Shy Guys

[Antisocial]

In light of all the new--and I use the term "new" loosely --Mario games, I figured in honor of my betrothed (i.e. the faerie that throws those f***ing marshmallows), I thought I would dedicate a thread to those little masked rascals you all know and love and which I doubt will even show up in the upcoming New SMB and Galaxy sequels: The Shy Guys.



wait wut no

Goddamn Australian Google...hold on a sec...



There we go.

Why? Because I love them, and it's been several months since I last posted a topic, so shut up and read on.

The Shy Guy first appeared as "Heiho" in Doki Doki Panic, which we all know better as Super Mario Bros. 2, as your basic enemy. You stand on him, pick him up, and throw him at other enemies. A glamorous life for the poor bastard. A few variations of the Shy Guy appeared in this game, such as red ones, blue ones, the Snifit, and those that rode Ostros and Autobombs, which began the Shy Guy's role as a versatile enemy.

The versatility thing didn't become more obvious until Yoshi's Island came into the scene, showcasing more Shy Guy variations, plus more of their cousins, such as Bandits, Baseball Boys, and Zeus Guys.

In this thread, I figure I'll test my memory and give you all a brief (somewhat) description of the more notable Shy Guys and relatives to such that have made an impression on me over all my years of gaming without sounding too much like a gaming site writer that banks on pop culture references for humor, uses tired cliches, and gets paid minimum wage.

Shy Guy Variations

Shy Guy
Beginning with the run-of-the-mill, no-bells-and-whistles Shy Guy, in SMB2, the red ones walked off ledges in contrast to their blue-clad brethren, which were a little smarter and turned around when it ran out of walking space. Pick them up and throw them--they don't give a damn. In the Yoshi's Island series, they became less durable and yielded to stomps and eggs. They also mindlessly walked back and forth; unusual for a standard enemy.

Shy Guy + Ostro
Ostros were flamingo/ostrich hybrids that Shy Guys rode in SMB2 that actually tracked your player while they were mounted, following your ass around. If you separated the rider from his steed, the Ostro no longer follows you and runs off to wherever. You could pick Ostros up, which is a testament to your player's incredible strength.

Shy Guy + Autobomb
By this point, the Shy Guys no longer f*** around. Basically incendiary cannons on wheels plastered with a mystic "M" symbol, Shy Guys mounted Autobombs in SMB2 and tracked your player, shooting goddamn fireballs in your general direction. Dismount the Shy Guy, and the Autobomb goes off on its own, no longer firing, but still a threat on contact.

Snifit
Shy Guys wearing masks with a cannon attachment. They spat bullets. In SMB2, blue ones walked back and forth, shooting their bullets when you came into their line of sight (although slowly telegraphed). Gray ones were a little tougher, as they stood in place, jumping and repeatedly spitting bullets. I don't even want to mention the red ones because there's only one of them in the game.

Beezo
Imagine a Shy Guy with insect wings. Give him a spear.

OH SHI--LOOK WHAT YOU DID NOW HE'S FLYING TOWARDS YOUR FACE OH GOD GET BEHIND THE WALL

HOLY **** HE'S GOING THROUGH THE GODDAMN WALL OMG WTF

In SMB2, normal Beezos flew at an arc downward, eventually stabilizing and flying straight forward. Red ones already flew horizontally so it's kind of a shock when you're strolling through a level and a swarm of these just SUDDENLY come onscreen. Not cool. You could ride them though, as long as you pressed in the direction they're flying without pressing the run button.

Fly Guy
Moving on to Yoshi's Island territiory, the Fly Guy was nothing more than a Shy Guy with a prop attached to his head, enabling it the power of flight. It held things in its feet in YI (which still doesn't make sense it me; it's wearing shoes for god's sake), beckoning you to whale on it with an egg, after which it would drop said item. One of HotD's favorites.

Stilt Guy
In YI, Shy Guys on stilts were not really any less vulnerable than those without. You just needed to jump a bit higher or throw an egg in his face. That's all. You couldn't immediately gulp a stilted Shy Guy, but a mere stomp would knock him off his high horse, then you could eat him.

