After an incredibly long wait, yesterday marked the first full-fledged Nintendo Direct presentation in almost a year and a half. Fans were more than excited to see a return-to-form from the Japanese video game company, which brought news of Pyra/Mythra joining Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD coming to the Nintendo Switch this July, and of course, the reveal of the latest entry in the Mario Golf series, Mario Golf: Super Rush.
Mario Golf: Super Rush marks the second full-fledged Mario sports game on the Switch after Mario Tennis Aces in 2018, and the first Mario Golf game since 2014's Mario Golf: World Tour on the Nintendo 3DS. The new game sees fan-favorite Mushroom Kingdom characters don snazzy new golf attire and take to the green, along with the brand new high-paced multiplayer Speed Golf mode. However, it seems that Mario Golf: Super Rush's website may have accidentally revealed information on a hidden character a bit early.
Over on Reddit, a few fans noticed that some text on the game's website which made mention of King Bob-omb's special ability in the new Speed Golf mode was removed and replaced with information about Mario's special ability instead. While King Bob-omb typically serves as an enemy in most Mario games, the iconic enemy from Super Mario 64 just recently made his playable debut in the mobile game Mario Kart Tour.
While many fans hoped to see a new Mario Golf game on the Switch, they didn't expect to learn of hidden characters like King Bob-omb quite yet. Although the Super Mario 64 enemy has appeared in many spinoff games like Mario Super Sluggers and Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour as a stage obstacle, he has never been made playable in a Mario sports game. The text previously on the official website for Mario Golf: Speed Rush noted that the character can "pelt the course with bombs" during the Speed Golf mode. Fans on Reddit expressed their excitement to play as King Bob-omb, also voicing their hope for the inclusion of other obscure Mario characters in the new game.
While many core Super Mario games feature mainstays like Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Toad as playable characters, the series' spinoff games have been known to add more obscure characters, like Pom Pom in Super Mario Party and a Pianta in Mario Super Sluggers. For the time being, Nintendo has made no comment on whether King Bob-omb will be playable in Mario Golf: Super Rush.
While many fans expected Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury to be one of the last few celebrations of the plumber's 35th anniversary, it seems that the new Mario Golf game may now be Nintendo's final Mario-related surprise for the time being. It will certainly be interesting to see which characters make it into Mario Golf: Super Rush when it releases this summer.
Mario Golf: Super Rush releases June 25 on Switch.
