Tox Box
| Tox Box | |
|---|---|
| |
| First appearance | Super Mario 64 (1996) |
| Latest appearance | Super Mario 3D All Stars (2020) |
| Species origin | Thwomp |
Tox Boxes are huge metal or stone box enemies that manage to roll themselves along set paths. The paths they go on are usually similar to their width, making it nearly impossible for Mario to walk around. Tox Boxes first appear in Super Mario 64.
Tox Boxes have faces on all but one side; the last side is only a square hole. This hole is for Mario to stand in as the Tox Box passes over the tile he's standing on, thus letting him survive without being crushed. However, it is still possible to be crushed by the side with the hole if Mario or Luigi stands at the side of a tile when the Tox Box rolls over him.
History
Super Mario series
Super Mario 64
- Main article: Tox Box (Desert)
The original Tox Boxes appear in Shifting Sand Land, the 8th course of the game. They attempt to flatten Mario by rolling over him. The path is a small maze of tiles surrounded by darker, faster-moving quicksand that sucks Mario in instantly. The tiled maze that the Tox Boxes travel on has a few Red Coins on it, as well as the course's only cannon.
Super Mario Galaxy
Tox Boxes reappear in Super Mario Galaxy. These redesigned boxes usually appear alongside Thwomps. They only appear in the Beach Bowl Galaxy and the Toy Time Galaxy. In both Galaxies they appear on small pathways, much like they did in Shifting Sand Land.
Unlike the Tox Boxes in Super Mario 64, these ones resemble Thwomps; instead of having the faces spray-painted on, they are carved in a way resembling a Thwomp's face. These Tox Boxes also lack a face on the side opposite the hole. The hole itself has also been expanded quite a bit, and colored in red to resemble a mouth. Also, getting crushed by any of the Tox Box's sides will result in instant death in this game, due to the fact that Mario only has three health points. Their faces resemble the Thwack's expressions.
Super Mario Galaxy 2
In Super Mario Galaxy 2, Tox Boxes reappear in the Stone Cyclone Galaxy, which is basically a remake of the Cyclone Stone in Super Mario Galaxy, but they move much faster than they did in the previous game.
Names in Other Languages
Trivia
- The carved faces of the Tox Boxes in Super Mario Galaxy and its sequel Super Mario Galaxy 2 closely resemble Japanese demons or oni.
- The English name "Tox Box", which is derived from "toxic box", was given due to their industrial-like appearance in Super Mario 64. In Super Mario Galaxy, the Tox Boxes lost their industrial look as they were redesigned to better resemble Thwomps. Despite the lost meaning, the name "Tox Box" is still used.
- The name "Tox Box" may also be intended to sound like "Toy Box".
- Tox Boxes were rumored to appear in Super Mario 3D World but ultimately never made it in the game.
