Spiny Shell

About

The Spiny Shell (also commonly referred to as the Blue Shell) is an item originating from the Mario Kart series. Since it’s original appearance in Mario Kart 64, it has become infamous due to it’s habit of hitting racers just before the finish line on the final lap of a race, making them most likely lose the race.

Origin

The Spiny Shell original appeared in Mario Kart 64. which was released on December 14, 1996 in Japan. In the game, the Spiny Shell would target the person in first place, making them immobile for a few seconds after being hit. It has appeared in every single Mario Kart game since then and has even appeared in other games of the Mario franchise. Originally it appeared without wings, but this was changed in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! In Mario Kart 7, the Spiny Shell was changed back into being wingless.

Spread

Due to it’s tendency to often hit players near the finish line in the third lap, usually costing the racer first place victory, it has become infamous and is often said to be. GamesRader included Spiny Shell in article “The Top 7… Worst Parts of Best Games”^[1], stating “The blue shell is Nintendo at its worst”. Kotaku included the Spiny Shell in their article Our favorite jerk moments in games^[2] stating that it punishes one for doing well. A comic on xkcd titled “Fucking Blue Shell”^[3] featured a chart, showing that the comic drawer mostly cursed when playing Mario Kart, presumingly because of being hit by the Spiny Shell.

Hideki Konno, the producer of the Mario Kart series has defended the Spiny shell however. In an interview with Kotaku^[4] Konno stated that the reason it was originally included in Mario Kart 64 was to make the race more unpredicable.

On the internet, there exist many guides and tactics on how to dodge a Spiny shell. One of the more famous one is using either a mushroom or a mini-turbo just before the Spiny shell hits. Another one is simply driving off the edge of the racetrack as the Spiny Shell approaches.

The Spiny Shell has also being made into merchandise such a plush toy and a keychain. Fans of the the Mario Kart series has also made a Spiny Shell hat^[5]. On March 6 2014, it was announced that people who lived in Europe and Australia could pre-order a limited edition of Mario Kart 8 and recieve a Spiny Shell statue. Later, the offer was made available for people buying the game from the Nintendo World Store in New York City.