X performs during battle include:
- Punch - A variant of Bowser's fist attack which is slightly faster than the original one. Mario and Luigi must jump to avoid taking damage. Every once in a while, his nostrils smoke out. When this happens, he completely misses the punch and jumps over the Bros. in clumsiness. Mario and Luigi should not jump during this attack.
- Flame - A fire-based combat technique. It can be avoided by grabbing onto Starlow before Bowser X launches the attack. If the player misses, the attack deals massive damage to the Bros.
- Goomba Storm - This attack has two phases. At first, Goombas run after Mario and Luigi, while Bowser X sets some of them on fire. After that the burning Goombas fall from the sky and the player must use the hammer attack to hit them back. They move at a much faster speed than the original.
- Shy Guy Squad - This attack is similar to Bowser's attack. It can be countered by a timed hammer attack.
- Fireball - Bowser X shoots a simple fireball at one of the Bros.. The attack doesn't do much damage, but he continues to execute this attack over and over. The Bros. must hammer the fireball back at Bowser to damage him. Doing this causes Bowser X to curl up into a ball and head for the upper portion of the screen. There, a rain of fireballs drops from Bowser X at random times. The Bros. must hammer the fireballs when they're above them directly. The final part of this attack is when Bowser X, still curled up, attempts to ram himself onto one of the Bros., heavily damaging him.
- Giant Bowser X - Bowser X grows in size and attacks the Bros. with a barrage of fireballs. The Bros. should jump only when the fireballs head toward the Bro. directly. The Bros. shouldn't jump when the fireball passes overhead. After Bowser X finishes that, he proceeds to chase the Bros.. They must jump over the fiery obstacles and head for the two springs waiting at the end without taking major damage.
- Vacuum - A counter move used every time when the player uses a special attack. Bowser X inhales the used move, making it inaccessible for five turns.
Super Mario-Kun (Pikkapika Comics)
The Super Mario-Kun manga published by Pikkapika Comics also features Bowser as a prominent character and antagonist.
Mario Pinball Land
At the beginning of Mario Pinball Land, Mario, Princess Peach, and a group of Toads go to a fair and are enjoying a day of merriment. Princess Peach rides a special ride, the Air Cannon. A machine called the Spheresizer turns Princess Peach into a pinball and allows her to play a special pinball game. However, two of Bowser's Goombas take advantage of her pinball state, changing the direction of the cannon and shooting her to Bowser's Castle. Mario uses the machine to become a pinball to defeat Bowser and rescue Peach.
The player can only access Bowser's room when he or she has obtained fifteen Power Stars. Bowser does not attack Mario, instead roaming around the room and ground pounding, which temporarily disables the flippers. When Mario hits him, Bowser spins around if he is hit from behind, and is momentarily dazed by a frontal attack. The player must use the flippers to hit Mario into the pulleys in the back of the room to raise at least one of the Thwomps in the room as high as possible, so that the blue ! Switch in the center begins to glow. By hitting it, the Thwomps fall, causing Bowser to fall backward and leaving him vulnerable to attack; each successful attack gives the player 100,000 points. After three hits, Bowser rolls into a giant-sized pinball. Mario must knock Bowser into the pulleys and the wall to create a hole. Once a large enough hole in the wall is formed, Mario can launch him through it, out of the castle, and into a nearby hill. Bowser's defeat earns the player 100,000 points times the number of Stars the player has; if the player has all 35 Stars, the bonus is 5,000,000 points.
Yakuman DS
In Yakuman DS, Bowser appears as one of the unlockable characters, unlocked by defeating all of the hard challenges in Challenge Mode. He also appears as the rank 2 opponent faced in Ranking mode. As a computer, Bowser is an offensive opponent, who likes "Open riichi."
Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix
In Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix, Bowser is not the main antagonist of the game's story mode, but he is the final boss. Once Mario and Toad regain all four Music Keys and return them to Truffle Tower, Bowser arrives and steals them all. Mario and Toad, in the S.S. Brass, follow him, dodging Bowser's Bullet Bills.
When Mario and Toad enter the castle, Bowser attempts to harness the power of the Music Keys for his own purposes, but finds that they are gone. Toad, standing on a ledge with Mario, then reveals that they stole the keys back from him. Angered, Bowser challenges Mario to a dance-off. The battle consists of the player and Bowser dancing to the Mario Kart: Double Dash!! Bowser's Castle music. During the battle, the player must collect parts to assemble rockets, which replace some dance steps, to shoot at Bowser. These rockets contain hammers that smash Bowser flat. Near the end of the song, another such rocket flies in and hammers Bowser out of his castle.
Defeated, the Koopa King admits that he only wanted the keys as a remedy for his tone-deafness. Before Mario and Toad leave, Mario uses the power of the keys to turn Bowser's Castle and the land surrounding it into a paradise. Afterward, the three start dancing, and cannot stop; Toad explains that, when they recaptured the keys, some music was implanted into their souls. The three then continue dancing. Bowser is later seen in the credits, where he is dancing in front of his castle.
If the player dances to Bowser's Castle in Free Mode, the battle against Bowser and the rocket hammering Bowser away are still present, with the Mush Mode objective being to collect other rockets.
Mario Baseball series
Bowser is a playable character in Mario Superstar Baseball and its sequel, Mario Super Sluggers. He is a team captain with high power stats.
Mario Superstar Baseball's Challenge Mode features Bowser and his team as the final opponents to be faced in Challenge Mode. He can only be faced when the player defeats all the other captains. When the player beats Bowser , the Bowser Castle stadium is unlocked. When he is defeated on Special difficulty, the player can play as Bowser in Challenge Mode. In this mode, Bowser must defeat the other captains, and then face of team composed of nine out of ten of the captains and sub-captains. Like everyone else, Bower can also recruit other characters to be on his team. In addition, when playing as Bowser, Bowser Jr. does not wander around the map.
In Mario Super Sluggers, Bowser Jr. crashes his own stadium into the Baseball Kingdom; emerging from the fortress is not only Bowser Jr. and his team, but also Bowser. After Bowser Jr. is beaten by Mario's team, Bowser faces Mario in a baseball game. Mario's team emerges victorious and celebrates. Bowser and Bowser Jr. are invited to the celebration out of pity on the Daisy Cruiser. Bowser refuses, but reconsiders only because Bowser Jr. wants to have fun, so Daisy leads them to the table. To their dismay, however, they only get a small portion of food, while everyone else receives much more.
Back at Mario Stadium, Wario and Waluigi attempt to take Mario out with a sneaked Bullet Bill in the Bob-omb Derby during the celebration. The bullet is fired, and Mario, upon noticing, has not enough time to react, but Bowser jumps in front of him and uses his bat to deflect it back at them. The reason Bowser does this is unknown, though it is likely that either if it hit Mario, he would have no arch-rival, or that he thinks it is his job to take Mario out.
In Mario Superstar Baseball, Bowser has one of the highest batting and pitching stats, but his fielding and running skills are poor to balance him out. His special move is the Killer Ball, where he hits or pitches a Bullet Bill. If used when batting, it pushes back any character that catches it. Bowser's running ability is Body Check, allowing him to tackle the baseman and knocking the ball out of his or her hand, and his fielding ability is Laser Beam, which allows him to throw the ball at high speeds to home base. His team can be named either the Bowser Monsters, Bowser Flames, Bowser Blue Shells, or Bowser Blackstars.
In Mario Super Sluggers, Bowser's power stats are still very high (tied with Petey Piranha and King K. Rool), but his pitching skills are weaker than in the prequel. His fielding and running abilities are higher than in the prequel, but they are still lower than average. While Bowser's Star Pitch remains the same, his Star Swing is changed to the Breath Swing, in which he uses his fire breath on the bat to hit the ball. His team name is the same as the prequel, Bowser Monsters.
Super Princess Peach
In Super Princess Peach, Bowser, having heard about the mysterious power on Vibe Island, builds a summer villa on the island to obtain the Vibe Scepter. One day, Army Hammer Bro. rushes into Bowser's throne room to report that the Vibe Scepter has been recovered. Army Hammer Bro. then sends Bowser's minions to use the power of the scepter to capture Mario, Luigi, and Toad. Back at the villa, Bowser is pleased to see that the plan has worked. Wondering about the limits of the Vibe Scepter, the Army Hammer Bro. summons the Goomba he gave the scepter to; however, the artifact had already affected the Goomba with the Joy vibe, and it begins to wave the scepter around, giving everybody in the throne room various vibes.
Meanwhile, Princess Peach is out on a walk at the time with a Toad and Toadsworth, and, upon arriving at the castle, notices a letter from Bowser explaining the situation. Peach then heads out with Perry, a sentient parasol given to her by Toadsworth before she leaves, to save Mario and the others.
At Bowser's villa, Army Hammer Bro. opts to fight Peach when she arrives in his throne room. Bowser gives him the opportunity, increases his strength with the Rage vibe, then flees. After defeating the Hammer Bro., Peach heads to the next floor to face Bowser. He attacks her by throwing hammers at her, as well as breathing streams of fire and fireballs that create a column of fire. He also attacks by charging toward her. After reducing him to three health points, Bowser enhances himself with the Joy vibe, causing him to leap up and create shockwaves upon landing. At two health points, he gives himself the Gloom vibe, in which he attacks by throwing several hammers, which fall as giant hammers. Finally, at one health point, he gives himself the Rage vibe, which causes him to attack faster.
