R.O.B.

R.O.B. (short for Robotic Operating Buddy) is an accessory for the Nintendo Entertainment System who recently made appearances in a few Mario games. In Japan, it was known as the Famicom Robot, which was short for Family Computer Robot. R.O.B. functions by translating flashes of information on the television screen into physical actions (using technology similar to the Zapper Gun). R.O.B. was first used for the game Gyromite.

Players could control R.O.B. with the control pad to make him raise and lower gyroscopes. To make the gyroscope spin, the player must set the object in the gyroscope spinner and then balance it on one of the two round trays that are connected to controller two. Placing a gyro on the red tray lowers the red gates in the game; placing a gyro on the blue tray lowers the blue gates.

''Mario Kart DS
R.O.B. is the last unlockable character in Mario Kart DS. In the game, he is tied with Bowser for being the heaviest racer. R.O.B.'s symbol is the NES Control Pad, also known as the D-Pad. R.O.B. has two original karts: the ROB-BLS, which resembles R.O.B.'s stand; the colored pegs are from a game that uses them as pieces to a puzzle, and the ROB-LGS, which is a kart that appear like "legs" for R.O.B. His karts are fast, heavy, and have wider handling, but they also offer the weakest drifting among all the other karts.

R.O.B. is the first non-Mario character to appear in the Mario Kart series. The others (in the Mario Kart Arcade GP series) are Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man, Blinky, and Mametchi. When players play online, they may come across the HVC-012, the red Japanese version of R.O.B. His karts also experience the same change of color. Also, the staff ghost data for Desert Hills features the Japanese R.O.B., no matter what version of the game it is.

WarioWare series
R.O.B. is also the subject of "Stack-Up" microgame in WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$ from 9-Volt's games. In WarioWare: Twisted!, a R.O.B. is seen in 9-Volt's game room. In WarioWare: Touched!, a R.O.B. accessory would appear in the microgame Gunslinger after the player destroys a blue canister (this microgame is found in 9-Volt/18-Volt's stage). In WarioWare: Smooth Moves, R.O.B. is the boss of 9-Volt's stage, the "Star Fox" boss level. Like many of his other appearances, his model differs between Japanese and western versions. He bobs around, shooting either a large revolver-like light gun using both arms in the Japanese version or its western equivalent, the NES Zapper. To defeat him, the player has to shoot the flashing blocks set-up for has if he is being used to play Stack-Up.

''Super Paper Mario
R.O.B. also makes a cameo appearance in Super Paper Mario. Francis keeps a model of the red Famicom Robot on his shelf in the game.

Super Smash Bros. series
R.O.B.'s do three different roles in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. The first role they play is serving as enemies to the characters. They are part of the Subspace Army and attack any character that goes to their lair on The Subspace Bomb Factory. There are three variations of R.O.B.'s, R.O.B. Sentries, R.O.B. Launchers, and R.O.B. Blasters. A specially trained group of R.O.B.'s serves as the Ancient Minister's personal bodyguard; the R.O.B. Squad. R.O.B.'s are also used to detonate Subspace Bombs.

In the Subspace Emissary it is revealed that the Ancient Minister is actually a R.O.B. himself, and is being commanded by Tabuu to destroy the Super Smash Bros. World to help his people. When Samus, Pikachu, Olimar, Captain Falcon, Donkey Kong, and Diddy Kong infiltrate the bomb factory and meet the Ancient Minister, he refuses to battle with them. Ganondorf appears in a hologram and forces the R.O.B.'s to detonate all the bombs and to shoot the Ancient Minster when he tries to stop them.

After the R.O.B.'s shoot the Ancient Minister, his robes burn off revealing that he was a R.O.B. himself all along. Unable to prevent the bombs from being detonated, he ends up finally being carried away by Donkey Kong as the factory explodes. R.O.B. then escapes on the Falcon Flyer and meets up with the rest of the characters on the ground. He goes into Subspace and is turned into a Trophy by Tabuu. Eventually King Dedede, Ness, and Luigi save him and he goes on to defeat Tabuu and save the world.

The lead R.O.B. then becomes a playable character in his own right. R.O.B.'s Final Smash makes him shoot a group of short-ranged whirling lasers out of his eyes, followed by some hard-hitting short lasers, similar to the Superspicy Curry. R.O.B. can freely move during this Final Smash, unlike some other characters. The tiny light on R.O.B.'s head tells how charged up his laser is, being brighter the more powerful. R.O.B. appears primarily as the Famicom [Japanese] version of himself, with the grey NES version available as an alternate costume.

