Note Block

A Note Block (originally Jump Block) is a type of bouncy block that helps Mario and Luigi achieve extremely high jumps. They first appeared in Super Mario Bros. 3, then in Super Mario World. In Super Mario Bros. 3, the Note Blocks can be used to jump high (by pressing the jump button as the player is launched upward) and occasionally hold a power-up or Super Star for the player if he or she bounces on it or hits it like a ? Block. This is not present in the newer games such as New Super Mario Bros. 2 and Super Mario 3D Land. Super Mario World also has a few unused Note Blocks, including one that bounces Mario on all sides.

Also in Super Mario Bros. 3, there is a special variety of pink Note Blocks hidden in some courses that catapult Mario or Luigi to Coin Heaven, where many coins and a 1-Up Mushroom could be found. Two of the e-Reader card levels in Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 consist entirely of Note Blocks: 06: Magical Note Blocks and 11: A Musical Trek. Note Blocks are in the Mario Party 5 minigame Bound of Music, where each player has to jump and hit the most Note Blocks. However, the Note Blocks are invisible. These blocks also appear in Mario Superstar Baseball in the Peach's Castle field. If a baseball bounces on top of it, the batter may score a homerun.

These blocks also appear in the TV series, The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3, where some have a ♫ instead of a ♩.

In Mario & Wario, they looked and acted more like springboards. They do not have their musical note as in other games, nor are they often suspended in midair.

In New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Note Blocks are redesigned with a white-green checkered pattern, although they act the same. These checkered blocks are uncommon and can be found in stages such as World 7-5, Lakitu Enemy Courses, and in Iggy's castle.

In Mario Party 9, the New Super Mario Bros. Wii design appears in the Upward Mobility minigame. In Mario Party 10 Note Blocks with their original design appear in the minigame Bouncy Bounty.

The Note Blocks later appear in Super Mario 3D Land (making their first appearance in a 3D Mario platformer game), where they serve the same purpose. However, they now have musical notes on them again, and most of them are much flatter and larger (though in the box art and in certain courses, they retain their earlier designs). They also make musical sounds (based on the chords of the game's music) and notes appear when jumped on; in a pre-release trailer, they can be heard making the "zip-zoo" noise when Yoshi is mounted, but this was removed from the final game. Rainbow Note Blocks also appear, and they still send Mario to a Coin Heaven area.

Note Blocks appear in Music Park in Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart 8, however they are unreachable and are more of simply decoration.

Note Blocks also appear in New Super Mario Bros. 2. Here, they all retain their appearance from other 2D platformers. However, the musical notes and sounds return from Super Mario 3D Land. They later appear in New Super Mario Bros. U.

Note Blocks appear in Mario Golf: World Tour as usable item shots. It causes a Note Block to appear during the ball's course, causing it to fly high into the air over obstacles or with increased shot distance.

In Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, a Note Block appears on the 3D Land stage, having the same function as in the Super Mario games.

Note Blocks return in Super Mario Maker, where it can be used in all four styles. While it retains its appearances in Super Mario Bros. 3, Super Mario World and New Super Mario Bros. U, it features a new sprite for its Super Mario Bros. appearance. Pink versions called Music Blocks also appear, using an ♪ instead of a ♩. Although they function like normal Note Blocks, they also play a sound with its pitch based on the block's height, and its instrument based on what object/enemy bounces on it, but specifically plays a tropical instrument if Mario bounces on it.