Whale
- This article is about the generic species. For the specific character from Paper Mario, see Whale (character).
| Whale | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Screenshot from Mario Kart World | |||
| First appearance | Saturday Supercade ("The Pale Whale") (1984) | ||
| Latest appearance | Donkey Kong Bananza (cameo) (2025) | ||
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- “It had humanlike intelligence and could even feel anxious...But what did this 200-ton creature have to worry about?”
- —Fossil description, Donkey Kong Bananza
Whales are aquatic mammals that often appear in helpful capacities across the Super Mario franchise and related franchises, either by enabling characters to cross long stretches of water with their bodies or by raising them high up with water spurting from their blowholes.
History[edit]
Saturday Supercade[edit]
A whale appears as a main character in the Saturday Supercade episode "The Pale Whale".
Super Mario series[edit]
Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic / Super Mario Bros. 2 / Super Mario Advance[edit]
Whales appear in World 4-2 of Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic, Super Mario Bros. 2, and Super Mario Advance. Players can hop on their backs and gain elevation by standing on their blow holes as water sprays out. The water will hurt the player if they touch it from either side but a Super Star can be used to destroy the spout. Pink (blue in remakes) Snifits and Shyguys patrol the backs of some whales. There is also one whale which has grass growing on its back. Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic and Super Mario Bros. 2 color them black with red eyelids while the Super Mario All-Stars and Super Mario Advance versions recolor them purple, and their sprite is overall redone.
Super Mario Land 2 - 6 Golden Coins[edit]
In Super Mario Land 2 - 6 Golden Coins, the Turtle Zone level Whale Course takes place inside of a whale's stomach, referencing Carlo Collodi's novel The Adventures of Pinocchio. The boss of Turtle Zone, an octopus, resides inside, guarding one of the Golden Coins.
The Super Mario Bros. Super Show![edit]
A whale briefly appears towards the end of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! episode "Mario of the Deep". Here, King Neptune rides on the whale, and uses it to body slam his temple, which Barra-Koopa has taken over, along with the rest of Aqua Land. After slamming into the wall several times, the whale causes a piece of it to shatter away, which Mario, Luigi, Princess Toadstool and Toad are able to pass through. This whale appears to be a baleen whale.
Super Mario-kun[edit]
A whale makes an appearance in volume 8 of Super Mario-kun. Toad and Birdo ride on a whale that crashes through the sky literally. It flattens the Fryguy that is fighting Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi. The whale then takes Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi to a castle in the sky.
Diddy Kong Racing / Diddy Kong Racing DS[edit]
In Diddy Kong Racing and Diddy Kong Racing DS, two whales appear in Whale Bay. One of them breaches in front of a pirate ship and can be used as a ramp to get onto the ship. The other one simply swims around near the starting line. These whales atypically have two nostrils on the front in addition to blowholes. Any hovercraft driver can drive over any whale for a high jumping effect. Whales can also be heard in the DS remake.
Paper Mario series[edit]
Paper Mario[edit]
- Main article: Whale (character)
An individual whale appears as a character in Paper Mario, where he aids Mario and his allies by getting them across the sea to Lavalava Island.
Paper Mario: The Origami King[edit]
Silhouettes of whales appear in Paper Mario: The Origami King in The Great Sea, spouting at regular intervals. When the player sails into a whale's spout, it raises Sea Captain Toad's boat up in the air for a short while, disabling its movement.
WarioWare series[edit]
Whales appear in the microgames Terminal Velocity (as a cloud) and Blow Hole Bridge from WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$!, the WarioWare: Smooth Moves version of Tearful Reunion and Climate Control, and Stroke of Genius from WarioWare: Get It Together!. In Blow Hole Bridge, if Fronk runs into the water spouts blown by them, he will be defeated. In Levels 2 and 3 of Tearful Reunion, they appear as obstacles that block the path of a couple, while in Climate Control, some whales appear when the player beats the microgame. In Level 3 of Stroke of Genius, a whale replaces the island found in the microgame.
Mario Party 5[edit]
In Mario Party 5, there is a ? Space next to a gray whale in the board Undersea Dream where, if a player lands on it, they can allow the whale to blast them to another space, which will randomly either be the space right behind or right in front of the Star.
Donkey Kong Country series[edit]
- Main article: Blubbo
Blubbo, a friendly whale, acts as the main form of traversing the level Blowhole Bound in Donkey Kong Country Returns. The whale also makes a cameo appearance in Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze.
Yoshi series[edit]
Yoshi's Woolly World / Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World[edit]
A whale in Yoshi's Woolly World and its enhanced Nintendo 3DS port Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World is made of blue silk and white plush cubes with yarn-knitted eyes. It is seen in the course Frozen Solid and Chilled; Yoshi can even skate on it like ice. If he activates the whale's blowhole, it will spray from its blowhole a waterspout also made of yarn.
Yoshi's Crafted World[edit]
The whale returns in Yoshi's Crafted World where one can be opened in Slip-Slide Isle to spray real water and another is displayed as a craft in Skulking Around. Another whale that is made of cut paper is seen swimming near Yoshi's Island on the title screen and in the game's ending. There is also a blue whale costume for Yoshi to wear, as well as a whale drawing seen in the background of Burt's Bouncy Battle.
