Rainbow Cruise

Rainbow Ride
File:Stage21 080107i-l.jpg Rainbow Cruise, Rainbow Ride
Appears in	Super Smash Bros. Melee
Availability	Default stage

Rainbow Ride is a stage that appears in Melee. It is also one of Mario's home stages, and it is his stage in All-Star mode, along with any of his teammates. In early copies of the North American version of the game, the caption lists it as "Rainbow Cruise". This was a localization error originating from the fact that "Rainbow Cruise" was the Japanese name for the stage in Super Mario 64, while "Rainbow Ride" was the American name for it. The name is corrected in later versions of the game.

In Brawl, it returns as Melee Stages: Rainbow Ride.

Stage Layout

The battle starts off on a flying ship that is facing left. The ship has four propellers on the backside, three propellers on top, one on the front and two on the back, and six giant paddles (wings, actually). These make it fly. The anchor hangs off the front. The ship is flat in the center, but not on the sides. The bow of the ship is just a bit higher than the deck. The stern is clearly higher than the rest of the ship, including the bow. It is wide enough to fit two characters. The stern increases the height of the back of the boat, which is good for those who can use Tether Recoveries. In the middle of the boat is the mast of the ship. It has two levels to fight on. The space between the middle platform and the deck is slightly larger in comparison to the space between the top platform and the middle. The top platform is also shorter than the middle one. It is just large enough to fit Bowser. After about thirty seconds, the ship will crash into the next segment of the stage and sink. When the ship sinks, the characters will have to battle on the strange floating platforms that follow. The platforms are different and feature a rotating axle platform, flying carpets, and falling blocks. The stage moves in a clockwise order and at the end, flashing red arrows will appear that point downwards. They indicate that all players should descend to the lower parts of the stage before the camera zooms down. Those who do not make it to the boat, which is waiting below, can be KO'd off the top of the screen. The cycle continues from there. Because of its predictable pattern, Rainbow Ride is allowed in some tournaments.

Gallery

• Stage21 080107j-l.jpg