Once Bowser is defeated, Peach is forced to battle him once more, however, this time, he has made himself giant. He attacks Peach by slamming his hands onto the ground, which also sends down several Spiked Balls. He also attacks by throwing several hammers at once. He may also breathe a massive fireball at her; when his health is reduced to three points, he breathes two, when it reaches two, he breathes a stream of fire, and when it is at one, he breathes multiple, bigger fireballs. Finally, he can slam both hands onto the ground, which sends down several Bob-ombs; Peach must use these to damage him. When Bowser reaches one health point, he uses the vibe scepter to activate the Calm vibe to restore his health. Once Bowser is defeated, he reverts to his normal size, and Peach uses Perry to launch Bowser and the scepter away from the island.
Mario Strikers series
Bowser makes brief appearances in Super Mario Strikers as a hazard who interrupts gameplay by tilting the field or attacking the players. During the game he also has his own robotic Super Team to challenge the player's team at the finals for the Bowser Cup and Super Bowser Cup.
Bowser reappears in Mario Strikers Charged as a team captain and playable character. He is a power type character, giving him a high shooting and defense stat, but low movement and passing stats. His deke involves him crouching into his shell and knocking out anybody who runs into him. Super Ability is the Fire Storm!, which causes him to breathe fire upon anyone who ends up in front of him. Bowser's Mega Strike involves him leaping into the air, his spikes and claws growing, his hair turning to flame, and throwing the ball toward the goal. During the game, Bowser wears metal claws to help him manage the ball, as well as to make himself look more fierce. His team number is 66, and his theme is hard rock music.
Mario and the Incredible Rescue
During the events of Mario and the Incredible Rescue, Bowser steals The Book of Spells from Cybele, a sorceress, and uses one of the spells to summon an army of ghosts. He then has several of them go to Peach's Castle to capture the princess. However, Mario, with help from Luigi and Toad, find the six mushrooms necessary to cast the spell that sends the ghosts back to their own realm and defeats Bowser.
Mario Hoops 3-on-3
Bowser appears in Mario Hoops 3-on-3 as an unlockable character. He is unlocked by completing the normal Star Tourney with at least a bronze medal. In this game, he is classified as a powerful character. The only other powerful characters are Donkey Kong and Wario. Bowser's special shot is the Bomber Dunk, which can be performed if the player taps a B-like shape on the touch screen. He sets fire to the ball, and then leaps into the air and dunks it, a large column of flame appearing afterward. Bowser is also the only unlockable Mario character with a baller name, "The Big Shell". Bowser's Castle is also one of the courts in the game.
Itadaki Street series
- “Thank my lucky stars! I'll take some of that money off your hands, wimps! Bwah hah hah!”
- —Bowser, Fortune Street
Bowser appears as a playable character in the game Itadaki Street DS. In the game, the player can also unlock customization options for his or her character. Bowser's customizations include a Bowser Cap and a Bowser Suit.
He later returns as a default playable character in the game's follow-up, Fortune Street. When controlled by a computer, he is an A-rank character.
Mario & Sonic series
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
Bowser appears in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games as a power type character. He has the highest power stat in the game, combined with a high level of stamina. It is because of his strength that he can do better in events such as the Hammer Toss. His swim stroke is the breaststroke.
Bowser's six missions in the game are Pole Vault, in which he must clear the bar set at 5.70 meters twice; Javelin Throwing, in which the player must throw the javelin between 50 and 55 meters; 400m Hurdles, in which the player mustn't knock over a single hurdle and finish with a time between 45 and 53 seconds; Hammer Throw; in which the hammer must be thrown between 50 and 55 meters; Singles table tennis, in which the player must win by scoring 7 points with blast-shots; and Dream Fencing, in which the player must win by knocking his or her opponent out of the ring twice.
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
Bowser appears as a playable character in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games. He is once again a power character, having high power and speed stats, along with average acceleration and skill stats in the Wii version. In the DS version, he has high speed, power, and stamina, but below average technique and jumping.
In the DS version of the game, in the Adventure Tour mode, Bowser is one of the two main antagonists. He teams up with Dr. Eggman to stop the 2010 Winter Olympic Games and host their own games. In order to achieve this, Bowser uses his fire to melt all the snow, and Eggman captures the six Snow Spirits; however, one manages to escape, but Bowser and Eggman disregard this, believing that the five they have can produce all the snow they need.
Upon hearing about the predicament from the one Snow Spirit, Frosty, Mario and Sonic set out to stop Bowser and Eggman and rescue the other five spirits. They defeat Bowser and Eggman's henchmen and save the Snow Spirits, then confront Dr. Eggman and Bowser right after saving Frosty from Dry Bowser at Blizland. The two challenge them first to Blazing Bobsleigh, then to Fever Hockey, and finally to Extreme Snowboarding. Once their rivals defeat fhem, they are disappointed that they lost, but are then angered about it and escape.
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games
Bowser returns as a power type character in Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games. He has high speed, stamina, and power, but low acceleration and technique. In the Wii version, a Bowser suit is also an unlockable costume for the player's Mii to wear.
In the 3DS version of the game, Bowser and Dr. Eggman return as the primary antagonists of the game's story mode. Before the events of the game, after allying with Dr. Eggman again, Bowser has a Magikoopa break the seal on the urn keeping a powerful colored fog known as the Phantasmal Fog contained, located at Stonehenge. From there, Eggman has E-123 Omega retrieve the urn and bring it to him.
On the night before the Olympic Games, Bowser and Eggman are observing the city via several video feeds inside Big Ben, angered that the games have been set up and they have not received invitations. Eggman suggests that they were intentionally uninvited because they are too well prepared for the games. To exact their revenge, Bowser suggests activating the doctor's newest device: a machine that amplifies and unleashes the Phantasmal Fog through various machines scattered throughout London. Eggman asks Bowser and the Koopa Troop to guard the machines that spread the fog and then activates the main machine. The duo then watch from the video monitors as their plan is set into motion.
However, their plans begin to halt when Mario, Sonic, and friends destroy several of their fog-spreading machines. Desperate to keep the London Olympics from happening, Eggman sends out a 3D hologram of him out to wreak havoc near an Olympic stadium. However, the clone is chased down by Vector and Knuckles to the inside of the stadium, where he is cornered by them and Sonic and defeated by the former two, while the real Eggman and Bowser remain safe and hidden inside Big Ben. From there, Eggman uses the main machine to unleash ten times the amount of Phantasmal Fog the other machines could have. However, when Eggman activates this function, Bowser is concerned that the machine may not be safe. The machine then overloads, and fog begins spreading around the interior of the lair. Bowser and Eggman begin to absorb the fog, which makes them stronger, as the Phantasmal Fog begins to spread outside of Big Ben and across London.
As soon as Mario, Luigi, Sonic, and Tails arrive at Big Ben, Bowser and Dr. Eggman instantly reveal themselves, visibly powered up by the fog: they are now glowing various colors and are emanating electricity. They inform the heroes that, as they speak, armies of fog imposters are heading around the city and preventing the Olympic Games. However, Toad and various other allies of Mario's and Sonic's inform them that the fog across the city has been cleared. They are shocked to hear this, but decide to achieve vengeance by defeating Mario's team at a series of Olympic events. When Sonic and Mario defeat them, they try to stop Mario and Sonic from ruining their plan, but are forced to watch as Sonic destroys the machine. Once this is done, Mario uses the urn to suck up the fog, thus stripping Eggman and Bowser of their increased power and sealing the Phantasmal Fog away once more when he places the lid on.
At first, the two are disappointed that they cannot participate in the Olympic Games, and, upon Tails' asking, they explain that they were the only ones that were not invited. They then angrily accuse the group of intentionally not inviting them, but Tails explains that it was an honest mistake; Toad then informs them over the walkie-talkie that, despite the fact that they have not received invitations, Eggman and Bowser are on the list of competitors, and that there is still time to register by providing their IDs at the main stadium. Eggman and Bowser, however, state that they do not have their IDs, but the heroes convince Toad to make an exception and he allows them to register without them if they can make it to the stadium in time.
That night, Bowser is among the various competitors present at the opening ceremony for the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Mario Sports Mix
Bowser appears in Mario Sports Mix as a powerful-type character. His power stat is high, but his technique stat is lower as a result, and he also has a very low speed stat. His high power stat allows him to hit balls and pucks harder than normal, which can push back weaker characters. In Dodgeball, Bowser can repel dodgeball attacks by spinning inside his shell. However, this move is rendered useless when the dodgeball is equipped with an item. Bowser's special ability involves him spitting a fireball onto the court, near the goal, and then throwing the sports object toward the goal. Anyone caught within the radius of the blast is knocked back and burned, and has a harder time stopping Bowser's shots, or evading them in Dodgeball.