Mario Kart World[edit]
Large blue baleen whales appear in Mario Kart World, and can be found on some routes like from DK Spaceport to Peach Stadium. They breach themselves out of the water and can create large waves when they land that racers can trick off of. In Free Roam, they can be found in the ocean near Dino Dino Jungle, Crown City, DK Spaceport, Koopa Troopa Beach and Peach Stadium, sometimes appearing alongside other large ocean characters like Cheep Chomps, Manta Ramps and Porcupuffers. They can be found floating on the surface of the water creating waterspouts from their blowholes that drivers can trick off of, or breach from the water, creating trickable waves upon landing. Whales are found in the following routes:
- Routes
- Third/Fourth lap from DK Spaceport to Peach Stadium
- Third lap from Whistlestop Summit to Koopa Troopa Beach (before version 1.4.0)
- Fourth lap from Desert Hills to Koopa Troopa Beach (before version 1.4.0)
- Second lap from Whistlestop Summit to Koopa Troopa Beach (after version 1.4.0)
Missions[edit]
Whales are featured in the following missions:
| Image | In-game text | Location | Time limit (seconds) | Description | Sticker |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Receive a whale of a welcome to Peach Stadium! | Koopa Troopa Beach | 12.00 | The player must use a Glide Ramp to glide to the right off of the Crown Bridge and pass through a blue ring that adds ten seconds to the timer. Next, they must use the spouting of a whale to rise into another blue ring which adds fifteen seconds to the timer. Then, they must pass over waves formed by the leaping of another whale to reach a blue ring that adds six seconds to the timer before reaching the goal ring. | 
|
Donkey Kong Bananza[edit]
- “That huge fossil... Nah, it couldn't be... It kinda looks like a whale! Y'know, one o' them legendary surface-sea critters? We've got a lot of respect for whales down here. They just seem cool!”
- —Salvager Monkey, Donkey Kong Bananza
In Donkey Kong Bananza, a fossilized whale can be found in the Lagoon Layer as the extra-rare fossil.
Gallery[edit]
Sprite from Super Mario Bros. 2
Sprite from Super Mario Bros. 2
Screenshot of Super Mario Bros. 2
Screenshot of Super Mario Bros. 2
Screenshot of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!
Screenshot of a Japanese commercial for Super Mario Land 2 - 6 Golden Coins
Sprite from Super Mario All-Stars (Super Mario Bros. 2)
Super Mario All-Stars (Super Mario Bros. 2)
In the Blow Hole Bound microgame of WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$!
Ice sculpture from Yoshi's Woolly World
Whale costume from Yoshi's Crafted World
Whale craft from Yoshi's Crafted World
A whale from its side in Mario Kart World
Artwork of a whale fossil in Donkey Kong Bananza
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Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Note(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | クジラ Kujira | Whale | [1] | |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 鲸鱼 Jīngyú (Mandarin) Kìhng'yùh (Cantonese) | Whale | [2] | |
| 鲸 Jīng (Mandarin) Kìhng (Cantonese) | Prior to Yoshi's Crafted World | [?] | ||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 鯨魚 Jīngyú (Mandarin) Kìhng'yùh (Cantonese) | Whale | [3] | |
| Dutch | Walvis | Whale | [4] | |
| French | Baleine | Whale | [5] | |
| German | Wal | Whale | [6] | |
| Italian | Balena | Whale | [7][8][9] | |
| Korean | 고래 Gorae | Whale | [10] | |
| Polish | Wieloryb | Whale | [11] | |
| Portuguese | Baleia | Whale | [12] | |
| Russian | Кит Kit | Whale | [13] | |
| Spanish | Ballena | Whale | [14][15] | |
| Thai | ปลาวาฬ Bplaawaan | Whale | [16] |
References[edit]
- ^ Donkey Kong Bananza in-game name, Japanese localization.
- ^ Donkey Kong Bananza in-game name, Simplified Chinese localization.
- ^ Donkey Kong Bananza in-game name, Traditional Chinese localization.
- ^ Donkey Kong Bananza in-game name, Dutch localization.
- ^ Mario Kart World in-game mission : "Passez l'accueil des baleines vers le Stade Peach !" ("Pass the whale welcome to Peach Stadium!") from European French localization. (Archived 8 Jun. 2025 via YouTube by Yannex - LetsPlay.)
- ^ Donkey Kong Bananza in-game name, German localization.
- ^ Fletcher, John, editor in chief (1991). "Tips & Tricks" in Club Nintendo, vol. 1. Linea Gig S.p.a., Nintendo Co., Ltd. (Italian). Page 25.
- ^ Sakai, Kazuya (ambit), kikai, Akinori Sao, Junko Fukuda, Kunio Takayama, Ko Nakahara (Shogakukan), and Marco Figini, editors (2018). Super Mario Bros. Enciclopedia. Translated by Marco Amerighi. Milan: Magazzini Salani (Italian). ISBN 889367436X. Page 70.
- ^ «Curiosità: C'è un livello dove ti muovi sul dorso di balene. A volte, le balene spruzzano acqua dai loro sfiatatoi.» – Indovina il gioco (8) (2 Nov. 2025). Nintendo Today!. Italian.
- ^ Donkey Kong Bananza in-game name, Korean localization.
- ^ Donkey Kong Bananza in-game name, Polish localization.
- ^ Donkey Kong Bananza in-game name, Brazilian Portuguese localization.
- ^ Donkey Kong Bananza in-game name, Russian localization.
- ^ Donkey Kong Bananza in-game name, Latin American Spanish localization.
- ^ Donkey Kong Bananza in-game name, European Spanish localization.
- ^ Donkey Kong Bananza in-game name, Thai localization.
