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This article is about the Nintendo character. You may be looking for the DiC Cartoons version of Bowser, King Koopa (DiC Cartoons) . You can also go to the disambiguation page, Bowser (disambiguation).
- "I don't like it. I think this Peach Crown is crazy. Makes me wanna breathe fire! (Roars)"
- —Bowser speaking a full sentence[4]
- —Bowser speaking a full sentence[4]
King Bowser Koopa Sr. (大魔王クッパ Daimaō Kuppa?, , lit.“Great Demon King Koopa”), also known as Koopa (his Japanese name), Lord Bowser, or King Koopa (commonly in older media) is the main antagonist of Nintendo's long-running Mario franchise and is the archnemesis of Mario and perhaps Luigi. Bowser most commonly kidnaps Princess Peach, with whom he has unrequited love for, so he can make her his queen. He is the leader of the Koopa race. Although Bowser has joined forces with Mario in a few games, he repeatedly kidnaps Peach and attempts to conquer the world and the Mushroom Kingdom with his Koopa Troop since his first appearance in the 1985 Nintendo Entertainment System title Super Mario Bros..
There are a few instances of Bowser being heroic and working alongside the efforts of the Mushroom Kingdom when a greater evil is present, such as Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, Super Paper Mario, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, and Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, in which he inhales Mario and Luigi, but they end up helping him.
As the central villain of arguably the world’s most popular video game franchise, Bowser is easily one of the most iconic and recognizable video game antagonists ever, though he has comic-relief roles in most of the RPGs. Bowser has a rather spoiled son called Bowser Jr. and had seven additional children called the Koopalings in older games.
Profile[]
Physical description[]
Bowser differs greatly from the rest of the Koopas, who appear mainly as bipedal tortoises, while the Koopa King himself is significantly more ferocious. His iconic features include a large, spiked shell, horns, razor-sharp teeth, and a shock of red hair. In addition, while most Koopas appear to be herbivorous and prefer fruits and vegetables as their diet, Bowser, due to his sharp teeth, prefers meat, particularly from victims he hunts down and captures (with his carnivorous side confirmed in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story), though he has, on occasion, consumed vegetation, as well, as seen in Mario Party 4. He is physically powerful, can breathe fire like a dragon, and is said to have skills in black magic, as he teleports off the Bowser's Star Reactor battle place when beaten.
Though Bowser's physical size tends to vary from game to game, in most games, he is very large, even more so than Donkey Kong, presumably standing more than eight feet tall but there are exceptions. In Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, he is barely bigger than Mario.
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.
Bowser's appearance has evolved over time. In the box artwork for Super Mario Bros. he has an appearance similar to that of an ox in homage to Journey to the West antagonist Gyū-Maō ("Ox Demon King"), with bluish face and scales, yellow hair and black eyebrows, as well as a less reptilian face. With the contribution of Yoichi Kotabe, Bowser is redesigned between the release of Super Mario Bros. and the release of the Famicom version of Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels. During this redesign he is given blue eyes, as well as red hair and red eyebrows. Despite that, some artwork for Super Mario Bros. 3, while featuring Bowser's redesigned appearance as well as the blue eyes, retains the yellow hair and black eyebrows while also showing him wearing a cape. His eyes are changed to red again in Super Mario World. The brown rings around the spikes and horns are first seen in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars and are seen again in Super Mario 64, though in the latter game the horns and spikes are yellow. In Super Mario Sunshine, Bowser's appearance in-game is very similar to the current appearance, with a few minor inconsistencies, such as his plastron traveling all the way up his neck.
Bowser's appearance does not always follow the design of the time, and the same illustrations were often modified when used in subsequently released material. Two illustrations made by Yoichi Kotabe were slightly modified and colored with different colors. The first image is used in the manual of Super Mario Bros. 3, with Bowser having red hair and eyebrows and closed eyes, but also in the Super Mario Bros. pinball machine, with him having blue eyes, and in Super Mario Bros. Mushroom World, with him having blue eyes and holding a wand. There is even a version of it in which he has red eyes. The second image is used in the promotional pamphlet of Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels, in which Bowser has yellow hair, yellow eyebrows and blue eyes, without rings around the spikes, and in other artwork related to that game, in which he has red eyes, hair and eyebrows, orange claws on the feet and with white rings around the spikes. Similarly, graphical limitations in the original Super Mario Bros. lead to Bowser not having hair. His in-game model in Super Mario 64 has feet which are not padded, although in artwork for that game, he has padded feet. Similarly, in Super Smash Bros. Melee, his feet are not padded, although in his Classic mode trophy he has padded feet. Furthermore, in the Paper Mario series and in artwork for the Mario & Luigi series, he has black eyes like the other characters, in the first three Mario & Luigi games he lacks foot pads and Paper Bowser's spike rings are absent until Paper Mario: Sticker Star.
In the Super Smash Bros. series, he had various palette swaps (4 in Super Smash Bros. Melee, 6 in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and 8 in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate). His red palette swap in Melee and Brawl, and to a certain extent Nintendo 3DS / Wii U, was based on one of his palette swaps in Mario Golf (although the latter two games also had it resembling Bowser's in-game sprite from the NES version of Mario is Missing!), while his blue palette swap was based on how he appeared on the Japanese box art for Super Mario Bros. His white appearance in Brawl and gray appearance in Nintendo 3DS / Wii U was likewise based on Morton Koopa Jr. prior to his New Super Mario Bros. Wii redesign. His green appearance was based on one of his palette swaps from Mario Golf, his in-game sprite for Super Mario World, and to a certain extent his appearance in the DiC cartoons and Nintendo Comics System and his in-game sprite from the original Super Mario Bros. game. His blue palette swap in Nintendo 3DS / Wii U was primarily based on the bluish Bowser's Brother from Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels, although it also to a certain extent resembles a palette swap of his from Mario Golf.
