Lakitu & Spinies
Lakitu with Spinyball.jpg
MarioSymbol.svg

Lakitu throwing a Spiny in New Super Mario Bros. Wii.

Universe Mario
Debut Super Mario Bros. (1985)
Smash Bros. appearances SSB
Melee
Brawl
SSB4
Ultimate
Most recent non-Smash appearance Super Mario Party (2018)
Console/platform of origin Nintendo Entertainment System
Species Koopa
Gender Varies
Place of origin Mushroom Kingdom
Articles on Super Mario Wiki Lakitu
Spiny

Lakitu (ジュゲム, Jugem) is a character in the Mario series of video games. He is a green-shelled Koopa with an orange or yellow body, and thick, black glasses. He throws Spinies (トゲゾー, Togezo), which are spiky-shelled Koopas, while riding in a cloud with a smiling face known as Lakitu's Cloud.

Origin

 
Lakitu and Spinies as they originally appeared in Super Mario Bros..

Lakitu and Spinies made their first appearance in Super Mario Bros.. The Lakitu flies over Mario and attacks by throwing Spiny eggs, which turn into Spinies upon touching the ground. The Spinies are among the few enemies which can't be defeated by jumping, as their sharp spikes hurt Mario on contact. Lakitu is a dangerous enemy because since it flies high into the air it is most often out of reach, though like most enemies it can be defeated by jumping on it: some later games even allow Mario to ride Lakitu's Cloud after defeating it. In this game, Lakitu's Cloud was known as "Jugem's Cloud," as "Jugem" is Lakitu's Japanese name, which did not carry over to his cloud's name.

Since their first appearance, like Goombas and Koopas, Lakitu and the Spinies became series staples and appeared in several games, both as enemies with the same general behavior but sometimes employing slightly different attack patterns and, mostly in spin-off games, with neutral or supporting roles.

Lakitu and Spinies' appearances as Assist Trophies are taken straight from their 8-bit Super Mario Bros. designs.

In Super Smash Bros.

File:Lakitu Peach's Castle background.png
Lakitu in the background of Peach's Castle in Super Smash Bros.

A Fishin' Lakitu appears in the background of the Peach's Castle stage. His design is based on his appearance in Super Mario 64, complete with the camera on the end of the fishing rod.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee

8-bit Lakitus and Spinies appear in the background of Mushroom Kingdom, while a Fishin' Lakitu appears in the background of Yoshi's Island.

Trophy information

 
Lakitu trophy in Melee.
Lakitu

These airborne menaces used to ride their clouds exclusively as Bowser's henchmen. They typically hover just out of Mario's reach and hurl Spinies with irritating precision. More recently, however, they've been known to take on less evil tasks, such as doing camera work for sports events and even helping Mario on his quests.

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

 
Lakitu dropping a Spiny in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

In Brawl, a Lakitu appears from an Assist Trophy. He drops Spinies from the sky, which wander around and damage opponents upon touch. If the character is hit by a Spiny while airborne, they will be meteor smashed. Lakitu can be KO'd, which will prevent any additional Spinies from appearing. However, this can be hard, as reaching him can prove difficult, and hitting him correctly is also difficult. If he holds an egg, it could damage the player if he/she strike him. Sometimes it takes two hits to make Lakitu fall.

The Spinies thrown walk back and forth, damaging all players who touch them. They can be devastating, but are slow and easy to avoid. If Lakitu is KO'd, the spinies will still remain on-screen, walking around until they all fall off the stage or automatically disappear.

Despite being invulnerable, the Spinies have hitboxes. This is likely so that Lakitu can use a Spiny as a shield to avoid taking a hit from a character.

Glitch

When Lakitu is defeated, he'll fall while upside down. A glitch however, can cause Lakitu to be stuck in midair when defeated for a short period of time. While it lasts, it will disappear.

Trophy description

 
Lakitu and Spinies trophy in Brawl.
Lakitu & Spinies

A particularly stubborn breed of Koopa. Lakitus chase Mario aboard clouds and attack by throwing Spiny Eggs down from above. More recently, Lakitus have taken over the role of cameramen, filming with cameras that they dangle from long rods. Spinies are Koopa creatures with tough, spiked shells. Jumping onto them has no effect, but fireballs can dispatch them.

