Shy Guy
- “Run for it!”
- —Shy Guy, Paper Mario
Shy Guys are timid troublemakers that wear robes and masks. They have first appeared in the non-Mario game Doki Doki Panic. They originally work for Wart in the dreamworld Subcon. The Shy Guys are common enemies in the Yoshi series. In later games, Shy Guy make some social activities like sports and parties. Shy Guy's emblem in various games is its mask.
Appearances
Battle for Yoshi's Island
Shy Guys' first chronological appearance was in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, where they were known as Shy-Guys. Here they were extremely common and weak enemies, simply walking forward, making it easy for Yoshi to swallow them and turn them into Eggs. If they touch Yoshi, Baby Mario will go flying off of his back. Shy Guys would often appear out of Pipes until Yoshi got six eggs.
Return to Yoshi's Island
Shy Guys also appeared in Yoshi's Island DS, once again, as very common and weak enemies. Yoshi could use any tactic to defeat them: jumping, egg-throwing, or swallowing. Shy Guys in this game played virtually the same role as they did in Yoshi's Island.
Other than being common enemies, Shy Guys also had their own section in the Island Museum. Yoshi could view the different types of Shy Guys in that section, though Shy Guys that do not wander on land, such as Tube Guys, were only in the marine section.
Fighting with Yoshi again...
Shy Guys reappear in Yoshi Touch & Go. They are vulnerable to all attacks and are worth a Yellow Coin.
Nightmares in Dreamland
Shy Guys appeared frequently in Super Mario Bros. 2. In this game they worked for Wart, and would walk in whatever direction Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach or Toad happened to be in. They could be easily disposed of by being picked up and thrown. They often appeared out of vases.
Coming from Another Dimension
In Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, Shy Guys known as Shysters worked for the Smithy Gang. They helped Mack invade Mushroom Kingdom and the castle. Different, mechanical versions of these Shy Guys named Shypers and Springers were also found in the alternate dimension of Smithy's Factory.
More traditional Shy Guys also appeared throughout the world of the game, at places such as the Rose Way, where they sat on top of Treasure Boxes, manned Boards, or fought alongside Lakitus (who would lower them towards Mario and Mallow with a fishing pole). Sling Shies also worked for Valentina in Nimbus Land.
Saved by an old enemy
A bunch of Shy Guys appeared to be allies with Raphael the Raven in Tetris Attack. A spell was cast on all of them to work for Bowser. They appeared in the 8th level, and were saved by Yoshi.
The Story Book Crisis
In Yoshi's Story, Shy Guys were once again common enemies, walking forward and backward. Woozy Guys from Super Mario World: Yoshi's Island had disappeared, although more varieties rose up; some Shy Guys are seen to carry Fruit or hide in trees. To defeat the Shy Guys that are in trees, Yoshi must Ground Pound near the tree they are hiding in, causing them to fall out. Additionally, if Yoshi Ground Pounds near a Shy Guy, its color will change. If different colored Yoshis eat a Shy Guy with the same color, they will be awarded with three petals instead of one. This game also introduces the first "good" Shy Guy, the White Shy Guy. Shy Guys have voices in this game; they can be distinctly heard saying "Hei-Ho" (their Japanese name) and other sounds as well.
Paper Guys
Shy Guys were semi-common enemies in Paper Mario. After Mario returns from Forever Forest, he finds Toad Town overrun by Shy Guys. He can hit the enemies with his Hammer to make them run out of town. Once Mario discovers Shy Guy's Toy Box (the secret hide-out of the Shy Guys) they can be fought as normal enemies. They have two main attacks: They can simply tackle Mario (three damage), or they can jump on top of him, dealing five damage.
Interestingly, during the ending cinema of the game some Shy Guys can be seen talking with Watt, implying that they have changed their ways.
Dead, But Moving
In Luigi's Mansion, Shy Guys reappeared as ghosts with pitch forks (likely a reference to Beezos). To defeat them, Luigi had to suck up the Shy Guy's mask before he could suck it into his vacuum. Strangely this is the only type of Shy Guy that has been seen with its mask off.
