Super Mario Expedition Remix

=Super Mario Expedition=

Super Mario Expedition is a 3D platformer in the Super Mario series developed by Ghostrealm Studios and published by Nintendo as a launch title for the GhostDrive. It intends to challenge the conventions of the Mario series thematically while building upon the gameplay of Super Mario Excursion.

On May 22, 2018, Ghostrealm and Lone Planet officially announced that they had come to a deal to include Expedition and its semi-prequel Excursion in the Vicinity gaming/cinematic universe.

Contents
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 * 1) Story
 * 2) Opening
 * 3) Collecting Sun Gems
 * 4) Discovery in Lunar Falls
 * 5) Fintendo Park Attack
 * 6) Arrested on the Highway
 * 7) Naval Attack
 * 8) The Savannah Crisis
 * 9) The Final Stretch
 * 10) The Lord of Ice and Fire
 * 11) Ending
 * 12) Characters
 * 13) Gameplay
 * 14) Controls
 * 15) S.T.E.A.M. Modules
 * 16) Areas
 * 17) Tentacle Harbor
 * 18) Territories
 * 19) Landmarks
 * 20) Secret Levels
 * 21) Enemies
 * 22) Bosses
 * 23) Items
 * 24) Minigames
 * 25) Photo Gallery
 * 26) Balloon World
 * 27) Development
 * 28) Gallery
 * 29) Trivia

Opening
Mario receives a letter from an individual whose initials are simply "Z.N.T.". In said letter, the individual invites Mario to the distant Kaliente Kingdom for a celebratory vacation due to his prior adventure. Mario decides to travel to the kingdom, but doesn't go alone. L.K., Timid Guy, and Trumbone also tag along, wanting to join Mario in his journey.

To reach the Kaliente Kingdom, Mario brings out an old friend: the Sky Pop, a plane he used in Sarasaland. The group takes the plane to the continent, arriving in the harbor town known as Tentacle Harbor. Here, various species from across the world, ranging from Tostarenans, to Eight-Bitters, to Piantas, inhabit the town. As Mario arrives, a small octupus-like creature waves at him with his tentacle. Identifying himself as Zaliente, he tells Mario that he was the one who sent the letter, and seeks his help in defeating House Kaliente, the nefarious group that controls the continent. To this extent, he presents Mario with a device he calls S.T.E.A.M.: the Super Temperature Examiner and Modifier, developed by Gadd Science Inc.. This device is capable of shooting fire or ice, and is similar in nature to F.L.U.D.D.. As Mario equips the device, the two heads of the device begin to bicker and argue as Mario puts his hands over their muzzles and smirks.

However, once Mario equips S.T.E.A.M., a horde of Octoombas and Brolders storm the harbor, but with the help of S.T.E.A.M., Mario repels them. However, he does manage to stumble upon a strange portal of sorts, which he then leaps into alongside his allies.

Collecting Sun Gems
When Mario arrives through the portal, he finds himself in a beach-like area full of broken ships and a large Kremling population. As he explores, he finds himself picking up mysterious orange crystals, which Zaliente identifies as Sun Gems. He tells Mario about how Kaliente's forces have been trying to excavate the gems ever since they started showing up on the continent. Mario makes his way through Crocodile Shore, and eventually stumbles upon the KremKo Oil Rig, where he confronts King Kaliente's son, Prince Pikante. The prince battles Mario, but is defeated, leaving behind a Solar Gem in the process.

After collecting more Sun Gems, Mario eventually gains access to the Hammer Module, which he can then use to bust down a pile of rocks hiding a pipe to Kelp Jungle. From there, he can keep on collecting Sun Gems until he unlocks the Ball Module, which can then be used to melt the ice surrounding a pipe to Lunar Falls.

Discovery in Lunar Falls
When Mario reaches Lunar Falls, he's immediately captured by the natives: a tribe of Underworlders. Unlike the ones he encountered in the past, these ones seem far more hostile. Mario is taken to Tsukai Village, their home, where an Underworlder known as Sapphire confronts him. The leader of the village, he tells Mario that ever since his son went missing, he's been weary of outsiders. Mario however manages to escape the village, and enters the mysterious Equinox Cavern. There, he manages to rescue Sapphire's son, known as Platinum. He's relatively scared, but seems to be happy once Mario arrives.

