Mushroom

Mushrooms are a common item found in nearly every Mario game to date. Different types of mushrooms have different effects. Even the Toad people are a type of humanoid mushrooms. The idea for mushrooms were inspired by the mushroom that Alice eats in "Alice in Wonderland", one side to make her larger, and the other smaller--this is a reference to the effects felt when a person is blooming on psilobycin mushrooms. The Poison Mushroom found in Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels is also a reference to this; it is possibly a reference to a "bad trip." The most famous Mushrooms are called Super Mushrooms

Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario Bros. was the first Mario game to feature mushrooms. They are the most common items found in the game and touching them will make Mario grow to Super Mario. When Mario is Super Mario, he can take one more hit from an enemy and revert back to normal Mario before losing a life. When Mario already has a mushroom, usually a Fire Flower appears in place.

1-up Mushrooms also appear. They are quite rare and sometimes tough to obtain; some are in life-threatening situations while others are found in hidden blocks that are invisible until Mario hits them.

Super Mario Bros. 2
Mushrooms acted almost the same prior to Super Mario Bros. in Super Mario Bros. 2 except that the game was taken directly from Doki Doki Panic and mushrooms replaced masks in order to gain an extra heart. Plus, a 1 mushroom appears that replaces the effect of a heart in Doki Doki Panic which will grant the character one life.

Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels
Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels was very similar to Super Mario Bros. in terms of gameplay and items, and the Mushroom returns, but there is one new addition of mushrooms: the Poison Mushroom. When Mario touches it, he will either power down or lose a life. The Poison Mushroom also looks similar to a regular Mushroom, except that it is slightly discolored. Poison Mushrooms may even pop out of hidden blocks.

Super Mario Bros. 3
In Super Mario Bros. 3, Mushrooms and Life Mushrooms make a return appearance in this game. Comparing from this game to Super Mario Bros., no actual changes had been made in effect except that eyes got added to the sprites of the mushrooms.

Super Mario World
Mushrooms and Life Mushrooms reappear in Super Mario World and no changes had been made to them. However, Mushrooms tend to "leap" out of the bushes sometimes for the player to receive. Fishin' Lakitus also use Life Mushrooms as bait for Mario and after Mario had collected it, the Lakitu will attack. Life Mushrooms will also appear instead of Yoshis from the eggs if Yoshi is already ridden on.

Super Mario 64
Although no regular Mushrooms have appeared in Super Mario 64, 1-up Mushrooms can be found in poles, collecting all coins in a certain ring, going through certain rings, and lying there in hidden or risky areas. High lying Mushrooms can also be found in Tall Tall Mountain in which the player must collect some red coins on top of them.

Super Mario 64 DS
Regular Mushrooms appear in Super Mario 64 DS as a power-up that makes the characters grow extremely large for a limited time, similar to the effect of a Mega Mushroom. This allows the characters to destroy objects or enemies simply by touching them. They earn an extra life for each object or enemy that they destroy after the first seven.

Since this game is a remake, nearly everything from the previous game, Super Mario 64 has returned. This includes the 1-ups and the mushrooms found in Tall Tall Mountain.

New Super Mario Bros.
In New Super Mario Bros., mushrooms and life mushrooms return, along the addition of 2 new mushrooms: the Mini Mushroom and the Mega Mushroom. The Mini Mushroom will make the player grow to a very small size. In this condition, the player may walk through the water and have floaty jumps. The downside is that Mario will lose a life if he touches an enemy and he can only defeat them by ground-pounding them. Mega Mushrooms have an opposite effect. It will make Mario grow to a tremendous size, which will allow him to smash through most objects and become invincible. The downside is that Mega Mario cannot destroy all blocks and he may get stuck. Depending on the amount Mario destroyed, Mario will receive 1-ups.

Mushrooms can act like platforms. There are some types of bouncy mushrooms that will make Mario bounce on them. Others grow and shrink, become taller and shorter, and tilt down according to where Mario is.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii
In New Super Mario Bros. Wii, the mushrooms got little or no change except the amount of mushrooms that appear out of blocks depends on the amount of players there are. A new mushroom called the Propeller Mushroom appears, granting Mario the ability to become Propeller Mario that will enable him to fly through the air.

Some mushrooms act like platforms in most athletic levels. These mushrooms, like New Super Mario Bros., can have certain effects on them while others are static.

Super Mario Galaxy
No regular Mushrooms appear in Super Mario Galaxy but there is a Mushroom that will grant Mario 6 more health bars to be added to the three Mario has. However, if Mario happens to get hit 6 times without healing using coins, Mario will lose the ability to hold up 6 more health slots; it will revert back to having three. 1-up Mushrooms are also found alongside with those Mushrooms.

