Girder

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Girders are construction platforms featured in various Donkey Kong games. Girders first appear in the arcade game Donkey Kong, with several of their subsequent appearances being in reference to it.

History

Donkey Kong series

Donkey Kong

Girders as they appear in 25m in the arcade version

Girders appear in every stage in Donkey Kong, most notably in 25m, where they are the only type of platform. Lifts have the same appearance as girders, aside from being smaller.

Donkey Kong (Game Boy)

In Donkey Kong for the Game Boy, girders return in every stage as in the original version, including several more in some of the later worlds, notably Big-City.

Donkey Kong 64

In the manual for Donkey Kong 64, Cranky Kong hopes that a 2D level design he submitted after three minutes of planning, the "Great Girder Grapple," made it into the game as a secret level, referencing him being the original Donkey Kong from the arcade game. While no level of this specific titles appear, it may allude to how the original arcade version of Donkey Kong is playable on an arcade cabinet in Frantic Factory.

Mario vs. Donkey Kong series

A girder from Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem!

Generic girders appear in every Mario vs. Donkey Kong game. Throughout the series, they act as semi-solid platforms much like those in Donkey Kong, being red-colored in Mario vs. Donkey Kong, Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis and Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!, and gray with rounded corners in all of the following titles. The latter are described as "gray steel frames".

This type of fixed girder is distinct from one of the series' staple gameplay mechanics, the Red Girders, which first appear in Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem!. These can be drawn between red rivet blocks using the Touch Screen to help the Minis cross gaps or reach a higher area.

In Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!, pieces of red-colored girders are among the objects that fall from the top of the screen when Donkey Kong slams his fists in Floor 1 Donkey Kong. Short girders appear first, followed by longer ones that are harder to avoid after DK is hit a third time. The player loses a Mini toy if a girder crashes into it.

Super Smash Bros. series

Girders as they appear on the 75 m stage in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Girders appear in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate in the 75 m stage, based off of the original 75m from Donkey Kong, but with visible depth. In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, this depth can only be seen when the camera is manually turned while the game is paused.

Donkey Kong Country Returns

Donkey Kong standing on a girder in Slammin' Steel

In Donkey Kong Country Returns, girders are the primary floor in the Factory world. In the background for the Factory's first level, Foggy Fumes, girders arranged in the zig-zagged 25m layout can be seen at one point. This pattern also commonly appears on wall reliefs throughout the temple-themed levels, along with other depictions of Donkey Kong arcade graphics.

Super Mario Odyssey

Girders as they appear in Super Mario Odyssey

Girders make their debut in the Mario franchise in Super Mario Odyssey, being common platforms throughout New Donk City in the Metro Kingdom. While girders are not semi-solid platforms, items such as Coins and Power Moons can be found inside some of them.

Appearances in other media

Girders appear in Pixels during the fight with Donkey Kong, where the main characters have to climb to the top while avoiding the barrels and fireballs. Upon arrival to the stage, girders fall down similarly to the original game, creating a path to Donkey Kong.