Hotel Delfino
| Hotel Delfino | |
|---|---|
 Screenshot fromSuper Mario Sunshine | |
| First appearance | Super Mario Sunshine (2002) |
| Latest appearance | Super Mario 3D All-Stars (2020) |
| Greater location | Sirena Beach |
| Owner | Hotel manager |
| Inhabitants | Piantas,Nokis,Boos |
- “This hotel is outfitted with the finest auto-lock system available. Security here is top-notch! No worries at all! We do have trouble getting around, however...”
- —Pianta,Super Mario Sunshine
Hotel Delfino is a luxurious four-star[1] hotel resort onIsle Delfino. It is located on the island's southwest coast, and it serves as the pivotal location inSirena Beach, the sixth world ofSuper Mario Sunshine. The hotel is owned and managed by aPianta, thehotel manager. The hotel's Japanese name, along with that of Casino Delfino, is the only instance of the word "Delfino" in the Japanese version ofSuper Mario Sunshine, outside the opening cutscene, where the same English voices are used.Mario visits the hotel in search ofShine Sprites. At noon, prior to Mario's arrival, the hotel got attacked byPhantamanta, which covered the premises inelectric goop and made the hotel vanish. Mario arrives at sunset during another attack of Phantamanta, allowing him to battle the creature and free the hotel from thegoop.
After Mario defeats Phantamanta, the hotel itself becomes accessible. Mario has to deal with a massiveBoo infestation inside the building. In search of Sirena Beach's Shine Sprites, he has to circumvent the hotel's security system, battle Boos in the foyers and the attic, and use hidden pathways and portals to get from room to room. The source of the ghost invasion is eventually located inside the hotel casino. Here, Mario battlesKing Boo beneath the giant roulette wheel. Mario's quest in Hotel Delfino then comes to completion with aShadow Mario duel and a finalRed Coin hunt through the various hotel rooms.
By design of the developers, the player cannot leave Hotel Delfino through normal means once entered. The building can be exited either through collecting a Shine Sprite or using the "Exit Area" command from the menu. A similar case occurs in the hotel casino.
Hotel Delfino appears to be inspired by the Overlook Hotel, a fictional establishment that serves as the setting for the 1977 American horror novelThe Shining. Both hotels are located in secluded areas of their parent countries and are inhabited by ghosts, and the encounter with Phantamanta outside the hotel parodies the novel's ending, in which Danny Torrance looks back at the Overlook Hotel's destroyed remains and describes a large apparition rising from it that "assumed the shape of a huge, obscene manta, and then the wind seemed to catch it, to tear it and shred it like old dark paper. It fragmented, was caught in a whirling eddy of smoke, and a moment later it was gone as if it had never been." Additionally, the maze-like layout of Hotel Delfino seems to nod to the1980 film adaptation ofThe Shining, in which the hotel's interior architecture is subtly and intentionally implausible and inconsistent.
Layout[edit]
The hotel building is composed of three regular floors, two basements, and one attic floor. The first floor serves as the lobby, with a reception desk, a small kiosk servingfruit, and two guest restrooms. The second and third floors are reserved for guest rooms, as well as storage rooms. The doors leading to those rooms can be locked. Some of the rooms are also interconnected through passages behind furniture. There is also a spa located on the third floor that under normal circumstances requires appropriate swimwear to be entered. The entire building is equipped with a security system, referred to as the auto-lock system. It activates in cases of emergency and makes the stairs connecting the different floors inaccessible with massive shutters.
The premises of Hotel Delfino include two cabanas serving fruit cocktails, as well as some fountains, and a sun deck from which guests can enjoy scenic sunsets, as advertised in the Isle Delfino guide. When viewed from above, the fountains, torches, and huts are reminiscent of aNintendo GameCube controller.
Casino Delfino[edit]
- Main article:Casino Delfino
Casino Delfino is a sub-section of Hotel Delfino. Once the casino is entered, a player cannot return to any other part of Sirena Beach. Casino Delfino features two huge slot machines and a tile set that can be operated through spraying them withwater. There are also other, smaller slot machines from whichcoins can be obtained through aGround Pound. A giant roulette wheel makes up the center of the casino hall.
Music[edit]
The music of Hotel Delfino featuresrhythm ukulele, electric bass, and various percussion instruments, including bongos, congas,güiro,marimba,vibraphone, andwooden wind chimes throughout. Atheremin-like synthesizer comes in and out with the melody.
 Hotel Delfino | File info 0:30 |
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ホテル・デルフィーノ[?] Hoteru Derufīno | Hotel Delfino | |
| Italian | Hotel Delfino[2] | Hotel Dolphin |
Notes[edit]
- In all episodes except for one, every door in the hotel (with the exception of the door at the northwest corner of the third floor, to the left of the pool room) is locked. In Episode 7 (Shadow Mario Checks In), every single door in the hotel is open, and the player can then collect all of the rooms' individualBlue Coins and explore the hotel without having to use the attic ducts or ground-pounding through the ceilings/floors.
- In theSuper Mario 3D All-Stars version ofSuper Mario Sunshine, the mirrors in the bathrooms of certain room doors in the level have glitchy reflections.[3] Also, mirrors such as one in Hotel Delfino,[4][dead link] when viewed at certain angles, were not adjusted correctly to fit the new widescreen display, causing it to stretch.
References[edit]
- ^"The gentle lapping of the sea accompanies spectacular sunsets and romantic dinners beneath starry skies. The four-star Hotel Delfino has it all." –Guidebook.Super Mario Sunshine.
- ^«L'Hotel Delfino offre tutto questo... e molto di più.» –Guida turistica. Sabbie Rosse.Super Mario Sunshine (Italian).
- ^https://web.archive.org/web/20201117033323/https://twitter.com/ZephyrStarbyt/status/1328537056893562881
- ^https://twitter.com/ShinyQuagsire/status/13074983030560399361
