Goomba

"Kuribo" redirects here. For the Japanese smasher, see Kuribo.

Goomba
A Goomba in Mario Party Star Rush.
Universe	Mario
Debut	Super Mario Bros. (1985)
Level appearances	Melee: Mushroom Kingdom Brawl: The Jungle The Lake The Cave The Swamp The Great Maze
Point worth	200
Most recent non-Smash appearance	Mario Tennis Fever (2026)
Console/platform of origin	Nintendo Entertainment System
Article on Super Mario Wiki	Goomba

Goombas (クリボー, Kuribo) are a species of meager mushroom-like enemies from the Mario series.

Origin

Mario stomping a Goomba in Super Mario Bros.

Goombas are brown, mushroom-like creatures with a scowling expression and two fangs protruding from their lower jaw. According to the original backstory, the Goombas were once loyal to the Mushroom Kingdom but betrayed their homeland during Bowser's invasion.

Goombas debuted as basic enemies in Super Mario Bros. and have remained staples of the mainline Super Mario series alongside Koopa Troopas. In their debut appearance, Goombas utilize a simple two-frame walking animation, marching continuously forward in a straight line; they change direction only upon touching a wall and blindly walk off of ledges. When defeated by a stomp, a Goomba is flattened into a distinct squished sprite for a brief moment. However, defeating a Goomba with a fireball or a Super Star flips it upside down and knocks it offscreen, consistent with other standard enemies. Goombas return in Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels with the exact same appearance and role.

Goombas received their first distinct variants in Super Mario Bros. 3, most notably the winged Paragoombas and the oversized Big Goombas native to Giant Land, which split into two standard Goombas when stomped in certain games. Although earlier installments like Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels featured blue-hued underground and grey-hued castle Goombas, these were merely palette swaps resulting from the Nintendo Entertainment System's hardware limitations rather than true variants. Standard Goombas are absent from Super Mario World, which instead introduces the Galoomba, a rounder creature that flips onto its back when jumped on and can be picked up and thrown. Galoombas were referred to as "Goombas" and conflated with the actual species until they received their distinct name in Super Mario 3D World. Additionally, Goombas can stack vertically to form Goomba Towers or ride inside large footwear as Shoe Goombas wearing Goomba's Shoes (the latter debuting in Super Mario Bros. 3 as well).

Starting with Super Mario 64 and continuing in subsequent 3D platformers, Goombas actively pursue Mario and other nearby characters.

Several prominent individual Goombas appear throughout the Mario franchise, ranging from friendly allies to major antagonists. Notable allies include Goombario, an avid fan of Mario, and Goombella, an archaeology student, who join Mario's party in Paper Mario and Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, respectively. On the antagonistic side is Goomboss, the self-proclaimed king of the Goombas, who debuted as a boss in Paper Mario before reappearing in Super Mario 64 DS and Mario Kart DS, both including him as a boss in some capacity.

Goombas typically appear in non-playable roles across Mario spin-off titles, despite their iconic status. They are track obstacles in the Mario Kart series. In games where a Goomba is playable, its lack of hands never hinders its performance, though the Goomba's stats are generally below average. Playable opportunities increased during the Nintendo Switch era, most notably as a transformation for Mario and his allies in Super Mario Bros. Wonder and Super Mario Odyssey, and as a recurring character in the Mario Party series. Eventually, Goomba would become a playable character in Mario Kart World.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee

As a background character

Goombas appear in their 8-bit forms as background characters in the Mushroom Kingdom stage, back and forth on Mushroom Platforms, as in Super Mario Bros.

As an enemy

Goombas in Melee's Adventure Mode

Goombas appear as a common enemy in the Mushroom Kingdom stage.

