Blimp
Blimps in theSuper Mario franchise are airborne transportation vehicles with varying designs that takeMario and other characters to a different location. However, some blimps just appear as background objects.
History[edit]
Mario Kart series[edit]
Mario Kart: Super Circuit[edit]
InMario Kart: Super Circuit, aLuigi blimp can be seen inLuigi Circuit andSky Garden, the course that immediately follows Luigi Circuit inLightning Cup. In Luigi Circuit, the blimp waits until the third lap to take off and fly, whereas it is later seen flying in Sky Garden.
Mario Kart: Double Dash!![edit]
A Luigi blimp also appears inMario Kart: Double Dash!!'sLuigi Circuit floating in the air above the racetrack, this time being a 3D model. This blimp does not appear if the players are racing in split-screen mode. It also appears on Luigi Circuit's logo.
Mario Kart DS[edit]
InMario Kart DS, the Luigi blimp fromMario Kart: Super Circuit reappears inGBA Luigi Circuit, where it now starts to take off on the second lap, andGBA Sky Garden. In the demo versions of the game, the blimp also appears inGCN Luigi Circuit.
Mario Kart Arcade GP 2[edit]
Blimps appear again inMario Kart Arcade GP 2 in various different styles and colors, sometimes referencing to a certain character. A red blimp and a green one can be seen inMario Highway and aWaluigi blimp can be spotted floating above the race track inStadium Arena while following its layout. However, this blimp is not present inWaluigi Stadium even if the track takes place at the same location as Stadium Arena.
Mario Kart Wii[edit]
InMario Kart Wii, a blimp appears inLuigi Circuit, this time being aCheep Cheep-shaped blimp and not a Luigi balloon. It can be seen taking off from a landing platform in the middle of a lake located inside the race track and flying overhead afterwards.
Mario Kart 7[edit]
InMario Kart 7, the Wii blimp seen inWii Sports Resort, named theWhale Shark, appears inWuhu Loop andWuhu Town.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe[edit]
InMario Kart 8 Deluxe, the Whale Shark appears in3DS Wuhu Town, now featuring the modernMario Kart logo. In theBooster Course Pass DLC pack, theMario Kart Tour blimp without theTour part of the logo appears inTour Singapore Speedway.
Mario Kart Tour[edit]
A blimp with theMario Kart Tour logo appears in the background ofSingapore Speedway and GBA Sky Garden, where it is flying in the background. It is featured as a course element in the R and R/T variants of the former course, where the player can performJump Boosts by bouncing on it. In the Coin Rush variant, the blimp is used to carry aBoost Ring. The Luigi blimp returns in GBA Luigi Circuit, now with the Luigi Raceway logo, and flies over the track throughout the race.
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door[edit]
- Main article:Cheep Blimp
A particular blimp known as theCheep Blimp appears inPaper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.
Mario Party 8[edit]
A special blimp appears inMario Party 8 which can be seen on the boxart and during the opening sequence of theStar Carnival, after having selected the file, while twoParagoombas with a redMario Party 8 banner are passing through the screen.
Mario & Luigi: Dream Team[edit]
- Main article:Zeeppelin
A particular blimp known as theZeeppelin appears inMario & Luigi: Dream Team.
Princess Peach: Showtime![edit]
The stageThe Stolen Statue inPrincess Peach: Showtime! takes place mostly onboard a blimp whoseSour Thief pilots have stolen the stage's titular statue.Dashing Thief Peach gets onboard the blimp in mid-flight by making her up through propeller airplanes that fly immediately behind the blimp. Once onboard she makes her way through indoor and outdoor corridors and eventually smashes through the front window of the cockpit, defeating the pilots, followed up by opening up the onboard docking port through its crane system and making her escape from the blimp's rapid self-destruction procedure.
TheRibboner also appears on the blimp, saying he had bought a ticket to the wrong blimp. Once he is rescued byPeach, he states his plans to make his own escape from the blimp with a parachute he had brought with him.
Super Smash Bros. series[edit]
InSuper Smash Bros. for Wii U andSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate, the Whale Shark appears in theWuhu Island stage, now featuring the Wii U logo.
Gallery[edit]
Screenshots[edit]
Mario Kart: Super Circuit
Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
Mario Kart DS
Mario Kart DS
Mario Party 8
Mario Kart Wii
Mario Kart 7
Mario Kart Tour
Mario Kart Tour
Sprites and models[edit]
TheLuigi blimp fromMario Kart: Super Circuit
Logo ofLuigi Circuit fromMario Kart: Double Dash!! with a Luigi blimp
The Luigi blimp as it appears inMario Kart: Double Dash!!
TheLuigi blimp fromMario Kart DS
TheCheep Cheep-shaped blimp fromMario Kart Wii
The Whale Shark fromMario Kart 7
The Whale Shark fromMario Kart 8 Deluxe
TheMario Kart Tour blimp fromMario Kart Tour
