Swaphopper
| Swaphopper | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Artwork from Super Mario Galaxy 2 | |||
| First appearance | Super Mario Galaxy 2 (2010) | ||
| Latest appearance | Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2 (2025) | ||
| |||
Swaphoppers[1] are enemies appearing exclusively in Super Mario Galaxy 2. They resemble a highly abstracted insect, bearing two suction-cupped legs, a pair of cartoonish eyes, and two antennae. Their oval-shaped body features a blue shell with a single upwards-facing spike on it, as well as a tan underbelly.
Swaphoppers slowly hop towards Mario (or Luigi). They are immune to spins, and their spike protects them from being stomped. However, they exclusively appear in galaxies where gravity can flip; when this happens, their body's orientation does not change, leaving their underbelly on "top" and their spiked shell on the "bottom". While in this state, their expression changes from frowning to worried, and they can be easily defeated with a stomp. When they are stopped by the Co-Star Luma, they are not affected by gravity changes.
Swaphoppers appear in Rightside Down Galaxy, Upside Dizzy Galaxy, and a planet in Battle Belt Galaxy; they are exclusive to 2D sections. Battle Belt Galaxy features a single Swaphopper whose alignment is inverted from the rest, being vulnerable during regular gravity and protected during upside-down gravity.
A similar enemy called Flophopper appears in Super Mario 3D Land. Due to the lack of gravity flipping, they instead flip around to move, similar to a Bramball.
Gallery[edit]
Screenshot from Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Battle Belt Galaxy)
Naming[edit]
"Swaphopper" is a portmanteau of "swap", referring to the constant gravity changes in the places they inhabit, and "grasshopper".
Internal names[edit]
| Game | File | Name | Meaning
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Super Mario Galaxy 2 | ObjectData/GrapyonBody.arc ObjectData/GrapyonHead.arc |
GrapyonBody GrapyonHead |
Grapyon; transliteration of below |
| SystemData/ObjNameTable.arc/ObjNameTable.tbl | グラピョン (Gurapyon) | Possibly from "grasshopper" and「ピョン」(pyon, onomatopoeia for bouncing) |
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ハンテンムシ[2] Hantenmushi |
「 |
|
| French | Versopic[3][4] | From verser ("to turn") and pic ("spike") | |
| German | Gravistachler[5] | Portmanteau between gravitieren ("gravitate") and an agentive form of Stachel ("stinger") | |
| Italian | Saltignotto[6][7] | Portmanteau of salti ("jumps") and gnotto, the dialectal variant of gnocco ("goofy") | |
| Spanish | Saltapúas[8] | Portmanteau between saltamontes ("grasshopper") and púas ("spikes") |
References[edit]
- ^ Browne, Catherine (May 23, 2010). Super Mario Galaxy 2: PRIMA Official Game Guide. Roseville: Random House Inc. ISBN 978-0-30746-907-6. Page 29.
- ^ Sakai, Kazuya (ambit), kikai, Akinori Sao, Junko Fukuda, Kunio Takayama, and Ko Nakahara (Shogakukan), editors (2015). "Super Mario Galaxy 2" in『スーパーマリオブラザーズ百科: 任天堂公式ガイドブック』. Tokyo: Shogakukan (Japanese). ISBN 978-4-09-106569-8. Page 161.
- ^ Browne, Catherine (2010). Super Mario Galaxy 2 Prima le Guide Officiel. Translated by Yellow Media. Ligugé: Prima Games (French). ISBN 978-2-952-67394-5. Page 32.
- ^ Ardaillon, Joanna, and Victoria Juillard-Huberty, editors (2018). "Super Mario Galaxy 2" in Super Mario Encyclopedia. Translated by Fabien Nabhan. Toulon: Soleil Productions (French). ISBN 978-2-3020-7004-2. Page 161.
- ^ Scholz, Sabine, and Benjamin Spinrath, editors (2017). "Super Mario Galaxy 2" in Super Mario Encyclopedia - Die ersten 30 Jahre : 1985-2015. Translated by Yamada Hirofumi. Hamburg: Tokyopop (German). ISBN 978-3-8420-3653-6. Page 161.
- ^ Browne, Catherine (2010). Super Mario Galaxy 2 Guida Strategica Ufficiale (Multiplayer.it Edizioni). Translated by Christian La Via Colli, Francesca Noto, and Virgina Petrarca. Terni: Multiplayer Edizioni, Prima Games (Italian). ISBN 9788863551198. Page 30.
- ^ Sakai, Kazuya (ambit), kikai, Akinori Sao, Junko Fukuda, Kunio Takayama, Ko Nakahara (Shogakukan), and Marco Figini, editors (2018). "Super Mario Galaxy 2" in Super Mario Bros. Enciclopedia. Translated by Marco Amerighi. Milan: Magazzini Salani (Italian). ISBN 889367436X. Page 161.
- ^ Sakai, Kazuya (ambit), kikai, Akinori Sao, Junko Fukuda, Kunio Takayama, and Ko Nakahara (Shogakukan), editors (2017). "Super Mario Galaxy 2" in Enciclopedia Super Mario Bros. 30ª Aniversario. Translated by Gemma Tarrés. Barcelona: Editorial Planeta, S.A. (European Spanish). ISBN 978-84-9146-223-1. Page 161.
