In fact you may recognise some aspects from other games from gaming past especially with the inclusion of enemies that resemble
Thwomps from the Super Mario franchise, a design which Big Pixel Studios have made no effort to hide.
Not exact matches
There are less original references as we move forward, like Fyer's Banzai Bill shirt above
from Twilight Princess, but the Mario characters we've seen do appear in later games: Bob - ombs, for example, are present in Four Swords and The Minish Cap,
Thwomps can be found in Four Swords Adventures and Oracle of Seasons, while Talon, the Mario - like ranch owner, goes on to appear in three games after his Ocarina of Time appearance.
Originally featured in Super Mario World, this huge, foreboding column comes slamming down
from where it's placed, and appears in a course by shaking the
Thwomp item while creating a course.
Making use of custom image billboards and sound injection, there's everything
from Thwomp noises to the wedding poster visible on the journey to New Donk City.
There are less original references as we move forward, like Fyer's Banzai Bill shirt above
from Twilight Princess, but the Mario characters we've seen do appear in later games: Bob - ombs, for example, are present in Four Swords and The Minish Cap,
Thwomps can be found in Four Swords Adventures and Oracle of Seasons, while Talon, the Mario - like ranch owner, goes on to appear in three games after his Ocarina of Time appearance.
In the parallel dimension in which Koopa has turned Daisy's father into fungus and taken over rule there is both a shop called
Thwomp's (after the classic Super Mario Bros enemy featured in Super Mario World, Super Mario Kart etc) and also a bar called Bullet Bills another enemy which has also been seen more than a few times
from the game series.
Thwomps also appear in several minigames besides the ones transferred
from the first Mario Party.
These
Thwomps retain their design
from Super Mario Bros 3, and are in different colors.
In «Send in the Clown»,
Thwomps are utilized to prevent the Cave People
from leaving Bowser's circus by blocking off the exits.
The
Thwomp's design is the same as the ones
from Super Mario 64 DS.
Curiously, these
Thwomps have a «bigger spike» on top of their forehead, separated
from the rest of the body by what looks like a small ribbon of sorts.
The only part of the game where
Thwomps are shown is in the puzzle minigame Mario's Puzzle Party,
from Mario Party 3 (and therefore appearing as their model
from the Nintendo 64 games).
Thwomps appear in Mario Kart DS in both the Bowser's Castle course and GBA Bowser Castle 2
from Mario Kart: Super Circuit.
In Mario Party 8,
Thwomp is once again absent
from game boards, and it sticks to its look shown in Mario Party 7.
The
Thwomps have their look
from Super Mario Bros. 3 again, but this time they are gray.
The Great Deflate
from Mario Party 4 also returns, as do the inflatable
Thwomps.
In the minigame Tricky Tires,
Thwomps return as the usual obstacle that stops players» cars
from advancing.
Thwomps can also be placed on tracks,
from which they can permanently detach when they attempt to fall onto the playable character.
Thwomps appear in the Nintendo 3DS game, New Super Mario Bros. 2, retaining their design
from New Super Mario Bros..
Thwomp either stops players and offer them to ride the mine cart for five coins, or he will chase players
from one side of the board to the other when they stepped on a Happening Space positioned over the cart's tracks.
In Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser's Minions, the
Thwomps are redesigned to have their appearance
from Super Mario Galaxy.
Like many enemies,
Thwomps use their designs
from the main series rather than their design
from the first three Paper Mario games.
Unlike the
Thwomps of previous Mario Parties which had used their appearance
from Super Mario 64, the
Thwomps of this game now look more like they did in the days of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World, although their expression is severely different, in that it looks more mad than the official art, and their prominent spike is gone.
There are a multitude of enemies
from the regular old Goomba to Goombas in socks even to
Thwomps!
Of interest are the Pete shaped
Thwomp like creatures, there's definitely some inspiration taken
from the Mario series in this area!