Rosalina & Luma

After the Game Cube, Nintendo’s next big system was the Nintendo Wii, which made heavy use of the new motion control technology with its new remote and nunchuck controller design. No game made better use of the technology than the next major mainline Mario game, Super Mario Galaxy. The game saw Bowser once again kidnapping Princess Peach, but this time taking off with her into space. Mario tries to follow but fails, until he encounters a mysterious space princess, traveling the stars on a comet spacecraft and accompanied by a race of friendly star creatures.

This is Rosalina, and the stars that accompany her are the Lumas. Rosalina first encountered the Lumas as a child, running away from home to go on an adventure with them, only to find herself unable to return to those she left behind ever again. The Lumas took her in, and she became their mama, loving and caring for them as they grew to become planets and stars and other celestial bodies. Her role in the Galaxy games would propel her to instant stardom, becoming a permanent fixture in most sports and party games and even cropping up in other adventure games here and there.

As a playable fighter, Rosalina works in tandem with the Lumas, able to send them out and fight their battles on two fronts. She will be on the heavier side but still quite floaty given her unearthly nature. Her moves pull almost exclusively from Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2, almost acting as a representative for both games.

Likelihood rating: Already in

Character Sheet: Rosalina & Luma (New Series)

ROSALINA & LUMA

Settle in, folks, we've got a lot of revisions to get through for this one. The "New" series featured most of the series favorites, almost all of which have been included here already and most of them brought at least something new to the table. In fact, we only have four new characters to include this time. They are:

1. Mario (Revision 4)
2. Luigi (Revision 3)
3. Koopa Troopa (Revision 3)
3e. Dry Bones (Revision 2)
4. Goomba (Revision 3)
5. Piranha Plant (Revision 3)
6. Boo (Revision 3)
8. Princess Peach (Revision 2)
9. Toad (Revision 2)
10. Yoshi (Revision 2)
11. Bowser (Revision 2)
13. Lakitu & Spinies (Revision 2)
14. Hammer Bro (Revision 2)
15. Chargin' Chuck (Revision 2)
16. Kamek (Name change, Revision 2)
20. The Koopalings (Revision 1)
22. Boom Boom (Revision 1)
25. Rosalina & Luma (Revision 1)
27. Bowser Jr. (Revision 1)
30. Blooper (Revision 1)
31. Monty Mole (Revision 1)
33. Petey Piranha (Revision 1)
11e. Dry Bowser
22e. Pom Pom
39. Fursuit Mario
40. Sprixie Princess

Today, we're going to talk a little about Rosalina and Luma. She only appear in one game this time, that being Super Mario 3D World as an unlockable character. As such, her moveset entirely consisted of everything the others could do, meaning: running and jumping as is standard, with the Fire Flower, Starman, Cat Suit, Double Cherry, Cannon, Flashlight, and Propeller Blocks, Tanooki Suit, Mega Mushroom, and Boomerang Flower. Most of these are already well represented in the series and none are uniquely her own. She also originated as the resident gimmick rep for Super Mario Galaxy, something that we probably shouldn't deviate away from, at least not too heavily, as that would defeat the point of her inclusion in the first place. That said, she is her own character, and it is all worth considering as a whole.

Let's see how it all plays out.

Standard B: Luma Shot
Yeah, still pretty important to her.

Side B: Star Bits

Of course, still a staple of the Galaxy series and herself and the Lumas as well.

Up B: Warpstar

Um, duh. Of course.

Down B: Gravitational Pull

Maybe could drift away here, it's not as essential, but . . . nothing from this game makes a better argument.

Final Smash: Comet Observatory

Yeah, gonna keep this one too. What can I say, her moveset mostly speaks for itself.

Entrance: Rosalina and Luma fly onto the stage as if launched from a Warpstar.

Taunts: Some of the Luma's bouncing around that they do, maybe feeding one a star bit or two, Rosalina laughing and holding the Luma, so on.

Next up: Let's update Bowser Jr. with his full-on Koopa Klown Kar this time.

Character Sheet: Rosalina & Luma (Main 3D Games)

ROSALINA & LUMA

Now, let's move on to all newcomers to the roster, either by being introduced in these last five games, or by finally gaining enough source material to be upgraded to the status of playable character. In the end, my count is thirteen new characters, two of whom are echo fighters.