Audience Members
Although Shy Guys were not actual enemies in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, they did appear in the audience of most of the battles, and a few stone Shy Guys also appeared on the Poshley Heights fountain. Occasionally, if part of the audience, Shy Guys will run onto the backstage and cause pieces of the set to fall on Mario or his enemies. Shy Guys will give Mario Star Power along with the other audience members when he performs a move correctly.
They also appear in the audience of Super Paper Mario when a Stylish Move is performed; it is interesting to note that the name "Heihoo" (which is Japanese for "Shy Guy") appears alongside other scrapped enemy names in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door's coding, indicating that Shy Guys were once going to appear as enemies in that game, although it is unknown if they were ever going to play any more major role than their final one in Super Paper Mario.
Other Appearances
Tennis
A Shy Guy was an unlockable character in Mario Tennis for the Nintendo 64. This is the first time a Shy Guy was ever playable. Shy Guy came back for another round in Mario Power Tennis, but this time was available from the start. For its power move, he does a Spear Guy-type dance, gets a spear, and electrifies the ball.
When it won a Singles Tournament, a cut-scene would play. During this, it would walk up to to podium with the trophy on while Luigi would be there applauding it. Accidentally, Shy Guy trips over a step on the small staircase and his mask falls off. The screen doesn't show what it looks like without his mask but an astonished Luigi sees it and just stands there with his mouth hanging wide open. Shy Guy quickly puts its mask back on, takes the trophy and walks off of the podium, thus ending the cut-scene. This shows that Shy Guys probably wear masks because they are hiding something very scary.
Racing
In Mario Kart: Double Dash!! Shy Guys appear ice-skating in Sherbet Land, forming obstacles for the racers. A statue of two Shy Guys can be seen in the background of Baby Park, and they appear in the audience of Waluigi Stadium. A Shy Guy was playable in the download play version of Mario Kart DS. Also, on the Action Replay DS Card, there was a cheat where the player could press select to play as the said Shy Guy.
Mario Party
Shy Guys appear in the Mario Party series (mainly in the minigames). In this series Shy Guys are friends of the Mario cast. In Mario Party 4 a Shy Guy (with Toad, a Boo, a Goomba and a Koopa Troopa) find the mystical Party Cube, with which they can create parties and game boards. In this game Shy Guy wears an Indiana Jones-like costume. And it has its own game board: Shy Guy's Jungle Jam.
A single, friendly, Shy Guy appears as the conductor of Shroom Citie's Train Station in Mario Party Advance. One of the games quests involves retrieving a ticket from him and delivering it to Goomba (an easy feat, since the Train Station is located only a few spaces away from the Goomba House. In another of the game's quests, the Shy Guy asks the Player to obtain Coal for him, because the Train's have apparently run out. The Player can find the Coal in the Vending Machines. Once this is done, he will reward the player with the Gaddget; Cake Maker.
Baseball
Shy Guys of all different colors were playable in Mario Superstar Baseball. They are balanced characters. Ironically, their starting captain is Yoshi, one of their earliest enemies.
Soccer
Shy Guys appear as sidekicks in Mario Strikers Charged. They are balanced players. Their skillshot is the Bullet Bill Blast. When Shy Guy scores, it does its own celebration. It runs but trips and its mask falls down similar to the Mario Power Tennis trophy award. Strangely, when Shy Guy scores, the mask makes facial expressions despite the fact that it's just a mask.
Super Smash Bros.
Shy Guys also appear in the Yoshi's Story stage of Super Smash Bros. Melee. Although they are actually Flying Shy Guys, they are called Shy Guys. The Shy Guys will fly past the stage. They are unable to damage players, but they carry Food with them, which can be dropped on the ground if they are attacked. If the player KOs a Shy Guy he receives the bonus "Shy Guy KO". They also have a trophy in their honor.
Shy Guys will soon appear in the Mario Circuit stage racing in go-karts in the upcoming game Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Fly Guys appear in the Yoshi' Island stage. They will retain the same job they had in the previous game. Not much information has been revealed on this topic, however.
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
Shy Guy is a referee in the Wii crossover, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games.
