History NightmareFuel / SuperMarioBros

* [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjL5MtmnNHk&feature=related Mario's drowning animation]]. Mario desperately struggles and seemingly making failed attempts to gasp for air in blind panic and agony, with the game fading out as Mario's corpse is going limp. The poison gas death (the area mentioned above) is no better, with Mario grabbing for his throat, then falling on the floor with the screen fading out as he lies twitching (apparently still alive) in his final moments on the floor. The toxic area was really the worst in that, as anytime you are breathing it Mario would cough and slowly choke as if struggling for air.

* ''The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!'' episode "Count Koopula" featured pretty creepy looking and sounding GiantSpiders that wore [[GasMaskMooks Snifit]] masks.

* The episode "Ghosts R Us" in ''Super Mario World'' where Yoshi and Oogtar must save Mario, Luigi and Princess Peach from a haunted house. Their captor, Wizardheimer, isn't exactly Mr. Nice Guy. Probably because [[AccidentalMisnaming they keep screwing up his name]].

* The depiction of the monster in Guffahaw Ruins. Not only is it shown breathing fire and [[EatenAlive eating a poor Toad alive]], it's rumored to [[FamilyUnfriendlyDeath brutally murder its victims by breaking their bones, stripping their flesh and sucking their blood!]] Can't really blame Luigi for being so terrified to go there.

** The depiction of the monster in Guffahaw Ruins. Not only is it shown breathing fire and [[EatenAlive eating a poor Toad alive]], it's rumored to [[FamilyUnfriendlyDeath brutally murder its victims by breaking their bones, stripping their flesh and sucking their blood!]] Can't really blame Luigi for being so terrified to go there.

** The [[http://www.mariowiki.com/Angry_Sun Angry Sun]] made some too scared to play past World 2.
** Some were also afraid of the Podoboos in the World 1 mini-fortress.
** There were also some terrified by the Hot Foot in the first fortress of World 4.

* What got to some was Mario/Luigi's death sprite. Maybe they went [[BlueWithShock red/]][[PaletteSwap green with shock,]] but to some, they just looked... odd.

*** It was even creepier in the original ''Doki Doki Panic'', where it was some sort of tribal mask. [[http://www.nesmaps.com/maps/DokiDokiPanic/sprites/DokiDokiPanicSprites.html Look for it here, labeled (rather accurately) as "Evil Door."]]

* The friggin' Hawkmouth in ''Super Mario Bros. 2'' (the one that acts as an end of level gate) scared the crap out of some in the end of World 7-2 when it ''flew off the wall and tried to chase them!''

* There's also Motley Bossblob: a Koopa jester who summons BlobMonster creatures to transform into an enormous gelatinous MonsterClown, complete with GlowingEyesOfDoom and a SlasherSmile. And it chases you around the stage, hopping like mad in an attempt to crush you. Hope you aren't afraid of clowns.

* There's also Motley Bossblob: a Koopa jester who uses summons BlobMonster creatures to transform into an enormous gelatinous MonsterClown, complete with comes complete with GlowingEyesOfDoom and a SlasherSmile. And it chases you around the stage, hopping like mad in an attempt to crush you. Hope you aren't afraid of clowns.

* The way the enemies die in ''SuperMarioLand'' is actually kind of creepy. Unlike the NES Mario games, where enemies generally flip upside-down and fall off the screen when you jump on them, here they lay on the ground, flattened and dead for a few seconds, before flopping off the screen. It gets worse with the Koopa Trooper analogues, which ''explode'' when they die.

* The game isn't even out yet, and we already get the 'pleasure' of seeing a giant robot [[MonsterClown clown]] boss with GlowingEyesOfDoom and a potential SlasherSmile! As seen [[http://nintendo3dsdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/97051_SM3DW_scrn_New_Enemy_3_.jpg in this picture]].
** As it turns out, however, that boss isn't a robot. He is, instead, a Koopa who uses summoned BlobMonster creatures to become the above-shown figure while attacking.