Super Mario Bros. (1985)
Super Mario 64 (1996)

Stickers

Name Game Effect Characters
Lakitu Mario Kart: Super Circuit AttackLeg+013  Attack +13 Mario Luigi Peach Bowser Yoshi     
Lakitu New Super Mario Bros. AttackAura+006  Attack +6 Lucario 
Spiny New Super Mario Bros. AttackSlash+009  Attack +9 All characters 
 
Lakitu
(Mario Kart: Super Circuit)
 
Lakitu
(New Super Mario Bros.)
 
Spiny
(New Super Mario Bros.)

In Super Smash Bros. 4

 
A Lakitu, a Spiny and a Spiny Egg in Smash Run.
 
A Lakitu and Spiny Egg in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

As an Assist trophy

The Lakitu and Spinies retain their appearance and behavior as an Assist Trophy from Brawl.

In Smash Run

Lakitu appears as an enemy, using his modern appearance instead of his 8-bit one. Like in its home series, he attacks by throwing Spiny eggs which turn into Spinies upon touching the ground. Damaging a Lakitu enough will knock him down from its cloud, though given enough time he will regain it. The Spinies do not drop any powerup when defeated.

Trophy information

The Lakitu & Spinies trophy is available in both versions, and in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U it is part of the Bowser's Minions Trophy Box. The other trophies are exlusives to Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

Lakitu & Spinies
  Flying over the battlefield in a cloud, this member of Bowser's forces persistently chases after Mario. He takes a break from throwing Spiny Eggs to do some racing in Mario Kart 7. When summoned, he'll appear as a sprite and toss Spiny Eggs at those fighting below him.
  One of Bowser's minions, this cloud-riding turtle and general nuisance to Mario made his debut as a playable character in Mario Kart 7. In this game, you can summon a pixellated Lakitu who'll throw Spiny Eggs that will turn into Spinies - beasties with red, spiky shells - when they hit the ground.
 : Super Mario Bros. (10/1985)
 : New Super Mario Bros. U (11/2012)
Lakitu
  With his cute little specs and smiling cloud, it's hard not to love Lakitu...until he starts pelting you with Spiny Eggs. This meanie has been tormenting Mario since the very first Super Mario Bros. game, and his mode of attack is no different here. He'll try and hover out of reach, but only by taking him out can you keep the Spiny rain from falling.
  With his cute little specs and smiling cloud, it's hard not to love Lakitu...until he starts pelting you with Spiny Eggs. This blighter has been tormenting Mario since the very first Super Mario Bros. game, and his mode of attack is no different here. Although he loves to hover just out of reach, you'll want to take him out to stop those Spinies coming.
Spiny
  Somebody needs to ask Lakitu just where he gets these spiky-shelled little critters... They start off as Spiny Eggs when he hurls them and then turn into Spinies when they land. They'll immediately head for any fighters in the area. Avoid them or take them out—your choice!
  Somebody needs to ask Lakitu just where he gets these spiky-shelled little critters... They start off as Spiny Eggs when he hurls them, then turn into the spinies we know and... "love" when they land, immediately heading for any fighters in the area! Try dodging just before those spikes touch you, and then move in to attack!
Lakitu + Cloud 9
  This cloud kart is basically the bottom half of Lakitu. With its fluffy design and zippy style, Cloud 9 seems like a good match for Yoshi, but can you imagine what it would look like for Wario to drive this? It might just be distracting enough to give you an advantage!
  This cloud kart is basically Lakitu's other half. As in, "bottom half". Being so fluffy, it would be a good fit for Yoshi, but can you imagine Wario driving it? That'd just be weird! Then again, maybe he'd use that to throw his opponents off their game... Yep, that Wario's a sneaky one!

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Lakitu is no longer an Assist Trophy, but rather appears as a spirit. Lakitu's spirit is battled in the form of Iggy Koopa as Lakitu with tiny red Bowsers as Spinies.

Gallery

Trivia

  • Lakitu and Spinies are one of 5 Assist Trophies to have appeared since Brawl, but absent in Ultimate.