8e. Toadette
17e. King Boo
24. F.L.U.D.D. Mario
25. Rosalina & Luma
26. Cappy
27. Bowser Jr.
28. Shadow Mario
29. Pianta
30. Blooper
31. Monty Mole
32. Honeybee
33. Petey Piranha
34. The Broodals

Alright, today let's cover the space princess Rosalina and her army of Star Babies, the Lumas, made famous by the Super Mario Galaxy games. Now, while Rosalina herself doesn't really do much in the games, mostly acting as a tutorial NPC throughout the first game and having a cameo in the second, she is intrinsically linked with the Lumas, who provide much of the unique gimmick of these two games.

In the Galaxy games, Mario moves much as he does in other 3D games, but thanks to the Lumas, and by extension Rosalina, he can do so much more. The Lumas themselves can eat or spit star bits, and one of their most helpful moves is the ability to spit star bits from above at enemies, removing some potential threats. They also transform, turning into various objects such as pull stars, warp stars, planets, and bunnies, allowing Mario access to various items and means of reaching new areas. This can all be considered. Also, as we are talking about the Galaxy games, the strange effects surrounding gravity and physics in the game could also be considered, giving some credence to Rosalina's current Down B.

Here is the moveset I came up with, though it mostly sticks true to her Smash moveset, as the team did a really good job of fully representing everything I would have represented:

Standard B: Luma Shot
This one lets Rosalina summon a Luma or send it forward in order to function separately from her, the way they do in Super Smash Bros. Another option might be the spin Mario does frequently throughout the Galaxy games, though that also seems to have some elements of Gravitational Pull to it.

Side B: Star Bits

Luma spits a series of star bits at opponents, doing mild damage, reflecting their ability to shoot Star Bits from above in game.

Up B: Warpstar

Rosalina launches herself upward using a Warpstar, which frequently acted as the premier way to get around in the Mario Galaxy games, and functions perfectly within the world of Super Smash Bros.

Down B: Gravitational Pull

Rosalina spins and pulls things toward her, representing in many ways Mario's spin in the games that tends to pull things toward him, the gravitational effects rampant throughout the game, and even maybe the effect of the pull stars. It also serves to bring the Luma back toward Rosalina.

Final Smash: Comet Observatory

This is the only one I would change. Rather than holding a grand star over her head and having it shoot out stars, I would rather see the Comet Observatory start its engines and start spinning the way it does leading up to the final battle in Galaxy 1, before barreling through the stage and taking out opponents in its wake. This may conflict if the Comet Observatory is a stage, but I'm sticking with it.

Entrance: Rosalina and Luma fly onto the stage as if launched from a Warpstar.

Taunts: Some of the Luma's bouncing around that they do, maybe feeding one a star bit or two, Rosalina laughing and holding the Luma, so on.

Next up: Let's see what we can make of Mario's Odyssey companion, Cappy!

Super Mario Galaxy 2

SUPER MARIO GALAXY 2

Alright, next up, we have Super Mario Galaxy 2, the sequel to the landmark Super Mario Galaxy, and rightfully acclaimed in its own right. I have a feeling that Super Mario Galaxy 2 was created for largely similar reasons to Breath of the Wild's upcoming sequel in that the creators just had too many ideas for additional content that they had to create an entirely new game for it all. And you can see evidence for this throughout much of the game: it runs on the same engine, most of the unique mechanics and enemies work their way back in, much less effort was spent on the opening sequence and other cutscenes, the way different worlds are accessed is heavily simplified and plays out more like one of the 2D Mario games, and so on. But hey, it's a good game, so who's complaining.

Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Rosalina and her Lumas, Bowser, Bowser Jr., and the Toad Brigade all return, serving much the same functions as they did in the previous games. Mario acts as the player character using all the moves from the first game as well as the Bee, Boo, Spring, and Fire powerups from before, on top of new forms such as Rock Mario, that allows him to roll up into a boulder and spin at high speed, Cloud Mario, that allows him to create temporary cloud platforms beneath him when crossing great distances or trying to get up high, and the Spin Drill, a drill that lets him dig through certain areas.

Luigi acts as an alternate character to play as, so can do everything Mario can. Princess Peach is captured once again, so doesn't do much. Rosalina only appears at the end of the game this time, her observatory struggling to escape Bowser's galaxy generator. However, the Lumas all still play an important role and do everything they could before. The Toad Brigade act as your basic NPCs throughout the game, though they are joined by others. Finally, we have Bowser and Bowser Jr. Bowser spends most of the game giant-sized, floating around a small planetoid while breathing fire, tossing giant meteors at it, or punching it and causing shockwaves. Bowser Jr. spends most of his time in a little, really comfortable-looking flying machine that he can then plug into mechs such as the Boomsday Machine and the Megahammer.