* In the SNES and GBA remake, they made warping much, ''much'' eerier. When you enter the Warp Vase, a creepy tune plays in the background while the screen becomes distorted and fades to black. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2peaeVGjQ4E See the warps in the SNES remake here.]]

* According to Mojo Nixon, who played Toad, Dennis Hopper's performance as Koopa legitimately scared him during the scene where Toad de-evolves. Toad freaking out ''wasn't' acting.

Also see the pages for ''NightmareFuel/LuigisMansion'', ''NightmareFuel/PaperMario'', ''NightmareFuel/SuperMarioSunshine'', ''NightmareFuel/NewSuperMarioBros2'', ''NightmareFuel/NewSuperMarioBrosU'' & ''NightmareFuel/YoshisIsland''.

* The episode "Ghosts 'R' Us" in ''Super Mario World where Yoshi and Oogtar must save Mario, Luigi and Princess Peach from a haunted house. Their captor, Wizenheimer, isn't exactly Mr. Nice Guy. Probably because [[AccidentalMisnaming they keep screwing up his name]].

Also see the pages for ''NightmareFuel/LuigisMansion'', ''NightmareFuel/PaperMario'', ''NightmareFuel/SuperMarioSunshine'', ''NightmareFuel/NewSuperMarioBros2'' & ''NightmareFuel/NewSuperMarioBrosU''.

* ''[[SuperMarioBros Yoshi's Island]]'' has many frightening elements, probably helped by the fact that it had excellent music and was able to create [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifvxBt7tmA8 effective]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFGYFysGhns atmospheres]] in levels with it.
* If Yoshi is hit, Baby Mario is suddenly caught in a flying bubble, wailing desperately, as the player tries to get him back before the enemies catch him and fly away with him.
* The threat of being eaten occurs quite a bit. A boss battle occurs in a frog's stomach and Piranha Plants will try to swallow you hole. There are also a few chase scenes in which a gigantic Chain Chomp is out to eat Yoshi.
* Kamek would [[MakeMyMonsterGrow enlarge small creatures in the boss battles]]. The transformations were complete with [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMSKYa71pMk 'Time to Die!'-esque music]].
* Many in the final level:
** In the beginning, Yoshi must turn himself into a helicopter and fly across a bottomless pit. Every so often, Kamek will swoop behind Yoshi and ambush him from behind. He also does this in the Extra Level from World 5.
** There is an optional chase where Tap-Tap the Golden, a large spiked undefeatable enemy, is chasing Yoshi across a rocky, lava filled area, as the screen ever so slowly moves to allow him more area to move. It doesn't help that before entering this chase, if the player wants to receive helpful information, all they get is [[SuddenlyShouting "RUN AWAY!!! HURRY!!!" in dramatically huge font.]]
*** What arguably makes this even worse is that you're being chased by a boss that's nigh-invulnerable, and is large enough that you can hear the ground quaking from every step that it takes. Oh sure, your eggs manage to stun it, but that's about it. Not even it falling down a hole to its doom can stop it; it just springs forth like a proverbial bat out of Hell, and continues to chase you, its smile almost taunting you.
** Before the final battle is another chase scene, only this one is an [[AutoScrollingLevel autoscrolling]] level which takes place in a creepy playroom-themed dark hallway. Kamek constantly appears from out of nowhere in various places and will zap you with his magic wand. If he misses, he will turn blocks into small enemies or stars. You can throw eggs at Kamek but he will just reappear somewhere else. All this happens while impending doom music plays.
** In the [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1l5Je3eFrk final battle]], where Baby Bowser, in an eerily designed toy room, attempts to ride (and therefore injure) Yoshi. After he has been defeated, Kamek turns him into Big Bowser. Big, meaning the castle he had occupied is completely destroyed by his transformation, and he could probably crush Yoshi with a single finger/claw. The transformation and battle is accompanied by rather horrifying music, if not the entire ''series'', and the battle is pretty much Yoshi trying to hit him with large eggs to push him back, while he is slowly coming towards you. When he is hit, he is indeed pushed back, only to then run at full speed towards Yoshi, who is standing on a small ledge (which is being destroyed by the boulders that fly in the air from Bowser's roars). If Bowser comes close enough, his stomach ''obliterates'' the ledge, leaving Yoshi unable to do anything but plummet to his death. This can be extremely scary when one is desperately trying to get him further back, knowing that he will run at full speed afterwards.
*** What makes this even worse? When he has one hit left, he'll continue to run towards you, and will not stop until he collides with Baby Mario and Yoshi.
* "Touch Fuzzy, Get Dizzy."
* Your primary method of attack in this game is that you ''eat'' your enemies, and then ''transform their digested corpses into ammunition'', which you then ''throw'' at their comrades, who no doubt just watched you consume their friends seconds earlier. If that's not just a ''little'' bit disturbing...
** Consider that this ammo is ''eggs''. Yoshis use their ''unborn young'' as ammo.
*** If an egg are unfertilized then no, that is not the case.
* The sound of the [[http://www.mariowiki.com/Lunge_Fish Lunge Fish]] is one of the most terrifying sounds in video games.
** The Lunge Fish itself. It just comes right out of nowhere and eats you, killing you instantly.
* Those giant Chain Chomp heads that fall from the sky. Not only the fear of getting hit and falling into the holes they leave, but those ''faces''.
* Gargantuan Blargg and Nep-Enut can be pretty scary for kids too, with this giant red/blue thing popping out of the lava/water out of nowhere, especially if you don't realize there are eyes there.
* Neglecting to retrieve Baby Mario in time rewards you with and image that consists of the Toadies carrying Baby Mario away against a black background. The noise they make doesn't help.
** On that note, the "Game Over" screen deserves a mention here. It shows "GAME OVER" in a deranged font zooming in and rotating in random directions. The same animation repeats itself several times afterward until you either continue the game or shut it off. The depressing piano ditty that plays under it and the fact that SNES games with pre-rendered 3D graphics were in their relative infancy only make this worse.

