Bowser is the main antagonist in most of the Mario Party series. Usually, Bowser appears after the players land on a Bowser Space, where he will cause some trouble and makes the unlucky players play his Mini-Games and makes them give up their coins or stars to him.
Bowser is the King of the Koopas and the main antagonist in a Super Mario franchise since his debut. His goal is to rule the Mushroom Kingdom by kidnapping Princess Peach as he had a crush on her, though his plans are foiled since Mario usually defeats him time after time. He also appeared in other kinds of Mario games, such as the Mario Kart games, the Mario Golf games, the Mario Tennis games, and Mario Party games. Bowser had his cohort named Baby Bowser (later to be known as Koopa Kid), and he also had his own son, Bowser Jr..In Mario and Sonic's adventures in London,Bowser seems to be more friendly to Mario,Sonic and the others like his best friend Dr.Eggman and he seems to have a fear of the good Boo because every time Bowser looks at him,Bowser remembered him from the flashback where Boo scared him in the Mario + Pokémon episode "The big Bowser scare".In the episode "Bowser in Charge" after Sticks said that technology can be trusted by Bowser,Dr.Eggman allowed Bowser be in charge of his badniks for a day as this also seems to happen in the two episodes "Villian life swap" and "Master for a day" while it later happened in the episode "Bowser Power".
Appearances
Mario Party
Bowser first appeared as the antagonist of Mario Party, where he will cause some bad luck to the players when they encounter him either by landing on a Bowser Space or by going to him personally in the board maps. Like everyone else, Bowser has his own board known as Bowser's Magma Mountain, which can only be unlocked by buying that board map for 980 Coins. The main goal for this board is to defeat Bowser in his own game. The gimmick for this board is that there are many green volcano-heads where the players are asked if they want to take a shortcut for 10 coins. If the player accepts, then they must pay a fee, and a roulette block will appear with a Star and Bowser's Face. If it's a Star, then the player will take a shortcut, but if it's Bowser's Face, then they must continue the normal route without a refund. Another gimmick is the purple volcano-head, where the players will hit another roulette block free of charge. If it's a Star, then they will take a path to Boo, but if it's Bowser's Face, then they will take a path to Bowser. When a player lands on a Happening Space, Bowser will erupt the volcano, turning all Blue Spaces into Red Spaces for 2 turns. After the player collects 100 Stars and completes all the Boards, Bowser steals all the Stars from the Mushroom Bank and the player will get those Stars back by going to the final board of the game, Eternal Star, where Bowser broke the Giant Star and wrote graffiti on it with the help of his cohort Baby Bowser, and it's up to the players to defeat him for good. In the end, when a winner is declared, their Stars combined into a large Star to blast Bowser and Baby Bowser into outer space and put the Giant Star back together.
Mario Party 2
Bowser appeared as the main villain again, where he invaded Mario Land to take it for himself as Mario and friends argued. Bowser wears different clothing to match a theme of the boards. He constantly appears when the players get a Bowser Bomb item, where he will be summoned and he will steal all the coins by passing through any character. He played his role as the villain in each boards: "Cap'n Bowser" in Pirate Land, "Bowser The Brash" in Western Land, "Black Hole Bowser" in Space Land, "Bowser Sphinx" in Mystery Land, and "Wizard Bowser" in Horror Land. In the board endings, Bowser causes trouble, until a winner of the boards foil his plan and he is forced to retreat. Bowser is the only character to have his own board known as Bowser Land, the final board of this game where it is only unlocked by clearing all other boards. In the ending, Bowser encounters the winning player, where he transforms into Metal Bowser, making the winner unable to throw him. However, his plan is once again foiled when the winner with Star power grabs his tail and sends him flying around the world. Bowser is finally defeated after he crash lands behind the winner as his metal form is shattered into pieces.
