Balloon Fight (universe)
Balloon Fight (バルーンファイト, Barūn Faito) is a 1984 arcade game developed by Nintendo. In the game, players take control of an unnamed man who flies around using two balloons that are connected to his back. Each level features a number of ducks who also float using balloons; the goal is to pop each duck's balloons, defeating it.
The game spawned a few ports for the NES as well as several other video game systems. In addition, a sequel to the game, Balloon Kid, was released in 1990 for the Game Boy.
In the Super Smash Bros. series
Recently, the game and its main protagonist has enjoyed an increasing amount of popularity, largely because of the release of Super Smash Bros. Melee. The anonymous man, who is officially referred to as "Balloon Fighter" in-game, was considered to be a playable character and representative of the NES era, but did not make it into the final version of the game, instead being edged out by the Ice Climbers. Balloon Fight still receives some attention in Melee, however: Balloon Fighter is a collectible trophy in Super Smash Bros. Melee, and the Flipper - an obstacle from Balloon Fight - is a usable item and also a trophy. The original background music for Balloon Fight can also be heard in the Icicle Mountain stage as alternate music.
Additionally, a Balloon Fight reference can be found in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. On the stage Summit, a Fish originating from the game appears when the summit of Icicle Mountain slides into the water. The Fish is capable of eating any player unfortunate enough to be in the water at the time, dragging them off the screen and taking a life.
Brawl also features a cover of the Balloon Trip music, appearing on the same stage, that being Summit, in My Music.
The Balloon Fighter's "Blue hat, red overalls" outfit is available as one of Mario's alternate costumes throughout the Smash series.
In Super Smash Bros. 4, Villager uses the headgear from Balloon Fight in his up special move. The balloons can be popped individually, and popping both causes the Villager to fall helpless. Balloon Fight also appears as a stage in a retro appearance similar to Mario Bros. from Brawl.
As a trophy
The Balloon Fighter appears as one of the many collectible Trophies in Super Smash Bros. Melee.
The goal in Balloon Fight is to break your enemy's two balloons, depriving him of his flotation devices. If you lose one balloon, your buoyancy drops and it becomes harder to rise. As you can pop both friends' and enemies' balloons, you have to stay alert in this two-player fun fest. The balloonist's name is unknown. Trophy #011
