Sidestepper

This article is about Sidesteppers, a type of crab. For other crabs, see Crab (disambiguation).

Template:Species-infobox Sidesteppers, also known as Crabs, are crabs that scuttle sideways, sometimes baring their teeth. Making their debut in Mario Bros., Sidesteppers were absent from many Mario games in the intervening years, but have recently begun to appear in place of standard Crab obstacles in the Mario Kart series.

History

Mario Bros.

File:Side stepper arcade.png

Sidesteppers as they appear in various different versions of Mario Bros.

A Sidestepper from the Perfect Edition of the Great Mario Character Encyclopedia.

The Sidestepper is the second enemy that the Mario Bros. encounter in the game Mario Bros.. Sidesteppers emerge from the pipes and walk towards the bottom of the screen. When hit from below, the Sidestepper becomes angry and speeds up. Mario or Luigi must hit the Sidestepper from below a second time to flip it over, then run into it to defeat it. If left alone, the Sidestepper will change its color to blue and flip over, making it move faster. If left alone a second time, the Sidestepper will be pink. If the last target in a phase is a Sidestepper, it will automatically turn pink. Sidesteppers also appear in all remakes of Mario Bros..

Super Mario Bros. Special

Sidesteppers also appear in Super Mario Bros. Special. Here they are credited as Chokichoki, which translates to "Snip-Snip", referencing the sounds they make when they open and close their claws. They first appear in World 4-2 and function like a Spiny.

Mario Clash

Artwork of a Sidestepper from Mario Clash.

In Mario Clash, Sidesteppers come out of pipes and scuttle sideways. To defeat them, the player should hit them in the front or back with a Shell to turn it sideways, then hit them on the side with another Shell.

Super Mario Advance

In Super Mario Advance, when approaching Clawgrip, a short cutscene shows he is a Sidestepper, transformed into Clawgrip by some of Wart's magic bubbles.

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga

In Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, Sidesteppers make a cameo appearance running in the background and foreground during the battle with Hermie III. In Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser's Minions, they are replaced by Huckit Crabs. They also appear in the Mario Bros. game included in the original game. This time, if they are flipped while red and are left alone, they become green. Doing it again makes them blue. If one is the last enemy of a phase, it will turn blue.

Mario Kart series

File:Sidestepper1.png

A Sidestepper in Mario Kart Wii.

A Sidestepper in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

In the Mario Kart series, Sidesteppers can be found on beach stages like Shy Guy Beach and Palm Shore where they walk left and right. They sometimes appear with yellow highlights on their claws. Driving into Sidestepper makes the player's kart spin around. If a Sidestepper is hit with a Bullet Bill, shell, star, or Bob-omb, it flips over and disappears.

In Mario Kart DS, there are missions where they are referred to simply as Crabs.

In Mario Kart Wii, during August 2009's first Competition, the player actually had to take out a certain number of Sidesteppers with items.

In Mario Kart 7, Sidesteppers appear in Cheep Cheep Lagoon, Wario Shipyard, Koopa Troopa Beach, and Palm Shore.

Sidesteppers return in Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on the DS Cheep Cheep Beach course.

Mario Power Tennis / New Play Control! Mario Power Tennis

The Mario Classic Court in Mario Power Tennis is based on Mario Bros., and the original game's sprites are used, including Sidestepper. During a Gimmick game, Sidestepper might walk across the court and trip a character. Three of them are also line umpires.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl

File:SidestepperBrawl.jpg

Sidesteppers in Super Smash Bros. Brawl

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Sidesteppers appear on the Mario Bros. stage. Sidesteppers walk out of the pipes at the top of the screen. Players can hit them from below to flip them over, and pick them up to throw at opponents. If a player is hit by a thrown Sidestepper, they fly sideways off the screen.

Super Mario 3D World

Sidesteppers appear in Luigi Bros.; an additional game featured in Super Mario 3D World. Like the other enemies in Luigi Bros., Sidesteppers behave in the same way as Mario Bros., which this game is based on.

Smaller crabs that behave the same way also appear in some levels, releasing a coin if tapped on the Game Pad.

NES Remix

Sidesteppers, along with other enemies from Mario Bros., appear in some of the challenges and remixes based on Mario Bros. as enemies and stage objectives.

Super Mario Maker

A Sidestepper becomes playable in Super Mario Maker. He can be unlocked as a costume for Mario in certain circumstances.

Super Smash Bros. trophy descriptions

Trophy description from Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Name	Image	Game	Description
Sidesteppers		NES Mario Bros.	Crabby enemies taken on by Mario and Luigi. One bump from below wouldn't flip them over, but rather anger them so they moved faster. These pests had to be bumped twice before they could be upended and kicked off the stage. If left alone after being turned upside down, or if there was one left, their speed would increase. They went by the basic name of "crabs" in Japan.
		GBA Super Mario Advance

Trophy description from Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

Name	Image	Appearance(s)	NTSC-U Description	PAL Description
Sidesteppers		ARCADE Mario Bros. GBA Super Mario Advance	Can you guess how this crab-like enemy moves? The name might give you a clue. But Mario could be in for a surprise when he punches one from below–instead of flipping over, it starts sidestepping even faster! Oh, Mario, did you make it angry? Don't worry–a second punch should calm it down...or at least knock it on its head.	Any guesses for how this crab-like enemy moves? The name might give you a clue. Mario could be in for a surprise when he punches one from below - instead of flipping over, it starts sidestepping even faster! Oh, Mario, did you make it angry? Don't worry - a second punch should calm it down...or at least knock it on its head.

Game appearances table

*All the dates informed here are from the first platform lauchment (just for chronology). For more information about the platforms of the game, access its link

Title	Appeared as/in	Original Release Date
Mario Bros.	Enemy	1983
Super Mario Bros. Special	Enemy	1986
Mario Clash	Enemy	1995
Super Mario Advance	CAMEO in cutscene	2001
Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga	CAMEO in foreground during boss battle.	2003
Mario Power Tennis	Part of the background	2004
Mario Kart DS	CAMEO in mission	2005
Super Smash Bros. Brawl	Part of the background	2008
Mario Kart Wii	CAMEO in mission	2008
Mario Kart 7	Part of the background	2011
Super Mario 3D World	Enemy	2013
Mario Kart 8	Part of the background	2014
Super Mario Maker	Costume	2015
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe	Same as Mario Kart 8	2017

Names in other languages

Mario Bros.

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes
German	Krabbe[?]	Crab
Italian	Granchio (Super Smash Bros. Brawl trophy) Granchietto (Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 manual)[?]	Crab Small crab
Korean	게님[?] Ge-Nim	Translation of Japanese name
Spanish	Cangrejo[?]	Crab

Super Mario All-Stars

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes

Mario Clash

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes