Rainbow Cruise, also known as Rainbow Ride in PAL versions and later North American copies of Melee, is a stage that appears in Super Smash Bros. Melee and Super Smash Bros. Brawl. It is based off the "Rainbow Ride" stage from Super Mario 64. It is also one of Mario's home stages, and it is his stage in All-Star mode, along with any of his teammates.
Name Confusion
While the Western localization version of the SM64 stage's name (on which this stage is based on) is "Rainbow Ride", the original Japanese version's is "Rainbow Cruise". The appearance of the Japanese name in the initial North American release of Melee seemed to be an oversight by the localization team and appeared as "Rainbow Ride" in both the PAL release and later North American copies of the game. It also appeared listed as "Rainbow Ride" in North American demos of Brawl, seeming to establish it as the "correct" North American name. However, for some unknown reason, the stage's name in the retail release of Brawl in North America appears as "Rainbow Cruise".
Stage Layout
The battle starts off on a flying ship that is facing left. The ship has four propellers on the backside, three propellers on top, one on the front and two on the back, and six giant paddles. These make it fly. The anchor hangs off the front. The ship is flat in the center, but not on the sides. The bow of the ship is just a bit higher than the deck. The stern is clearly higher than the rest of the ship, including the bow. It is wide enough to fit two characters. The stern increases the height of the back of the boat, which is good for those who can wall-grapple. In the middle of the boat is the mast of the ship. It has two level to fight on. The space between the middle platform and the deck is slightly larger in comparison to the space between the top platform and the middle. The top platform is also shorter than the middle one. It is just large enough to fit Bowser. After about thirty seconds, the ship will crash into the next segment of the stage and sink. When the ship sinks, the characters will have to battle on the strange floating platforms that follow. The platforms are different and feature a rotating axle platform, flying carpets, and falling blocks. The stage moves in a clockwise order and at the end, flashing red arrows will appear that point downwards. They indicate that all players should descend to the lower parts of the stage before the camera zooms down. Those who do not make it to the boat, which is waiting below, can be KO'd off the top off the screen. The cycle continues from there. Because of its predictable pattern, Rainbow Cruise is allowed in some tournaments.
Gallery
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