Fat Guy
Sorry--Obese Guy for the politically correct. In YI, Fat Guys were not skinny. In fact, they were so fat, Yoshi's regular stomps just bounced you off and made the chubby bastards run at a faster pace. However, their real worth came from eating them, after which you were gifted with huge eggs that produced a POW-Block effect which turned grounded enemies into Stars. Also, the mere thought of Yoshi producing eggs as huge as he is is definitely cringe-worthy at best.

Mufti Guy
A YI Shy Guy that disguised himself as a bunch of flowers. Not very convincing. Other than that, no glaring attributes.

Boo Guy
YI also introduced a ghost Shy Guy that did nothing more than a regular Shy Guy could besides being a tad faster. Although, other Boo Guys were a bit more lucky, some driving defensive machinary such as rigid spiked chains that rotated and spiked balls on winches, and others working as a team to drop bombs on Yoshi. These Boo Guys were invincible, huddled in their protective stone shelters, although the bomb-toting ones were susceptible to tremors like ones you can produce by Yoshi's ground pound. Also one of HotD's favorites.

Mace Guy
A YI Shy Guy that relentlessly spins a ball and chain around. The chain stretches in intervals, so try not to get caught off guard. You can duck the ball when you're level with him, but be careful when you attempt to attack the wielder; when the ball flies after it's let go, it's still a hazard.

Spear Guy
Things get more tribal in YI as you meet up with these Shy Guys. Y'know, the ones with the grass skirts, face paint, head feathers, shields and pointy spears? Yep, those ones. The red ones continuously marched forward and were invincible from the front, so you had to take them on from behind. Their spears pointed upward, so stomping was no option. The dancing variation of these were yellow and danced a pattern of hops and ass-shaking, notable for their usually longer spears. There were also ones in Yoshi's Island DS that stayed in place and jabbed their spears forward. Rude, but effective.

Shy Stack
Speaking of YIDS (looks like an acronym for a debilitating syndrome), there were Shy Guys in said game that stacked themselves in different numbers (a formation that actually first appeared in Paper Mario), teetering back and forth, but generally staying in place. Do not attempt to attack the bottom Guy within their proximity; the rest will fall on you.

Medi Guy
Seguing from mentioning Paper Mario, Medi Guys appeared in PM as Shy Guys riding flying contraptions similar to Bowser's Koopa Clown Car (sans propeller). They acted as healers, granting HP to their wounded companions. Due to this, you should probably take them out first.

Spy Guy
A PM Shy Guy in army fatigues and flowers on their heads. Their main weapons were slingshots, but upon taking damage, they alternate between that and a hammer, which disabled one of your commands if you succumbed to the latter.

Pyro Guy
A PM Shy Guy on fire. A Shy Guy on freakin' fire. It's mind-boggling. Not the fact that its attack is higher and it's weak to water attacks, but the fact it's on FIRE and it doesn't give a s*** is mind-boggling.

Anti Guy
A black Shy Guy in PM that deals MASSIVE DAMAGE. He guards a chest with a Power Plus badge in it. You can either fight him or give him Lemon Candy. Whatever works for you.

General Guy
The supposed leader of the Shy Guys in PM that I can only hope will make another appearance but won't because I know Nintendo's not that generous. He is the fourth chapter boss of PM and battles from the assumed safety of his toy tank. Destroying the tank's light bulb first makes things easier for you.

White Shy Guy
Moving on to Yoshi's Story, White Shy Guys acted as 1-ups. Weird, huh? They followed you after being collected like an egg. Too bad you can't throw them like one.

Shy Guy Relatives

Tweeter
I think it's appropriate to associate these with Shy Guys since they chill together in SMB2 and wear masks, so whatever. They continuously hop forward in one direction, never reversing until they hit a wall. Just pick them up and throw them. It's not that hard.

Bandit
In YI, Bandits were quick, crafty mother****ers that took multiple opportunities to jack your baby. Three normal stomps took these guys out, but six eggs also did the trick and yielded three coins and three 1-ups as a bonus.