Goombas walk back and forth, fall off ledges, and damage the player's fighter on contact. If the player's fighter makes contact with a Goomba, they will take damage with moderately low knockback. Just as in the Super Mario series, Goombas can be defeated using any attack, including simply landing on top of them. Stomping a Goomba sets the character's vertical velocity to a fixed value to simulate a bounce, directly mimicking the mechanics of Super Mario Bros. Upon clearing the stage, the player receives the "Goomba KO" bonus, which awards 100 points for each Goomba defeated.

Goombas also have a 2/896 chance to appear out of Crates, Barrels, and Party Balls in regular battles. They are one of four common enemies that can appear out of a container item, the other three being ReDeads, Octoroks, and Topis.

As a stage

A close-up of the Goomba stage in Event 14.

A giant Goomba trophy serves as the arena for Trophy Tussle 1, and completing the event match awards the player the Goomba trophy itself. The outer edges of the Goomba's head function as standard ledges that fighters can grab while recovering.

Trophy

Goomba's trophy in Melee

Goomba

Goombas are actually traitors who've defected from the Mushroom Kingdom's forces. They're a slow and predictable nuisance, as they always try to wander into Mario's path. Fortunately for Mario, they don't have much stamina, as a single jump on the head is generally enough to defeat them.

Super Mario Bros. (10/85)

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

As an enemy

Two Goombas in The Subspace Emissary

A Goomba dashing in The Subspace Emissary

Goombas appear as enemies exclusively within various stages of Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary. In one cutscene, both Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong are seen defeating Goombas and other Mario enemies. A Goomba is also seen standing atop a pile of Bananas inside a Cargo piloted by a Hammer Bro, helping him steal Donkey Kong's Banana Hoard. Their larger variety is also found in certain stages alongside them.

Goombas are among the least threatening enemies in The Subspace Emissary. Similar to their Melee counterparts, Goombas have very low HP, are easily defeated in one strike (even on Intense difficulty), and are instantly KO'd when jumped on regardless of remaining health. However, Goombas now move slightly faster upon spotting a fighter by charging forward to ram into them, a characteristic originating from Super Mario 64. The Goombas' sole attack has noticeable start-up lag, deals low damage and knockback, has minimal KO potential, and is easy to shield against. Once a Goomba begins charging, it runs for an extended distance; if a Goomba charges past the player, it turns around and attempts to charge again.

Fighters also perform a Footstool Jump when landing on a Goomba, although the decreasing height from consecutive footstools makes it difficult to bounce on several in a row.

Although Goombas are never explicitly stated to be members of the Subspace Army, they serve under Bowser, who is known to be a high-ranking member.

Moveset

Notes: The "d" below is a multiplier based on the difficulty value. Final damage is rounded down to the nearest whole number. The move names are fan-made in the absence of an official source.

Name	Damage	Description
Charge	6 + 2.5d	Hops in surprise, briefly runs in place, then charges the player. Deals low damage and knockback.
Careening	6 - 0.2d	—

HP and damage taken

HP Values
Early stages	4.4	6	7.2	9.2	11.2
Late stages	5.84	7.76	9.04	10.64	12.4

Damage taken	×1.0	×1.0	×1.0	×1.0	×1.0	×1.0	×1.0	×1.0	×1.0	×1.0	×0.75

Trophy

The Goomba trophy can be obtained by using the Trophy Stand on a Goomba in The Subspace Emissary.

Goomba's trophy in Brawl

Goomba

A citizen of the Mushroom Kingdom who sided with Bowser when he invaded. Goombas slowly chase after Mario on stubby legs. They're not the toughest creatures and can generally be defeated by jumping on them, which makes them disappear. They have fierce fangs, but they don't seem to serve any purpose. Though a nuisance to Mario, they're decent at baseball and mah-jongg.

: Super Mario Bros.

: Super Mario Bros. 3

In Super Smash Bros. 4

As an enemy

A close-up of a Goomba in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

Two Goombas attacking Fox.

Goombas and Big Goombas appear as enemies in Smash Run in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, reprising their behavior from Brawl.

