More about Koopa Troopa...
Games: Just about all of 'em!
 
Where would we be about the modest Koopa Troopa?  Playing another game, for all I know!

One of the most well known and frequently recurring enemies throughout the Mario franchise, first appearing in SMB, the Koopa Troopa is presumably the face of the Koopa army, led by King Bowser, um, Koopa.  Troopa can be stomped or fireballed to death like other basic minions, but unlike most other enemies such as Goombas, when stomped it will curl up into its shell and can be kicked.  A sliding shell can take out other enemies, strike blocks, and sometimes merely lead to Mario's own demise as the shell bounces off another object even from off-screen.  It's a minor gameplay element, and yet it has a greater impact than you think, especially once Mario became able to grab and carry shells in SMB3.  A seemingly defeated Koopa Troopa will, theoretically, emerge from its shell after a few seconds and can again threaten Mario, especially if the plumber is holding the shell at the time; though apart from a few select areas it's rare for Mario to stick around a downed Koopa that long.

Despite being as well known and iconic as it is, I think the only game in which Koopa Troopa is the preeminant grunt enemy is Super Mario World.  In that game, in which Troopas began walking upright for the first time whereas before they had walked on all fours, the standard green- and red-shelled varieties were joined by blue and yellow turtles, and (along with the flying Paratroopas) appeared in almost every level.  In contrast, its usual cohort, Goombas, were limited to only one or two levels in that game,  Outside of SMW, however, Koopa Troopas are outnumbered by Goombas in just about every other game, and is downright rare in the 3D adventures, especially Mario 64.  But if you weren't told that only one Koopa Troopa appears in world 1-1 of SMB against something like 9 Goombas, you might never notice.  However frequently or rarely they appear, Mario has been stomping Troopas for over two decades, and we gamers can't get enough of it.

As a basic minion, it is unsurprising that Koopa Troopas have performed poorly in Roy's Sports Hall, accumulating just a 2-4 record, though there must surely be some fans that would wish for the species to make a better showing.  Koopa Troopa did show up the Goombas in a head to head, though the Goomba species has a better record at the moment.  If there's one thing you can count on, it's that Koopa Troopas are going to keep on coming; and when they do appear in the ring, they're also a risk to get the support needed to win.  Because in the fight against in the Mario, the turtle-like Koopa Troopa is right at the head of the charge.

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