Appearances in Other Media
Cartoons
In The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, Shy Guys made irregular appearances as antagonists, working for King Koopa. Like most other minions of King Koopa, Shy Guys would wear costumes to go with the setting of an episode in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!
Publications
Shy Guys appeared commonly in issues of Nintendo Comics System, where they appeared as the, somewhat disgruntled, soldiers of Bowser; along with Koopa Troopas, Shy Guys appeared to be the most common minions of Bowser in Nintendo Comics System.
In Super Mario Adventures, a Shy Guy, along with a Snifit and Flurry, appeared as an attendee at Bowser's wedding to Princess Toadstool.
Movie
In the Super Mario Bros. movie, the scientist minions of King Koopa largely resembled Shy Guys, possessing similar masks and robe-like clothing; to strengthen this resemblance, the Snifits, close relatives of Shy Guys, of the Super Mario Bros. film also resembled these scientists.
Other Information
Allegiance
Shy Guys first appeared in Super Mario Bros. 2, where they were minions of the tyrannical king Wart. However, their first appearance chronologically was in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island where they were members of the Koopa Troop. Since Super Mario Bros. 2 may have actually been a dream, it is possible that the Shy Guys working for Wart were ghosts from Mario's childhood, meaning that they had never served anyone but Bowser. It can be assumed that the Shy Guys that work for Bowser answer to General Guy.
Since Super Mario Bros. 2, Shy Guys have been seen working for many other villains, including Smithy, Donkey Kong and Kamek. One Shy Guy (the White Shy Guy) is actually an ally of Yoshi. It may be assumed that Shy Guys are jacks-of-all-trades, and can work for whoever they want to or may even be mercenaries.
Physical Appearance
All Shy Guys (with the minor exception of General Guy) wear robes that can be red, pink, blue, yellow, green, black, or white. They are all fairly short, and all wear masks. It is unknown what is behind them, or if they are actually even masks. In the intro movie of Mario Power Tennis, Luigi sees a Shy Guy without his mask on, and is shocked of what he sees. In Luigi's Mansion, Luigi can use the Poltergust 3000 to pull the mask out of Shy Guy Ghosts. These faces are pure blackness with two glowing, yellow, eyes. It is unknown whether this is what a Shy Guy's face looks like when it is alive, or if the Shy Guy Ghosts are even actual Shy Guys, as they are not actually ghosts. They, like the game's other generic ghosts, were imitations created by Vincent Van Gore.
It is also possible that the Shy Guys' so-called "masks" are not masks at all, but rather faces. In Yoshi's Island DS, the sleeping Shy Guy's masks' eyeholes were closed, supporting this fact, and the Bandit sub-species of Shy Guy have been shown to have the ability to quite freely move the faces on their masks. (The "masks" of Bandits are also notable for looking little like masks at all, having cartoony facial expressions spangling them.) The picture shown when Bandit wins in Super Mario World 2 minigames even suggests that he is able to stick out his tongue. Also, Super Mario RPG's Shy Guys' eyeholes comically spin when the Shy Guy is confused, much like people's eyes do in cartoon gags; the Shy Guys of Super Mario RPG are also able to blush on their masks. Spear Guys and Cannibal Guys are perfectly capable of moving their mouthholes when chanting and singing, as Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island shows. Most recently, in Mario Strikers Charged, Shy Guys have been shown to yet again to be perfectly able to change the expressions on their masks. However, most information suggests that Shy Guy's mask is indeed a mask, and what he hides behind it is surely something very dark and secret.
Interestingly, early Super Mario Bros. 2 artwork of Shy Guys, as well as The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, depicted Shy Guys as wearing strange, Chuckola Fruit-like badges depicting an angry face. It is unknown what this badge represents; it is possible that it is some kind of emblem to the 8-bits, another Shy Guy-related element seen only in Super Mario Bros. 2. Super Mario Bros. 2 and The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! are also notable for using game artwork of the earliest forms of Shy Guys, making them tall, stout, and humanoid; however, the appearance of Shy Guys was later retconned to their in-game sprite appearance in Super Mario Bros. 2.