Baseball Boy
In YI, there are two varieties of Baseball Boys: Green Gloves and Sluggers. Green Gloves are...um...green, and wear mitts to catch eggs with. They then return the favor by hurling them right back at you. They don't hurt, but they deliver crazy knockback. Sluggers are yellow and haul baseball bats. They immediately whack thrown eggs at a diagonal angle and also smack watermelon seeds, spat enemies, and Chomp Rocks at high speed. They both succumb to three normal stomps.

Zeus Guy
Masked karate masters in YI that deliver straight punches, roundhouse kicks, and sluggish hadoukens in your direction, giving them the ability to dig through spongy rock. They only fall unconscious for a few seconds after a stomp, but a well-timed egg or spat enemy when they're open immediately after they attack will eradicate them. Also, you can just leave them alone. Seems easier.

Snufit
Going over to Super Mario 64, Snufits were floating creatures with Snifit masks that shot bullets. Jump kick or stomp them; they're slow to react.

All these masked marauders still clutter my mind, but I never really figured out as to why I was drawn to them in the first place. Probably for their mere versatility in the beginning, but my respect for them most likely stems from the fact I drew an ASSLOAD of Shy Guys in my initial stage of learning to draw, which culminated to my love and talent for drawing.

To the Shy Guys, we may never know your true face (except Luigi, if you played Mario Tennis for the GC), but I would prefer it if that stayed a mystery. No mask, no character.

[Metal Mario]

Actually, Shy Guys were red and pink in the original NES version of SMB 2. The pink ones were replaced by blue ones for the Super Mario All-Stars version.

[Valigarmander]

HUH HUH HO, HO HUH HEH HO HEH HO!

[Antisocial]

Originally Posted by Metal Mario

Actually, Shy Guys were red and pink in the original NES version of SMB 2. The pink ones were replaced by blue ones for the Super Mario All-Stars version.

Figures that no one wants a pink Shy Guy.

[the Octopus]

Also, gotta give props to the slave Shy Guys that are pushing those big axles to turn the hazards in SMW2's dungeons. They are unrelenting. That and the pirate Shy Guys from Yoshi's Island DS - they're just cool.

In one of Valiant Comics' short-lived series of Super Mario Bros books, King Koopa's Shy Guy army revolts against him, and joins sides with Mario to bring a lone Koopa down. The reason? He appears to have forgotten it was "Be Kind to Lackeys Day".

[1-up Salesman]

....Whoa, that's alot of shy-guys.

[Gabriel]

I also like Shy Guys, them being my favorite Mario enemy. And I also like to draw, although, unlike you, I still am no good. And, uh, just for the sake of being annoying, it's Mario Power Tennis, for the GC.

[Luigiman7]

Boo and Fat are my favorites.

[PK FIRE!]

I love Beezos best don't know why though.

Din't SMRPG have Shy Guys and Snifts as enemies as well?

- You stupid dog.

[Metal Mario]

Originally Posted by PK FIRE!

Din't SMRPG have Shy Guys and Snifts as enemies as well?

Yup. And it also had Beezo, though it was renamed "Shy Away".

[Heroine of the Dragon]

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE I adore ShyGuys and yes, the pirate ShyGuys were awesome!!! I have too huge a list of ShyGuys as my favourites, but I do have a particular soft spot for FlyGuys and BooGuys... because they enjoy flying with me!!!!

[Antisocial]

Ah, yes. Mario Power Tennis because of all the POWERFUL abilities. I thought they added that word for a reason. It should be noted that it's probably the Fly Guy's debut as a playable character. I thought it seemed like they were scraping the bottom of the barrel with that, until I saw a Blooper as a playable in Mario Party 8, so...pfft.

Anyway, the corrections in your feedback continue to be appreciated as I move on and see what else I can muster from my memory.