Other Appearances, Cameos and References
Aside from the appearances listed above, Bowser has also either been referenced, or has appeared in various other ways in the Mario series. The most common one is in the form of the logo of the Koopa Troopa, which is designed after Bowser's face. Bowser statues and busts also appear in locations such as castles and airships. In Luigi's Mansion, Bowser himself does not appear, but Madam Clairvoya mentions that Bowser was defeated by Mario, and King Boo wears a suit modeled after Bowser. The Japan-only game I am a Teacher: Super Mario Sweater features Bowser as one of the possible designs players can put on their shirt. Another Japan-exclusive game called Mario Roulette has Bowser appear if the player stops the roulette on him. Bowser also appears in the many activities in the Mario's Early Years! games, like dancing for the letter "D". In Mario's Game Gallery, Bowser appears alongside Mario as one of the two possible opponents for the five games; whether he is the character to be faced or not depends on the game
Bowser also appears in various forms of merchandise. In Super Mario Chess, Bowser takes the role of one of the kings. In Nintendo UNO, Bowser replaces the Draw 2 card. Additionally, in Nintendo Monopoly, although Bowser does not appear, one of the ? Block cards has the player pay $15 for "Bowser tax." The 2006 board also shows several scenes featuring Bowser, such as a Bowser interlude from Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door or the fight with him from Super Mario 64.
Although he appears in the book How to Draw Nintendo Heroes and Villains, Bowser is mistakenly known as "Kerog." Although it is unknown how this mistake was made, it should be noted that "kero" is the Japanese onomatopoeia for a frog's croaking. This mistake is not made in the sequel, How to Draw Nintendo's Greatest Heroes and Villains.
Bowser also makes a number of cameos in non-Mario video games, as well as in other forms of media such as movies, TV and print publications. Minor appearances include his presence in F-1 Race, where he and other Nintendo characters wave at the driver when they complete a circuit, and the inclusion of a Super Mario Bros. sprite of Bowser in Art Style: PiCTOBiTS.
In the SNES version of SimCity, a giant-sized Bowser tramples through and destroys the city built by the player, serving as a natural disaster inspired by the Godzilla film series.
In Pikmin 2, one of the treasures, the Flame of Tomorrow matchbox, is emblazoned with Bowser's face and is said to contain "Bowser Breath" brand matches.
One of the Nintendo 3DS Mii accessories that can be obtained is a Bowser hat. It is in the shape of Bowser's face, and covers the entire Mii's head, with its face being visible inside the mouth. Additionally, one of the Puzzle Swap panels is named, "Mario and Bowser"; the panel features Mario, Luigi, and Bowser standing together, back to back, arms crossed.
Tetris series
The results screen for the NES version of Tetris features Bowser as part of a band composed of himself, Donkey Kong, Link, Pit, Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Samus Aran. He is playing the accordion.
In Tetris DS, during Standard Mode, a Bowser sprite from Super Mario Bros appears on the touch screen on stage ten. Additionally, when viewing the amount of Tetris Points the player has, if the player has between 8000-8999 Tetris Points, Bowser's Super Mario Bros. sprite appears on the top screen.
The Legend of Zelda series
While Bowser himself does not appear in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, a portrait of him can be found by Young Link, hanging on a wall in Hyrule Castle. Later, at the Lon Lon Ranch, the characters Malon and Talon both wear broaches of Bowser's face, which is ironic because Talon bears a great resemblance to Mario.
When Link travels to the world of Termina in The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, he meets a pair of sisters named Romani and Cremia, who also wear Bowser broaches. This is due to them sharing the same character models as Malon's child and adult forms, respectively.
Wreck-It Ralph
Like Mario, Bowser cameos or is referenced in numerous television or film productions, but only Bowser is set to appear in the upcoming Disney film, Wreck-It Ralph, as the studio would not pay the royalties for the Mario Bros.[4] In the film, Bowser is a member of "Bad-Anon" (Bad Guys Anonymous) along with the titular character, Ralph, and appears in a couple scenes.[5] He is also shown reciting the Bad Guy Affirmation with the other video game villains. Once Ralph states he does not want to be the villain, Bowser begins breathing fireballs in anger and shock.
General Information
Personality
Different Characterizations
When Bowser was developed, he was a typical villain of pure evil with immense hatred and anger. Cruel and ruthless, he is typically portrayed as a power-hungry tyrant who leads violent attacks that threaten the lives of hundreds. Bowser's ultimate goal is to conquer the Mushroom Kingdom, and eventually, the entire universe. His infamous plans and numerous crimes, ranging from simply kidnapping Princess Peach to acts of terrorism, have earned him a reputation feared by the entire Mushroom World. While this status of evil is still very prevalent in the series, a humorous tone has recently been added to his personality and is shown to be more complex in terms of his relationships with his rivals.
Most games tend to focus on a single characterization, which suggests the direction that game takes in story. Some games only focus on his comical aspects, while others focus on a much more sinister side. The games that mainly focus on his comical aspects are the RPGs, where his overall character has a very amusing personality. Bowser has also been known to break the fourth wall to remind players that he's still evil despite his current actions. In fact, whenever he joins forces with Mario to face a greater common foe, Bowser's typical motivations for doing so are selfish in nature: for example, in Super Mario RPG, he agrees to help Mario fight the Smithy Gang simply because he wants to get his castle back from them, and in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, Bowser only agrees to help Mario and Luigi regain Peach's voice because he wants to kidnap her again, but couldn't because her "explosive vocabulary" would wreck his castle.
While Bowser is primarily more comical in RPGs, Paper Mario has him considerably more evil due to his focus as the main villain. Though Bowser still has a humorous tone, he is also shown to be very cruel and sinister in certain scenes. Outside the RPG series, Bowser is usually not as comical, and in many instances show him to be pure evil. The Mario Party series has also depicted Bowser as more serious-driven and angry. New Super Mario Bros., and Super Mario Galaxy remove Bowser's usual comical undertones completely and make him a much more sinister villain than he is found typically in the RPGs.
Although he usually plans to rule the Mushroom Kingdom, and at some points, the entire universe, he also crosses the line at destroying the Universe, or destroying things thereof. This is especially evident when Bowser becomes enraged when he learned that Count Bleck's destruction of existence means he wouldn't have anything to rule over, and after witnessing what happened to Sammer Kingdom when it is consumed by the void, he is legitimately horrified. When it also becomes apparent that his planned galaxy, as well as the entire universe is going to be vaporized after his plans of universal conquest in Super Mario Galaxy fail, he also laments at the loss.
Common Sense
While Bowser has shown intellect and a sarcastic wit in many of the games, he has also acted with incompetence. The RPGs primarily depict him with an almost comical lack of common-sense. Two prime examples are when he breathes fire on a Superbombomb in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door when it doesn't explode, and in Super Paper Mario, he does not realize that he cannot rule the world if the world is destroyed until Mario explicitly tells him so.
While his lack of apparent common-sense is widely evident, Bowser has also been shown on many occasions to be highly intelligent. Many of his plans often make use of high-tech equipment and complicated machinery, designed and built by himself. In Mario Party Advance, when the player arrives at Bowser Lab, Bowser claims to have an IQ of 9,800. He has also shown himself to be quite adept at use of various magics, both innate and talisman-based. He often develops strategies in his conquest of the Mushroom Kingdom as well as defense against Mario, as evidenced by his division of power among his children and generals to act as governors over conquered lands, which is a sign of an intelligent and compromising leader.
Emotions
Bowser's temperament has been depicted varying from pure, driven evil to a comical child-like villain. Despite this widely-opposing personality, any emotions other than anger or hatred have rarely been shown. Bowser has never been seen acting remorseful for his numerous atrocities and destruction, ranging from the localized Mushroom Kingdom to the outermost reaches of the universe. He also seems to lack a sense of empathy, which results in a disregard for any other life. In Paper Mario, Mario's defeat at the hands of Bowser, to which Bowser simply mockingly laughs at, is essentially murder before Mario is revived by the combined energy of the Star Spirits. Perhaps Bowser's most extreme disregard for other life is in Super Mario Galaxy, where his plot consists of wiping out entire galaxies to create a cosmos he can control.
Despite all this, a more humane side of Bowser has sometimes been seen for brief moments. In Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, Bowser can be seen crying for the loss of his home and Koopa Troop to Smithy and his underlings in front of Booster Tower. He also appears to be just as saddened as Mario, Mallow, and Peach when Geno's body breaks down.
In Mario Party 4, Bowser is shown to be extremely upset when he is defeated and grudgingly gives the player a gift for their birthday. He then leaves in shame, at which one of the Koopa Kids suggests that maybe Bowser has more affection than others are led to believe, a statement which he quickly retracts. Bowser is shown walking in the darkness, alone and miserable, but indeed wishes the player a happy birthday. The most recent occasion where Bowser shows emotion is in Super Mario Sunshine when he tells his son, Bowser Jr., in sadness that Princess Peach is not his mother and appears guilty for lying to him.
In sharp contrast to his usual disregard for other life and that throughout the game his intent is to save the world only so he could rule it himself, Bowser did seemingly sacrifice himself to save Princess Peach, Mario, Luigi, and even Count Bleck's henchman O'Chunks during Super Paper Mario in Castle Bleck when the ceiling falls on them, during which he is arguing with O'Chunks and telling him to get to safety before both were seemingly crushed (it is later revealed that they survive).