In the first few episodes of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, Shy Guys were depicted as being similar in appearance to their game counterparts, though with one large exception - their masks possessed only two holes, with these holes being, the eyeholes, perpetually being in the scowling position. Later episodes of the show would have Shy Guys resembling their game versions more, with their masks having three holes, all of which were perfectly circular.
Sub-Species
These two sub-species also have many different sub-species themselves:
Other:
- Anti Guy
- Barbecue Guy
- Beezo
- Black Shy Guy
- Boo Guy
- Boom Guy
- Chandeli-Ho
- Chuck Guy
- Elite Boom Guy
- Fat Guy
- Fly Guy
- Flying Shy Guy
- Ghoul Guy
- Glide Guy
- Groove Guy
- Gunner Guy
- Jetpack Guy
- Jungle Guy
- Limbo Guy
- Mace Guy
- Medi Guy
- Melon Guy
- Mini-Shy Guy
- Mock Up
- Mufti Guy
- Mummy Guy
- Phantom Guy
- Pirate Guy
- Pyro Guy
- Rocket Guy
- Shy Away
- Shy Guy Ghost
- Shy Guy Lion
- Shy Ranger
- Shy Squad
- Shy Stack
- Shyper
- Shyster
- Sky Guy
- Sling Shy
- Submarine Guy
- Tube Guy
- Woozy Guy
Notable Shy Guys
- Big Guy the Stilted - Yoshi's Island DS
- Game Guy - Mario Party 3
- General Guy - Paper Mario
- Gourmet Guy - Paper Mario
- Petal Guy - Mario Party Advance
- White Shy Guy - Yoshi's Story
Paper Mario Stats and Tattle Information
Shy Guy
- HP: 7
- Attack: 2
- Defense: 0
- Tattle: This is a Shy Guy. They're ne'er-do-wells. Big time rascals. No good... They occasionally do acrobatic attacks that have an attack power of 3. Who knows what lies in the hearts of these troublemakers? I guess they're dangerous, but they're pretty small time.
Sports Information
Mario Superstar Baseball Information
- Type: Balanced
- Starting Team Captain: Yoshi
- Status: Player
- Stats:
- Red Shy Guy Stats:
- Batting: 5/10
- Pitching: 3/10
- Fielding: 5/10
- Running: 4/10
- Blue Shy Guy Stats:
- Batting: 4/10
- Pitching: 3/10
- Fielding: 5/10
- Running: 5/10
- Yellow Shy Guy Stats:
- Batting: 3/10
- Pitching: 4/10
- Fielding: 5/10
- Running: 4/10
- Green Shy Guy Stats:
- Batting: 4/10
- Pitching: 4/10
- Fielding: 5/10
- Running: 4/10
- Black Shy Guy Stats:
- Batting: 4/10
- Pitching: 4/10
- Fielding: 6/10
- Running: 4/10
- Red Shy Guy Stats:
- Player Profile:
- Strong Point: Nothing Particular
- Special Talents: Sliding Catch
- Trajectory:
- Field: Center
- Height: Normal
- Star Pitch: Slowball
- Star Swing: Center
- Default Batting Position: Left
- Default Throwing Arm: Left
- Sweet Spot: The Shy Guy mask on the bat
- Compatible Relationships: Birdo, Monty Mole
Bio: "A charming, masked soldier. Shy Guys used to serve an evil king named Wart, but they nowadays make a lot of cameo appearances as friendly rivals of Mario. That said, they aren't always good... On the baseball mound, Shy Guys are consistent players with a few weaknesses."
Mario Power Tennis
Super Smash Bros. Melee trophy information
There are many types of Shy Guys: they've been known to walk on the ground, fly through the air, traipse about on stilts, wear flowers or camouflage, throw balls, swing bats, sail on pirate ships, carry fruit, do the Bamboo Dance, ride submarines, play guitar, play tennis, wear red, come in large or small sizes, steal people's toys, cause mischief...
Trivia
- The Mask-Guys from Virtual Boy Wario Land are very similar to Shy Guys in that they both have names ending in "guy" and that they are both shy creatures who hide their faces behind masks. As a matter of fact, Mask-Guy may be a Shy Guy sub-species, although this is unconfirmed.
- Luigi is the only person known to have seen a Shy Guy without his mask.
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