Touchstone
| Touchstone | |
|---|---|
 Touchstones in Touchstone Trouble in Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker | |
| First appearance | Super Mario 3D World (2013) |
| Latest appearance | WarioWare: Get It Together! (2021) |
Touchstones (also referred to as Touch Screen Platforms[1] and rainbow-colored blocks[2]) are platforms that, when touched, shift between one of two positions. They are depicted as crystalline masses and are typically pink or turquoise. Occasionally, they are predominantly made of a non-crystalline material but can be identified by said material being outlined in pink.
History[edit]
Super Mario 3D World / Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury[edit]
Touchstones first appear in Super Mario 3D World and Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury. They appear in three courses: Puffprod Peaks, Captain Toad Plays Peek-a-Boo, and Captain Toad's Fiery Finale. They can be activated by using the Wii U GamePad, the touchscreen of the Nintendo Switch in handheld mode, the 
button while using dual Joy-Con or a Pro Controller, or the 
button while using single Joy-Con, as all of these methods summon the touch cursor. Except in Captain Toad's Fiery Finale, Touchstones in this game will naturally return to their original position after a short period of time. They also appear in a wider variety of colors and shapes.
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker[edit]
Touchstones return in Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker and its Nintendo Switch and Nintendo 3DS ports, where they once again can be controlled by their consoles' respective cursor controls. Compared to ones in Super Mario 3D World, Touchstones are more common, making their debut in the game's third course, Touchstone Trouble.
WarioWare: Get It Together![edit]
In WarioWare: Get It Together!, Touchstones make an appearance in the Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker microgame based on their role in Mushroom Mesa. In this microgame, the player must create a path for Captain Toad to reach the course's Power Star; to do so, they must activate a Touchstone. If the player activates the wrong Touchstone, Captain Toad will be unable to reach the Power Star. Unlike in previous appearances, Touchstones are activated directly by characters rather than through cursor controls.
Gallery[edit]
A set of Touchstones in Super Mario 3D World
A Touchstone Platform that forms a wall in Super Mario 3D World
Touchstones in WarioWare: Get It Together!
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Note(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | タッチストーン Tatchi Sutōn | Touch Stone | [3] | |
| タッチ床 Tatchi Yuka | Touch Floor | [4] | ||
| French | Tactibloc | Touch Block | [?] | |
| German | Tippstein | Tap Stone | [?] | |
| Touch-Plattform | Touch Platform | [?] | ||
| Italian | Toccapietra | Touch-stone | [?] | |
| Toccablocco | Touch-block | [?] | ||
| Spanish | Toquebloque | Touch Block | [5] |
References[edit]
- ^ Musa, Alexander, and Geson Hatchett (November 22, 2013). Super Mario 3D World PRIMA Official Game Guide. Prima Games (American English). ISBN 978-0-804-16249-4. Page 17.
- ^ IGN Guides (February 12, 2021). Super Mario 3D World Walkthrough - World 2-2: Puffprod Peaks (0:22). YouTube (American English). Retrieved July 7, 2024.
- ^ 進め！キノピオ隊長 : たっぷり遊べる70以上の箱庭コース. Nintendo (Japanese). Retrieved November 7, 2025.
- ^ Sakai, Kazuya (Ambit), kikai, Akinori Sao, Junko Fukuda, Kunio Takayama, and Ko Nakahara (Shogakukan), editors (2015). "Super Mario 3D World."『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 233.
- ^ Guía Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker Spanish guide. www.guiasnintendo.com (Spanish).