Two more major characters appear in this game, the first being Yoshi, returning after not making an appearance in the first game, and the second being Lubba, a heavyweight Luma who bears an odd resemblance to a certain cartoon starfish, and generally takes the place of Rosalina in the first game, being your main exposition hound throughout your journey. Yoshi can do much of what he does in other games, with his flutter jump and his penchant for eating enemies, but he can also spit out certain enemies as projectiles, flip around little flower things with his tongue, and eat three different fruits that give him different abilities, namely: a red pepper that sends him running at top speed, a blue fruit that inflates him like a balloon and carries him up high, and a yellow fruit that lights him up and makes him able to see and stand on invisible platforms. Lubba is really just an NPC.

Speaking of NPCs, we have a few to cover this time around. The Chimp is a shades-wearing monkey who likes to challenge you to complete certain tasks, though he never partakes in them himself. Fluzzard is a giant bird Mario hangs onto and flies great distances with. Piantas, Honeybees, Gearmos, and Penguins all make a return, functioning generally the same as before, alongside the Pink Bob-Ombs of Super Mario 64 fame. Whittles (little figures made of wood) and Jibberjays (talkative little birds) also enter the fray, also mostly just acting as NPCs. And finally, we have Star Bunnies, who do what all bunnies seem to do in Mario games, run around until Mario catches them. Basic stuff.

We have a few new bosses this time around. Peewee Piranha is a baby version of the last game's Dino Piranha. King Lakitu is a giant Lakitu who can blast lightning from his cloud as well as throw spinies. Digga Leg is a smaller version of Megaleg who hops around on a small round planet and fires Diggas through the dirt. Gobblegut, and by extension Fiery Gobblegut, is a large eastern dragon who makes train sounds and eats through dirt, often burrowing all the way through a planet. Rollodillo is a large armadillo creature who can roll up into a ball. Sorbetti is a giant snow version of the Tap-Taps from the Yoshi series (we'll get there). Glamdozer is a giant version of the Pupdozer who can crawl around and spit lava. Squizzard lives in the sand and likes to throw rocks, spiky rocks, and bombs at you. Prince Pikante is a large octopus that drives around in a tank, shooting and spitting melons and meteors at you. The Whomp King returns from Super Mario 64, jumping up and slamming down to crush you. Megahammer and the Boomsday Machine are both mechs piloted by Bowser Jr., the first firing Bullet Bills from its chest and slamming its hammer arms down on you, while the Boomsday machine fires electric balls, swings around massive firebars, drives around on treads, and sometimes sucks things in. Finally, we have Bugaboom, Dino Piranha, King Kaliente, Major Burrows, Bouldergeist, and Fiery Dino Piranha all returning and functioning effectively the same.

Now for our regular enemies! Koopas return, bringing with them Dry Bones, Lakitus, Spinies, Hammer Bros, Boomerang Bros, Magikoopas, and Mechakoopas, each of which function more or less the same as before, although Dry Bones seems to now have a variant that can eat through literal matter. Goombas also return, bringing Paragoombas with them as well as the Octoombas, who are now called Octoombas instead of Electrogoombas. Piranha Plants and their spiky variants (including the black-headed one famously known as Fire Piranha) return, as do Boos and Bomb Boos, alongside what look like Boo versions of the Octoombas. They all act mostly the same. Bloopers and Cheep Cheeps return, acting mostly as basic swimming enemies, though Cheep Cheeps now have a spiky variant. Monty Mole doesn't appear, but the Undergrunts and Undergrunt Gunners do. Bats, Wigglers, Pokeys, Fuzzies, Skeeters, Chain Chomps, Bullet Bills, Bob-Ombs, Whomps, and Thwomps all do exactly as they are famous for. Blaargs don't quite return but they do have a couple variants in the Magmaarghs, who do the same thing.

From the first Galaxy game, we also have the Mandibug, Octopus, Topman, Crabber, Flipbug, Sproing, Sprangler, Cluckboom and Gringill enemies all return, all functioning in the same way, alongside new enemies such as: Choppah, a fat green enemy that flies around like a helicopter; Smeech, who latches onto Yoshi; Twirlip, a flower that spins around; Digga, a living drill; Pupdozer, a slow dinosaur creature that walks back and forth; Swaphopper, a robotic enemy with a spike on one side and a weakpoint on the other; Flaptack, which seems to be a relative of the Cluckboom, but it divebombs its enemies with its headspike instead; Tongari, a hermit crab; Kleptoad, a frog that runs around and steals things; Fizzlit, a purple enemy that melts into a puddle of electricity; Bee Eater, a spiky plant that lunges at you; and Snoodle, a wavy polyp-like enemy that doesn't like light. None of them particularly scream playable.