As another trait exclusive to the Super Smash Bros. series, Bowser's body has better defined scales and muscles; in Super Smash Bros. Melee, he has defined biceps, and his limbs and tail are a gold-brown color. Starting from Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Bowser is less bulky and slightly scalier, better resembling his appearance in contemporary Super Mario games. Starting from Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U, Bowser is also upright and even less detailed than before. In Ultimate, Bowser retains his upright posture, though his color scheme is darker and more monotone (traits taken from Melee), while his horns, spikes, hair, and scales feature simple detailing (traits taken from Brawl).
Although Bowser does not generally wear clothing, there are a few instances where he does: The Japanese artwork for Super Mario Bros. 3 depicts Bowser wearing a purple cape. In addition, Bowser, or, rather, King Koopa, frequently uses disguises in the DiC cartoons (mostly based on pop-culture icons), and in Mario Party 2, similar to how the playable characters wore themed outfits befitting the various boards (i.e., a Pirate for Pirate Land, a Cowboy in Western Land, a Space Cadet in Space Land, an archaeologist in Mystery Land, and a Witch/Wizard in Horror Land), Bowser wore various outfits and adopted aliases befitting the themes of all the game boards except for Space Land (as he instead just pilots a space vehicle without wearing an actual costume). In addition, in a few cases when he is about to marry Peach, such as Super Mario Adventures, Super Paper Mario, and Super Mario Odyssey, he wears white Groom's outfits having each time different features such as the shoes, or lack thereof, and the bowtie. In Mario Tennis Aces, Bowser receives his own tennis outfit, which is a black T-shirt with orange flame designs on it, accompanied by red kneepads. In Mario Kart Tour, Bowser received a Bowser (Santa) variant as a High-End driver in the 2020 Winter Tour. For this variant, Bowser wears a Santa hat, a red and white collar, and has Christmas lights on his shell. He also carries a red and green present and a white sack for this variant.
Personality and traits[]
- "Mario! How dare you disturb my family vacation?!"
- —Bowser speaking a full sentence[5]
- —Bowser speaking a full sentence[5]
When Bowser was created, he was a typical villain without much personality beyond simply wanting to take over the world and the Mushroom Kingdom. Later games started showing various different aspects of Bowser's character, depending on the nature of the plot. While his platformer role continues to be that of a simple antagonist, his Mario Party antics typically depict him being more angry, childish, and mischievous than dangerous, and his portrayals in the RPGs ranging from a threatening, yet humorous (a part that diminishes in more recent installments of the Mario & Luigi series) villain to a playable anti-hero. Even when Bowser is acting as a protagonist in a game, however, he continues to insist he is an evil, malevolent character, and his reasons for helping Mario are typically for his own selfish agendas. Before a battle, Bowser often releases a loud, full-throated roar as intimidation. Like Wario, Bowser is usually thought of as unintelligent, but can actually be cunning and deceptive as well.
Bowser's personality is explored most extensively in the various RPGs, starting with the first one, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, in which Bowser loses his castle to another villain. As well as the grief he expresses over his castle, Bowser is shown to be as sad as the other playable characters about Geno's body breaking down, and at one point, his boasting takes the form of a haiku. He was also shown to be very concerned about his self-image, as he was shown to be very reluctant to divulge exactly what he meant by having "bigger fish to fry" than kidnapping Princess Toadstool, even considering lying about "taking a vacation" to avoid the humiliation of admitting to his being forced outside of his own castle. As in later RPGs, however, most of Bowser's actions in the game are self-centered, with his motivation for working with the protagonists ranging to reclaiming his stolen castle, kidnapping Peach himself, or preventing another villain from taking over the world, which he himself desires. This last reasoning is also behind Bowser's alliance with Mario and the others in Super Paper Mario, after the somewhat oblivious Koopa is reminded that he cannot conquer anything if Count Bleck's genocidal plan on all worlds comes to fruition. While Bowser is shown to take pride in his villainy and boasts of being a quality "final boss" throughout the adventure, he seemingly sacrifices himself to save Mario and the others, and even argues with his rival O'Chunks to save himself while Bowser held the crumbling roof above them (although it is later revealed that they both survived). He is also shown to be as horrified as the rest of the party when witnessing Sammer's Kingdom's destruction (deeming such an evil act as "overkill"), and when learning of King Olly's true aim of wishing genocide upon Toads, Bowser expressed disgust at the goal and made clear that, while he has done his fair share of evil and nasty stuff, even he would never attempt to outright exterminate Toads; a sharp contrast to his attitude in the Super Mario Galaxy games, where he is willing to create his own galaxy at the expense of the universe, as well as in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam, where he threatens to destroy the paper world.
As in Super Mario Galaxy, most other platformers leave Bowser as a typical, run of the mill villain, as does the RPG Paper Mario: Sticker Star. The original Paper Mario also casts Bowser as the main antagonist; however, like Super Mario RPG that came before it, this portrayal is more well-rounded, introducing a humorous side to Bowser alongside his evilness, and revealing that he has a crush on Peach. Bowser's affection for the princess is later showcased in Super Paper Mario, with the two being forcibly wed in the game by Count Bleck; while the princess disavows the ceremony, Bowser happily and persistently acts as if they are indeed spouses. Bowser's relationship with Peach also comes into play in Super Mario Sunshine, in which Bowser Jr. apparently believes her to be his mother, although at the end of the game, Bowser sadly admits that he had lied to his child about his parentage. Aside from this, Bowser has never shown remorse for his troublesome actions and the havoc they often cause, but he is often saddened by his own losses. In Super Mario Galaxy, his only regret is his failure to create his own realm, and in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, he is dismayed at having to damage his own captured castle while trying to reclaim it from Fawful. By contrast, in Mario Party 4, Bowser grudgingly gives the player a present and wishing them a happy birthday as he leaves in shame, moving one of the Koopa Kids to wonder if there might be more to Bowser than he leads others to believe, as Bowser claimed to be somewhat happy. Despite the presence of offspring, no mate of Bowser has appeared in any story, and his only known relationship is his marriage to a reluctant Princess Peach in Super Paper Mario.