When Mario returns the boy home, Sapphire thanks the plumber and tells him a story. Several years ago, a tragedy befell his people, but he led some of them to this land, where they remained in hiding. Sapphire specifically mourned for his sister, who he feared had been killed in the chaos. Yet, he remained focused on leading the small ragtag band of survivors in Lunar Falls. He offers his aid to Mario, as House Kaliente has begun to strip Lunar Falls of its resources.

After Mario collects enough Sun Gems, a boat opens up to Fintendo Park.

Fintendo Park Attack
When Mario arrives in Fintendo Park, it's in chaos. A giant mechanical dragon of some sort is wreaking havoc throughout the park, and it's up to Mario to stop it. After a pitched battle, the beast is defeated, but is revealed to just be a poorly made mech of sorts manned by Octoombas. From that point on, Mario is free to roam the park.

After enough Sun Gems are collected, a bus opens up that leads to the Law-Ridden Highway.

Arrested on the Highway
When Mario arrives at the Law-Ridden Highway, he's almost instantaneously apprehended by Octoomba police officers, who strip him of S.T.E.A.M. and throw him into the Lockdown Penitentiary. However, Mario not only manages to rescue S.T.E.A.M., but also escapes the prison.

Prince Pikante eventually visits the prison in a new hovercraft vehicle, but Mario manages to defeat him. Once more Sun Gems are collected, a rockslide reveals a pipe to the Dehydrated Wastes.

Naval Attack
Mario eventually returns to Tentacle Harbor after collecting more Sun Gems from the Dehydrated Wastes, finding the harbor in chaos. A fleet of warships seem to be bombarding the area from afar, with giant Octopuses on the ships firing huge fireballs. Mario uses the Hover Module to get to the ships, and from there, a platforming segment begins where you'll hop from ship to ship.

Eventually, Mario reaches the flagship, where a giant Kremling known simply as General Klump is standing idle, watching the Octopuses firing on the harbor. He then jumps in shock upon seeing Mario, grabbing a giant wooden gun. From there, he fires a barrage of oranges into the air, which explode upon hitting the ground. After defeating General Klump and retrieving a Solar Gem, the ship begins to explode due to the oranges fired off in the battle, forcing Mario to escape within a certain timeframe. Yet, after returning to Tentacle Harbor, Mario notices that one of the areas a fireball from earlier hit seemed to have created a portal, similar to the one used to reach Crocodile Shore.

This portal takes him to Ectopolis, an abandoned city full of ghosts. After collecting more Sun Gems, Mario gains the Rocket Module, which allows him to reach a pipe to Diceroll Isle up on top of a building in Tentacle Harbor. After even more collecting, Windy Ridge opens up.

The Savannah Crisis
After exploring Windy Ridge, Mario manages to obtain the Glide Module and open up access to the Sunny Savannah. Here, House Kaliente's troops have set up camp across the plains, conducting an operation of some sort. In fact, a lot of cannons are present in their war camps.

Eventually, Mario reaches the Tree of Paradise, heading inside. It seems to be quite empty save for Octoombas, until Mario reaches a Bully coated in fire known as the Inferno Bully. After a long, ardous battle, the Inferno Bully is defeated, albeit the worst has come: outside the tree, countless Octoomba soldiers and their weapons begin firing on the tree. While Mario escapes, the entire savannah's skies are lit aflame and the once tranquil land is thrown into chaos.

After collecting more Sun Gems, Gigantica opens up due to the unlocking of the Cart Module, which lets Mario bust open access to the area. After that, the unlocking of the Scuba Module after collecting more Sun Gems lets Mario reach an underwater pipe leading to the Scorching Tundra.

The Final Stretch
Finally, after exploring areas and collecting more Sun Gems, Mario unlocks S.T.E.A.M.'s final module: the Glide Module. At this point, Zaliente informs him that now would be the best time to begin the trek to the Kal'ent Fortress, the stronghold of House Kaliente. The voyage begins with Mario using the Glide Module to access a pipe to the Fortified Harbor. There, it's revealed that House Kaliente is amassing weapons and constructing a fleet of airships to use in some sort of military operation. Atop the Vigilant Lighthouse, Mario even does battle with one of their airships, leaving it to crash into the nearby ocean.