Mario Party 3
Bowser is once again the villain of this game. In Story Mode, Bowser, with his cohorts Baby Bowsers, had always tried to steal the player's Star Stamps, but with no success as his plan always ends up in a failure. Even though he is a villain, Bowser is known to be a comical relief character for reasons. His first attempt to steal the player's Star Stamp ended up in a failure, because the player who won the Wit Star Stamp left the area before Bowser and two Baby Bowsers appeared. His second attempt failed again, because the player who won the Kindness Star Stamp left the area, again. For his third attempt, however, Bowser caught up to the player who won the Strength Star Stamp and tried to force the player to give their Star Stamps to him, but the player ignored him as they walked away from him. For his fourth attempt, Bowser and Baby Bowsers have finally surrounded the player who won the Love Star Stamp so he can finally steal their Star Stamps. However, Tumble deliberately told him to step aside, so Bowser granted his request as Tumble, the player, and the Millennium Star left the area again, though at the same time, Bowser fell for Tumble's trick, shoots his fire, and says to himself that he feels like an idiot. For his fifth attempt, before the player (who won the Courage Star Stamp) and Princess Daisy faced off in Backtrack for the Beauty Star Stamp, Bowser appeared right behind Daisy. Just as Daisy turned around, she screams, and then she slaps Bowser very hard, sending him flying to the sky. For his sixth and final attempt, he suddenly returns out of nowhere, and when Bowser was about to challenge the player for the final Star Stamp, the Mischief Star Stamp, they encounter Waluigi, the true main villain of this game who has the Mischief Star Stamp in a cage. After a short fight, Bowser ends up being utterly defeated by Waluigi, which makes Bowser beg the player to avenge him and defeat his "mortal enemy" before Bowser loses consciousness. Bowser was never seen again for the rest of the Story Mode after Baby Bowsers carried him away. This is the only game where Bowser does not have his own board.
Mario Party 4
Bowser has returned as the main villain once again. In Story Mode, Bowser stole the player's birthday presents, stating that they must win on his board, Bowser's Gnarly Party, to win them back. After completing the final board game, the player must defeat Bowser in the final Mini-Game, The Final Battle!, which involves chasing Bowser in a cube-shaped arena. After avoiding the fire and lava and defeating the Koopa Kids and Bowser in solving the puzzles, the player finally reached the actual arena. Once there, the player must press the various buttons around the arena until it forms a triangle to electrocute Bowser with lightning strikes. After five lightning strikes on him, Bowser is finally defeated. Upon his defeat, Bowser is in disbelief that he lost to the player and grudgingly leaves, leaving something behind. Koopa Kid then appears and explains that the object is a present from Bowser, as well as the fact that he didn't really steal the player's presents. Afterwards, as he is trudging away, he wishes the player a happy birthday.
Mario Party 5
Bowser is the main villain yet again in this game. In Story Mode, Bowser made his evil plan: To take over Dream Depot and have only his wishes come true. In each of the four Dream Boards, Bowser attempts to destroy each dream by filling them with his own dreams and make them as a nightmare to everyone else, until the player arrives to stop him. However, Bowser has a Koopa Kid, who split himself up into three colored Koopa Kids, to challenge the player. When the player reaches to Bowser, he challenges the player to a duel at his own Dream Board, Bowser's Nightmare. After the Koopa Kids are defeated one last time, Bowser states that his dream is coming true, and it involves the player. Afterwards, the player must defeat Bowser in the final Mini-Game, Frightmare. In the first phase, Bowser sends the Mechakoopas after the player, but they were all destroyed by the player. In the second phase, Bowser sends the three rings of fire to burn the player, but the player evaded them all. In the third phase, Bowser shows himself and lands on a platform, attacking the player with his fire breath, charging at the player, and leaping to slam the ground where the player is. After the player leads Bowser to land on the same spot three times, the floor collapses and Bowser falls, but so does the player. This leads to the final phase where Bowser drinks a Mushroom drink to grow into a giant size (though at the same time he ended up being stuck on the floor) and attacks the player with his energy balls that leaves small orbs, then with his fire breath that causes the orbs to glow, and finally with another ball of energy that creates an electric shock wave. After the player hits Bowser with his glowing orb five times, Bowser is finally defeated as he gets sucked into the background vortex. However, even after his defeat, Bowser claims that his dream came true, and that dream was to have the player as a strong opponent.
