Ice Climbers
| Ice Climbers | |
|---|---|
 The Ice Climbers' appearance from Super Smash Bros. Melee | |
| First appearance | VS. Ice Climber (1984) |
| Latest appearance | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018) |
| Species | Human |
- Not to be confused with the similarly named video game, Ice Climber.
The Ice Climbers are a pair consisting of a little boy named Popo and a little girl named Nana, who wear a blue Inuit parka and a pink Inuit parka respectively. They debuted in the VS. System game VS. Ice Climber, which released in 1984 before being ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System as Ice Climber. The Ice Climbers have not starred in any other game, although they have made several guest appearances within Nintendo-related crossovers, and they are playable in a few of the Super Smash Bros. games.
Nana was originally depicted with having blonde hair on Ice Climber's Japanese and European box covers. In the Super Smash Bros. games, both she and Popo have brown hair.
History[edit]
Ice Climber[edit]
In Ice Climber, Popo and Nana compete in climbing to the top of one of 32 different mountains. Along the way, they have to break blocks with their hammers to open up paths and ride on clouds on their way to the top. They encounter several animals along the way, including Topis, Nitpickers, and Polar Bears. At the top of the mountains the fastest Ice Climber got the chance to collect vegetables. If either Ice Climber has reached the peak, they could grab a Condor.
Super Smash Bros. series[edit]
Popo and Nana are playable characters in three Super Smash Bros. games: Super Smash Bros. Melee, Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. The Ice Climbers are notably absent from Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U, but they make a cameo as a collectible trophy. In a column for Famitsu, Masahiro Sakurai claimed that the Nintendo 3DS's technical limitations prevented the Ice Climbers from being included. Sakurai wanted to keep the roster identical for both games, so the Ice Climbers did not appear in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U either.
WarioWare series[edit]
Popo makes a number of appearances in the WarioWare series of microgames based on Ice Climber.
In WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$! and WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$, the player controls Popo in the Ice Climber microgame, in which Popo has to grab the condor's feet. This microgame would later return in WarioWare Gold.
In WarioWare: Twisted!, the Ice Climber microgame involves Popo having to smash enemies with his hammer.
In WarioWare: Touched!, Popo appears as the sprite in the third difficulty level of 8-Bit Hero.
In WarioWare D.I.Y., the Ice Climbers microgame involves the player having to make Popo jump to grab the eggplant from a Nitpicker
In WarioWare: Get It Together!, he makes a cameo in the Ice Climber microgame, where he is seen hanging onto the condor.
Super Mario Maker[edit]
The Ice Climbers appear as one of the add-on Mystery Mushroom costumes that are unlocked after completing an Event Course titled "Popo & Nana's Climbing Challenge" in Super Mario Maker. Their animations and sound effects are taken directly from their original game.
Super Mario Odyssey[edit]
Ice Climbers make an indirect appearance in Super Mario Odyssey. Here, since 2022, Nintendo Switch user icons of the Ice Climbers based on their appearances in Ice Climber, both individually and together, were made available for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers. As a result, if a player uses one of these icons, it appears on balloons placed within Balloon World.
Other appearances[edit]
- Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land: When Kirby gets the Freeze ability, he dons Popo's parka in the same manner it is worn in Super Smash Bros. Melee
- Kirby Air Ride: Just like in Nightmare in Dream Land, Kirby wears Popo's parka when he has the Freeze ability.
- Tetris DS: An Ice Climber backdrop makes an appearance in level 15 of the standard mode.
- Picross DS: Ice Climbers appears in Normal Mode level 11-N.
- Art Style: PiCTOBiTS: Popo appears in normal mode stage 4 and Nana in dark mode stage 4.
Name in other languages[edit]
Ice Climbers[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | アイスクライマー Aisu Kuraimā |
Ice Climber |
| Chinese | 雪人兄弟 Xuěrén Xiōngdì 翻越冰山者 (Super Smash Bros. Ultimate) Fānyuè Bīngshān Zhě |
Snowman Brothers Ice Mountaineers |
| Korean | 얼음 타기 Eol'eum Tagi |
Ice Climbing (mistranslation of "Ice Climbers") |
| Russian | Альпинисты Al'pinisty |
Alpinists |
Popo and Nana[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ポポとナナ Popo to Nana |
Popo and Nana |
| Chinese | 波波和娜娜 Bōbō hé Nànà |
Popo and Nana |
| Dutch | Popo en Nana |
Popo and Nana |
| German | Pepe und Nana |
Popo and Nana |
| Korean | 포포 와 나나 Popo wa Nana |
Popo and Nana |
| Russian | Попо и Нана Popo i Nana |
Popo and Nana |
| Spanish | Popo y Nana |
Popo and Nana |
Trivia[edit]
- In the German version, Popo was renamed to "Pepe" due to "Popo" meaning "buttocks" in German.
- The Ice Climbers' Chinese name literally translates to "Snowman Brothers," despite Nana being a female.
- The Ice Climbers' losing/"No Contest" animation shows Popo and Nana crying rather than clapping, a reference to their "No Bonus" animation from Ice Climber.
[Edit] Classic Nintendo characters
| |
|---|---|
| Arcade | Donkey Kong Jr. • Little Mac • Pauline • Sheriff |
| Nintendo Entertainment System | Balloon Fighter • Bubbles • Devil • Duck Hunt Dog • Excitebike • Fighter Hayabusa • Foreman Spike • Ice Climbers • Mach Rider • Medusa • Mike Jones • Mr. Stevenson • Palutena • Pit • Professor Hector • Professor Vector • R.O.B. • Tamagon |
| Famicom & Famicom Disk System |
Ayumi Tachibana • Chao • Donbe • Goku • Hikari • Protagonist (Famicom Tantei Club) • Sukapon • Takamaru |
| Game Boy | Alice • Muddy Mole • Prince Richard • Prince of Sablé • Tatanga |
| Other | Balloon Man • Mr. Game & Watch • John Solver • Oiram Repus |
