History Main / PainfulPointyPufferfish

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'' has various robotic examples:

* ''VideoGame/WarioWare'': In ''Mega Microgame$!'', the objective of the microgame "Rough Puff" is to have a pufferfish inflate at the right time to deflect an attack from another fish.

Pufferfishes are fishes from the order Tetraodontiformes and family Tetraodontidae that are well-known for their ability to inflate their bodies by inhaling water, so they can scare off predators and defend themselves. The closely related porcupinefishes (family Diodontidae) have a groovy bonus feature: their bodies are covered with SpikesOfDoom that can deal a world of hurt to the poor souls that try to swallow them. Other factors that have helped their induction into this trope are their quirky colour schemes, [[UglyCute arguably cute appearance]], and their abundance in temperate and tropical waters, making them fit right in to almost any setting under the sea.

Pufferfishes are fishes from the order Tetraodontiformes and family Tetraodontidae that are well-known for their ability to inflate their bodies by inhaling water, so they can scare off predators and defend themselves. The closely related porcupinefishes (family Diodontidae) have a groovy bonus feature: their bodies are covered with SpikesOfDoom that can deal a world of hurt to the poor souls that try to swallow them.

** ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry2DiddysKongQuest'': Porcufish-like baddies called Puftups are common aquatic enemies. Some Puftups explode after inflating, causing them to unleash spikes in four directions. They could be defeated only when deflated.

*** Fugu is a giant yellow pufferfish that can inflate to ''ridiculous sizes'' - its biggest form takes up more than two thirds of the screen and literally dwarfs the big ape that is Donkey Kong. It is covered in damaging quills except for its rear, which acts as its weak point.

* Before the boss fight with Kruller in a storage room in ''VideoGame/LuigisMansion3'', the ghost frantically searches for a weapon in a cardboard box, and one of the items he pulls out is a pufferfish. Cue Kruller screaming in pain while shaking the fish off.

** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' introduces the Porcupuffer, a gigantic pufferfish-like Cheep Cheep that chases Mario around some levels. The spikes on its back prevent Mario from jumping on it, as they will damage the plumber (unless you use the Spin Jump or are riding Yoshi, in which case you'll repeatedly bounce off its spikes). After a long hiatus, they reappear commonly in later ''Mario'' games.

* ''[[VideoGame/SabrinaTheAnimatedSeriesSpooked Sabrina: Spooked!]]'': Little pufferfish appear as enemies in the [[UnderTheSea second world]], underwater dimension. They float slowly towards Sabrina and occasionally inflating themselves. Unlike most examples, they ''don't'' count as [[TheSpiny spinies]] even when they inflate. The player can bounce on top of them harmlessly while inflated, and destroying them while deflated. They tend to be placed in spots where the player is jumping, where you can [[CollisionDamage jump into them]] by accident.

** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' introduces the Porcupuffer, a gigantic pufferfish-like Cheep Cheep that chases Mario around some levels. The spikes on its back prevent Mario from jumping on it, as they will damage the plumber (unless you use the Spin Jump or are riding Yoshi, in which case you'll repeatedly bounce off its spikes). After a long hiatus, they reappear commonly in recent ''Mario'' games.

** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' introduces the Porcupuffer, a gigantic pufferfish-like Cheep Cheep that chases Mario around some levels. The spikes on its back prevent Mario from jumping on it, as they will damage the plumber. After a long hiatus, they reappear commonly in recent ''Mario'' games.

* The Videogame/{{Pokemon}} Qwilfish, debuting in ''VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver'', is based on a pufferfish. Not only can it sting with its spikes (it learns many spike-related moves like Toxic Spikes, Fell Stinger, Spikes or Poison Sting), it can also ''fire'' them at its foes with the move Pin Missile. Further, it often has the ability Poison Point, which makes it so that when an opponent hits it with a physical attack, it has a 30% chance of being [[StatusEffects poisoned]]. In ''Videogame/PokemonLegendsArceus'' it received a part Dark-Type [[UndergroundMonkey Regional Form]] that evolves into the even larger Overqwil, which has a savage temperament and resembles a sea mine.