Metal Mario

Metal Mario
Official artwork of Metal Mario from Mario Kart 7.
A boss in	SSB Melee Ultimate
Universe	Mario
Console of origin	Nintendo 64
Location	Meta Crystal Battlefield New Donk City Hall (Ω form)
Article on Super Mario Wiki	Metal Mario

Metal Mario (メタルマリオ, Metal Mario) is a character from the Mario franchise.

Origin

Metal Mario as he appears in Super Mario 64.

Metal Mario debuted in Super Mario 64 as a metallic power-up transformation for Mario. Mario assumes this form by collecting a Metal Cap from a Metal Box, which becomes accessible after activating the green Cap Switch in the Cavern of the Metal Cap within Hazy Maze Cave. In this state, Mario becomes completely invulnerable but significantly heavier; this allows him to defeat enemies on contact, resist strong winds, be unaffected by poison clouds, and walk underwater. However, his increased weight reduces his jump height and distance, prevents him from swimming, and causes him to sink faster in quicksand.

Super Smash Bros. was the first instance of Metal Mario existing as a separate character from Mario. Within the Mario series, this was shortly followed by his official debut in international versions of the Nintendo 64 game Mario Golf. He would since become a recurring character and occasional antagonist in various Mario spin-off games. However, in Super Mario 64 DS, only Wario or a character wearing Wario's Cap can obtain the effects of the Metal Cap, whose function is served by the Power Flower.

In Super Smash Bros.

As a boss

Fox vs. Metal Mario

Metal Mario debuts as a sub-boss in Stage 9 of the 1P Game, fought exclusively on the Meta Crystal stage.

Although he visually resembles an alternate costume of Mario at first glance, Metal Mario is a formidable opponent with drastically altered attributes. Unlike the power-up in Super Mario 64, he is not invincible. Metal Mario rarely flinches from standard attacks (never doing so at low damage percentages), resists grabs and throws at low percentages, and is the heaviest fighter in the game. Metal Mario possesses a built-in handicap modifier that allows him to withstand roughly 200% damage before becoming susceptible to being launched, though this threshold scales with the chosen difficulty setting. While his attacks deal standard damage, they inflict noticeably increased knockback. Conversely, Metal Mario is exceptionally vulnerable to edge-guarding; once knocked offstage, his extreme falling speed severely impairs his recovery despite the vertical reach of his Super Jump Punch. Furthermore, an 8-frame jumpsquat makes aerial attacks sluggish for Metal Mario to execute.

Metal Mario never dashes and rarely jumps, instead pacing across the stage at a steady walk. On lower difficulties, he acts passively and attacks infrequently, typically only when he is interrupted. Metal Mario's aggression and knockback increase on higher settings. He also seldom uses his Fireball attack, unlike a standard CPU-controlled Mario, and Kirby cannot acquire a copy ability from inhaling him.

Although he originates from the Mario universe, Metal Mario has a unique series symbol: a metallic variant of the Super Mushroom.

As a playable character

Metal Mario's model in Smash 64.

Metal Mario as he appears in Smash 64.

Metal Mario can be controlled if loaded via the debug menu or the Gameshark code 800A4B3B 000D. Despite his power in 1P Game, many players consider him to be far worse than normal Mario. Despite his aforementioned strengths and knockback resistance, he is less resilient than his 1P Game counterpart, as his handicap is removed; additionally, his buffed knockback is neutralised. For all intents and purposes, playable Metal Mario is regular Mario with altered movement physics.

Metal Mario maintains some knockback-based armor, able to resist weak attacks at lower percentages, while being immune to Fox's Blaster and Luigi Cyclone's 1%-dealing hitboxes. He also has reduced combo potential, as he cannot efficiently follow up with combos after attacking due to an abysmal short hop, 8-frame jumpsquat, and awkward aerial and dashing physics. Metal Mario's fall speed of 100 is faster than his fast fall speed of 72 - the only character in the game like this - making Metal Mario fall slower when initiating a fast fall. Because of how fast Metal Mario falls, while it helps with vertical survivability, it hinders his recovery, makes getting out of combos very difficult, and also makes him vulnerable to chain grabs. Notably, Metal Mario's equivalent to Mario Tornado arguably hinders his recovery instead of helping, gaining almost no height.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee

As a boss

Metal Mario as he appears in Melee.

Metal Mario and Metal Luigi appear in Melee's Adventure Mode.

Metal Mario returns as a minor boss in Adventure Mode, where he is fought during Stage 11 on Battlefield after the player defeats fifteen Fighting Wire Frames.