Goombas also appear as part of the Mario-themed Vs. Enemy Team final battle.

As a background character

Galoomba in the background of Super Mario Maker in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

In Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, Goombas appear as background characters in the Super Mario Maker stage riding the Koopa Clown Car. Their appearance changes depending on the game style, matching their designs in Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 3, and New Super Mario Bros. U. In the Super Mario World layout, the Goombas are replaced with Galoombas, matching how only the latter appears in the source game.

Trophy

The Goomba trophy appears in both versions. In Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, it is part of the Bowser's Minions Trophy Box.

Goomba's trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

Goomba's trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

Goomba

The Goombas' grumpy little faces aren't scaring anyone. In fact, if Mario found himself in front of a sea of Goombas, he'd just get right to stomping! They were once loyal to the Mushroom Kingdom, but they turned traitor when Bowser invaded. One jump's usually enough to take them out. Foes don't come much weaker than this!

Once loyal to the Mushroom Kingdom, the Goombas switched sides when Bowser invaded. Not that it mattered—they weren't really mighty warriors. In Smash Bros., they are equally weak, simply running at you. They must expect to get stomped by now... Don't expect a lot of fanfare for beating one.

: Super Mario Bros. (10/1985)

: Super Mario 64 (09/1996)

Once loyal to the Mushroom Kingdom, the Goombas switched sides when Bowser invaded. Not that it mattered – they were never exactly mighty warriors or anything. They're weak in this game too – the worst they'll do is run at you. At this point, they must just be expecting to get stomped on... Don't expect a fanfare if you beat one.

: Super Mario Bros. (05/1987)

: Super Mario 64 (03/1997)

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Spirits

Goomba appears as a Novice-class primary spirit, and is featured on the Papercraft Mario and River Survival spirits.

In Adventure Mode: World of Light, Goomba is presumably one of the countless spirits captured by Galeem during his takeover of the universe. Goomba's spirit is located in the cliff section of The Light Realm.

The Goomba Spirit Battle uses an army of Tiny Donkey Kong puppet fighters and is fought on the Mushroom Kingdom stage's Battlefield form.

During the River Survival Spirit Battle, the Goomba uses a Kirby puppet fighter and is fought on the Kongo Falls stage's Ω form, referencing the jungle rapids which serves as the main setting of the Super Mario Party River Survival game mode. It is fought along with the Bowser, Yoshi, and Rosalina & Luma puppet fighters. During the battle, the player's fighter must survive until the timer runs out, referencing the time limit of the River Survival game mode while Bob-ombs will rain from the sky, referencing the obstacles in said game mode, which will cause the players to lose if they don't avoid them. Also, the Party Ball and the Food items appear, referencing the balloons in River Survival, which will reward the players with extra time after completing the minigames.

Primary spirits

No.	Image	Name	Type	Class	Slots	Base	Max	Base	Max	Base	Max	Ability	Series
36		Goomba		★	2	750	3758	361	1807	361	1807	Foot Attack ↑	Super Mario Series
112		Papercraft Mario		★	3	1036	5187	613	3068	384	1920	Fire Weakness	Mario & Luigi Series

Support spirit

No.	Image	Name	Class	Cost	Ability	Series
1,301		River Survival	★★	1	Falling Immunity	Super Mario Series

Names in other languages

Language	Name
Japanese	クリボー
English	Goomba
French	Goomba
German	Gumba
Spanish	Goomba
Italian	Goomba
Chinese (Simplified)	栗宝宝
Chinese (Traditional)	栗寶寶
Korean	굼바
Dutch	Goomba
Russian	Гумба

Trivia

• Goombas in the Super Smash Bros. series walk in a sidestep fashion, similar to their NES appearances rather than the standard 3/4 gait they have in the New Super Mario Bros. games. They switch to the standard gait when charging at characters.
• A Goomba was a requested character by Japanese fans prior to the release of Super Smash Bros. Melee.