Among the many Toads of the Mushroom Kingdom, one stands out for his bravery and daring-do. Captain Toad, first introduced in Super Mario Galaxy and popular enough to warrant his own Wii U game back in 2014, is best recognized but his comically large backpack and headlamp strapped to his, er, cap. As the leader of the Toad Brigade, he helped Mario on his quest across the galaxy in Super Mario Galaxy 1 and 2, and after striking out on his own, he has appeared in a number of other titles — including Super Mario Odyssey.
Details of his appearance in Odyssey’s Metro Kingdom, hanging out on iron girders around Mayor Pauline’s New Donk City, are still scarce. If Mario explores the city and walks out on this girders, he will find Captain Toad, who gives him a power moon and explains that he’s on vacation from his expedition team and doing a bit of sightseeing. So, if Captain Toad is back, what can we expect from his presence in Super Mario Odyssey?
Humble Beginnings
In Super Mario Galaxy, Captain Toad — called Toad Brigade Captain in this game — along with Luigi is one of the few beings to escape the destruction of the Mushroom Kingdom. Despite his new profession, Captain Toad wasn’t a very good captain in the beginning, and during the escape from the crumbling Kingdom lost poor Luigi somewhere in space and needed Mario to find him again. On first meeting, he also mistakes Mario for a bee. Not a great start, Toad.
Captain Toad began his career as a bit of a crybaby and very lazy. However, he does help Mario throughout his adventure in Galaxy by helping find Power Stars and using his headlamp to chase away creeping Boos. In the end, he proved himself as a loyal companion and would go on to serve a similar supporting role for Mario in Super Mario Galaxy 2.
While he remained a little cowardly, Captain Toad wasn’t as lazy, although he did fondly daydream about taking a vacation from all this Power Star hunting. He also takes a detour and gets lost in one of the galaxies, necessitating Mario hunt him down again.
Toads Can’t Jump
Captain Toad received his first playable role in Super Mario 3D World. In a series of courses titles The Adventures of Captain Toad, players could navigate a series of puzzles to collect Green Power Stars. However, Captain Toad’s limited range of movement, compared to Mario at any rate, made him a slightly ineffective puzzle-solver. He couldn’t jump or roll, and could only walk through puzzles, making players rely heavily on elements in the environment to get him through the courses. However, he can still use his headlamp to scare away and stun Boos; maybe Mario could get himself one of these tools, given how effective it is.
In some courses, Captain Toad will appear in danger, having gotten himself into a pickle while wandering around on his own. It’s up to Mario and friends to rescue him, and sometimes he rewards the effort with Green Power Stars. Why Toad is running around squeezing into areas he knows he can’t get out of alone is beyond us.
A Chance to Shine
As a sort of prequel to Super Mario 3D World, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker depicts the events leading up to Captain Toad appearing in 3D World. Captain Toad, chasing after a falling Green Power Star, trips into a warp pipe and ends up far from home–and needing Mario’s rescue.
In Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, Captain Toad got a starring role, and a few more tricks too. In addition to running around, he could finally defend himself by using Power-Ups, pulling turnips from the ground and throwing them at enemies, and using a new item called the Super Pickaxe, which is exactly what it sounds like.
But Toad’s well-documented cowardice melts in the face of Treasure Tracker’s biggest challenge: rescuing his (girl)friend(?) Toadette from Wingo, a giant fat bird who has a fetish for shiny things. However, this isn’t the case for the whole game. Toad himself gets captured by Wingo, and players control the intrepid Toadette on her journey to free him.
What Does This Mean for Odyssey?
In Super Mario Odyssey, when you find Captain Toad in New Donk City, he’ll give you a Power Moon, similar to the way he proffered Power Stars in Super Mario Galaxy 1 and 2. Perhaps we will similarly be able to recruit him in Odyssey, sending him out into the world to forage for additional Power Moons. The help would certainly be appreciated. It’s not like Toad is doing anything more important.
More likely–if his crawling recklessly around on iron girders suspended in the air is any indication–Captain Toad will be getting into trouble that only Mario can get him out of. We’ll likely be rescuing him on more than one occasion in Odyssey. Maybe we can get his sweet headlamp for use against Boos as a thank you?
Either way, it seems that Captain Toad will be around to give us a hand as we lead Mario around the globe on the hunt for Power Stars. Maybe we’ll even get a chance to use Cappy on him and play a few levels as the peppy little treasure hunter. We’ll find out when Super Mario Odyssey launches on October 27 for Nintendo Switch.