Next up, let's tackle the stages. This game is centered on the Starship Mario, a hubworld shaped like Mario's head. I'm not going to lie, a stage set here would be awesome. After that, we have an assortment of 49 worlds, none of which are quite as well divided between full-on stages and one-offs like the first game. However, in general, each group of levels is divided into four levels with six possible stars to collect, and two more with only four, plus a final world to fight either Bowser or Bowser Jr. I think my best bet is to pick the six-star worlds and leave it at that, with a Bowser world to represent the whole, like last time. The six-star worlds are:

1. Sky Station Galaxy: a basic starting stage
2. Yoshi Star Galaxy: another basic stage and your introduction to Yoshi
3. Spin-dig Galaxy: a rocky, dirt-based stage and your introduction to the spin drill
4. Fluffy Bluff Galaxy: a cloud-themed world and your introduction to Cloud Mario
5. Puzzle Plank Galaxy: a stage based on different puzzle-themed elements
6. Boulder Bowl Galaxy: a rocky stage and your introduction to Rock Mario
7. Hightail Falls Galaxy: a waterfall stage that makes great use of the Pepper ability for Yoshi
8. Cosmic Cove Galaxy: a water level
9. Cloudy Court Galaxy: another cloud level
10. Tall Trunk Galaxy: a large tree level with a slide
11. Haunty Halls Galaxy: a ghost level
12. Freezy Flake Galaxy: a snow level (with some lava)
13. Supermassive Galaxy: a level where everything is gigantic
14. Flipsville Galaxy: a house-themed level where you're constantly flipping perspective
15. Starshine Beach Galaxy: a beach level
16. Chompworks Galaxy: a factory-themed stage where they apparently produce Chain Chomps
17. Space Storm Galaxy: sorta like Dreadnought Galaxy from the last game
18. Boo Moon Galaxy: another ghost level
19. Slipsand Galaxy: a desert level
20. Shiverburn Galaxy: a fire and ice level just like Freezeflame from the last game
21. Melty Monster Galaxy: a lava level with an awesome theme song
22. Clockwork Ruins Galaxy: a really creative level set in constantly moving ruins
23. Throwback Galaxy: a recreation of Super Mario 64's Whomp's Fortress
24. Battle Belt Galaxy: a gauntlet of various enemies throughout the game

There we go, that cuts it down at least a little.

Next up, we have most of the items of the first game returning, as well as the Spin Drill, the Cloud Flower, and the Rock Mushroom. Seems pretty solid.

Let's see what we've got!

Characters:
Mario: multiple different types of jumps and punches, wing cap, metal cap, pixel cap, ride on shell, fire from cannon, slide on belly, use F.L.U.D.D., spin, shoot starbits, warpstar, pull star, fly as a bee, cling to honey, pass through walls (Boo), skate across ice, throw fireballs, fly, invincibility, spring, rock, cloud, drill
Luigi: clone of Mario
F.L.U.D.D.: spray forward stream, jetpack hover, rocket nozzle, spin and spray, launch missiles, shoot bubbles
Peach: nothing, parasol, jet
Toad: nothing, give star, spaceship, headlamp
Toadsworth: nothing
Yoshi: hop around, flutter jump, egg, tongue, spray fruit juice, spit enemies, flip around flowers, run really fast, inflate, glow
Rosalina: nothing
Luma: spit star bits, eat star bits, transform into warpstars, pull stars, planets, spin, and become bunnies
Bowser: tromp around, breathe fire, charge, tip stage, create shockwaves, hang out in hot tub, breathe meteors, spinning punch, curl into boulder, spin in shell, command airships, fly, be giant, throw meteors, punch with shockwaves
Bowser Jr.: transform, paintbrush, flying machine, shoot bullet bills, mini airship, cannonballs, magikoopas, Megaleg, Megahammer, Boomsday Machine
Shadow Mario: run, jump, paint, paintbrush, tongue, fiery paint trail, command Mechabowser
Lubba: not much
Pianta: nothing, chuck you
Noki: nothing, tuck in shell
Honeybee: fly, climb on honey, spear, butt bash
Goomba: walk around, spin like a top, minis, giants, helmet, pumpkin, Paragoomba
Koopas: run away, pop from shell, race, Snooza Koopa, Electrokoopa, tuck into shell, used as projectile
Dry Bones: fall apart, eat matter
Piranha Plant: sleep, bite, spit paint, bob around, spiky
Petey Piranha: fly with leaves, roar, spit goop, Piranhabons, create tornadoes
Boo: float around, Big Boo, turn into blocks, pass through walls, hide face, explode, swing around by tongue, turn invisible
King Boo: roulette wheel, slot machine, spit bubbles, fruit, enemies, Boos
Blooper: crawl around, surf, spit ink, swim
Gooper Blooper: slap tentacles, spray ink, spin and spray
Lakitu: float, drop Spinies, use camera, blast lightning
Shy Guy: Fly Guy, fire, Snufit float, fire pellets
Hammer Bros: throw hammers, throw boomerangs, hop around
Magikoopa: cast spell, summon shells, throw fireballs, teleport
Monty Mole: jump, throw rocks, drive tank, throw Bob-Ombs, fire Bullet Bills, pop up, throw wrench, dig in ground, fire bubbles
Bob-Omb: explode, fire cannons, pick up and throw (Big Bob-Omb)
Cheep Cheep: swim, spikes
<Tentative> Chain Chomp, Wiggler, Whomp, Strollin' Stu, Il Piantissimo, Gearmo, Penguin, The Chimp