Unlike the platformers and the other Paper Mario titles, Bowser's role is reduced to a dim-witted, bumbling comic relief villain in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, where he encounters frequent comical failures in his attempts to collect the Crystal Stars before Mario. The first two Mario & Luigi titles also cast Bowser as a comical recurring villain, with Partners in Time having him team up with Baby Bowser, whom he did not even recognize as being his infant self. Despite being the central character of Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, the third Mario & Luigi game reveals nothing new about Bowser's character, but it does provide an overview of his personality to date. His reasons for saving the world from Fawful and the Dark Star involve pride, selfishness, and possessiveness toward Peach, as well as a stated interest in taking over Fawful's plans for himself. He is extremely conceited and boastful about himself and his accomplishments, and he resents having to ask nicely for help from Starlow. He acts as a leader to his troops, and even forgives three of them for defecting to Fawful and allows them back in the Koopa Troop. In the remake, it also elaborates on Bowser's crashing the emergency meeting, revealing that he did so because his kingdom also was affected by the Blorbs outbreak. Bowser's usual rashness and his penchant for destruction and violence come to a head when he flies into a rage upon discovering that Mario and Luigi had been aiding him inside his body the entire time (believing they were partying around inside him) and attacks them, only to be promptly defeated, mere moments after the three of them had worked together to save the world.
In Mario & Luigi: Dream Team, while retaining much of his personality from the previous game, he was given more competence and made into much more of a serious threat; he has Kamek disguise himself as Princess Peach to drop the Mario Bros.' guard, presuming they would try to pursue Peach, and later backstabbed Antasma, anticipating the latter would try to the same on him in turn. He later implied similar designs with his Paper self, and vice-versa, in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam. However, he surprisingly was willing to work under Master Hand and have an equal partnership with Doctor Eggman. In Paper Mario: Color Splash, Bowser, owing to his being possessed by the black paint for most of the game, was given a far darker personality, namely making clear his intention of "painting the world black", and even going as far as to drain Peach's color and hang her colorless form up for display; when Mario and Huey arrived to fight him in his chambers, he even cracked a dark joke about Peach claiming she was "framed" when he caught her sending messages to Mario. It was also revealed that he deliberately sent a drained Toad via mail to Peach and Mario in order to lure them, and specifically Peach, over to Prism Island so he could abduct her. However, after Mario weakened the black paint's hold on Bowser enough for the latter's usual self to surface, Bowser is deeply and understandably confused as to Mario's presence, clearly unaware of what he was doing all this time.
Bowser can be quite amiable sometimes, with his harsh and raging demeanor softening up towards his minions, and is even capable of being civil to foes in some degrees. He shows genuine affection and pride for his son; both he and his paper self were vehemently angry at Mario, Luigi, and Paper Mario for defeating Bowser Jr. and Paper Bowser Jr. in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam. In Super Mario Odyssey, along with planning his forced wedding with Peach extensively (wearing a tuxedo, having his mane groomed, and having her wear the stolen Lochlady Dress), he even comments on Mario's costume before their final battle. Depending on the clothes worn, this could prompt anything from a humorously scared response (as seen with the Skeleton Suit, Zombie Outfit, and even costumes like the Clown Outfit and Boxer Shorts) to a genuine compliment on his dress sense, though he will always note that Mario wasn't invited regardless. In Super Mario Party, he participates in the party with no malicious tricks or intents (not even having Kamek, who he put as a judge, tip the scales in his favor) and congratulates the player who becomes the Superstar in a rare form of good sportsmanship. In Paper Mario: The Origami King, Bowser expresses disgust at the way the Folded Soldiers treat him and his minions, to the extent where he pleads them to put down his minions and set him free.
Bowser is often dishonest and treacherous, as well as sadistically enjoying doing really horrid things. While Bowser is not beyond keeping his word, he frequently does break it. Bowser will not hesitate to dispose of those who have outlived their usefulness to him. These sorts of justifications are commonly employed logic for Bowser to get-away with nearly anything as far as he is concerned.
While his range of emotions varies from game to game, it is his nearsightedness, frustration, anger, arrogance, and contempt that typifies Bowser in all his appearances, whether he is a reluctant protagonist or a straightforward villain who cares only about conquering lands and destroying his opposition.
By contrast, in Mario Party 4, Bowser grudgingly gives the player a present and wishes them a happy birthday as he leaves in shame, moving one of the Koopa Kids to wonder if there might be more to Bowser than he leads others to believe, as Bowser claimed to be somewhat happy.
Relationships[]
Powers and abilities[]
Bowser, as seen throughout various games, has many powers from dark magic that include teleporting, causing shockwaves to come out of his jumps, Fire Breath, charging, and transforming victims.
Bowser has been shown to cause fiery rain in Super Mario World and New Super Mario Bros. U, while in Super Mario 64 and New Super Mario Bros., Bowser can produce blue flames that home in on Mario. Bowser is very proud of his fire breath, and is immensely displeased to find himself temporarily unable to use his flames in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story. In the PC version of Mario is Missing!, Bowser is said to be invulnerable to fireballs, however this is not the case in most other games. Similarly, while lava defeats Bowser in many games, including the original Super Mario Bros., or New Super Mario Bros. (in which it transforms him into Dry Bowser), he appears to be resistant to it in other games such as New Super Mario Bros. Wii.