Pirate Guy
They've appeared in numerous games, but they weren't officially called this until YIDS. They shot Bob-ombs and cannonballs from a distance in a pirate ship in Yoshi's Story and Mario Kart: Super Circuit, respectively. In YIDS, they're exactly the same as normal Shy Guys: Stomp them, gulp them, egg them, etc.

Glide Guy
Again, going back to YIDS, Glide Guys are merely Shy Guys with parasols attached to their heads, making them floaty and capable of flight under drafts. This also makes them a particular threat when taking to the skies with Baby Peach (not only because they damage you, but you'll have to hear Peach's irritating wail, which is never fun).

Tube Guy
Shy Guys in inner tubes that pace on the surface of water in YIDS. They bear no other glaring attributes other than looking kind of cute.

Shy Ranger
In Super Mario RPG, these Shy Gu--...WHAT THE F--...THE LITTLE BASTARD RAN AWAY!! Well, that's quite unfortunate. Unless you upped someone's speed some, like equipping the Feather on a leveled-up Geno, you won't get a chance to land a hit on this guy. Otherwise, he has no redeeming qualities, other than being fast.

Shy Squad
PM brings you the Shy Squad: A throng of fifteen Shy Guys that act as General Guy's first defense. Depending on how many are in the squad, you'll take that many consecutive hits for one point of damage each. Luckily for you, you subtract the number of Shy Guys according to how much damage you deal to them, making it that each Guy in the force represents one HP each. Should you give them a chance to rush you, you'd better tap that defend button with precise timing.

Groove Guy
Jester Shy Guys in PM that possessed the ability to make you dizzy with their dance moves. Other than that and the funky outfits, they're not that different from the normal kind.

Sky Guy
Shy Guys find yet another way to fly in PM via balloons. Three balloons hold one Sky Guy aloft, wielding a slingshot as his means of attack. Pop the balloons by attacking them, and the Sky Guy falls to earth, rendering it a normal Shy Guy.

Black Shy Guy
In YS, there were lots of Shy Guy colors. As you may have guessed, the black ones were a pain in the ass. In the stage Poochy & Nippy, one stretch of the level had these jerks endlessly drop bombs on your goddamn head. In the stages of the sixth world, they acted as makeshift Thwomps, carrying around spiked weights and dropping them on you. What's worse, you take damage from eating them and defeating them any other way yields you zero points. So what then? You just mosey along and let them do what they do.

Snow Guy
YS also introduced Shy Guys taking advantage of the snow in, again, the stage Poochy & Nippy. They stood in the background (making them invincible unless you pounded the ground under a Heart Fruit's influence) and threw snowballs at you. Yes, you do take damage from the snowballs, and no, I don't know why Yoshi's too much of a wuss to actually get hurt by them.

Submarine Guy
Still on the subject of YS, the stage Lots 'O' Jellyfish had you square off with these guys; Shy Guys in small submarines, shooting homing torpedos at you. You can't eat them, and throwing eggs is a no-go underwater anyway, making them invincible. Just swim away.

Limbo Guys
Once again, YS gives us another quirky Shy Guy debuting in the stage--wait for it--Shy Guy Limbo. Two Shy Guys (one in the background; one in the foreground. They are offcially invincible) sidestep in predictable patterns holding a limbo pole between them, beckoning you to jump over the sticks. And as much as you would like to bend over backwards, you can't, so you'll have to cheat. Each group of Shy Guys clad in the same color onscreen have their own pattern, so watch your back of other Shy Guys taking different steps.

Barbecue Guy
You know those red Shy Guys in the YS stage Magma Castle, in that one part where you fall into a pit and are then sandwiched by two walls of flame shooting forth from two urns, pushed by these two Shy Guys, forcing you to be at the mercy of their pace, lest you get seared? And the one in the back kinda slows down or speeds up sometimes, varying the size of your safety zone? You know those? Well, now you do.

Flamer Guy
Pyro Guy's predecessor. In YI, they hopped around aflame, taking big strides and being pretty fast. You couldn't stomp them, but projectiles are effective. And eating them let you breathe fire for three bursts. Other than that, it's just another Shy Guy on fire.