Mario & Wario
In Mario & Wario, if a blind character gets a Mushroom on the floor, the item magically gives the player more time to complete the level the player is on. Unfortunately, it only appears in certain levels that need more time.

Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
In Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, a basic Mushroom recovers 30 HP for one party member. This mushroom had a red and white cap with an orange stem (and no face). However, Mushrooms that are found in Treasure Boxes recovers all HP and FP for Mario's entire party. These Mushrooms are used as soon as they are picked up. Additionally, these powerful Mushrooms have faces. Also, most Mushroom Treasure Chests restock with every selection of a certain area. A special type of mushroom is sold by the Goombette Triplets at the shop in Monstro Town. These mushrooms, apart from restoring 30 HP, also turn the user into a mushroom.

In the same game, a particular status ailment turns charcters into a Mushroom. While a Mushroom, the character recovers health every turn, but is completely immobilized. Like the Mushrooms from the Treasure Chest, they also have faces on them.

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
Mushrooms are the basic item for healing in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga. They are the cheapest item found in stores and the first item obtained. Regular mushrooms restore 20 hp, Super mushrooms restore 30 hp, Ultra mushrooms restore 50 hp, and Max mushrooms restore all HP. A rare item called the Golden Mushroom also appears, which only 2 are acquired throughout the game and cannot be purchased through shops. What it will do is restore all HP plus restore all BP. Shroom Badges, badges that can be obtained through shops, will increase Mario and Luigi's attack according to the number of mushrooms in their inventory.

A special Mushroom called the Invincishroom can be found only when the player has beaten the high score of the mini game. The player cannot use it, because right when the player acquires it, Mario will eat it, which makes him very sick and will make him turn into a bean. Luigi saves Mario by giving him a certain plant, found in Gwafaffa Ruins. After this event, the Invincishroom cannot be found any more.

Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
Mushrooms act in the same manner as in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga; they restore HP for one member. In Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, there are also items called Mushroom Drops, which will every single member on the team, very much like the nuts in Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga. However, the limit for Mushroom Drops is only the Ultra Drops; there are no Max Drops as opposed to Max Nuts. Shroom Badges make a return, but as opposed to the preceding game, they only increase healing effects of a mushroom.

Shroobs, the main enemies in this game, bears a resemblance to Mushrooms. They have the same mushroom shape and spots and they even live on a planet shaped like a mushroom.

Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
Mushrooms return, but Mushroom Drops were replaced in favor of Nuts. Mushrooms acted in the same manner as in the 2 preceding games.

Paper Mario
In Paper Mario, mushrooms act like healing items, just like the other Mario RPG games. Several variations of mushrooms could be found, such as the Zap Shroom or the Life Shroom. Recipes can also be made for other types of Mushrooms by combining certain ingredients together by Tayce T.

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Mushrooms acted in the same manner as in Paper Mario, except now that Mario's partner has HP, mushrooms can restore a partner's HP. At the end of this game, Punio and Petuni give both Mario and Peach a Mushroom.

Super Paper Mario
Super Paper Mario was a platformer RPG game so Mushrooms cannot be bought in shops unlike the preceding games. Instead, they are found out of ? Blocks and heal ten HP upon contact.

Mario Party series
Mushrooms such as the Golden Mushroom, the Cursed Mushroom, the Mini Mushroom, the Super Mini Mushroom, the Mega Mushroom and the Super Mega Mushroom are also used as items in the Mario Party series to earn more dice blocks. Mushrooms were a item in Mario Party 2, Mario Party 3 and Mario Party 4. Rolling the same number gave ten coins to the user, rolling double 7 gives 30 to the user. There was a Mushroom Capsule in Mario Party 5 and Mushroom orbs in Mario Party 6 and Mario Party 7.

Mario Sport Events
Mushrooms also appear in the Mario Kart series to increase a player's speed and has also appeared to increase speed in Mario Power Tennis, Mario Hoops 3 on 3, Mario Smash Football, and Mario Strikers Charged Football. They can come in groups of three but can't be held behind or around the kart.

Trivia

 * In Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, it is interesting to note that the Mushrooms had no faces, and their cap's coloring was reversed. They had red spots on a white cap, making the Mushrooms look much like Toad.
 * In New Super Mario Bros., there were mushrooms on Midway Point flags, as well as on the Main Flags of each castle.
 * In the online game, World of Warcraft, there is an item that looks exactly like a Mushroom.
 * The classic red and white-spotted Mushroom is inspired from the poisonous Fly Agaric toadstool (Amanita Muscaria).
 * In the original Super Mario Bros. 3, Mushrooms were white and red-spotted instead of red and white-spotted. This is fixed within levels in the SMA4 remake, but the map's item screen retains the error.