Mario Party 6
Although there is no Story Mode in this game, Bowser is still the main villain of this game. He appears on three boards. The first board is Clockwork Castle, in which he only appears during the night to replace Donkey Kong, who appears during the day. After all the players take a turn, Bowser gets to take a turn as well, rolling two dice blocks instead of one if he breathes fire. Anybody he encounters during his turn is given a Shadow Star, which deducts the player's current Star total by one. If the player runs into him during their turns, Bowser forcibly gives them a Shadow Star, then leaps to another random space on the board. The second board is Castaway Bay, in which he can be the boat docked at the Star Space. If the player reaches Bowser's Battle Yacht, he "rewards" the player by giving them a Shadow Star, which takes one Star or twenty coins if they have none. Additionally, if DK's Boat is docked at the Star Space while the player is participating in the rafting activity, Bowser fires three cannonballs, causing them to lose five coins if hit. The third board is a Bowser-themed board known as Infernal Tower, the final board in Solo Mode. If the player passes the final space, a cage falls around them, which Bowser, in his Koopa Clown Car, then carries away.
Mario Party Advance
Bowser is the main villain in this game. He arrives while Toad is explaining the game and scatters the numerous Gaddgets and minigames throughout Shroom City. After completing the first quest, Bowser seals off the eight pipes in the Pipe House. He also has a slight role on the actual game board; whenever Koopa Kid randomly shows up while traveling through Shroom City, he can use lava to fling the player somewhere else in the city. He can also appear and challenge them to rochambeau (rock, paper, scissors). If he wins, Koopa Kid can choose to block the path, which causes Bowser to drop a statue of him similar to the ones he placed on the pipes on top of Koopa Kid, blocking that section of the board. As the player completes quests, Bowser destroys the statues covering the pipes. These pipes lead to one of the eight areas Bowser owns around the city. In Bowser Stadium, Bowser challenges the player to a game of soccer, and, after he is defeated, is forced to play Splatterball. When this game is won, the player wins the game Splatterball, to play any time in minigame mode, and the Gaddget Snooze Ewes. At Mt. Frostbite, Bowser and Koopa Kid are freezing on the mountain top. When the player arrives, he believes that they can warm him up by answering his jokes with the correct punchlines. Once he feels better, he challenges them to play Crushed Ice. After the game is won, Bowser gives them the minigame and the Gaddget Breeze Buddy. At Bowser Mansion, Bowser is accused of stealing a painting from the museum, and the player, along with Shroomlock, must prove whether Bowser is guilty or not by finding faults in his alibi. Bowser tells them that he stayed home all day that day, that he hadn't even seen the painting due to his hatred of Toads and twilight, and that is impossible to hide the painting in the mansion. The player proves Bowser's alibi false by questioning that nothing in the house is big enough to hide the painting, which he could only know if he had seen it. Bowser then states that he hid the painting somewhere outside, and, once Koopa Kid and Shroomlock leave, he forces the player to play Mush Rush Once the game is won, the prize given to them is the game and the Gaddget Lip Sync. At Bowser Toy Shop, the player is challenged by Bowser and Koopa Kid to answer five trivia questions about his favorite show, Toad Force V. If player answers the questions correctly, they must play the minigame Slammer. Upon winning, they obtain the mini-game. In Bowser Hideout, Bowser challenges the player to a game of luck: guessing whether the value on the upside-down card is higher or lower than the one preceding it. Upon winning the game, the player is forced into playing Koopa Kappa. Victory results in receiving the minigame and two Gaddgets: Faux Flame and Hourglass. At Bowser Pad, Bowser wants the player to get him a gift according to his tastes. The gift either has to be a bracelet, a ring, or a necklace, though the one bought must be the one Bowser truly desires. As a hint, he states that he likes necklaces as much as bracelets, but he likes rings more than bracelets. After retrieving the correct gift and delivering it to him, the gang is challenged to the game Peek-n-Sneak. When the minigame is won, the prize is the game and the Gaddget Shroom Bloom. In Bowser Game Hall, Bowser brags about himself being the Game King. At the Pyramid, Kamek states that he gave him the title long ago, but that he became too arrogant because of it afterward. Upon the player stating that they are the King of Games, Bowser challenges them to the minigame Watch 'Em, which he states to have created, to determine the true king of games. Winning forces Bowser to give the player the title, the minigame, and the Gaddget Jewelry Case. At Bowser Lab, Bowser allows the player to select one of the two monsters he created and duel it. Choosing the scary monster challenges Naval Piranha to the game Koopa Kurl; choosing the very scary monster only releases Huffin' Puffin, embarrassing Bowser and forcing the player to leave. Once the Piranha is defeated, the minigame is the prize won. Once the player accomplishes forty-nine out of the fifty quests, Bowser opens the gate in the back of the Pipe House, revealing his lair. After arriving at the house, Bowser challenges Mario to a showdown for the final Gaddget. The showdown is the minigame Trap Floor. After the minigame is beaten, the player receives it, as well as the Gaddget Bowser Print. The end credits state that he wants to make a clean slate at defeating Mario. Bowser also has his own mode, as a part of Challenge Land, known as Bowser Land, which he hosts. The mode involves the player advancing on a roller coaster to get to the end, playing Bowser minigames every time the coaster stops at a designated checkpoint. Once the player reaches the end, Bowser rewards the player coins based upon how long it took to reach him. However, if the player takes too long, Bowser automatically ends the game.