Bosses:
Big Bob-Omb
King Whomp
Big Boo
Big Bully
Eyerok
Chill Bully
Gooper Blooper
Manta Ray
Wiggler
Dino Piranha
King Kaliente
Bugaboom
Megaleg
Tarantox
Topmaniac
Bouldergeist
Major Burrows
Baron Brrr
Bonefin
Peewee Piranha
King Lakitu
Digga Leg
Gobblegut
Rollodillo
Sorbetti
Glamdozer
Squizzard
Prince Pikante

Stages:
Princess Peach's Castle (Melee)
Princess Peach's Castle (Inside)
Bob-Omb Battlefield
Whomp's Fortress
Jolly Roger Bay
Cool Cool Mountain
Big Boo's Haunt
Hazy Maze Cave
Lethal Lava Land
Shifting Sand Land
Dire Dire Docks
Snowman's Land
Wet-Dry World
Tall Tall Mountain
Tiny-Huge Island
Tick Tock Clock
Rainbow Ride
Bowser's World
Delfino Plaza
Bianco Hills
Ricco Harbor
Gelato Beach
Pinna Park
Sirena Beach
Noki Bay
Pianta Village
Corona Mountain
Toad Village
Gateway Galaxy
Comet Observatory
Good Egg Galaxy
Honeyhive Galaxy
Space Junk Galaxy
Battlerock Galaxy
Beach Bowl Galaxy
Ghostly Galaxy
Gusty Garden Galaxy
Freezeflame Galaxy
Gold Leaf Galaxy
Sea Slide Galaxy
Toy Time Galaxy
Deep Dark Galaxy
Dreadnought Galaxy
Melty Molten Galaxy
Bowser's Galaxy Reactor
Starship Mario
Sky Station Galaxy
Yoshi Star Galaxy
Spin-Dig Galaxy
Fluffy Bluff Galaxy
Puzzle Plank Galaxy
Boulder Bowl Galaxy
Hightail Falls Galaxy
Cosmic Cove Galaxy
Cloudy Court Galaxy
Tall Trunk Galaxy
Haunty Halls Galaxy
Freezy Flake Galaxy
Supermassive Galaxy
Flipsville Galaxy
Starshine Beach Galaxy
Chompworks Galaxy
Space Storm Galaxy
Boo Moon Galaxy
Slipsand Galaxy
Shiverburn Galaxy
Melty Monster Galaxy
Clockwork Ruins Galaxy
Throwback Galaxy
Battle Belt Galaxy

Items:
Wing Cap
Metal Cap
Pixel Cap
Green Shell
Bob-Omb
Bullet Bill
Coin
Star
Box
F.L.U.D.D.
Shine Sprite
Fruit
Star Bits
Invincibility Star
Fire Flower
Ice Flower
Red Star
Bee Mushroom
Boo Mushroom
Spring Mushroom
Warp Star
Pull Star
Spin Drill
Cloud Flower
Rock Mushroom

Thanks for reading! Next up, we finish up our mainline 3D games with Super Mario Odyssey!