Bowser, due to his massive size, is one of the strongest Mario characters, as he naturally packs incredible physical strength that only a few can match such as Donkey Kong, making him difficult for Mario and Luigi to face alone without relying on power-ups. His own Ground Pounds can easily smash objects wherever he lands. Although normally bulky and slow, Bowser in some games can be surprisingly agile and can even run at high speeds, as seen in Super Mario 64.
Timeline[]
For information on Bowser's appearances, click here.
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Role | Year | Console | Notes |
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Super Mario Bros. | Final boss | 1985 | Nintendo Entertainment System | Fought at the end of World 8-4 |
VS. Super Mario Bros. | Final boss | 1986 | VS. System | Same as in Super Mario Bros. |
Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels | Final boss | 1986 | Family Computer Disk System | Fought at the end of World 8-4 |
Super Mario Bros. | Major character | 1986 | Game & Watch | Featured in the game's plot but not fought in-game |
I Am a Teacher: Super Mario no Sweater | Sewing design | 1986 | Family Computer Disk System | Featured as one of the possible sewing designs |
All Night Nippon: Super Mario Bros. | Boss | 1986 | Family Computer Disk System | Fought in the World 8-4 from Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels |
Super Mario Bros. Special | Boss | 1986 | PC-8801, Sharp X1 | Fought at the end of each castle |
Super Mario Bros. 3 | Final boss | 1988 | Nintendo Entertainment System | Fought at the end of World 8-Bowser's Castle |
Super Mario Bros. / Duck Hunt | Final boss | 1988 | Nintendo Entertainment System | Retains his role in the Super Mario Bros. re-release |
Alleyway | Cameo | 1989 | Game Boy | The eighth and final bonus level features several bricks of Bowser's design. |
Tetris | Cameo | 1989 | Nintendo Entertainment System | Makes a cameo along other Nintendo characters in the results screen, shown after clearing the Type B mode |
Super Mario Bros. | Boss | 1989 | Nelsonic Game Watch | Referred to as "Koopa Dragon" in the instruction leaflet |
F-1 Race | Cameo | 1990 | Game Boy | After winning the ninth and final course, a series of Nintendo characters are shown and lastly Bowser |
Super Mario World | Final boss | 1990 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Fought in either Front Door or Back Door at the end of Valley of Bowser |
Super Mario Bros. 3 | Boss | 1990 | Nelsonic Game Watch | Named "Koopa Dragon" like in Super Mario Bros. for the Nelsonic Game Watch |
Super Mario Bros. / Duck Hunt / World Class Track Meet | Final boss | 1990 | Nintendo Entertainment System | Retains his role in the Super Mario Bros. re-release |
SimCity | Antagonist | 1991 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | A giant monster who attacks the city in the Tokyo, 1961 scenario |
Mario Roulette | Icon | 1991 | Arcade | Landing on a Bowser icon causes the player to lose a round |
Super Mario World | Boss | 1991 | Nelsonic Game Watch | Referred to as "Koopa Dragon" like in other Nelsonic Game Watch titles |
Mario Teaches Typing | Antagonist | 1992 | MS-DOS | |
Super Mario Bros. & Friends: When I Grow Up | Character | 1992 | MS-DOS | Appears in the Attorney / Judge and Business Executive pages |
Super Mario Kart | Playable character | 1992 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | First appearance as a playable character |
Mario is Missing! | Main antagonist | 1992, 1993 | MS-DOS | |
Yoshi's Cookie | Playable character | 1993 | Game Boy | Only playable in VS mode |
Yoshi's Cookie | Playable character | 1993 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Only playable in VS mode |
Mario is Missing! | Main antagonist | 1993 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | |
Mario is Missing! | Main antagonist | 1993 | Nintendo Entertainment System | |
Super Mario All-Stars | Final boss | 1993 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Main antagonist and final boss of the Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels, and Super Mario Bros. 3 remasters |
Yoshi's Safari | Final boss | 1993 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | |
Mario is Missing! | Main antagonist | 1993 | Mac | Same as the MS-DOS version |
Mario's Time Machine | Main antagonist | 1993, 1994 | MS-DOS | |
Mario's Time Machine | Main antagonist | 1993 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | |
Mario's Early Years! Fun with Numbers | Non-playable character | 1993 | PC | |
Mario's Early Years! Fun with Letters | Non-playable character | 1993 | PC | |
Mario's Early Years! Preschool Fun | Non-playable character | 1993 | PC | |
Mario Undōkai | Non-playable character | 1993 | Arcade | Raced as an opponent in a 100m sprint |
Mario's Time Machine | Main antagonist | 1994 | Nintendo Entertainment System | |
Hotel Mario | Final boss | 1994 | Philips CD-i | |
Mario's Early Years! Fun with Numbers | Non-playable character | 1994 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Same as in the PC version |
Mario's Early Years! Fun with Letters | Non-playable character | 1994 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Same as in the PC version |
Mario's Early Years! Preschool Fun | Non-playable character | 1994 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Same as in the PC version |
Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World | Final boss | 1994 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Same as Super Mario All-Stars but with the added inclusion of Super Mario World |
Mario's Game Gallery | Cameo | 1995 | MS-DOS | Featured as a game piece in Checkers and as a card in Go Fish |
Mario's Tennis | Playable character | 1995 | Virtual Boy | |
Mario Clash | Cameo | 1995 | Virtual Boy | When earning 700,000 points, a graphic of Bowser bordering the Nintendo logo is shown, and he says "Astonishing!". |