A structure that looks similar to R.O.B. appears in the Port Town Aero Dive stage. It is visible in one of the stop spots in the background of the stage.

Robo Beam


Robo Beam is the name of R.O.B.'s Standard Special Move in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. In this, he shoots out a laser so long, it takes up the whole width of the screen setting. This move however is extremely thin, approximately 3/4 the size of the Light Arrow. The move does 3% damage. Also, if the player aims it downwards, it will bounce off the ground. Also, just like Wario's Wario Waft, if the player doesn't use the attack for a while, it will be a Super Robo Beam. However, the attack will not work if used again immediately after firing. Kirby is able to use this attack if he sucks up R.O.B.'s powers; even saying "Beep!" when using the attack.

Arm Rotor


Arm Rotor is the side special move of R.O.B. in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. It's a spinning move that hits the opponent a few times. It causes R.O.B. to move forward a little while spinning, similarly to the Ice Climbers' Squall Hammer. R.O.B. can change the direction of the way he is swinging his arms. It can also deflect projectiles.

Robo Burner


Robo Burner is the up special move of R.O.B. in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. When used, he uses a booster to send him flying. R.O.B. can also angle it to the side. Other attacks can be used whilst flying. The flight lasts about five seconds. A short hop will happen if the special move button is simply tapped.

Gyro


Gyro is R.O.B.'s down special move in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. R.O.B. pulls out a Gyromite and launches it forward. It can move differently depending on the stage and gravitational effects. R.O.B. can charge it up to make it launch faster, further and make it spin for longer, this charging technique is similar to Samus' Charge Shot. To use it once charged, the player must press the Down special attack button when they want to fire it. Once R.O.B. shoots it, the Gyromite can remain on the stage for a while, depending on how long the attack was charged for. R.O.B. or other characters can pick it up and throw it again. Until a fired Gyromite disappears, the player can't shoot another one. The name comes from the game Gyromite, R.O.B's first appearance and his weapon, the Gyromite.

Diffusion Beam


Diffusion Beam is the name of R.O.B.'s Final Smash. Once the Smash Ball has been opened, and R.O.B. activates it, swirling lasers will come out of his eyes, which deal a lot of damage to opponents caught in their short range, without any knockback. Occasionally R.O.B. will shoot a quick short-range laser beam which does moderate damage and high knockback, and which will cause a KO in most cases. This Final Smash allows the player to move around and pick up items while the lasers are still firing automatically. It also makes R.O.B. invincible temporarily.

Solid Snake Codec Conversation

 * Otacon: So, Snake, you're fighting Robot?
 * Snake: Yeah, it's a robot. Although, couldn't they have come up with a better name?
 * Otacon: Actually, in the U.S. they called him "R.O.B." Robot, R.O.B.--take your pick.
 * Snake: Fine. R.O.B. it is, then.
 * Otacon: In North America, R.O.B.'s body was grey, like the NES. But in Japan, he had a white body and red arms, the color of the Japanese Famicom.
 * Snake: Huh. You sure know your geeky tech stuff, Otacon.
 * Otacon: (chuckles) Well, you know...

Trivia

 * In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, R.O.B. is the only playable character in the "Other" category of trophies when sorted by series. He is also the first inorganic playable character.
 * R.O.B.'s Final Smash was the only one that wasn't detailed on the Smash Bros. DOJO!! website.
 * R.O.B. is the only playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl who doesn't have a home stage.
 * In All-Star Mode, Mario Bros. functions as R.O.B.'s home stage, but technically this is the Mario series team's stage. It was likely made into R.O.B.'s home stage, because the origins for that stage was from the actual game, Mario Bros., which was released on the NES, the same console that Gyromite was released on. Another reason for this could be because of his appearance in Mario Kart DS. Lastly, Gyromite is a music choice for that stage.
 * R.O.B.'s emblem in Super Smash Bros. Brawl resembles a Gyromite.
 * Additionally, in the same game, R.O.B. makes sound effects similar to sounds from an NES.
 * In Pikmin 2, there are several treasures related to R.O.B., all in the Blast from the Past Series. The Remembered Old Buddy is a R.O.B. head, and has the same acronym as the Robotic Operating Buddy. There are also five Gyro Blocks in the series: the Fond Gyro Block, the Memorable Gyro Block, the Lost Gyro Block, the Favorite Gyro Block, and the Treasured Gyro Block.