Physical Appearance
Bowser is a huge, burly, green-shelled Koopa with spikes, horns, and hair. His bushy eyebrows and mane are fittingly a bright, fiery red-orange and has bright red eyes. He sports two small horns, many spikes on his shell (similar to a Spiny), as well as along his tail. He wears several spiked collars around his neck and arms. He has three claws on each of his massive feet, which support his impressive girth. He has three claw-tipped fingers and a thumb on each hand, and his arms are noticeably burly, indicating his vast physical strength. While his face and his shell are green, his underbelly and snout are flesh-colored (occasionally depicted as being closer to tan or even yellow), and his tail and limbs are an orange-tinged yellow.
Bowser's appearance is based upon a combination of the many species of Koopa, including Koopa Troopas, Spinies, and Hammer Bros. According to Prima's Super Mario Galaxy guide, the appearance of Bowser and the Koopas are also based on kappa of Japanese mythology, although this has not been officially stated by Shigeru Miyamoto.[6]
Bowser's appearance is not always the same. Graphical limitations in the original Super Mario Bros. meant Bowser could not have hair; artwork for Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels depicted him with yellow hair, and his iconic red hair was finally seen in-game in Super Mario Bros. 3. The original Super Mario Bros. also depicted Bowser as being mostly green, rather than having yellow body scales. The creators of the Mario cartoons wished to follow the graphic design of Super Mario Bros., and so their portrayal of King Koopa had him almost completely green in colour and lacking hair, with a crown atop his head instead. His stomach was a deeper yellow than in later game depictions, and the whites of his eyes were also yellow; he also had a more crocodile-like snout, which was also colored green. He was also given a single pair of spiked bands on his wrists, with the spikes on said bands being yellow in color.
Nintendo Comics System used the same design as the cartoons for the Mario comics, and different installations in the Nintendo Adventure Books used either it or Bowser's game depiction, interchangeably. By comparison, the two Mario anime (the three OVAs and Super Mario Bros.: Peach-hime Kyushutsu Dai Sakusen!) are relatively true to the games' depiction of Bowser, except for the fact that his eyes are blue instead of red.
Powers and Abilities
Since Bowser is the King of Koopas, he possesses the powers of many of the Koopa species, such as a Fire Bro.'s fire breath, a Spiny's shell spikes, and a Hammer Bro.'s flurry of hammers. Bowser's signature ability is breathing fire. He can choose to either breathe a long breath of flame or shoot many fireballs. Bowser is quite advanced in his fire-breathing; he can shoot blue flames that follow Mario in Super Mario 64 and New Super Mario Bros. and can even breathe fire underwater in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door and Super Paper Mario. Another one of Bowser's most-often used abilities is his power and durability, something that Bowser prides himself in. Bowser is often the most powerful character in sports games. He can also create shockwaves by doing a simple ground pound in several games. Bowser's durable nature is evident seeing that he has fallen into lava, being blown up, etc., many times, but has managed to survive every single time. His durability was once referenced by Luigi, shortly after Bowser seemingly sacrificed himself at Castle Bleck, when he mentioned that "Bowser's survived far worse." Bowser's playable side-scrolling sections in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door show him to have infinite lives, which may explain this. Super Paper Mario also has Bowser's attack stat as twice that of the other hero's. Bowser is also shown to have an extremely loud and powerful roar that often sends weak enemies running away before a battle even begins. As mentioned above, in Super Mario Bros., Bowser throws hammers like a Hammer Bro. but has rarely used the technique since, only to use it once again in Super Princess Peach, by his alter-ego Rookie in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, and one more in New Super Mario Bros. 2. He also briefly uses it in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars when after battling Mario at the beginning, he throws a hammer at the Kinklink supporting the chandelier he is standing on.
Although Iggy claimed upon being defeated in the PC version of Mario is Missing! that Bowser was "fireproof" (ie, he was immune to fireballs), this was contradicted in other games both previous and future, where he can be taken down by fireballs, although it required a significant amount.
Speed and Agility
Bowser's speed and agility are very inconsistent and they greatly vary from game to game. In some games Bowser is actually faster and more agile than Mario is, such as in Super Mario 64 where Bowser can jump high in the air if Mario tosses him off the platform. In that game he can also run faster than Mario for short distances. Despite his size, Bowser has demonstrated the ability to pull off a move similar to Mario's Spinning during a boss fight in Super Mario Galaxy. However, Bowser is usually slower than Mario in playable appearances and sports games. In Super Paper Mario, Bowser is the slowest usable character and can't climb ladders, unlike Super Smash Bros. Brawl in which he can climb them. In Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Bowser is shown to have good swimming abilities, just like Mario, though he reportedly hates swimming (though this may derive from the fact that his Koopa Clown Car crash-lands in the sea at one point and he is forced to swim back to Rogueport). Another example is in the Mario & Sonic series. In the summer games he is the slowest runner with a 2/10 stat, while in the winter games he has an 8/10 stat; most power characters have a good speed stat in that game, though their speed is still inferior to Sonic the Hedgehog's, and they lack accelerating abilities.
Magic
According to the Super Mario Bros. instruction booklet, Bowser is a skilled user in dark magic, although he is not shown to use these skills very often. One of the few times Bowser does use magic is in Hotel Mario, where he uses it to summon lightning bolts. Bowser's lightning ability is shown again in the beginning of Super Mario Galaxy when he uses it to summon a spaceship to lift Peach's Castle into space. Another magical ability Bowser uses is teleportation in Super Mario 64. If the player comes too close to him, Bowser will disappear and reappear somewhere else, making it harder to get close to his tail. Bowser also teleports to escape after Mario defeats him in their first two battles in Super Mario Galaxy. He also uses it in Hotel Mario, in which he teleports Princess Peach into his hotel. Bowser can also shrink players in Mario Party 4. Bowser has also shown the ability to turn people into frogs, which is shown in Mario Party 2 when he turns a Koopa Troopa into one at the end of Horror Land. Super Mario Bros.: Pīchi-hime Kyushutsu Dai Sakusen! also depicts him with the ability to shapeshift into anything he desires.
In both Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2, Bowser uses the powers of the Grand Stars to aid him in his fight with Mario. In the first game, he attacks Mario by spinning, with what appears to be dark matter coming out of his fingers, and in the second game, he uses the power of the Grand Stars to make himself enormous, rivaling the size of Princess Peach's Castle. Another magical ability Bowser uses is to transform himself into a giant boulder during his final fights with Mario in Super Mario Galaxy.
Size
Like his speed, Bowser's size changes between games and he has also been shown to grow much larger sizes with a variety of methods. In Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door intermissions, eating Meat gradually increases Bowser's size until he is large enough to smash straight through anything in his path; this is mimicked by the effects of the Mega Star in Super Paper Mario. In Super Princess Peach, Bowser uses the Vibe Scepter to become gigantic, and in Super Mario Galaxy 2, he uses the Grand Stars. Kamek makes Bowser giant in New Super Mario Bros. Wii after he is initially defeated and falls down a pit, and the Koopalings use their Magic Scepters to do the same in New Super Mario Bros. 2. In Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, Mario and Luigi can make Bowser temporarily giant by heading to Rump Command supercharging him with adrenaline; Bowser X and Dark Bowser can become giant for a short while as well. Bowser starts out giant in Super Mario Sunshine but shrinks after he is defeated. Mario Party 5 shows Bowser growing giant by drinking some sort of elixir. In Mario Party 9, Bowser, before facing him in his boss minigame, somehow manages to grow to a giant size at will, and later in the final battle against him he grows considerably bigger. Other games also show him to have modest increases in size from one boss battle to another, such as New Super Mario Bros. and Paper Mario. Like all playable characters, Super Mushrooms make Bowser grow larger in Super Smash Bros. Melee and Super Smash Bros. Brawl. In Melee, a larger-than-normal Bowser is the final boss of the Adventure Mode, and Events 25 and 42 both feature Bowser as being larger than he is when he has consumed a Mushroom. This so-called Giant Bowser also appears in Event 27 in Brawl.
Transformation
- Main article: Giga Bowser
In Super Smash Bros. Melee, after defeating the Giant Bowser at the end of Adventure Mode, its trophy flies out of the pit beneath the Final Destination stage, where the battle takes place, lands on the stage, and is struck by lightning. The trophy is then transformed into a more powerful version of himself, known as Giga Bowser.
In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Bowser has the ability to transform into Giga Bowser for his Final Smash. Giga Bowser does not flinch, though he still takes damage from enemy attacks. Giga Bowser's attacks are more powerful versions of his normal attacks.
Family
The game Super Mario Bros. 3 introduced Bowser's seven children, the Koopalings, who, after their first appearance in Super Mario Bros. 3, would go on to appear in several other games with their father, as well as in various other Mario-related medias, such as cartoons and publications. Many years later, Super Mario Sunshine introduced Bowser Jr., Bowser's youngest child who, unlike the Koopalings, resembles Bowser greatly. Bowser Jr. is featured in many games such as New Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Galaxy and is often Bowser's default partner in sports games. The Mario Party series also introduces Koopa Kids (aka Baby/Mini Bowsers), but despite their similar appearance and Bowser's sometimes fatherly demeanour towards them (such as banning them from playing with toys as punishment for failure), they appear to be unrelated, and treat him as their boss. In a September 2012 interview, Shigeru Miyamoto stated that Nintendo's "current story" is that Bowser Jr. is Bowser's only child [7], leading to wonder how Bowser got the Koopalings in the first place or how they became Bowser's 'children'.