After more Sun Gem collecting, Mario manages to open up access to Yunshoom Valley in an attempt to snag a train to the Kal'ent Fortress, but fails to reach it in time. As he returns to Tentacle Harbor in defeat, he finds that Prince Pikante is leading an attack on the harbor, and goes off to confront him. After Pikante's defeat, he flies off in his airship, leaving Mario to give chase in the Sky Pop.

The Lord of Ice and Fire
Mario, Zaliente, L.K., Trumbone, and Timid Guy eventually arrive at the Kal'ent Fortress via the Sky Pop, though the plane is shot down by cannonfire from the fortress. Strangely, both fire and ice projectiles are fired, unlike past weaponry utilized by House Kaliente. As Mario navigates the grounds of the fortress, he finds out information about the history of the area, and seems to discover that the local propaganda is condemning Bowser of all people as a monster who ruthlessly forced their people into a war they didn't want to fight. Mario eventually also finds

The descent down the sanctum is long and arduous, but Mario eventually reaches King Kaliente's central court. Here, the king himself rises out of the lava, recognizing Mario, and especially noticing S.T.E.A.M. on his back. He asks Mario when he managed to steal a device KremKo was making for his troops, to which Mario stares at Zaliente on his shoulder. The small octopus admits to Mario in a fuss that he was actually due to be using S.T.E.A.M. as a soldier of Kaliente, but went rogue due to his own beliefs. Kaliente also remarks about how his people had been forced into coming to Mario's world by Bowser, back when he sought to build his own galaxy. As part of that, he had pillaged Kaliente's homeworld and forced his people into a war. Viewing Mario as the catalyst of all of this, Kaliente engages in battle with the plumber, a battle Mario wins.

Or so it seems.

After Mario manages to defeat Kaliente, the enraged king begins to draw energy from the lava, before his body turns to a brownish orange color. At that point, he also begins to spew ice from his mouth, as if he controls both elements. He then exclaims to Mario that once he's done with him, he'll be consuming the Mushroom Kingdom next. Battle breaks out once again, with Mario engaging King Kaliente over a constantly-shifting battlefield of lava and ice, before landing the final blow to him. At that point, the king begins to explode in a blast of fire and ice as he screams Mario's name. Mario and his allies rush out of the sanctum in a hurry as it collapses in on itself, only barely making it out. From there, an explosion of fire and ice consumes the night sky of the Kaliente Kingdom, with citizens from all over the continent seeing it and cheering.

Ending
Mario and his allies return to Tentacle Harbor to find that a festival has begun to celebrate Kaliente's defeat. As him and his friends devour the free food and take in the festivities, they decide that they deserve a long vacation after everything they've been through. The game's credits then proceed, showing shots of Mario and his friends taking in the sights of the kingdom and enjoying their vacation, much like the ending of Super Mario Sunshine.

After the credits, a post-credits scene occurs that depicts Mario standing before a repaired Sky Pop, with Zaliente standing before him. In the background, L.K., Trumbone, and Timid Guy can be seen speaking with Sapphire and his son Platinum. Zaliente remarks to Mario that he's glad to have had the pleasure to adventure alongside him, and thanks him for his help in liberating the kingdom. Mario smirks as he takes S.T.E.A.M. off of his back, handing it to Zaliente as if he doesn't need it anymore. Zaliente responds with a salute, telling Mario that he'll treasure the device, but will return it to him at any point. He then hugs Mario's leg (due to his small size preventing a true hug), as Mario chuckles.

Meanwhile, Platinum is remarking to L.K., Trumbone, and Timid Guy that he can't wait to see what their home is like, as well as finding out more in regards to his adventures in space. L.K. chuckles before saying he reminds him of another Underworlder he knows. At that point, Sapphire intervenes and says that he thought he was leading the last remaining group of them, to which Timid Guy interjects and says that there's others. Sapphire then asks who leads them, but before the others can answer, Mario calls for the others to come to the Sky Pop. L.K. quickly answers and says that they're led by a queen who defeated her evil sister, to which Sapphire shows a face of shock. As the trio departs, Platinum asks his dad why he was so curious about the other Underworlders, to which Sapphire responds by saying that he'll be meeting with his sister soon.

