- This article is about the blocks found throughout the Mario franchise. For other uses of the term "Block", see Block (disambiguation).
- “Do you know why blocks exist? For smashing, that's why!”
- —Wario, Wario Land: Shake It!
Blocks in the Super Mario franchise are one of the most recurring and ubiquitous types of objects. Though there are various types, most blocks are suspended in the air or are part of the terrain. Due to their tileable nature, blocks are often used as platforming elements, making up large sections of levels in the 2D platform games in the Super Mario series. When hit from below or the sides, most blocks bump up, hitting objects on top of it. This includes other players and, most commonly, enemies. The first block that appeared in the franchise was the POW Block in Mario Bros., although floors from that game also allow the player to hit enemies by jumping from below.
The appearance and purpose of blocks vary depending on the type of block. Some, such as the ? Blocks, Gold Blocks, and Hidden Blocks, release items such as coins, power-ups, and 1-Up Mushrooms when hit, turning into Empty Blocks afterwards. Others, such as Brick Blocks and Rotating Blocks, can be destroyed, or temporarily disabled, when hit, although some Brick Blocks release items instead. Certain blocks such as Hard Blocks and Donut Blocks act primarily as platforms, while Note Blocks, for example, have special platforming properties and store items within them.
In role-playing games such as those in the Paper Mario series and Mario & Luigi series, blocks largely retain their usual functions, with specific types added to compliment the exploration- and battle-oriented gameplay of those series. Blocks such as Command Blocks in Mario & Luigi are used as the primary way of battling, while Save Blocks and Recovery Blocks, which appear in both series, can save the player's progress and heal their HP, respectively.
While regular blocks appear in the Mario Party series, a special type of block called a Dice Block appears as the primary method players can use to move around boards. Despite usually being six-sided, Dice Blocks can have more than six results, usually the numbers 1 through 10. Different Dice Blocks can have varying effects, such as increasing or decreasing the number of spaces a player can walk, giving or removing items from players and their opponents, or making it easier to land on a specific space.
Gallery
Super Mario series
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Paper Mario series
Mario & Luigi series
Mario Party series
Yoshi franchise
Wario franchise
Miscellaneous
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning | Note(s) | Ref. |
|---|
| Japanese | ブロック
Burokku | Block | | [1] |
| Arabic | حجز
Hajz | "Block", referring to restraining | | [2] |
| Catalan | Bloc | Block | | [3] |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 砖块
Zhuānkuài (Mandarin)
Jyūnfaai (Cantonese) | Brick | | [4] |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 磚塊
Zhuānkuài (Mandarin)
Jyūnfaai (Cantonese) | | [5] |
| Finnish | Lohko | Block | | [6] |
| French | Bloc | Block | | [7] |
| German | Block | - | | [8] |
| Würfel | Cube | Super Mario World television series, "Ghosts 'R' Us" | [9] |
| Greek | Τούβλο
Toúvlo | Brick | | [10] |
Εμποδίζω
Empodízo | Block | DIC cartoons | [11] |
| Italian | Blocco | Block | | [12][13] |
| Cubo | Cube | Super Mario World television series, "Ghosts 'R' Us" | [14] |
| Korean | 차단
Chadan | Block | The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 | [15] |
| Polish | Blok | Block | | [16] |
| Sześcian | Cube | Super Mario World television series, "Ghosts 'R' Us" | [17] |
| Romanian | Bloc | Block | | [18] |
| Cub | Cube | Super Mario World television series, "Ghosts 'R' Us" | [19] |
| Russian | Блок
Blok | Block | | [20] |
| Spanish (Latin America) | Bloque | Block | | [21] |
| Cubo | Cube | Super Mario World television series, "Ghosts 'R' Us" | [22] |
| Spanish (Europe) | Bloque | Block | | [23] |
| Swedish | Block | - | | [24] |
See also
References
.png)