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island introduces Kamek, a Magikoopa who is the caretaker and possible adoptive father of Baby Bowser. Kamek is shown to take great care of Baby Bowser and worries about him often. Besides Kamek, another father is mentioned by Bowser in a few issues of the Nintendo Comics System Mario series comics. This father is heavily implied to be a criminal currently being chased by the authorities. Bowser and his children are also shown to have a pet rabbit named Pookie in the Nintendo Comics System; he was often abused, until his eventual escape from Bowser's Castle in the comic "Bowser Knows Best".
The first family member of Bowser's ever seen is not in the Mario video games; instead, it is in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! episode "Do You Princess Toadstool Take This Koopa...?." This episode introduces his mother, who is a bossy and bullying woman. At the end of the episode, she mentions having to tell all his relatives that he is still a bachelor after his plot to marry Toadstool fails. Additionally, King Koopa also mentions a grandfather named Poopa La Koopa in the episode "Butch Mario & the Luigi Kid", saying his motto was "Cheat, beat, and be merry!" In the song "Ignorance is Bliss" and an episode of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, Bowser mentions a younger sister who is, according to him, a bookworm. Bowser also mentions a paternal "great-great grandkoop" in the The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! episode, "Raiders of the Lost Mushroom," in which he states that this great-great grandfather built the Temple of Koopa to hide the Lost Mushroom, which Bowser also states he left to him. Additionally, in "Do the Koopa," an episode of The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3, Morton brings up a great grandmother when explaining the story behind his favorite string, who would be Bowser's grandmother.
An issue of the UK Nintendo Power once said that Bowser had a wife named Clawdia Koopa; however, as Clawdia is never referenced to again, neither in any games, later issues of Nintendo Power UK, or any other form of media, it is often believed that she was created as a joke. In a recent interview, Miyamoto simply stated that Bowser Jr.'s mother was "unknown"[7]. In Super Paper Mario, Bowser and Princess Peach are forcibly wed by Count Bleck and Nastasia as part of the former's plan to unleash the Chaos Heart. Though Bowser regards this wedding as an official marriage of the two and calls Peach his wife throughout the game, she refutes his claims and considers the wedding to be a sham.
The comic "Koopa's High School Yearbook" depicts an unnamed female Koopa who appears to be of Bowser's species of Koopa who had a crush on Bowser despite the fact that they only ever talked once (he asked for her sandwich); she founded the one-member "Koopa Fan Club" and was also in the "Future Wives of Tyrants Club", but nothing else is known about her. A nerdy Koopa that also appears to be of Bowser's specific Koopa species also appears; it is shown that he was commonly bullied by him. Part of a picture of another Koopa appearing like Bowser can also be seen in the bottom corner, but the picture appears to be ripped.
In the Nintendo Adventure Book Flown the Koopa, an unnamed Magikoopa stated to be Bowser's third cousin twice removed is featured as the main antagonist; this character also appears in the later books Unjust Desserts and Brain Drain, though has only a minor role in both. While Bowser appears in both Flown the Koopa and Unjust Desserts, neither of the books feature them interacting with each other.
Relationships with Other Characters
Mario
- Main article: Mario
While Bowser has many enemies, no one has caused him more anger than Mario himself. Bowser has a deep-rooted hatred for Mario because he continuously disrupts his plans and has won the heart of Princess Peach. Though Bowser despises Mario with a passion, he has a grudging respect for him and sees him as a worthy opponent, although he tries to hide this reluctant respect. This is shown most strongly in Super Mario Galaxy, where Bowser says that he picked the right guy to be his archenemy since Mario always puts up a fight, and even more strongly in Mario Super Sluggers where Bowser saves Mario from being hit with a Bullet Bill sent from Wario and Waluigi. Of course, Bowser only saves Mario so that he could destroy him himself. Mario himself seems to have some sort of sympathy for the villain, going as far as even letting Bowser go in Mario Party DS. Though this is most likely due to the fact that Bowser's scheme unintentionally leads Mario and his friends to have fun and that his plan isn't nearly as brutal as past ones. Although it should also be noted that Mario celebrates after viewing Bowser's seemingly permanent destruction in New Super Mario Bros., although he does eventually return. In the first two Paper Mario games, Bowser tries to defeat Mario once and for all using new strategies; stealing the Star Rod to become invincible in the first, (though he is defeated the second and third times he is fought) and attacking him twice, each directly after a previous battle (which may leave Mario worn out before he fights Bowser), in the second. Their battle seems to be an eternal one as Bowser survives the numerous battles he has with Mario, and is even resurrected from the dead.
In spite of their rivalry, twice Bowser joins forces with Mario to defeat a greater foe who also poses a more immediate threat to him: In the first, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, he and Mario both want Smithy defeated, in Bowser's case so he could get his castle back, and viewed it more as Mario helping him than the other way around, and went back to his evil ways once Smithy was destroyed; second, in Super Paper Mario, he is extremely reluctant, but only joins Mario's team when he realizes he can't rule the world if Count Bleck destroys it. He plays a slightly similar role during Mario's quest to get Peach's voice back (to prevent her explosive vocabulary replacement from destroying his castle if he kidnaps her) at the beginning of Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, but is attacked by Fawful shortly after. In Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, however, despite the fact that both he and Mario are trying to defeat Fawful, and that Mario and Luigi are helping him from within, Bowser never joins forces with them, fighting them all three times he encounters them.
Overall, Mario has always been Bowser's number one enemy, and this fact will never change no matter how many times Mario and Bowser team up together to save the world. Mario is also part of the three main heroes who Bowser despises the most, with the other two characters being Luigi and Yoshi.
Princess Peach
- Main article: Princess Peach
While Bowser has much hatred for the Mushroom Kingdom's residents, this hatred apparently does not apply to Princess Peach. One of the most complex aspects of Bowser is his relationship with Peach. It at first seems that he only abducts her for control of the kingdom and to use her as bait to lure Mario into danger. However, it is later revealed that Bowser is attracted to Peach and lusts for her. While he has harmed or attempted to harm her in many ways, including trying to blow fire on her when Starlow tells him he cannot stay in Peach's castle for the conference on the Blorbs in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, Bowser will never go as far as killing her (except in Super Princess Peach), and treats her fairly nicely. Even though Bowser has an attraction to Peach, he has not been shown to care for perspective. He ruthlessly attacks her kingdom, causes much destruction, and forces her to watch him nearly kill Mario, the person she truly loves, while tied up. It seems that Bowser's attraction for Peach is mainly physical, but Peach is the only one in the whole series, other than his children, capable of showing that Bowser has affection somewhere deep in his seemingly cold heart. Peach herself is able to recognize Bowser's softer side towards her and often flirts with him to agree to help Mario, to which Bowser reluctantly agrees. According to Bowser Memory P, Peach is Bowser's most carefully preserved memory.
Bowser Jr.
- Main article: Bowser Jr.
While Bowser is an evil villain with a lust for power, he has shown less sinister characteristics on occasion, including his relationship with his son, Bowser Jr. He cares very deeply for his son and is proud of his loyalty to both Bowser and the Koopa Troop. However, Bowser is not above using his son as a pawn in his schemes, which is shown most strongly when Bowser lied to Bowser Jr. about his parentage so that he would have motivation to abduct his "Mama Peach" and destroy Mario for breaking up their family, although it is later revealed that Bowser Jr. knew that Peach wasn't his mother, and simply wanted to be like his father and fight Mario. It should also be noted that in Super Mario Galaxy, Bowser grieves over the impending destruction of his galaxy rather than the welfare of his own son. The divided loyalties between himself and his child are one-way, however, as Bowser Jr. has never shown anything except devout loyalty to his father, as have the Koopalings, who were originally depicted as Bowser's children as well.
Luigi
- Main article: Luigi
Another one of Bowser's odd, if not comical, interactions with other characters are his ones with Luigi. While Luigi has often helped Mario disrupt the Koopa King's plans, Bowser forgets who Luigi is in all three Mario & Luigi games, where he calls Luigi 'Green Stache', showing how little Bowser thinks about Luigi. When Bowser kidnaps Mario in Mario is Missing! he thinks he is unstoppable until Luigi shows up and thwarts his plot. Since then, it seems he has realized Luigi's potential threat level. An example of this is when Bowser has Luigi captured in Super Princess Peach, and in Super Mario Galaxy, Bowser apparently sees Luigi as so much of a potential threat that he places him under heavy guard in a haunted mansion guarded by Boos. However, despite seeing him as a threat, Bowser still holds Luigi in low esteem; he is shocked and disgusted at himself when he believes that he loses to Luigi in getting a Crystal Star in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. On many occasions though, Bowser seems to hate Luigi mostly for the simple fact that he is related to the man who has caused so much harm to the king and his Koopa Troop. Regardless, Bowser and Luigi are considered enemies, but can get along when the situation calls for it such as in Super Paper Mario. However, Luigi is still one of the three main heroes who Bowser hates the most, with Mario and Yoshi being the other two characters.