Gameplay
Super Mario Expedition builds on the formula first developed by Super Mario Excursion, in which large, sprawling kingdoms (now known as Territories) similar to those seen in Super Mario Odyssey have smaller, tightly-focused Landmark areas inside, based on the levels seen in Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine for Mario to explore in search of Sun Gems. However, the game takes more inspiration from Super Mario Sunshine than the previous game in terms of aesthetics and general gameplay.

Mario is accompanied by the device known as S.T.E.A.M., which can produce blasts of fire or ice to solve puzzles and defeat enemies. S.T.E.A.M. relies on fuel however, which will slowly recharge over time when not being consumed. Mario also returns to the eight-wedge health system that hasn't been seen since Super Mario Sunshine, and uses coins to heal once again.

The core 3D Mario moveset is retained, with Mario able to perform Long Jumps, Triple Jumps, Dives, Ground-Pounds, and more. A new Dash Smash move is also introduced, based on the Backwards Long Jump glitch from Super Mario 64. With this move, Mario can perform the horizontal equivalent of the Ground Pound and smash into objects horizontally. The more you mash, the stronger the impact.

Controls
Super Mario Expedition is bundled with an A-Focus Button Swap for the GhostDrive, and highly recommends using it. The following control scheme is designed with the button swap in mind, though there is an alternate control scheme.

S.T.E.A.M. Modules
S.T.E.A.M. is capable of performing many different functions with its various Modules, akin to the Nozzles of Super Mario Sunshine's F.L.U.D.D.. All Modules can be used at once, unlike F.L.U.D.D.'s Nozzles, allowing for you to pick the Module that suits the situation. Each Module consumes resources at a certain rate, with some being pricier than others.

Areas
Super Mario Expedition features fifteen different locales to explore, each divided into a Territory and a Landmark. Territories are large, sprawling areas similar to the kingdoms of Super Mario Odyssey and Super Mario Excursion, with Sun Gems scattered all across the landscape for you to collect in a non-linear fashion, but only one at a time.

Landmarks on the other hand are closer to the levels of Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and Super Mario Galaxy, featuring more structured missions for you to complete in a smaller area. Unlike Super Mario Excursion's Landmark missions however, Expedition's can all be selected from the main menu before entering the Landmark much like Super Mario 64, in which the name of the mission hints at an objective that can be completed. Save for the boss missions however, all of a Landmark's missions can be completed without choosing the specific mission, with boss missions opening up as Sun Gems are collected from the Landmark. Regular Landmark missions reward two Sun Gems each, while boss missions reward a Solar Gem, which is worth three Sun Gems.

Tentacle Harbor
Tentacle Harbor is the main hub of the game, in a similar vein to Peach's Castle, Delfino Plaza, or the Comet Observatory. This hub is full of hidden Sun Gems, NPCs, and plenty of wide, open space to practice utilizing Mario's moves, as well as access to all of the game's areas.

Whenever you obtain the required amount of Sun Gems from the most recent area, a story event occurs in the harbor that leads into the next area. Sometimes this involves enemies invading the harbor, and other times a boss might even show up! Over time, the harbor will fill up with NPCs from the various locations you've been to, providing more hidden Sun Gems and minigames to pursue!

Secret Levels
Every Landmark contains one secret level, and some of these levels can also be accessed from Territories and Tentacle Harbor. Much like the scarecrow doors in Odyssey and Sunshine's secret levels, you have to navigate a linear platforming area without S.T.E.A.M. at your side, forcing you to rely on Mario's natural platforming abilities.

After initially completing a secret level, the next time you enter it, you'll not only have S.T.E.A.M. at your side, but a switch of sorts will now be located in the level that, when pressed, spawns eight red coins for a short period of time. Collecting all eight rewards a Sun Gem.

Items
Throughout Mario's journey, he'll come across various objects that will help him out.

Photo Gallery
The Photo Gallery is a "sidequest" of sorts that challenges you to take interesting pictures with Snapshot Mode. You'll be rewarded with Sun Gems based on how well you took your photos, and completing every Photo Challenge is necessary for 100%ing the game.

