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7. F.L.U.D.D.
Notable games: Super Mario Sunshine
The trademark feature of one of the most unique Mario games of all time, the Flash Liquidizer Ultra Dousing Device, or F.L.U.D.D., is a talking water backpack Mario teams up with at the start of Super Mario Sunshine to collect the Shine Sprites and save Isle Delfino. With four different nozzles to choose from, F.L.U.D.D. is a combination of many of the mechanics we’ll discuss later in this piece, but it is the way the water interacts with the world that makes this combo pack of platforming greatest hits greater than the sum of its parts. Hovering causes water to blast the ground below you, spin jumping sprays water in all directions, and the turbo nozzle lets you propel yourself across water at an accelerated rate. The water expelled from your pack can hurt enemies, activate switches, clean paint, and do a variety of other things creating a set of challenges that are totally unique to Sunshine. To compensate for this new tech, Mario controls very differently and is even missing a few of his signature moves such as the long jump, but in return we get 3D Mario platformer experience that is like nothing else.