* The episode "Ghosts 'R' Us" in ''Adventures of Super Mario World'' where Yoshi and Oogtar must save Mario, Luigi and Princess Peach from a haunted house. Their captor, Wizenheimer, isn't exactly Mr. Nice Guy. Probably because [[AccidentalMisnaming they keep screwing up his name]].

* Running of the Bulb is a very good example. Four characters have to protect a lightbulb as they run down to the end of a dark, boo infested hallway while being chased by one large, rather frightening looking boo. Letting this particular boo catch you means you dissappear in a simmilar fassion to Ghost Guess. Going even further, the lesser boos are apparently capable of possession. It's pretty creepy having Mario characters slowly chase you zombie-style while glowing with a ghostly blue aura. And if you're the one possessed, all you can do is hope that another character will take the time to knock you back to your senses, and pray that the boo controlling you doesn't decide you to just go ahead and feed you to the big one.

* Running of the Bulb is a very good example. Four characters have to protect a lightbulb as they run down to the end of a dark, boo infested hallway while being chased by one rather frightening looking boo. Letting this particular boo catch you means you dissapear in a simmilar fassion to Ghost Guess. Going even further, the lesser boos are apparently capable of possession. It's pretty creepy having Mario characters slowly chase you zombie-style while glowing with a ghostly blue aura. And if you're the one possessed, all you can do is hope that another character will take the time to knock you back to your senses, and pray that the boo controlling you doesn't decide you to just go ahead and feed you to the big one.

* The Boohemoth, a massive Boo enemy, is bigger, chubbier, and his eyes don't look at all like the charming dot eyes that normal Boos have, but more into the UncannyValley. Although he only shows up in two Ghost Houses, he'll appear without warning with a ScareChord and chase you. He too stops and hides his face when Mario or Luigi looks at him, but every so often he'll peek and approach anyway.