Metal Box

Metal Box
Metal Box artwork from Brawl.
Universe	Mario
Appears in	SSBM SSBB SSB4
Item class	Transforming
Article on Super Mario Wiki	Metal Box

The Metal Box, known in Japan as Green Block (緑ブロック, Midori burokku), is an item from the Mario series that appears in Super Smash Bros. Melee, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and Super Smash Bros. 4. The Metal Box encases the character's bodies with metal for a short period of time. Images of each character's metal form can be found here.

Description

The Metal Box encases the character's body in metal. In all three games, it has the following effects:

• It lasts about twelve seconds, but the time limit decreases as the user takes damage, especially from fire attacks like Bowser's Fire Breath. Powerful multi-hit attacks, such as Peach's down smash, however, can instantaneously cause the effect to wear off.
• User becomes heavier (about 3 times more), thus received knockback will be reduced.
• Slightly increases jumping height.
• Doubles a character's falling speed, making recoveries harder, and more vulnerable to certain chain grabs. Certain characters with multiple double jumps will not gain any vertical distance while under the effects of a Metal Box.
• Reduces walking and dashing speed slightly.
• Attacks performed by a metal character deal slightly more knockback, although the damage dealt remains unchanged.
• Metal characters receive some minor knockback resistance; in both games, weak projectiles such as Link's Arrows, and most jabs, will merely deal damage with no flinching.
• Removes any character's voices (although, as sound effects are still retained, Samus and Mr. Game & Watch are unaffected by this). However, getting knocked beyond the blast line of any stage will make the character scream as usual.
• When taking a step, there will be a different sound, probably meant to sound like metal hitting a surface. However, it more closely resembles a thin sheet of metal, suggesting that the character isn't turned into metal, just covered with it.

The effect of the Metal Box is not quite as drastic as the various Metal fights in Classic Mode, which last the whole battle and does not wear off. Additionally, the character will still lack voices of any sort when KO'd.

Super Smash Bros.

The Metal Box does not appear in SSB, but Metal Mario appears as a foe the player must battle in the 1-Player Game. Metal Mario here can take well over 300% damage before being sent flying off-screen.

Super Smash Bros. Melee

The Metal Box in Melee.

The Metal Box makes its debut in Melee. In this game, when characters break the Metal Box with a physical attack (be it with their hands, feet, or a weapon; so long as it isn't a projectile), their whole body will be encased with metal. The metal condition lasts around twelve seconds and then fades away. During this period they are approximately 3 times heavier than normal. If a projectile destroys the Metal Box, then no one can receive the metal condition. Interestingly, Ness' dash attack destroys the box, but does not give him the metal status. Characters can fight Metal Mario and/or Metal Luigi in Adventure Mode. In addition, they also fight a random metal character in Classic Mode. The Metal Box also appears as a collectible trophy.

Characters that are metal will also become mute (Star KO'd characters will not make any sounds, for example).

Depending on the weight of the character, distinctive sounds are made while walking. Lighter characters make a soft clanging noise, middleweights make a deeper one, and heavyweights make a far deeper and louder one.

Heavy characters such as Ganondorf, Samus, and Link and light characters such as the Ice Climbers and Zelda all make middleweight stepping sounds, despite not being medium weight.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl

The Metal Box appears again in Brawl with its effect unaltered, although it will not react to projectiles. In addition, a "Metal" option exists in Special Brawl, which gives every player a permanent Metal Box effect. It also has an effect on the new ability to swim; while characters will not sink as Metal Mario did in Super Mario 64, they will submerge deeper after falling into the water. This technique is used to reach a secret area in the Glacial Peak level of the Subspace Emissary mode (3 metal boxes are provided nearby). In Classic Mode, the player must also fight a random metal character. Additionally, the Metal Box also appears as a collectible trophy. The walking sound effect in Brawl is not the same as in Melee; everyone has the same sound when walking.

Super Smash Bros. 4

The Metal Box returns as an item. The physics are mostly the same as previous Smash games. A purely aesthetic difference is that the metal texture appears to be translucent (allowing players to see, for example, Mario's irises and pupils), rather than being opaque like in previous games.

Trophies

Melee

File:Metal Box Trophy HQ Melee.png

The Metal Box trophy from Melee.

Metal Box

First spotted in Super Mario 64, the Metal Box holds the power to turn your character briefly into heavy metal. Your mass is exponentially greater while metallic, making it difficult for others to throw you. Be careful, though: not only will you move a bit slower, but you'll also fall much more quickly than you ordinarily would."

Super Mario 64 9/96

Brawl

The Metal Box trophy from Brawl.

Metal Box

A green box that transforms whoever attacks it into metal. In metal form, you're a lot heavier than normal, so middling and even strong attacks don't move you too much, and standard attacks won't even make you flinch. The time you spend in metal form decreases with the damage you take. In Super Mario 64, the weight of the metal form allowed you to walk underwater.

: Super Mario 64

Origin

File:MetalBoxSM64.jpg

A Metal Box as it originally appeared in Super Mario 64.

Metal Boxes come from Super Mario 64, wherein Mario could destroy them by jumping from beneath them (only after activating them by pressing the Green "!" Switch) so that they release a Metal Cap. Once Mario puts this cap on, he himself becomes metal. He becomes powerful, able to walk underwater, and immune to all damage, but is much heavier and more sluggish and can't swim. These effects are similar in Melee and Brawl.

Interestingly, Metal Boxes were never referred to by that name in Mario 64; they were simply referred to as "green blocks".

Contrary to their depiction in the Super Smash Bros. series, the Metal Box did not remove Mario's voice under most circumstances, and only did so when he was submerged underwater. In addition, the box itself was not what caused Mario to become metal; rather, the metal cap within the box caused his transformation.

Trivia

• Despite affecting jumping and many recovery moves, being metal does not affect gliding whatsoever.
  • Also, Peach is still able to float without falling in metal form.
  • Yoshi's double jump height is additionally not affected in metal form.
• Mewtwo does not make any sounds while metal, even after landing from a jump.
• Olimar's Pikmin do not become metal.
  • Interestingly, Luma does become metal alongside Rosalina.
• In Melee, Brawl, and Smash 4, Mr. Game & Watch appears 3D after grabbing a Metal Box due to the metal texture, but after inspecting him with the camera (zooming in all the way and moving all the way to the left/right), he is still in two dimensions. This is because of the metal character's texture.