Toad
- Main article: Toad
- Main article: Toad (species)
In general, Bowser despises the Mushroom People and often uses a variety of plans to eliminate them. One such way was in Super Mario Bros., where Bowser uses his magic to turn the Toads into various inanimate objects so that they do not get into the way during his kidnapping of the Princess, as well as kidnapping the seven Mushroom Retainers. In games such as Super Mario 64 and its remake, Bowser imprisons Toad and the rest of his species behind the castle walls. In Super Princess Peach, Bowser has his minions not only kidnap the two Mario brothers, but Toad himself. The fact that Bowser often captures Toad may be due to the fact that he sees Toad as a threat just like the Mario Bros. (as a result of his heroic works and his assistance to the Mario Bros. in their adventures). In Mario Superstar Baseball, both Bowser and Toad share bad chemistry between each other; however, in Mario Super Sluggers, only Toad continues sharing bad chemistry with Bowser.
Yoshi
- Main article: Yoshi
- Main article: Yoshi (species)
Yoshi and Bowser have crossed paths numerous times ever since Bowser was an infant. He first encountered Yoshi when Kamek kidnapped Baby Luigi, and Yoshi came to rescue him alongside Baby Mario. While Bowser hardly thinks about those who help Mario in his journey, it is clear that he sees Yoshi as a threat, as he encased his kind into Yoshi Eggs in order to keep them from ruining his plans. Later, in Super Mario 64 DS, Bowser imprisoned Mario, Luigi, and Wario inside Princess Peach's Castle Walls, leaving Yoshi to jump into action and stop Bowser. Despite all these events, Bowser still overlooks Yoshi as an actual fatal flaw in a few of his plans, although Yoshi is still part of the top three heroes Bowser coldly despises, with Mario and Luigi being the other two.
Strangely enough, in spite of their negative relationship, in Mario Super Sluggers, their chemistry is neutral.
Wario
- Main article: Wario
Wario, despite being the opposite of his arch-nemesis Mario, is not in good terms with the Koopa King. The only exception of the relationship is demonstrated in the opening of Mario Power Tennis where Wario and Waluigi team up with Bowser to attempt to destroy Mario and Luigi. However, most of the time, Wario and Bowser are usually pitted against each other throughout the games, such as Mario Superstar Baseball, where they mercilessly taunt each other, or Super Mario 64 DS, where Wario helps Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi in obtaining the Power Stars to defeat Bowser. In Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour during the opening, Bowser chases Wario and Waluigi after the former unintentionally hits him in the eye with a golf ball. Also, in Mario Super Sluggers, when Wario fires a Bullet Bill towards Mario, Bowser protects Mario by deflecting the attack back. As babies, they also get into fights in Yoshi's Island DS.
Koopa Troop
- Main article: Koopa Troop
Bowser’s relations with his army and underlings are usually held in good regards. Bowser has respect for all his underlings, but cares very little for them if they fail him. He seems to somehow bring some of his defeated minions in Super Mario Galaxy back to life to give them another shot at beating Mario. If they betray him however, Bowser sees them as enemies and will not hesitate to eliminate them. His minions also, surprisingly, hold Bowser in extremely high regard and serve him out of respect more than in fear. While many do fear his wrath, his minions believe Bowser to be the strongest and best suited to run the army. Nearly every single one of his henchmen, while failing numerous times, is one hundred percent loyal to their king and serves him faithfully. Kammy Koopa, Kamek, and the Koopalings are prime examples as they idolize Bowser and never complain about him, even when he's not around. This applies to most of his other troops with the only complaint being that Bowser may be overly nervous about Peach escaping, though this nervousness is rational.
Kamek
- Main article: Kamek
Bowser has known Kamek since he was an infant, having been raised by the Magikoopa. He has been known to do whatever Bowser assigns him to do without complaint, and is one of the better-treated members of the Koopa Troop, but Bowser has been known to attack him when annoyed or completely by accident, the latter being the case in New Super Mario Bros. Wii, when he knocked him down shortly after Kamek, as a last ditch effort to ensure that Bowser won against Mario, cast a spell on him to have him become gargantuan. He has also interacted with Bowser more than any other character.
Kammy Koopa
- Main article: Kammy Koopa
Bowser has been known to outright disrespect and insult Kammy, such as calling her "hag", despite the fact that she is completely devoted to him; most of the time this occurs when she is near him, and it is spoken openly. However, she has shown no signs of anger whenever Bowser does so. In her tattle from Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Goombella wonders whether it is harder for Bowser to put up with her or vice versa. However, despite having little respect for her, he often listens to her advice and takes her seriously.
Koopalings
- Main article: Koopalings
The Koopalings were originally introduced as Bowser's seven children in both the English and Japanese versions of Super Mario Bros. 3[8][9]. They were also depicted as his children in the DIC cartoons and various comics released shortly after Super Mario Bros. 3, and the English box of Yoshi's Safari called the Koopalings Bowser's children. However, subsequent games did not draw attention to their kinship, and in 2012, Shigeru Miyamoto stated that Nintendo no longer considered them to be his children[7].
Before the introduction of Bowser Jr., the Koopalings acted as heirs to Bowser's kingdom, and their presumed leader, Ludwig von Koopa, was said to be Bowser's second-in-command at the time. Bowser has always been very proud of the Koopalings' service and devout loyalty to him, yet even when they were his children, like Bowser Jr., he still treated them as minions to an extent, and used them to battle Mario in the games. The dynamic between Bowser and the Koopalings was more familial in the cartoons and comics.
Baby Bowser
- Main article: Baby Bowser
Although technically a younger version of himself, Bowser has interacted with his past self on a two occasions: Yoshi's Island DS and Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time. However, their knowledge of each other varies between the two games; in Yoshi's Island, Bowser is aware that he is interacting with a past version of himself, but in Partners in Time neither of them know each other.
In Yoshi's Island DS, Bowser abducts his past self from his castle, desiring the Star Children to rule the universe. After being insulted by Baby Bowser, Bowser shoots fire at him and knocks him out of the castle, oblivious to the fact that Baby Bowser is one of the Star Children that he seeks. However, despite kicking him out earlier in the game, Bowser later shows up after the other babies defeat him in his castle, and is outraged that they defeated his younger counterpart, a direct contrast to their interaction from eariler.
The two later encounter each other in Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time. During this game, the pair meet at Thwomp Volcano. After a brief debate over ownership of the volcano (for the purposes of building a lair), the two are revealed to have allied when Mario, Luigi, and their baby selves arrive at their location. After being defeated, the Thwomp they stand upon is sent rocketing out of the volcano; Bowser falls off after being hit by a Shroob UFO, but tells his past self to "Get stronger and more evil" before falling into a time portal.
Fawful
- Main article: Fawful
Fawful, a recurring villain in the Mario & Luigi series, is a very common enemy of Bowser. Of all the other villains who get in Bowser's way, Fawful is the most persistent. Bowser gains an instant disliking for Fawful when he injures him during their first encounter in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga.
Bowser is also one of the three protagonists (with the Mario Bros. as the other two) in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, where Fawful tricks him by feeding him a Vacuum Shroom, causing him to suck up those present in the boardroom at Peach's castle, and tries to take over the Mushroom Kingdom. Bowser sets out to defeat Fawful (so he can kidnap Peach and take over the Mushroom Kingdom himself). While he does fight the Mario Bros. every time he encounters them, he spends the majority of the game chasing down Fawful and fighting his minions. Bowser defeats Fawful in battle shortly before he is consumed by the Dark Star, which is later defeated by Bowser. Fawful would be considered a very big enemy of Bowser, but after the battle against Fawful (in his dark form), Bowser claims he is far too weak to even call his enemy, despite all the trouble Fawful had caused him.
Starlow
- Main article: Starlow
Bowser meets Starlow in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story when he crashes a conference on the Blorbs in Peach's castle. They immediately become enemies when Starlow tells Bowser he was not invited to the conference and cannot stay, and she helps Mario fight Bowser to get him out of the castle. However, after Bowser accidentally swallows Starlow, Princess Peach, The Mario Bros., and several Toads, Starlow, under the alias "Chippy," helps Bowser from inside his body.
Throughout, he on several occasions asks "Chippy" to be one of his minions, though she declines all these offers. Many times, when something wrong happens in Bowser's body, he will call to Starlow to fix the problem, and she will reluctantly comply; other times, she will refuse to help him, even going as far as taunting him, such as when Bowser is tricked into overeating, causing him to become chubby and fall through the floor, Starlow said she would help him when she feels like it, much to his anger. However, Starlow does seem to show some concern for Bowser, such as when he is flattened by his own castle, she is worried that something is wrong, and when he gets trapped in his safe, she feels sorry for him, but cannot do anything.
After Fawful's last ditch effort to explode the Mario Bros. fails and sends everyone inside Bowser's body out of Bowser's body, Bowser becomes extremely enraged at the fact that Starlow and the Mario Bros. were inside his body, and a fight between the four ensues during the end credits of the game.
