Crystal (Super Mario Galaxy)

An Item Crystal is an object found exclusively in the game Super Mario Galaxy and its sequel, Super Mario Galaxy 2. They are crystals that can be found in multiple areas of the game, mostly on the first few stages and sometimes near bosses.

During the introductory cut-scene, the Airships are shown shooting crystal bits at Toads, making it a possibility that Bowser's fleet is the source of the other crystals in the game. Anything hit by the crystal bits is trapped in an Item Crystal and enters a state of suspended animation. Item Crystals have fairly weak structures and can be shattered using Mario's Spinning move; inside them are items such as Coins, 1-Up Mushrooms, and the occasional Launch Star or Life Mushroom. There are also octohedron crystals which contain only power-ups. Spinning seems to be the only known way of breaking them; Mario's other attacks are useless against the crystals. Most of these crystals contain Star Bits of which Mario can later feed to Hungry Lumas; some may even contain Lumas or Toads, who help the player out once they are freed. The quantity of Star Bits obtained will average from three to ten, and most of the Item Crystals found throughout the game will contain four to six.

Additionally, there are large, rare Item Crystals that contain Power Stars. Large Item Crystals require two spins to be shattered.

The crystals reappear in Super Mario Galaxy 2, along with another type. These ones are the same as the original, but they're appearance seems to be overall more geometric, unlike the original ones, which are more abstract in shape. They are similar to the crystals Amps circle around in Bowser in the Dark World in Super Mario 64, but these ones are obviously breakable.