Mario Party 7
Bowser is once again the main villain of this game. Toadsworth invited Mario and friends to go on the vacation around the world, but Bowser was not invited, making him outraged. Because of this, Bowser, along with the Koopa Kid, tries to spoil the party. In Solo Cruise, after the player beats five opponents in five boards, the player will face one final opponent and arrives "Bowser's Enchanted Inferno!", Bowser's own board. During this board game, upon obtaining a Star and reaching him, Bowser takes the player to his castle to play the final Mini-Game, "Bowser's Lovely Lift!". In that final boss battle, Bowser is in the vehicle where he will try to blast the player away with his fireballs and missiles in one hit. When the player evades Bowser's attack and hit the blocks for the platform to go up to 50 or more, Bowser calls the Koopa Kid to help him destroy the player. After the player reached to 100, the player used the power of the Stars to pelt Bowser and Koopa Kid, destroying their vehicles and finally defeating Bowser and Koopa Kid. After recovering from being dazed, Bowser and Koopa Kid are stranded in a lonely island. Koopa Kid then points out the winning player on the cruise ship in the distance. Enraged, Bowser demands revenge, but he does admit that he had fun before Koopa Kid points this out, causing Bowser to return to his enraged state.
Mario Party 8
Bowser is the main villain of this game. In Star Battle Arena, after the player defeated five opponents in five boards, MC Ballyhoo was about to award the player with the Star Rod, when suddenly, Bowser interrupts the Award Ceremony and steals the Star Rod. The player went after Bowser in outer space and reached Bowser's Warped Orbit, Bowser's own board. Bowser then calls one of his henchmen, which is either Blooper or Hammer Bro, to challenge the player for the Star Rod. After the player defeats either Blooper or Hammer Bro, Bowser honors his word and returns the Star Rod to the player. However, Bowser challenges the player to a final battle in the final Mini-Game, "Superstar Showdown". During the first phase, Bowser, in his Koopa Clown Car, attacks the player with his fireballs. The player must hit Bowser with the power of the Star Rod for a certain number of times. After Bowser was hit three times, the second phase begins when he attached the Bullet Bill launchers on the sides of the Koopa Clown Car. After Bowser is hit three more times, the final phase begins when his Koopa Clown Car gains the ability to fire numerous lasers and red Bullet Bills that goes faster than regular Bullet Bills. When Bowser reached to two health points, he attacks the player with a big fireball. After Bowser's health reached to zero, the Koopa Clown Car, with Bowser in it, falls down to the vortex below, therefore the player finally defeated Bowser.