Balloon World
Balloon World returns from Super Mario Odyssey, run by the snake known as Pythium, who resembles the mercenaries that fought a certain foe of Mario's. Balloon World can be played in any Territory, or even in Tentacle Harbor, and has two modes: Hide It, and Find It. In order to combat issues with Super Mario Odyssey's version of the mode in regards to players placing balloons in spots that require glitches to reach, the game not only puts up invisible walls, but also checks to see if the balloon is inside a building or in a near-impossible spot to reach.

Hide It has the player hiding their own balloon within the area within thirty seconds. Players should know a Territory's layout well in order to be able to hide their balloon well. Balloons cannot be placed in midair or inside areas that are "warped" to, such as pipes or doors. Should the player be in one of those areas by the time they run out of time, the balloon will be placed in the nearest possible location. Players playing Find It who fail to find your balloon will lead to you being paid coins for their failed attempts, and when your balloon is popped, it won't generate coins anymore.

Find It on the other hand has players scouring the Territories for other players' balloons, accessed via the internet. The amount of time they have depends on how long it took the original player to hide their balloon. The faster a balloon is found, the more coins you'll obtain, and you'll also gain more coins for getting a streak of successful balloon pops. You're also able to see how far away the balloon is, along with an arrow that shows which direction it's in. However, the arrow eventually fades away.

Find It also has a unique feature known as the Arrow Gamble. Essentially, you can choose how long you want the arrow to appear for, but the longer it shows up for, the less coins you'll receive when the balloon is popped. On the other hand, if you choose to have the arrow show up for less time, you'll receive more coins.

Development
Super Mario Expedition has its roots in a scrapped sequel to Super Mario Sunshine. Several key concepts were taken from the game and refined, such as the lack of familiar Mario elements and several F.L.U.D.D. Nozzles that were reworked into S.T.E.A.M. Modules. The fire and ice nature of S.T.E.A.M. was actually based on these elements contrasting in levels like Freezeflame Galaxy from Super Mario Galaxy, and Shiverburn Galaxy from its sequel.

Initially, Expedition started development in a similar vein to Super Mario Galaxy 2 or The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask: as a smaller title that reused assets from a previous game. However, over time, many new ideas came in that led to the decision to make it more unique. In particular, the developers wanted to challenge traditional Mario conventions, including bringing in more elements from the Donkey Kong, Wario, and Yoshi franchises. The game also started as a Nintendo Switch title, but was later retooled into a GhostDrive launch title. One of the reasons for this was due to the game requiring a control scheme similar to Super Mario Sunshine, which led to the GhostDrive's "button swap" technology.

Rumors of a sequel to Super Mario Excursion started around early 2018 when dataminers found models of Octoombas within the files of the Nintendo GameCube Collection remake of Super Mario Sunshine. Most assumed it was for DLC, but they were wrong. In an interview later on, lead developer Krexxal (t∣b∣c) stated that the Sunshine remake in the compilation was actually created using the engine of Expedition (which in turn was based on Excursion's) right before it made the transition to the GhostDrive, as the development team didn't want to have all their hard work prior to the console switch go to waste.

Gallery
The game's logo, created by HollowPharaoh (t∣b∣c) The game's HOME Menu icon.Art of Mario jumping.Mario standing.Another art of Mario.S.T.E.A.M.A Sun Gem.A Solar Gem.A map of the Kaliente Kingdom.The Sandy Walleye boss.The Oil Blooper boss. Add a photo to this gallery

Trivia

 * This is the first Super Mario title since Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins to not feature Bowser and Princess Peach in any role whatsoever.
 * Despite this, Bowser is mentioned near the climax of the game as the reason for why King Kaliente's people became the villainous group they are.
 * Uniquely, most returning enemies use designs that haven't been seen for a while, such as Bullet Bills using their Yoshi's Island design.
 * Some enemies, such as Octoombas and Walleyes, have behavior similar to existing Mario enemies.
 * Boos and their subspecies are the exception to this however.
 * Computerboy64 (t∣b∣c) was responsible for the Oil Blooper and Sandy Walleye renders.