Mini-Mario

Mini-Mario is a technique used by Mario and Luigi in various Mario & Luigi games. Originating in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, as a Bros. Action taught to Luigi in Chateau de Chucklehuck, Mini-Mario has later appeared in as a technique in other Mario & Luigi games as a recurring.move. It involves Luigi standing behind Mario and hitting him with a hammer. Mario then shrinks to about half of his normal size, allowing him to fit through gaps normally inaccessible. In addition, Mini Mario acts as a sort of dowser, generating a "!" bubble above his head when he is near an underground treasure. If the game is being played on the Game Boy Player, the controller will react. A larger exclamation mark appears if Mario is directly above a Beanstone. In order for him to be restored to his normal size, Mario must either be hit by Luigi's hammer or enter battle. If Luigi attempts to High Jump onto Mini-Mario, and if Mario jumps when Luigi is directly above him, he earns a coin every time Luigi is hit. However, every time Luigi is hit, he loses 1 HP (2 in the Japanese version); if his HP is at 1 (2 or below in the Japanese version), when Mario jumps on him, nothing happens.

In Mario & Luigi Partners in Time, Baby Mario and Baby Luigi are small enough to go through holes the Mario brothers cannot fit in, which are about the same size as the ones Mini-Mario can go through. The Baby Cakes ability is also similar to this, in that the Baby Mario Bros. are flattened and able to go through even smaller passages that they normally cannot.

In Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, once Mario and Luigi obtain the hammers, Luigi can hammer Mario to shrink him down to a small size just like in Superstar Saga. This ability is used for the same reasons as in the previous game. Unlike the other games, Mario may move around in Bowser's body, a complete 2D area, making the physics of the move somewhat different.

In Mario & Luigi: Dream Team, the ability retains its purpose from the previous games. The player can only use the Mini-Mario ability when standing on a hard surface, such as a rock; using it on dirt or sand performs the Mole Mario ability instead.