Mario Party DS
Bowser is the main villain of this game. Bowser invites Mario and friends, along with Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong, stating his invitation that it is an apology for his wrongdoings. However, after arriving at Bowser's Castle, it turns out that the invitation was a trap, and Mario and the others fell for it, ending up being captured. Bowser then used his Minimizer to shrink them all to the sizes of chess pieces for the purpose of obtaining Mario's Sky Crystal. Afterward, he has Kamek throw them all out. After Mario and crew defeated four Bosses from four boards, they went back to Bowser's Castle. Then, Bowser, and his son Bowser Jr. (who replaced Koopa Kid from now on), take the group and place them inside Bowser's Pinball Machine, which is known to be his own board. After collecting enough Stars, the player breaks out of the machine to fight him. Bowser was about to shrink them more, until Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong barged into the castle and Donkey Kong ram into Bowser, while Diddy Kong steps on the Minimizer and breaks it, causing Mario and crew to grow back into their normal size to fight Bowser in the final Mini-Game, "Bowser's Block Party". Before the final battle starts, however, Bowser used his Megamorph Belt to turn himself into "Blockhead Bowser". In this form, Bowser has three forms, a Top, a Cube, and a Snake. In every form, Bowser shoots fireballs at the player, as well as having another unique attack for every form. However, each form has one golden block that is Bowser's weak spot. After hitting his weak spot multiple times, Bowser shifts forms, and after three times, he is finally defeated. When he is beaten, Bowser and Bowser Jr. are captured and bound in ropes. With all five Sky Crystals in their possession, Mario and friends combine those crystals to form a DS to play "Triangle Twisters". Bowser admits that he only wanted the crystals to obtain the game all for himself, but his plans were now ruined. However, despite Bowser's actions, Mario and his friends offer Bowser the opportunity to play as well, so Bowser accepts their offer. And so, Mario and friends, and even Bowser and Bowser Jr., are all having fun playing the challenge.
Mario Party 9
Bowser is once again the main villain of this game. In Solo Mode, Bowser and Bowser Jr. activated his machine somewhere in space to capture all the Mini Stars, but when Bowser Jr. At the beginning of each board, Bowser is admiring the Mini Stars that he captured, but when Bowser Jr. tells him that the player is coming to get those Mini Stars back, Bowser is shocked by it and he sends two of his minions to their next destination. After the player defeats all of Bowser's minions from each board, the player arrives at "Bowser Station", his own board, where Bowser will take on the player himself with Bowser Jr.'s help. When Bowser Jr. is defeated, Bowser flies down in his Koopa Clown Car, creates a Boss Battle Space and a Bowser Gate at the beginning of his stage, and waits for the players to challenge him there. When the player reached this space, they are forced to face him in the Final Boss Battle Mini-Game, "Bowser's Block Battle", where he is giant for the whole game. In this final boss battle, the players must throw the blocks with their faces on them to damage Bowser. He is damaged when the player tosses a block which lands face up with their heads on them; however, if they land on a Bowser symbol, Bowser can use these to attack the player by splitting a trio of fireballs a number of times equal to the number of blocks with his logo rolled. Once Bowser's health reaches the midway point, he grows even more. He still attacks the player with his fireballs, but he splits large fireballs each time. He also attacks them by tossing one large block with the faces of six previous bosses on it, which summons one of said bosses to the battlefield so they can rampage and damage the player; the boss depends on what is rolled when the block lands. If the boss block lands on Bowser himself, he attacks the players with a barrage of fireballs. Bowser also tilts the battlefield when the players are tossing the block. Once Bowser's health reaches zero, he is finally defeated when he falls into a black hole and explodes. In the ending cutscene, Bowser only wanted the Mini Stars to decorate his castle, and in the end, he failed, as he and Bowser Jr. fly off in their Koopa Clown Cars. Out of anger, Bowser chases off the Mini Stars to approach him, but he falls out of his Koopa Clown Car, with Bowser Jr. flying after him.
Mario Party: Island Tour
Bowser is once again the main villain of this game. In the Introduction to Bowser's Tower mode, Bowser is jealous that he was not invited to a party. At that moment, he makes a party of his own by creating Bowser's Tower. He then "locked away the fun" of the Party Islands into all kinds of evil bubbles. As the player starts an adventure inside Bowser's Tower with the guidance of Green Toad, Bowser sends his minions that are the bubble clones of the characters, along with the bosses, to stop the player. After the player cleared the floors and defeating the bubble clones and bosses, the player reached the 30th floor, where they faced against Bowser himself in the Final Boss Battle Mini-Game, "Bowser's Sky Scuffle". In this final boss battle, the player must fire the cannons at Bowser in his Koopa Clown Car. When the cannon runs out of cannonballs, the player must move to another platform with a Bowser Face on it. Bowser then attacks the player with his fireballs, while the player evades them and hits the blocks to fill up the cannonball meter. Once Bowser's health reaches the midway point, Bowser will try to avoid the player's cannonball attack much faster and he attacks the player with the same fireballs, but he also attacks the player when he shoots fireballs upward and rains it down on the player. Once Bowser's health reaches zero, he is finally defeated as his Koopa Clown Car explodes, sending Bowser flying to the sky. After the player finally reached the rooftop of Bowser's Tower and destroyed Bowser's Bubble-making Machine, the player finally beat Bowser's Tower, or so does the player thought. The dark power inside Bowser's Tower is still active, and Bowser returned with his Koopa Clown Car, revealing to the player that the Bowser they defeated was merely a Bubble Clone (and if the player is Bowser Jr., then Bowser will just tell him that he only let him win because Bowser Jr. wanted to be the hero for once). So, the real Bowser punched the player off his tower, ending the game by telling the player that they can visit Bowser's Tower anytime to try again. Also, Bowser has his very own board called "Bowser's Peculiar Peak", which is the only board in the game that he, and not Yellow Toad, hosts.
