Super Mario World/Controls

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This page describes the moves that Mario can do, with and without Yoshi.

Quick guide[edit]

Action SNES GBA GameCube controller (VC) Classic controller (VC) Nintendo 3DS Switch
Move Neutral Dpad Neutral dpad Neutral dpad or Neutral control Neutral dpad or Neutral lstick Neutral dpad or Neutral cpad Neutral dpad or Neutral lstick
Spin jump A Button R button A button A button A button A button
Regular jump B Button A button B button B button B button B button
Dash/Shoot fireballs X Button or Y Button B button X button or Y button X button or Y button X button or Y button X button or Y button
Use reserve item Select Button Select button Z button Minus button Select button Minus button
Scroll screen left L Button Left dpad+L button L button L button L button L button
Scroll screen right R Button Right dpad+L button R button R button R button R button

Walking[edit]

Press Left Dpad or Right Dpad to walk left or right, respectively.

Running[edit]

To run left or right (respectively) press the Left Dpad or Right Dpad and press X Button or Y Button. When Mario reaches top speed he will spread his arms out.

Jump[edit]

Mario and Yoshi jump if you press B Button. Jump is the move that you will be using the most throughout the game. Most enemies can be defeated by jumping on them. The faster Mario is running the higher he jumps.

Mario and Yoshi jump equally high. However, Yoshi's jumps are as powerful as Mario's spin jump, but do not break yellow bricks. Yoshi can also jump on certain enemies, such as Blargg, that Mario must spin jump on or get hit. Like Mario, Yoshi jumps higher if he is running faster.

Flying[edit]

With a cape, when running at full speed, jump and Mario will begin to fly.

Drifting[edit]

While flying, hold back away from the direction Mario is moving to drift. Mario will hold onto his cape and his descent will slow. Pushing forward will speed up his fall, while tapping back will allow you to cruise for extended periods of time. If timed correctly, it is possible to crawl up the screen using this technique.

Spin jump[edit]

Press A Button to spin jump. Spin jumps are not as high as normal jumps, but they are more powerful. If Mario is not small, he can break yellow bricks using his spin jump. Mario can also spin jump on top of certain enemies that would injure him if he landed on them otherwise.

The faster Mario runs the higher he will spin jump. A spin jump at top speed is slightly higher than a normal jump standing still.

If a large (i.e. super, fire or cape) Mario spin jumps and lands on Yoshi while Yoshi is standing on yellow bricks, Yoshi will break the bricks. Spin jump to get off of Yoshi.

Getting on/off Yoshi[edit]

To get on Yoshi, jump (B Button) on his back. To get off Yoshi press A Button.

Yoshi double-jump[edit]

First, Mario or Luigi must be on Yoshi.

  1. Jump (B Button) while on Yoshi, and then
  2. While still in the air, dismount (A Button).

You will be able to jump twice the normal height. You can jump even higher with this technique using a spring-board.

Climbing[edit]

Mario can climb a fence, vine or rope by coming near the fence, vine or rope and pressing Up Dpad. To get off, jump by pressing B Button.

Fence moves[edit]

While climbing a fence, Mario can punch the fence by pressing Y Button. If the punch hits a Koopa on the other side of the fence, the Koopa will die. If Mario punches a door in the fence, he will flip over to the other side of the fence. If Mario climbs across the head of a Koopa that is climbing the same side of the fence he is, Mario will kill the Koopa. If, however, he touches the neck or the shell, Mario will get hurt.

Entering doors[edit]

To enter a door press Up Dpad.

Carrying/throwing items[edit]

Certain objects in the game, such as overturned Goombas and keys, can be carried and thrown. There are four moves related to this; after doing the first, you can do any of the other three:

  1. To carry an item: Simply approach, or even land on, an object while you Control-Modifier-Hold.png X Button/Y Button, and Mario will pick it up and carry the object as long as you hold down X Button/Y Button.
  2. To throw the object straight ahead of you (useful for wiping out a line of enemies): Control-Modifier-Release.png X Button/Y Button, since you've already been holding it down the entire time you're carrying the object.
  3. To set an item down gently, without throwing it: Control-Modifier-Hold.png Down Dpad , and then Control-Modifier-Release.png X Button/Y Button.
  4. To throw an item upwards (useful for hitting blocks or enemies high up in the air): Control-Modifier-Hold.png Up Dpad , and then Control-Modifier-Release.png X Button/Y Button.

P-switches do not do damage when thrown. However, throwing objects other than P-switches is the most powerful attacking move in the game. Throwing objects is the only move that can kill Bowser.

Important: The overturned and squished enemies that Mario can carry will eventually fix themselves. If Mario is still holding them when this happens, he will get hit.

Eating/spitting Items[edit]

For more details on the special abilities Yoshi gains from eating Koopa Shells, see Super Mario World/Items.

Yoshi can eat certain objects, such as Koopa shells and mega mole. Most of these (e.g. mega mole) he will instantly swallow. Those he does not instantly swallow (e.g. Koopa shells, keys) he will carry in his mouth for sometime and can spit out. To eat an object press X Button/Y Button. To spit out an object press X Button/Y Button again. Spitting out a object is equivalent to throwing it.

Yoshi can eat more objects than Mario can carry. However, because Yoshi instantly swallows most of these, Mario can throw more objects than Yoshi can spit.

However, with Koopa shells, which Yoshi does not instantly swallow, you can set them down gently, without throwing them. To make Yoshi set an item down without throwing it, Control-Modifier-Hold.png Down Dpad , and then press X Button/Y Button. This will cause you to set the item down gently. Helpful if Yoshi's about to swallow the shell, but you want to keep it without throwing it!