Impersonators
As feared as Bowser is throughout the Mushroom Kingdom and the rest of the Mario World, there are others who try to imitate his appearance, generally for their own gain. There have been many impostors in some games who have tried to replicate or manifest him in varying ways, albeit perfectly or imperfectly:
| Impersonation | Impersonator/Creator | Appearance |
|---|---|---|
| Bowser "mech" | King Boo | Luigi's Mansion |
| Bowser Suit | Mario and company | Mario Party, Mario Party 2, Mario Party 3, Mario Party 4, Mario Party 8 |
| False Bowser | Shadow Bugs | Super Smash Bros. Brawl |
| False Bowser | Various | Super Mario Bros., Super Mario 3D Land |
| Dark Bowser | Dark Star | Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story |
| Dark Bowser | Shadoo | Super Paper Mario |
| Bowser X | Gauntlet Emoglobin | Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story |
| Bowser??? | Koopa Bros. | Paper Mario |
| Koopa Troopa | Mario is Missing | |
| Iggy Koopa | Hotel Mario | |
| Koopa Kid | Mario Party 3 | |
| Bowser clone | Belome | Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars |
| Mecha Bowser | Bowser Jr. | Super Mario Sunshine, Super Mario Galaxy, Mario Party 5, Mario Party 7, Mario Party 9, Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, Mario Golf: Advance Tour, Mario Power Tennis |
Nicknames and Aliases
Template:Seealso In several of his appearances, Bowser has been known to use aliases, or is referred to through a self-given nickname or a nickname given by others. The Super Mario Bros. Super Show and Mario Party 2 mostly show him under an alias matching the theme of each location explored.
- Big dude (Baby Bowser)
- King Bowser
- Lord Bowser
- Fungus Cap
- Ka-Hoopa
- Cap'n Bowser
- Bowser the Brash
- Wizard Bowser
- Bowser Sphinx
- Black Hole Bowser
- The King of Awesome
- Mr. Bowser (Merlon, Koopa Kid)
- Mr. Getsfoiledallthetimebytheredguywiththemoustache (Mr. L)
- Large Angry Bowser Guy (Birdley)
- Mr. Violent Face-Puncher (Birdley)
- The Great Bowser
- King Koopa (Cartoons)
- Koopa (Cartoons)
- King of the Koopas/Koopa King (Various)
- His/Your Queasiness (Kamek)
- His/Your Grouchiness (Kammy Koopa)
- His/Your Gnarliness (Kammy Koopa)
- His/Your Filthiness (Kammy Koopa)
- His/Your Rancidness (Kammy Koopa)
- His/Your Awfulness (Kammy Koopa)
- His/Your Massiveness (Kammy Koopa)
- His/Your Chunkiness (Kammy Koopa)
- His/Your Ghastliness (Kammy Koopa)
- Your Sogginess (Kammy Koopa)
- Your Ungratefulness (Kamek)
- Your Rottenness (Magikoopa)
- Your Surliness (Various)
- Your Beefiness (Magikoopa)
- Your Rudeness (Various)
- Your Forgetfullness (Corporal Paraplonk)
- His Touchiness (Kamek)
- His Groomness (Various)
- Your Rashness (Goomba)
- The Boss of Bwahaha (Nintendo)
- (King) Dad (Koopalings)
- Pop (Koopalings)
- Daddykins (Kootie Pie)
- Papa/Dad (Bowser Jr.)
- Koopa Stoopa (Toad and Princess Toadstool)
- Koopums (His mother)
- Rookie (Popple)
- Monsieur Turtle Bits (Broque Monsieur)
- Monster (Lubba)
Official Profiles and Statistics
The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 Writers Bible Bio
"Despite every devious and dastardly plot he hatches, Koopa has a certain Rodney Dangerfield-like vulnerability which makes him as loveable as he is hateable. Koopa is pure id. Unmitigated selfishness running rampant in an ugly green body. He will capture, trick, bribe, threaten, attack, cast evil spells, hurl malicious insults, throw temper tantrums and do anything else despicable and nasty to defeat the Super Marios. And he has so much fun doing it; we always want to see him try again. In Super Mario 3, Koopa fans can enjoy his humorous rantings and funny frustrations even more as he contends with his seven black sheep Koopalings. If reptiles had hair, Koopa would've pulled all his out by now."
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Bio: Yep. Mario teams up with Bowser. These two archenemies have put aside their differences and joined forces. Let's hope this alliance sticks. Watch your back, Mario.
Initial Stats:
- Level: 8
- HP: 80
- Speed: 15
- Attack: 85
- Defense: 52
- Magic Attack: 20
- Magic Defense: 30
- Special Attack: Terrorize
- FP Used: 6
- Magic Power: 10
- Description: Scare 'em good!
Mario Kart (series)
Mario Kart: Super Circuit
- Speed: *
- Weight: *****
- Bio: "With road rage pumping through his veins, Bowser is the biggest brute on the track. It's impossible to push him around, but his weighty shell makes his acceleration suffer."
Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
- Kart: Koopa King
- Partner: Bowser Jr.
- Class: Heavy
- Special Item: Bowser's Shell
- Bio: "Naturally, Bowser gives new meaning to the term road rage. His massive girth is matched only by his fierce temper."
- Bio 2: "Mario's archnemesis. Will racing with his son make him behave better?"
Mario Kart DS
- Acceleration: *
- Top Speed: ***
- Off-Road: *
- Bios
- Website: "Mario's arch-enemy is superb at using his drifting skills to race through curves. Watch out when Bowser barrels through!"
- Instruction Booklet: "Mario's arch-enemy is superb at using his drifting skills to race through curves."
Mario Kart Wii
- Size: Large
- Actual Bonuses
- Speed: +2
- Weight: +5
- Drift: +3
- Website Stats:
- Speed: 1/5
- Acceleration: 4.5/5
- Handling: 2/5
- Website Bio: "Bowser can really throw his weight around behind the wheel of this monstrosity."
Mario Kart 7
- Class: Heavy
- Stat Boosts
- Speed: 4
- Acceleration: 2
- Weight: 4.25
- Handling: 2.5
- Off-Road: 3.5
- Site Bio:
"Mario's scaly nemesis is a turbo beast in any race, but he takes a while to reach top speed."
"Bowser is a real heavyweight, and while his acceleration leaves a lot to be desired, his top speed is top class."
Super Smash Bros. series
Super Smash Bros. Melee
Instruction Booklet
"A mighty foe that trades speed for pure power."
Trophies
| # | Name | Image | First Game / Move | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | Bowser (Classic) |
File:Trophy31.PNG | Super Mario Bros. 10/85 |
Bowser has a long history of kidnapping Princess Peach to lure his nemesis, Mario, into traps. He leads an enormous group of mischievous creatures, not the least of which are his seven children. With outrageous strength, flammable breath, and more spikes than you can shake a Star Rod at, Bowser is a constant threat. |
| 32 | Bowser [Smash] (Adventure) |
File:Trophy32.PNG | : Fire Breath Smash : Koopa Klaw
|
In many ways, Bowser is the toughest character around. Not only does he have near-impervious hide, but his great mass makes him almost impossible to hurl offscreen. Of course, his weight also makes him rather slow to maneuver, so when facing him in battle, it's best to press your attack and not give him a chance to counter. |
| 33 | Bowser [Smash] (All-Star) |
File:Trophy33.PNG | Up & : Whirling Fortress Down & : Bowser Bomb
|
Bowser's Fire Breath strikes continually, but it grows gradually smaller over time until it's barely smoldering. The Koopa Klaw rakes enemies at a distance and pulls nearby foes in close for a good gnawing. Bowser's Whirling Fortress moves laterally over the ground; it works in midair as a recovery. The Bowser Bomb is powerful and paves the way for more attacks. |
| 82 | Giga Bowser | File:Trophy82.PNG | Super Smash Bros. Melee 12/01 |
An even more imposing figure than the original King of the Koopas. Giga Bowser is roughly twice the size of his scaly, fire-breathing, spike-studded Super Smash Bros. Melee counterpart. Predictably, this monstrous creature's offensive and defensive powers are a grade higher than those of regular Bowser. Good luck defeating this colossus! |
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Bios
- Instruction Booklet: "The King of the Koopas is a destructive heavyweight."
- Website: "The biggest and the heaviest of fighters, Bowser has a slightly different flavor this time around!
To be honest, there are a LOT of characters that offer a slightly different flavor this time around. If you think they’re all going to be the same as they have been, it’ll be rough for you."