Mario Party 10
Bowser is not only the main villain, but he is also a playable character in this game. The new mode for this game is called "Bowser Party", where the player with the Wii U Gamepad is Bowser. The goal for Bowser is to deplete the health of the other characters, who move together in a vehicle like in Mario Party 9, via Bowser Mini-Games before they can reach the end of the board. Bowser is able to move by rolling multiple dice, and if he catches up to the other players, they must play a Bowser Minigame. If all the player's health are depleted, Bowser wins, but if even one character reached the goal and get the Star, Bowser loses. In the "Mario Party" mode, Bowser is seen in the Wii U Gamepad where he is locked up in a cage with six locks, corresponding to the numbers on a die. If all six locks are unlocked, Bowser is freed and he will take away half of the Mini Stars from the player who freed him, and creating several Bowser Spaces ahead. If the players reached to the "Almost There!" event, then Bowser remains locked in the cage for the rest of the game. Bowser is also the boss of his own board, Chaos Castle. As the players get closer to the end of Chaos Castle, Bowser will shoot a giant fireball and hits the player (if the player is not on the safe spot), forcing the player to lose half of the Mini Stars. After reaching to the end, the players face against Bowser in the Final Boss Battle Mini-Game, "Bowser's Tank Terror". At the start of the final boss battle, the players in their respective tanks witness Bowser in his large tank as the platform rises. The players must fire the bombs from their tanks to Bowser's tank to deplete his health. Bowser attacks the players with spiked bombs from the main cannon and jets of fire from the other cannons. When his health is depleted enough, he starts charging at the players. Once Bowser's health reaches the midway point, Bowser's tank explodes and he falls into the lava. However, the battle is not over yet, as Bowser transforms into a giant-sized Dry Bowser. As Dry Bowser, he shoots blue fireballs at the players, and he also shoots those fireballs upward, raining them down at the players. He then throws his own bone as his boomerang to attack the players. Once Dry Bowser's health bar reaches zero, he is finally defeated as he explodes. Additionally, he is finally the character played as in the Bowser Challenge Mini-Game mode, where the player must play through every Bowser Mini-Game depleting as many of the opponents' hearts as he can. His other board, Bowser Board, is unlocked with a Bowser amiibo in amiibo Party.
Super Mario Party
In Super Mario Party, Bowser returns to a playable character, with a fairly powerful dice block consisting of -3 coins, -3 coins, 1, 8, 9, 10.
Powers and abilities
Fire breath: Bowser is able to spit fire in different forms.
- Fire balls: Bowser is able to shoot fireballs from his mouth. He can also shoot several at once.
- Fire stream: Bowser can fire a large stream of continuous fire to attack.
Size changing: In many games, Bowser can change size, either by a potion or by simple will.
- Enhanced strength: After becoming a giant in Mario Party 9, Bowser showed enough strength to rock the battle platform.
Dark magic: Bowser is able to use a wide range of black magic powers.
- Tenebrokinesis: In Mario Party 5 and Mario Party 10, Bowser can manipulate dark energy.
- Shape-shifting: In Mario Party 2, Bowser turns a Koopa troop into a frog.
- Flying: In Mario Party 9, Bowser proves to be able to levitate.
- Électrokinesis: In Mario Party 9, Bowser can invoke lightning.
- Summoning: In Mario Party 9, Bowser invokes different enemies, and in Mario Party: Island Tour, he invokes an entire tower.
Intelligence: Bowser is smart enough to build a bubble machine and place a clone of him at the top of his tower in Mario Party: Island Tour.