Unlike in the previous game, Metal Mario is no longer classified as an independent character; instead, he is Mario fighting under the permanent effects of the new Metal Box item, albeit with a slightly faster falling speed (making him almost incapable of using his recovery) and reduced knockback resistance. Additionally, Metal Mario now actively engages the player rather than passively pacing the stage.

If Luigi is unlocked, Metal Mario is joined by Metal Luigi, making the battle significantly more challenging. Like Metal Mario, Metal Luigi functions as Luigi under a permanent Metal Box effect (complete with the same increased falling speed). Defeating both opponents awards the 8,000-point "Metal Bros. KO" bonus. Metal Luigi does not reappear as an NPC opponent in any subsequent Super Smash Bros. title, unlike Metal Mario.

In addition to their Adventure Mode roles, either Metal Mario or Metal Luigi can appear as the random metal opponent on the penultimate stage of Classic Mode.

Trophy

The Metal Mario trophy can be randomly obtained through the 1-P mode of the Trophy Lottery.

Metal Mario's trophy in Melee

Metal Mario

Mario was in for a surprise the first time he hit a Metal Box in Super Mario 64. The metal cap that popped out transformed Mario into living metal, giving him great stamina, a heavy tread, and the ability to walk underwater. In Super Smash Bros., Metal Mario showed up as an incredibly stubborn midlevel boss.

Super Mario 64 (9/96)

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Metal Mario and Metal Luigi are no longer distinct boss characters; instead, they simply serve as potential solo metal opponents in Classic Mode between stages 6 through 10. The Metal Box also returns as a usable item for any fighter, including Mario and Luigi.

In Super Smash Bros. 4

In Super Smash Bros. for Wii U's Classic Mode, either Metal Mario or Metal Luigi can appear as an intruder, replacing an opponent prior to battle. They can also be encountered in Crazy Orders, where they can appear on any random stage rather than being restricted to Battlefield or Mario-themed stages.

• 

  in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS
• 

  in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Metal Mario in Ultimate.

Metal Mario returns as a boss character in Ultimate, where he is fought during the final round of Bowser's Classic Mode after the player defeats the regular Mario. This battle mirrors Mario's own Classic Mode route, where Giga Bowser is fought after winning the initial match against Bowser.

Spirit

Metal Mario also appears as an Ace-class primary spirit. It depicts his artwork from Mario Kart 7 of him standing beside a B Dasher; the stack of tires are depicted in the spirit but not the kart itself.

Metal Mario's Spirit Battle uses a Metal Mario puppet fighter and is fought on The Great Cave Offensive stage's Battlefield form. The stage references the Cavern of the Metal Cap where the Metal power-up form is first obtained from Super Mario 64, but it could also be alluding to the Meta Crystal stage from Super Smash Bros., where Metal Mario is fought as a boss. The music track is based on the Metal boss battle theme song from Melee, which features Metal Mario as a mini-boss. During the battle, Mario is slow but has increased defense and attack, referencing how the Metal power-up form grants the player increased attack power and resistance to damage, but makes them move slower. In general, equipping the Metal Mario spirit gives the fighter a higher defense rating.

Metal Mario's core is one of three required to summon the Gold Mario spirit, alongside those of a Super Mushroom and a Fire Flower.

No.	Image	Name	Type	Class	Slots	Base	Max	Base	Max	Base	Max	Ability	Series
21		Metal Mario		★★★	1	2705	8156	510	1539	2042	6156	Weight ↑	Super Mario Series

Names in other languages

Language	Name
Japanese	メタルマリオ, Metal Mario
English	Metal Mario
French	Mario de métal
German	Metall-Mario
Spanish	Mario de metal
Italian	Mario metallo
Chinese (Simplified)	金属马力欧
Chinese (Traditional)	金屬瑪利歐
Korean	메탈마리오, Metal Mario
Dutch	Metalen Mario
Russian	Марио-металл

Trivia

The reflection of Yoshi's Island seen on Metal Mario's trophy.

• If one looks closely at the reflection on Metal Mario's trophy in Melee, the Yoshi's Island stage can be seen. This is easiest to spot on his hat, nose, or bottom.
• Thanks to items and Special Modes, Metal Mario and Giant Donkey Kong became the first non-playable characters to be playable in all future games.
• Uniquely from any other character in Super Smash Bros.'s 1P Game, when the Announcer introduces Metal Mario, his voice gains a slight change, becoming deeper and metallic.