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars | Playable character | 1996 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | |
Super Mario 64 | Boss | 1996 | Nintendo 64 | Bowser is fought in three different locations: Bowser in the Dark World, Bowser in the Fire Sea, and lastly Bowser in the Sky, where he is the final boss. |
Tetris Attack | Final boss | 1996 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Game Boy | Final boss in VS mode; also fought in the "special stage" and "last stage" of Stage Clear mode |
Mario Teaches Typing 2 | Antagonist | 1996 | Microsoft Windows, Mac | |
Mario Kart 64 | Playable character | 1996 | Nintendo 64 | |
Game & Watch Gallery | Antagonist | 1997 | Game Boy | Featured as the antagonist in the Modern version of Oil Panic |
Super Mario 64: Shindō Pak Taiō | Boss | 1997 | Nintendo 64 | Same as in the original Super Mario 64 |
Game & Watch Gallery 2 | Playable character | 1997 | Game Boy | One of the playable characters in the Modern version of Ball |
Wrecking Crew '98 | Final boss, unlockable playable character | 1998 | Super Famicom | Fought in the final stage; unlocked as a playable character upon being defeated. |
Mario's FUNdamentals | Cameo | 1998 | Microsoft Windows | Same as the original Mario's Game Gallery release |
Game & Watch Gallery 2 | Playable character | 1998 | Game Boy Color | Same as in the original Game Boy version |
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time | Cameo | 1998 | Nintendo 64 | One of the visible pictures from a window of Hyrule Castle; the medallion worn by Malon depicts Bowser's face. |
Mario Party | Non-playable character | 1998 | Nintendo 64 | |
Game & Watch Gallery 3 | Enemy | 1999 | Game Boy Color | An enemy in the Modern remake of Mario Bros. |
Super Mario Bros. Deluxe | Final boss | 1999 | Game Boy Color | The final boss of both the Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros. for Super Players variations |
Mario Golf | Unlockable playable character | 1999 | Nintendo 64 | First appearance as an unlockable playable character; unlocked by completing character match #7. |
Mario Golf | Non-playable character | 1999 | Game Boy Color | |
Mario Artist: Paint Studio | Cameo | 1999 | Nintendo 64DD | Featured as various character stamps |
Mario Party 2 | Non-playable character | 1999 | Nintendo 64 | |
Picross NP Vol. 6 | Cameo | 2000 | Super Famicom | Featured as the "L" puzzle in Character mode |
Mario Tennis | Playable character | 2000 | Nintendo 64 | |
Paper Mario | Boss | 2000 | Nintendo 64 | Recurring boss fought in different parts of the game, like in Super Mario 64 |
Mario Tennis | Unlockable playable character | 2000 | Game Boy Color | Unlocked by using the Transfer Pak with the Nintendo 64 version |
Mario Party 3 | Non-playable character | 2000 | Nintendo 64 | |
Super Mario Advance | Enemy | 2001 | Game Boy Advance | Bowser is fought as an enemy in the Mario Bros. remake, but he does not appear in the Super Mario Bros. 2 remake. |
Mario Kart: Super Circuit | Playable character | 2001 | Game Boy Advance | |
Luigi's Mansion | Indirect role | 2001 | Nintendo GameCube | King Boo uses a Bowser suit during the final boss, and Bowser himself is mentioned a few times. |
Super Smash Bros. Melee | Playable character | 2001 | Nintendo GameCube | |
Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2 | Final boss | 2001 | Game Boy Advance | Same as in Super Mario World; also returns as an enemy in the Mario Bros. remake |
Super Mario Sunshine | Final boss | 2002 | Nintendo GameCube | |
Mario Party 4 | Non-playable character | 2002 | Nintendo GameCube | |
Game & Watch Gallery 4 | Boss, enemy | 2002 | Game Boy Advance | Boss in the modern remake of Rain Shower and an enemy in the modern Mario Bros. remake |
Nintendo Puzzle Collection | Main antagonist | 2003 | Nintendo GameCube | Main antagonist of the Yoshi's Cookie remake |
Mario Party-e | Non-playable character | 2003 | Game Boy Advance (e-Reader) | Appears in the minigame Spinister Bowser |
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$! | Reference | 2003 | Game Boy Advance | The microgame Classic Clash III involves Nintenman (based on Mario) fighting a Bowser lookalike |
Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 | Final boss | 2003 | Game Boy Advance | Same as in Super Mario Bros. 3 |
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour | Playable character | 2003 | Nintendo GameCube | Bowser also plays a role in the opening cinematic. |
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$! | Reference | 2003 | Nintendo GameCube | Same as in WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$! |
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! | Playable character | 2003 | Nintendo GameCube | |
Mario Party 5 | Non-playable character | 2003 | Nintendo GameCube | |
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga | Boss | 2003 | Game Boy Advance | Fought as the very first boss, although only by Mario |
Classic NES Series Super Mario Bros. | Final boss | 2004 | Game Boy Advance | Same as in Super Mario Bros. |
Mario Golf: Advance Tour | Unlockable playable character | 2004 | Game Boy Advance | Unlocked by using the Nintendo GameCube Game Boy Advance Link Cable with Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, but only if at least 81 Best Badges have been collected. |
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door | Playable character | 2004 | Nintendo GameCube | |
Famicom Mini Super Mario Bros. 2 | Final boss | 2004 | Game Boy Advance | Same as in the original Family Computer Disk System version |
Mario Pinball Land | Final boss | 2004 | Game Boy Advance | |
Mario Power Tennis | Playable character | 2004 | Nintendo GameCube | Also plays a role during the opening cinematic |
Mario Party 6 | Antagonist | 2004 | Nintendo GameCube | |
Super Mario 64 DS | Boss | 2004 | Nintendo DS | Same as in the original Super Mario 64 |
Mario Party Advance | Non-playable character | 2005 | Game Boy Advance | Acts as the primary antagonist in Shroom City mode |
