Giant Gate
- Not to be confused with Goal Gate or Level Gate.
| Giant Gate | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Sprite from Super Mario World | |||
| First appearance | Super Mario World (1990) | ||
| Latest appearance | WarioWare: Get It Together! (2021) | ||
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Giant Gates[1] (also referred to as Goalposts,[2][3] Exit Gates,[4][5] Gates,[6] Goals,[7][8] Exits,[7] or Goal Poles) are objects that appear at the ends of most levels in Super Mario World. They replace the Goal Poles and roulette goals from the Super Mario Bros. series and look similar to the smaller Midway Gates—however, the tape (also capitalized)[5] between the two blue-and-white striped posts moves up and down.
History[edit]
Super Mario series[edit]
Super Mario World / Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2[edit]
In Super Mario World and its reissue, Goal Posts appear at the ends of all levels excluding castles, fortresses, Switch Palaces, and the Sunken Ghost Ship. When Mario or Luigi hits the tape, he not only finishes the level but also earns Bonus Stars. The higher the tape is when hit, the more Bonus Stars he gets (ranging from one to 30, then 40, and then 50 at the top) per gate. 100 of them give the player access to a bonus game. All enemies and items on the screen turn into coins when Mario or Luigi touches the gate; defeating five or more enemies this way gives extra lives.
If Mario or Luigi manages to collect all 50 of a single gate's Bonus Stars, he is additionally rewarded with three 1-Ups. If he carries an item (such as a key or Jumping Board) through the gate, he receives a power-up based on his current status and his Item Stock. If the last two digits of the timer are a multiple of eleven (including 00), and the same as the tens digit of the number of Bonus Stars that Mario or Luigi receives, he is given a 1-Up. If all these conditions are met and Mario or Luigi completes the bonus game perfectly, it is possible to receive a total of 13 1-Ups upon returning to the map.
If the player passes the gate without hitting the tape, the tape turns into a coin, and no Bonus Stars are rewarded.
Giant Gates are often protected by enemies, especially Chargin' Chucks. Though this may hinder the player from finishing a level, it also gives them the chance to get a high number of Bonus Stars by jumping on the enemy, allowing them to reach the tape when it is at the top of the gate.
Super Mario Maker subseries[edit]
Giant Gates return in the Super Mario World style of Super Mario Maker, Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS, and Super Mario Maker 2. However, instead of Bonus Stars, the player gets either 500, 1,000, 2,500, or 4,000 points, or a 1-Up depending on where the tape is when it is hit, like with a flagpole, as levels are standalone in this game. The tape also must be hit to complete the level; going through the gate without hitting it does nothing. However, in Super Mario Maker 2, it is once again possible to complete the level by passing through the gate without needing to hit the tape, as in the original Super Mario World; in this case, no points are awarded. Moreover, in levels with clear conditions in Super Mario Maker 2, the Giant Gate appears as a dashed outline and is fully revealed only once the condition has been met.
WarioWare: Get It Together![edit]
The goal of the Super Mario World microgame in WarioWare: Get It Together! is to reach the Giant Gate at the end of a given course. Since most of the crew can freely move through the air or jump very high, reaching the tape of the Giant Gate is trivial regardless of its height. The Giant Gate does not react to being attacked, unlike many kinds of objects in the game, so the characters have to go through it or touch the tape. The Giant Gate always grants one coin instead of any Bonus Stars, no matter if the player character touches the tape or not. The Level 3 version of the microgame takes place in the interior of a castle or fortress, circumstances where a Giant Gate would not appear in Super Mario World, but a Giant Gate is at the end of those courses regardless. In the microgame's description, 9-Volt incorrectly identifies the Giant Gate as a Goal Pole.