Train Bandit
No, it's not a Bandit; it's a Shy Guy. No explanation for the misnomer, but in YI, Train Bandits were Shy Guy chalk drawings that came to life whenever you rode chalk tracks on the back wall during a train transformation. They follow you around, attempting to body-check you and slow you down. You cannot defeat them, so just hold that Y button and speed away.

Mock Up
In YI, you'll sometimes come across a slowly inflating balloon on the ground, emblazoned with a tantalizing "1-UP" symbol. If you don't eat it before it pops, you don't get the extra life. In that case, the balloon pops and a Fly Guy flies off, endowing you nothing. Good job.

Gunner Guy
Okay, this is a strange one. Gunner Guys existed in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga and consisted of a Snifitesque character with a cannon for a mouth that's obviously too large for it. It also requires assistance from a Shy Guy in camo to help it fire bullets and cannonballs by shoving him in the back or pounding him on the head, respectively. It seems pretty pathetic.

Laser Snifit
In M&L:SS, it would be pretty much how you would imagine a "Laser Snifit" to be: A Snifit that shot lasers. They're not beam-type lasers, mind you--these Snifits shoot energy rings. And depending on how high they shoot, you may have to either stay perfectly still, or literally jump through hoops.

Boom Guy
These dudes mean serious business. They're Shy Guys with Bill Blasters (i.e. cannons that shoot Bullet Bills) attached to their heads. In Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, they let their cannons do the work as they merely position themselves for targeting. Sometimes, they'll fake you out and fire late, throwing off your evasive timing. Attack the cannon and it eventually comes off. After that, the Shy Guy that's left can do nothing else but call for a Fly Guy to equip him with another cannon. Sometimes, the reinforcements don't show up. Then the ball's in your court.

Mecha Fly Guy
You don't really need to know much about this piece of **** other than the fact he is the reason for many blistered palms of Mario Party owners everywhere, including me. So **** you, Mecha Fly Guy. **** you.

[the Octopus]

Originally Posted by Antisocial

Train Bandit
No, it's not a Bandit; it's a Shy Guy. No explanation for the misnomer, but in YI, Train Bandits were Shy Guy chalk drawings that came to life whenever you rode chalk tracks on the back wall during a train transformation. They follow you around, attempting to body-check you and slow you down. You cannot defeat them, so just hold that Y button and speed away.

Rather than going for a cute name, I'm pretty certain they were just named for what they literally were: bandits that waylay the train, in the style of the wild west and the James gang, among others.

[Cravdraa]

You missed the tall shyguys that spat watermelon seeds when you jumped on their heads.

[Metal Mario]

Oh, and just as a helpful note here: I wouldn't get too used to using the acronym "YIDS" if I were you, especially in mixed company. A "yid" is a derogatory slur for a Jewish person.

[Chaos Deviot]

No Luigi's Mansion references...? Aw...

[Luigiman7]

What about those flashing Shy Guys that flew away in YI?

[Antisocial]

Originally Posted by Cravdraa

You missed the tall shyguys that spat watermelon seeds when you jumped on their heads.

Oh, right. They're called Stretches. Not to be confused with the white rectangular blocks with Boos coming out of them in Super Mario Bros. 3 bearing the same name.

Originally Posted by xX~Luigi_Man~Xx

What about those flashing Shy Guys that flew away in YI?

Whirly Fly Guys. If you shot them six times, you scored two 1-ups. Seems like a waste of ammunition, though.

[Metal Mario]

Originally Posted by Chaos Deviot

No Luigi's Mansion references...? Aw...

Ah yes, that's right. There are spear-toting Shy Guy ghosts in Luigi's Mansion. You have to suck their masks off before you can vacuum them up.

[the Octopus]

Originally Posted by Metal Mario

Oh, and just as a helpful note here: I wouldn't get too used to using the acronym "YIDS" if I were you, especially in mixed company. A "yid" is a derogatory slur for a Jewish person.

Heh, that kind of thing always cracks me up. It's like all the black americans that take offense to things labelled "negro". It's fricken spanish for black. Durr.