Yakuman DS | Unlockable playable character | 2005 | Nintendo DS | A secret unlockable character |
Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix | Non-playable character | 2005 | Nintendo GameCube | |
Mario Superstar Baseball | Non-playable character | 2005 | Nintendo GameCube | |
Mario Tennis: Power Tour | Playable character | 2005 | Nintendo GameCube | |
Mario Kart Arcade GP | Playable character | 2005 | Arcade | |
Super Princess Peach | Final boss | 2005 | Nintendo DS | Bowser is the boss of Bowser's Villa; Bowser has two phases in his phase |
Mario Party 7 | Non-playable character | 2005 | Nintendo GameCube | Antagonist |
Mario Kart DS | Playable character | 2005 | Nintendo DS | |
Super Mario Strikers | Playable character | 2005 | Nintendo GameCube | |
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time | Boss | 2005 | Nintendo DS | First encountered as a boss with Baby Bowser; final boss as Shrowser |
Tetris DS | Cameo | 2006 | Nintendo DS | Appears in level 10 |
New Super Mario Bros. | Boss; final boss | 2006 | Nintendo DS | Second form is Dry Bowser; boss of World 1; final boss of World 8 along with Bowser Jr. |
Mario Hoops 3-on-3 | Playable character | 2006 | Nintendo DS | Unlockable; can be unlocked by getting at least Bronze in the Normal Star Tourney |
Mario Kart Arcade GP 2 | Playable character | 2007 | Arcade | |
Super Paper Mario | Playable character; boss | 2007 | Wii | A boss in Chapter 3-1: When Geeks Attack; available after defeating Bowser in Chapter 3-1; after Chapter 6-1, Dimentio will disband the party including Bowser; Bowser can be re-recruited in Chapter 7-2: The Sealed Doors Three |
Mario Strikers Charged | Playable character | 2007 | Wii | |
Mario Party 8 | Non-playable character | 2007 | Wii | Antagonist |
Itadaki Street DS | Playable character | 2007 | Nintendo DS | Unlockable character; can be unlocked through playing Tour Mode |
Super Mario Galaxy | Boss; final boss | 2007 | Wii | Boss of The Fiery Stronghold, Darkness on the Horizon, The Fate of the Universe |
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games | Playable character | 2007 | Wii | |
Mario Party DS | Final boss | 2007 | Nintendo DS | Antagonist; final boss of Bowser's Block Party |
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games | Playable character | 2008 | Nintendo DS | |
Super Smash Bros. Brawl | Playable character | 2008 | Wii | |
Mario Kart Wii | Playable character | 2008 | Wii | |
Mario Super Sluggers | Playable character | 2008 | Wii | Team captain |
Super Smash Bros. Brawl | Playable character | 2008 | Wii | |
New Play Control! Mario Power Tennis | Playable character | 2009 | Wii | |
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story | Playable character | 2009 | Nintendo DS | First playable appearance in Mario & Luigi game |
Super Smash Bros. Brawl | Playable character | 2009 | Wii | |
Mario Clock | Non-playable character | 2009 | Nintendo DSi | |
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games | Playable character | 2009 | Wii | |
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games | Playable character | 2009 | Nintendo DS | |
New Super Mario Bros. Wii | Boss | 2009 | Wii | |
Super Mario Galaxy 2 | Boss; final boss | 2010 | Wii | |
Super Mario Galaxy 2 | Boss | 2010 | Wii | |
Super Mario All-Stars Limited Edition | Boss; final boss | 2010 | Wii | Same roles in Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels and Super Mario Bros. 3 |
Mario Sports Mix | Playable character | 2010 | Wii | |
New Super Mario Bros. Wii Coin World | Non-playable character | 2011 | Arcade | |
Super Mario 3D Land | Boss; final boss | 2011 | Nintendo 3DS | |
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games | Playable character | 2011 | Wii | |
Fortune Street | Playable character | 2011 | Wii | |
Mario Kart 7 | Playable character | 2011 | Nintendo 3DS | |
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games | Playable character | 2012 | Nintendo 3DS | |
Mario Party 9 | Final boss | 2012 | Wii | Antagonist in Story Mode; final boss in Bowser's Block Battle |
Mario Tennis Open | Playable character | 2012 | Nintendo 3DS | |
New Super Mario Bros. 2 | Boss | 2012 | Nintendo 3DS | Boss in World 6; final boss as Dry Bowser in World 7 |
Paper Mario: Sticker Star | Final boss | 2012 | Nintendo 3DS | Final boss in Bowser's Sky Castle |
New Super Mario Bros. U | Boss; final boss | 2012 | Wii U | Final boss in Peach's Castle, paired with Bowser Jr. in the second battle |
Nintendo Land | Mentioned cameo | 2012 | Wii U | Mentioned by Toy Koopa Troopa |
New Super Luigi U | Boss; final boss | 2013 | Wii U | Final boss in Peach's Castle, paired with Bowser Jr. in the second battle |
Mario & Luigi: Dream Team | Boss; final boss | 2013 | Nintendo 3DS | Boss in Dream's Deep; final boss at Neo Bowser Castle as Dreamy Bowser |
Mario Kart Arcade GP DX | Playable character | 2013 | Arcade | |
Mario Party Fushigi no Korokoro Catcher 2 | Non-playable character | 2013 | Arcade | |
Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games | Playable character | 2013 | Wii U | |
Super Mario 3D World | Boss; final boss | 2013 | Wii U | Boss in World 1; final boss in World Bowser as Meowser. |
Mario Party: Island Tour | Non-playable character | 2013 | Wii U | |
NES Remix | Non-playable character | 2013 | Wii U | Makes various appearances in Super Mario Bros. stages |
NES Remix 2 | Non-playable character | 2014 | Wii U | Makes various appearances in Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels stages |
NES Remix Pack | Non-playable character | 2014 | Wii U | Same roles in NES Remix and NES Remix 2 |
Mario Golf: World Tour | Playable character | 2014 | Nintendo 3DS | |
Mario Kart 8 | Playable character | 2014 | Wii U | |
Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS | Playable character | 2014 | Nintendo 3DS | |
Ultimate NES Remix | Non-playable character | 2014 | Nintendo 3DS | |