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Note(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ゴール Gōru | Goal | [9] | |
| ゴールゲート Gōru Gēto | Goal Gate | Super Mario Bros. Encyclopedia | [10] | |
| Dutch | Reuzepoort | Giant Gate | [11] | |
| French | Portail géant | Giant gate | [12] | |
| Portail Géant | Giant Gate | Super Mario World | [13] | |
| Porte de Sortie | Exit Door | Super Mario-kun | [14] | |
| German | Zieltor | Goal Gate | [15] | |
| Italian | Meta | Goal | [16] | |
| Obbiettivo | "Goal", referring to an aim or objective | Super Mario World | [17] | |
| Arrivo | Goal | Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2 | [18] | |
| Cancello-meta | Goal gate | Super Mario World Wii Virtual Console manual | [19] | |
| Portale gigante | Giant gate | Super Mario Bros. Encyclopedia | [20] | |
| Portuguese | Portão Gigante | Giant Gate | [21] | |
| Spanish | Meta | Goal | [22] | |
| Puerta Gigante | Giant Gate | Super Mario World | [23] |
References[edit]
- ^ Super Mario World English instruction booklet. Page 8.
- ^ August 1991. Nintendo Mario Mania Player's Guide. M. Arakawa, Nintendo of America (American English). Page 47–49.
- ^ Winter 2002. Nintendo Power Advance V.4. Nintendo of America (American English). Page 18.
- ^ August 1991. Nintendo Mario Mania Player's Guide. M. Arakawa, Nintendo of America (American English). Page 109 and 124.
- ^ a b September 1991. Nintendo Power Volume 28. Nintendo of America (American English). Page 23.
- ^ August 1991. Nintendo Mario Mania Player's Guide. M. Arakawa, Nintendo of America (American English). Page 106.
- ^ a b August 1991. Nintendo Mario Mania Player's Guide. M. Arakawa, Nintendo of America (American English). Page 125.
- ^ Super NES Nintendo Player's Guide. Page 12, 13, and 15.
- ^ Super Mario World Japanese instruction booklet (fold-out)
- ^ Sakai, Kazuya (Ambit) et al. (October 19, 2015). Super Mario Bros. Hyakka: Nintendo Kōshiki Guidebook, Super Mario World section. Shogakukan (Japanese). ISBN 978-4-09-106569-8. Page 60.
- ^ 1992. Super Mario World mode d'emploi / Handleiding. Nederland, Brussels: Nintendo (French, Dutch). Page 38. (Archived via Notipix.)
- ^ 2002. Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2 Instruction Booklet (PDF). Großostheim: Nintendo of Europe GmbH (English, German, French, Spanish, Italian). Page 49.
- ^ 1992. Super Mario World mode d'emploi / Handleiding. Nederland, Brussels: Nintendo (French, Dutch). Page 8. (Archived via Notipix.)
- ^ Super Mario Manga Adventures Volume 1. Page 164.
- ^ Super Mario World - SNES - Spielanleitung
- ^ Super Mario World Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console manual. Tab 5: «Il gioco».
- ^ 1992. Super Mario World Libretto di Istruzioni. Großostheim: Nintendo of Europe GmbH (Italian). Page 8. (Archived 29 Apr. 2019 via Mario's Castle by Alessandro "Stormkyleis" Imbesi.)
- ^ 2002. Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2 Instruction Booklet (PDF). Großostheim: Nintendo of Europe GmbH (English, German, French, Spanish, Italian). Page 109.
- ^ Super Mario World Wii Virtual Console manual. Tab 5: «Il gioco».
- ^ November 15, 2018. Super Mario Bros. Enciclopedia. Magazzini Salani (Italian). ISBN 889367436X. Page 60.
- ^ 1991. Super Mario World Manual de Instruções. Redmond: Nintendo of America (Brazilian Portuguese). Page 8.
- ^ 2002. Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2 Instruction Booklet (PDF). Großostheim: Nintendo of Europe GmbH (English, German, French, Spanish, Italian). Page 89.
- ^ 1992. Super Mario World Manual de Instrucciones. Madrid: Nintendo (European Spanish). Page 8.