Trophies
| # | Name | Image | Appearance(s) | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | Bowser | 
|
NES Super Mario Bros. GCN Super Mario Sunshine |
The king of the Koopas and Mario's eternal rival. He breathes fire, hurls hammers, attacks from vehicles like the Koopa Clown Car, and uses all sorts of weapons in hopes of taking out Mario. As his size suggests, he's immensely powerful. His son Bowser Jr. is a chip off the old block who spends his time creating trouble for Mario. |
| 18 | Giga Bowser | 
|
WII Super Smash Bros. Brawl | Bowser, transformed into the terrible and brutal form first seen in Super Smash Bros. Melee. While in this form, he's invulnerable--he takes no damage and cannot be budged. His appearance is so fierce, it's as if he doesn't even belong in the Smash Bros. universe. He cannot maintain this form for long, so dealing out damage efficiently is key. |
| 150 | Paper Bowser | 
|
WII Super Paper Mario | The great king of the Koopas who plots to rule the land with a firm fist. In a change of events, Bowser goes from being Mario's rival to adventuring side by side with him. Bowser's special skill is breathing fire and he has nearly twice the attack power of Mario or Peach, which allows him to take out foes from a distance or multiple enemies with a single blow. |
| 152 | Wedding Bowser | 
|
WII Super Paper Mario | The great Koopa king in a sharp, white tuxedo. Bowser is forced into marriage with Princess Peach by Count Bleck, who plots to wipe out the universe with the Chaos Heart. Although it's all part of Count Bleck's plan, Bowser doesn't seem to be displeased with the prospect. This might just be the last time we ever see Bowser in a tuxedo. |
Stickers
| Image | Game | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| File:DancingBowser.jpg | Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix | [Throwing] - Attack +20 Usable by: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Peach, Bowser |
|
Mario Kart 64 | [Weapon] - Attack +13 Usable by: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Peach, Bowser |
| File:Bowser MPT.jpg | Mario Power Tennis | [Darkness] - Attack +21 Usable by: Ganondorf |
| File:Pprbwsr.png | Super Paper Mario | [Arm] - Attack +23 Usable by: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Peach, Bowser |
Prima Rating
- Offense: 7
- Defense: 5
- Projectile: 3
- Final Smash: 7
- Throwing Ability: 8
- Speed: 1
- Overall: 7
Mario Baseball series
Mario Superstar Baseball
- Team Captain: Yes
- Player Type: Power
- Home Court: Bowser Castle
- Star Swing: Killer Ball
- Star Pitch: Killer Ball
- Special Skill: Laser Beam, Body Check
- Good Chemistry
- Bad Chemistry
- Stats
- Batting: 9
- Pitching: 9
- Fielding: 1
- Running: 1
- Bio
- "Mario's arch rival and the king of the Koopa Clan. He's challenged Mario and his friends to battles countless times, but his ambitions tend to get crushed every time. His lethal Killer Ball is powerful enough to drag anyone who catches it across the field!"
Mario Super Sluggers
Chemistry
| Character | Good Chemistry | Bad Chemistry |
|---|---|---|
| Bowser | Koopa Troopa, Koopa Paratroopa, Dry Bones, Bowser Jr., Hammer Bro, Magikoopa | Mario, King K. Rool |
Online Card Bio
"Bowser is a real bad bruiser. As the king of the Koopas and captain of the Bowser Monsters, he packs superstrong hitting, killer pitching and a vicious outfield spin attack into one package."
Mario Hoops 3-on-3
- Baller Name: The Big Shell
- Type: Powerful
- Special Shot: Bomber Dunk
- Letter to Tap: B
Paper Mario series
Super Paper Mario Catch Cards
| # | Name | Card Type | Image | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 226 | Bowser (1) | Rare | File:BowserCard.png | Mario's mean-spirited rival needs no introduction. He's not too happy about having to help out Mario. |
| 227 | Bowser (2) | Uncommon | File:Bowser2Card.png | There's Bowser looking dapper in a white tux! Pity the minion that had to wax his shell... |
Paper Mario: Sticker Star
Website Bio: Donning his shiny new paper crown, Bowser has wrangled up his minions and laid waste to the Mushroom Kingdom.
Mario Strikers Charged
- Type: Power
- Super Ability: Fire Storm!
- Deke: Hides in his shell to repel opponents.
- Stats
- Movement: 3
- Shooting: 10
- Passing: 3
- Defense: 10
Mario Party DS
Character Trophy
| # | Name | Image | Description | How to Unlock |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bowser | 
|
Bowser's the fiercest force anywhere! His power is unparalleled! And his authority is beyond question! That's what he'd like you to think anyway! | Earn 38,000 Mario Party Points. |
Boss Trophy
| # | Name | Image | Description | How to Unlock |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | Bowser Beaten | 
|
You are the greatest Bowser hunter ever! You captured him! Nothing can beat you! You're standing on top of the world! Oh, yes! The whole world! | Beat the Bowser's Block Party minigame six times. |
Badge
| # | Name | Image | Description | How to Unlock |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 | Bowser Rival | 
|
37,000 MMP earns you the rank of Bowser Rival, and this is your badge! Makes you seem scary. | Earn 37,000 Mario Party Points |
Mario & Sonic series
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
Profile
"A Koopa with big spikes, Bowser is an extremely strong competitor and will dominate the Power events with his big muscles. His nasty disposition makes him an intimidating competitor in any event that he enters, especially the hammer throw and javelin throw."
Stats
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
Profile
"Bowser is Mario's arch-enemy and leader of the Koopa race trying to take over the Mushroom Kingdom at every opportunity. Large and strong, this towering competitor has the Spinning Shell ability on the Wii and DS and Flame Dash ability on the DS. The snow will not slow down this member of Team Mario. You can be sure Bowser believes the gold medal has his name on it!"
Wii Stats
DS Stats
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games
Profile
"One of Mario's biggest rivals, Bowser is an extremely strong competitor and will dominate the Power events with his big muscles. His size makes him a formidable competitor in any event that he enters, especially the Hammer Throw and Javelin Throw."
Statistics
- Acceleration: 5/10
- Max Speed: 7/10
- Technique: 4/10
- Power: 9/10
- Stamina: 8/10
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
Bios:
- Website: Bowser is the big, boastful bruiser of the Mushroom Kingdom, and ruler of the Koopas. His hobbies are terrorizing Princess Peach and thinking up ways to foil Mario once and for all.
- Instruction Booklet: The big bruiser who rules over the Koopas as their king. He'll get Princess Peach this time, if it's the last thing he does...
Initial Stats:
- HP: 75
- SP: 17
- POW: 55
- DEF: 29
- SPEED: 12
- HORN: 26
Mario Sports Mix
| Character Name | Character Type | Home Court | Power Statistic | Speed Statistic | Technique Statistic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fortune Street
- Bio: Head of the Koopa Troop, whose sole aim seems to be disturbing the peace in Mushroom Kingdom. He's a dangerous business rival, who won't hesitate to buy your property from under you.
Super Mario series
Super Mario 3D Land
Website Bio: The dastardly King of the Koopas is making Mario's life difficult again. He'll spit fireballs, shake the ground, and throw whatever he can get his hands on to keep you from getting Princess Peach.
New Super Mario Bros. 2
Website Bio: The colossal King of the Koopas is up to no good again—and with the Koopalings in tow, he might be unstoppable... Can you make it all the way to his castle?
Mario Tennis Open
- Type: Power
- Bio: Bowser is proud of his power. The shots released from his massive body have explosive power! No shot is too strong for him to return.
- Bio 2: There’s only one style possible for this megaton of a player. No matter how hard you hit the ball towards him, he'll always return it with interest.
Portrayals
Over the years, Bowser has been voiced by several people, both in the games and in other media. They include:
Quotes
- For a full list of quotes, see Category:Quotes.
Gallery
Names in Other Languages
Trivia
- All 8-bit sprites have only three colors, but Bowser's original sprite from Super Mario Bros. appears to have four. This is because the black background is what gives Bowser his black spiked collars around his wrists. Due to this, using cheat codes so Bowser appears in a non-castle level will look like his hands are separated from his arms. This occurs again in Super Mario Bros. 3 where Bowser's sprite is designed to exploit the black background and use it as an outline element.
- While King Koopa is not normally referred to as Bowser Koopa in Japan, there are occasions where it is alluded to. For example, in the Japanese version of Mario Kart Wii, his Flame Runner is known as the Super Bowser. In addition, he still says the "royal Koopa line" in Super Mario Sunshine, meaning that Koopa is also his family name in Japan.
References
- ^ The Legend of Zelda interview with Shigeru Miyamoto from 2000 at Famitsu.com (Japanese)
- ^ a b Iwata Asks: Nintendo DSi, Volume 8 - Flipnote Studio - An Animation Class (part 4) at Nintendo.co.uk
- ^ The Mushroom Kingdom (Accessed on 9-19-08)
- ^ YouTube footage of a Wreck-It Ralph Interview at Comic-Con 2012 The film's creators mention "a certain mustachioed plumber" "and his brother" when asked about characters they wanted to include but were not given permission to use. (Retrieved July 28, 2012)
- ^ Wreck-It Ralph trailer on IMBD. (Retrieved June 7, 2012)
- ^ As told in Prima's official Super Mario Galaxy guide.
- ^ a b c Screw Attack reports that "The koopalings are NOT related to Bowser!!!" and provide a scan of a Game Informer interview with Shigeru Miyamoto, in which he states that the Koopalings are not "currently" considered to be Bowser's children, unlike Bowser Jr., who's mother is "unknown". Posted September 12, 2012. (Retrieved September 15, 2012)
- ^ 「ワッハハ。これから俺様の息子達がこのゲームの説明をするぜ。息子達の言うことをよーく聞いてせいぜいガンバルことだな。ワッハハ。」 - Super Mario Bros. 3 Famicom manual. Note Bowser's use of 「俺様の息子達」 ("ore-sama no musuko-tachi"), which equates to "my children" (literally, "my sons"), while at the same time referring to himself in a comically arrogant manner.
- ^ VC スーパーマリオブラザーズ3 Nintendo of Japan website. Note that Larry refers to Bowser as 「オヤジ」 ("Oyaji") in katakana, which both is a Japanese term for "Father" as well as a Japanese term of endearment.
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