10 Super Mario Galaxy Easter Eggs You Probably Missed

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is stuffed full of Easter eggs, with every scene packed with missable details that longtime Nintendo fans have been excitedly hunting down and sharing online since the film's release. Hidden secrets are woven into the DNA of the Galaxy series, as the games that came before the silver-screen adaptation have their own fair share of buried mysteries for Mario fans to uncover.

Super Mario Galaxy and its sequel feature references to Mario's past, strange occurrences that are only accessible via specific methods, and even cameos from other Nintendo franchises. In order of appearance, from the first game through to its sequel, here are 10 amazing secrets that all Galaxy fans should know.

10 Baby Luma Has the Universe's Official Colour

A Caffeinated Companion

Lumas, the star-shaped creatures that assist Mario in his galactic adventures, are everywhere in the Super Mario Galaxy games. The first one he meets — named Baby Luma, according to the instruction manual — is notable for granting Mario the spin maneuver and becoming his companion in both games.

What you may not know is that there is significance in Baby Luma's coloration. It is very similar to "Cosmic Latte", a term coined by astronomers in 2003 to describe the average colour of the universe as perceived from Earth.

9 A F.L.U.D.D. of References

A Super Sunshine Sidekick

Across both Galaxy titles, there are a number of elements that appear similar to F.L.U.D.D. — the Flash Liquidizer Ultra Dousing Device — from Super Mario Sunshine. As well as resembling F.L.U.D.D.'s Squirt Nozzle, the blue Water Shooters share a similar function to Mario's former robot companion, shooting giant bubbles in a number of different galaxies. These can either help or hinder the player's progress, but are harmless either way.

More hazardous are the red Fire Shooters, which typically unleash streams of flames — except for a unique variant on Toy Time Galaxy's Mecha-Bowser, which launches fireballs instead. Exclusive to Galaxy 2, the yellow Zap Nozzles fire homing electrical orbs that can send Mario falling into a black hole. Finally, Toy Time Galaxy also has a planet shaped like F.L.U.D.D.'s head, where Mario must collect five Star Chips.

8 Captain Olimar's Spaceship

Another Nintendo Universe Collides

The Space Junk Galaxy is already home to a fun Easter egg for Mario fans, with a Power Star waiting on a planet that looks like a giant wooden carving of Yoshi's head. But there's also another, less obvious nod to a Nintendo series here.

During the journey to the Power Star, Mario can land on a red-and-tan rocket. Its shape and colours strongly resemble the Hocotate ship from Pikmin 2, the spaceship used by Captain Olimar and his co-worker Louie to travel between planets and store Pikmin and treasure.

7 The Poké Ball Planet

Gotta Catch This View

The first mission in Galaxy 1's Buoy Base Galaxy has Mario scale a fortress, and once all five Star Chips have been collected, he can use a Pull Star to reach a small brown planet. After Mario dislodges the giant screw, the top half of the planet opens up to reveal a semi-spherical body of water.

If you take a moment to jump out of the water before diving down to get the Power Star, you can get a broader look at the planet. With the water exposed, it now resembles a Poké Ball, the critter-catching device from the Pokémon series.

6 Rolling Gizmo's Rupee-Shaped Reference

It's A Secret to Everybody

Rolling Gizmo Galaxy is one of the more difficult stages in Galaxy 1, as one of the three challenging Trial Galaxies. Mario must roll a giant ball across a sprawling obstacle course suspended in the sky, where one small slip can mean instant failure.

In the first part of the level, after crossing the narrow, zigzagging path and smashing the giant blocks obstructing the path ahead, Mario will come across a raised bridge. Before you go ahead and knock it down, move the camera so that you can view the gap, and you'll see a formation of blue Star Bits in a peculiar pattern. Fans of The Legend of Zelda will notice that this is shaped like a rupee, the currency used throughout Nintendo's action-adventure series.

A Tiny Trackside Treasure

Toy Time Galaxy may be the most joyful place to be in Mario's first space adventure. A playroom-themed wonderland full of gigantic toys to traverse across, it even has a hidden trinket nestled in a quiet corner, reinforcing the sense of playful discovery that defines the galaxy’s childlike charm.

When Mario reaches the planet full of building blocks and conveyor belts, a miniature toy train can be found in a crevice near a Warp Pipe, which is visible in first-person view. Unlike the giant versions of this train that Mario can ride, this tiny replica serves no purpose and cannot be interacted with — but it's an adorable reward for curious players who take the time to carefully examine their surroundings.

4 A Fruity Transformation

A Strange Reward for Star Bit Hoarders

Star Bits are the common collectibles in the Galaxy games, bouncing and sparkling throughout each world in a variety of colours. Modeled after a type of Japanese sugar candy called konpeitō, they can be used to earn extra lives, fired as projectiles to stun enemies, and fed to hungry Lumas.

If you're dedicated enough to gather a whopping 9,999 Star Bits, a strange but fun phenomenon will occur: all coconuts in the game will turn into watermelons. The change is permanent even if the Star Bit total drops below 9,999, so be certain that you won't miss the coconuts before crossing the threshold!

3 Yoshi's Secret Signature

Enter the Dragon

Now we finally move on to Super Mario Galaxy 2, and the game wastes no time getting to its first cool secret. As soon as you land in the very first stage, Sky Station Galaxy, you'll find yourself standing before Yoshi's house. A sign by the door reads, "Hello, friend! Please go around back! -Yoshi".

When you enter this galaxy after selecting the third mission, however, the sign will instead be signed by "Yoshi the space dragon". This is a homage to Yoshi's house in Super Mario World — while we commonly think of him as a dinosaur in the West, Yoshi signs off as "Super Dragon Yoshi" in the Japanese version of World. Interestingly, Yoshi was never originally intended to be a dinosaur or a dragon, as World director Takashi Tezuka previously explained: "Yoshi was originally supposed to be a type of Koopa. That saddle you see on his back was actually his shell."

2 Shiverburn Galaxy's Creepy Crowd

Shiver Me Timbers

The most unsettling Easter egg in the Galaxy games can be found in the sequel's Shiverburn Galaxy. As soon as you land in this level, switch to first-person view and look up at the cliff in the background, and you'll see three strange silhouettes watching over Mario.

The mysterious figures are never explained, but they appear similar to mythical Japanese creatures known as kodama. These are spirits said to inhabit trees, which will curse anyone who attempts to chop them down. On a lighter note, the internal filename of their texture, "HellValleySkyTree", is likely named after Japan's Hell Valley, which has hot springs surrounded by snow — an apt reference for the contrasting elements of ice and lava in the Shiverburn Galaxy.

1 Lubba's Missable Dialogue

Sleepy, Lucky, Chatty

The leader of the Lumas has plenty to say throughout Galaxy 2, from commenting on Mario's progress to giving her opinion on new guests aboard Starship Mario. Lubba also has some dialogue that can only be seen when the player meets specific requirements, making them easy to miss in a casual playthrough. When the game is played early in the morning, she'll say, "Geez. It's kinda early, isn't it? I feel so sleepy..."

When Mario has 77 Power Stars, or a Star Bit total of 777 or 7,777, Lubba will state how lucky he is. She can also say, "You have 1,000 Star Bits! That must feel pretty good!" or "What happens when you get 9,999 Star Bits? Something nice, I bet!" when you have exactly 1,000 and 9,999 Star Bits respectively. Exclusive to the original Wii version of Galaxy 2, Lubba can also warn Mario, "Oh no! It looks like your batteries are running low! What if they run out in a dangerous place?! Be careful!"