Super Smash Bros. for Wii U | Playable character | 2014 | Wii U | |
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker | Non-playable character | 2014 | Wii U | Appears after the ending credits with the same role as 3D World. |
Mario Party 10 | Playable character | 2015 | Wii U | Only playable in Bowser Party mode; Bowser can be played as an amiibo |
Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition | Playable character | 2015 | Nintendo 3DS | Unlockable in World 8. |
Super Mario Maker | Non-playable character | 2015 | Nintendo 3DS | While Bowser is a non-playable character, he has a Bowser costume in Super Mario Bros. |
Skylanders: SuperChargers | Playable character | 2015 | Wii U | Debut as a Skylander; can be playable if the player has a figure of either Hammer Slam Bowser or Dark Hammer Slam Bowser |
Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash | Playable character | 2015 | Wii U | |
Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam | Boss; final boss | 2015 | Nintendo 3DS | Penultimate boss battle with Paper Bowser under the name "Bowser Duo"; final battle under a name Shiny Robo-Bowser |
Minecraft: Wii U Edition | Skin | 2015 | Wii U | Bowser's emblem appears as a painting |
Mini Mario & Friends: amiibo Challenge | Cameo | 2016 | Wii U | A figurine called Mini Bowser can be accessed through Bowser's amiibo |
Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games | Playable character | 2016 | Nintendo 3DS | |
Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games Arcade Edition | Playable character | 2016 | Arcade | |
Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games | Playable character | 2016 | Wii U | |
Paper Mario: Color Splash | Final boss | 2016 | Wii U | Appears as final boss as Black Bowser |
Mario Party: Star Rush | Final boss | 2016 | Nintendo 3DS | Always appears as the final boss for each board in Toad Scramble; appears as a boss in Bowser's Hit-or-Missile Mania; appears in Bowser's Gauntlet minigames |
Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS | Non-playable character | 2016 | Nintendo 3DS | Same role as Maker |
Super Mario Run | Final boss | 2016; 2017 | iOS; Android | Bowser makes various appearances as buildings |
Mario Sports Superstars | Playable character | 2017 | Nintendo 3DS | |
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe | Playable character | 2017 | Nintendo Switch | Bowser and Dry Bowser are treated as separate characters |
Mario Kart Arcade GP VR | Non-playable character | 2017 | Arcade | A CPU opponent |
Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle | Final boss | 2017 | Nintendo Switch | Fought as MegaDragonBowser |
Minecraft: New Nintendo 3DS Edition | Skin | 2017 | Nintendo 3DS | See Minecraft: Wii U Edition |
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga | Boss; final boss | 2017 | Nintendo 3DS | Same role as Superstar Saga |
Super Mario Odyssey | Final boss | 2017 | Nintendo Switch | |
Mario Party: The Top 100 | Final boss | 2017 | Nintendo 3DS | Appears in Bowser minigames; final boss in Minigame Island |
Minecraft | Skin | 2018 | Nintendo Switch | Same role as other Minecraft games |
Mario Tennis Aces | Playable character; final boss | 2018 | Nintendo Switch | Not playable in Adventure Mode; final boss as Bowcien in Adventure Mode |
Super Mario Party | Playable character | 2018 | Nintendo Switch | Holds an exclusive Dice Block: Bowser Dice Block |
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | Playable character | 2018 | Nintendo Switch | Unlockable fighter; can be unlocked with one of the following: Defeat Giga Bowser in Molten Fortress in Adventure Mode: World of Light, clear Classic Mode as Donkey Kong or anyone in his unlock tree, play VS. Matches with Bowser being the third character to be unlocked |
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey | Playable character | 2018 | Nintendo 3DS | Same role as Bowser's Inside Story |
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe | Boss; final boss | 2019 | Nintendo Switch | Same role as New Super Mario Bros. U |
Super Mario Maker 2 | Boss | 2019 | Nintendo Switch | |
Dr. Mario World | Playable charcater | 2019 | Mobile | Playable as Dr. Bowser |
Mario Kart Tour | Playable character | 2019 | Mobile | Classified as a Super driver; other drivers of Bowser are treated as separate characters; makes various appearances in sponsors and badges |
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 | Playable character | 2019 | Nintendo Switch | |
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 - Arcade Edition | Playable character | 2020 | Nintendo Switch | Same role as Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 |
Paper Mario: The Origami King | Non-playable character | 2020 | Nintendo Switch | Mario's ally after rescued from Peach's Castle |
Super Mario 3D All-Stars | Boss; final boss | 2020 | Nintendo Switch | Same roles as 64, Sunshine and Galaxy |
Super Mario Bros. 35 | Final boss | 2020 | Nintendo Switch | Same role as Super Mario Bros. |
Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit | Playable character | 2020 | Nintendo Switch | |
Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury | Boss; final boss | 2021 | Nintendo Switch | Same role as 3D World; boss in Bowser's Fury as Fury Bowser |
Mario Golf: Super Rush | Playable character | 2021 | Nintendo Switch | |
WarioWare: Get It Together! | Cameo | 2021 | Nintendo Switch | Appears in Super Mario Bros. |
Mario Party Superstars | Non-playable character | 2021 | Nintendo Switch | |
Mario Strikers: Battle League | Playable character | 2022 | Nintendo Switch | |
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope | Playable character | 2022 | Nintendo Switch | |
Super Mario Bros. Wonder | Main antagonist | 2023 | Nintendo Switch | |
Super Mario RPG | Party member | 2023 | Nintendo Switch | |
Mario & Luigi: Brothership | Antagonist? | 2024 | Nintendo Switch |
Gallery[]
To view Bowser's image gallery, click here.
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Trivia[]
- Although Bowser's name is King Koopa in the movie, he is a humanoid dinosaur.
- His color scheme and crown in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, and related cartoons, were taken from Wart, as well as the 8-bits appearing among his minions, who served Wart in Super Mario Bros. 2.
- Bowser is the only Mario villain to appear in all five games of the Mario & Luigi series.
- Bowser's infamous deep laugh and classic roars during the Nintendo 64 era until Mario Party 4 on the GameCube were stock sound effects. The former, surprisingly is actually by Charles Martinet, the former longtime voice actor of Mario, himself laughing and slowed down, and was recorded some time before he was officially taken the role. The latter were taken from edited cougar meows and boars squealing as well as the roar from the 1957 film The Land Unknown. The Boo enemy at the time used a sped version of the aforementioned laugh.
- Although Bowser's universal conquest plans usually fail, it's fair to agree that it was in Super Mario Galaxy that Bowser definitely posed as a very dangerous and totally genuine threat not only to Mario and his friends but to the whole universe. There, he planned to use the Grand Star to create his own galaxy and conquered many other ones for his planned empire, a plan which nearly culminated with the destruction of the universe as we know it with a titanic black hole created by the Grand Star upon his defeat. Even Mario wasn't able to stop it and it was thanks to the Lumas that the universe was ultimately saved.
- Ganon from The Legend of Zelda series is a parallel to Bowser, in which both villains are hideous bipedal monsters that share the same longtime goal of taking over a kingdom by force (Hyrule/Mushroom Kingdom, respectively) and kidnap a princess (Princess Zelda/Peach, respectively), that almost always gets thwarted by the hero (Link/Mario, respectively).
- In the 1980s, 8-bit home consoles such as the NES didn't have the ability to display sprites that had more than three colors due to hardware limitations. However, Bowser appears to have four, this is due to his shackles being a result of the black background. Hacking him into any level without a black background will make Bowser's hands look disconnected with his arms.
- As seen from Super Mario Sunshine and The Super Mario Bros Movie, Bowser speaks with a gruff accent.
- In spite of being a beloved antagonist among Nintendo fans in general, due to Bowser's rather ferocious appearance and sometimes his own villainy, however, some individuals have claimed him terrifying enough to suffer nightmares. For example, in Super Mario 64, when Mario is defeated and consequently loses a life, a silhouette of Bowser himself fully appears on-screen with a wicked deep laugh before it slowly begins to fade.
- In any version of Super Mario Bros., Bowser only appears at the end of 8-4. In every castle before that, the player fights an imposter transformed by Bowser's magic, known as Fake Bowser. This is shown when killing imposter Bowser's with fireballs, which have their dying sprites being normal enemies. This idea came from a time in development when one of the programmers changed the dying sprite for Bowser (simply being flipped upside-down), and was kept in the final game.
- In Paper Mario: Color Splash, Paper Bowser carelessly mixed the paint of the fountain in Port Prisma, which the black paint corrupted Bowser. Black paint/goop corrupted Bowser again in Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury, after Bowser Jr. painted on his father unintentionally, angering him.
- In Super Mario Bros. Wonder, Bower uses a Wonder Flower to merged with Prince Florian's castle, which let him allows him to fly.
- Both in KC Mario and Super Mario-kun, Bowser was referenced to Gamera where one of his attacks in the former was named "Gamera Attack" (ガメラアタック, Gamera Attakku).[6][7][8]
- Bowser is one of two Nintendo characters to be a Skylander, the other being Donkey Kong.
- In Luigi's Mansion, the ghostly fotuneteller Madame Clairvoya's seance reveals that Mario had been captured by Bowser; she is surprised by this revelation, as Bowser is believed (at the time) to be dead. This is a red herring, as the true villain is King Boo, using a giant puppet replica of Bowser. Technically, this is Bowser's only appearance in the Luigi's Mansion games.
- Despite Bowser being well-known as Mario's primary villain for decades, the Koopa King is NOT the plumber's first ever nemesis. Four years before his debut, the 1981 Donkey Kong arcade game had its titular antagonist being Donkey Kong.
- Bowser is the very first villain to be playable in the Super Smash Bros. series.
- Bowser is based off the Bull Demon King from Journey to the West.
References[]
- ↑ Super Mario Bros. 3 instruction booklet (1988)
- ↑ New Super Mario Bros. Wii Japanese official website (2009)
- ↑ Bowser in Mario Party: Island Tour - "Meh, WHATEVER! The next guard is a close family friend. BWAHAHA!"
- ↑ Interview with Scott Burns voice of Bowser. What Bowser thinks of Bowsette.
- ↑ Super Mario Sunshine
- ↑ Kazuki Motoyama, 1992, Super Mario, Vol.7, Kodansha
- ↑ Yukio Sawada, 1994, Super Mario-kun, Vol.11, Shogakukan
- ↑ スーパーマリオワールド(本山版) [必殺技辞典]