Fugu
| Fugu | |
|---|---|
| |
| Full name | Fugu, the Frightening |
| Species | Pufferfish |
| First appearance | Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (2014) |
| Latest appearance | Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (Nintendo Switch) (2018) |
Fugu is the fourth boss in the game Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze and its Nintendo Switch port of the same name. He is the boss of Sea Breeze Cove, appearing in the level Fugu Face-Off. He is the only boss character to have his name in the level's English title. Before the battle, the Kongs meet Fugu while he is small. After the Kongs mock his size, Fugu bloats up and the battle begins. He is named after the fugu pufferfish.
General information[edit]
Physical description[edit]
Fugu is a very round, yellow pufferfish with blue stripes on his back and proportionately small blue fins that are wrapped in metal bands, making them resemble ponytails. His only garment is a large, blue bib around his neck with the Snowmad insignia on it. Fugu's eyes are large and angled with thick blue eyebrows, and his mouth is full of sharp teeth and lined with thick reddish lips, with a blue soul patch beneath it. At first, his relative size appears to be rather small, roughly the size of Donkey Kong himself. However, upon being startled, his size increases immensely, and fluctuates numerous times throughout the battle, even growing large enough to take up half of the arena. Like most pufferfish, Fugu has tiny red spikes that erect only when he inflates himself, and cover his entire body except for the patch of skin around his tail, leaving him open to attacks from behind. With each phase during his boss fight, Fugu develops reddish lines along his body, which turn darker with time.
Attacks[edit]
Fugu attacks by attempting to inhale the Kongs, exhaling water to push them into the sides of the arena, which are covered with spikes. Inhaling and exhaling increases and decreases his size respectively, along with whether or not he has spikes. After his initial attack, he begins to summon green fish and propel himself through the arena. The player can use the Corkscrew attack or Cranky Kong's cane attack to send the fish towards Fugu, which can damage him. Otherwise, the Kongs can only hit him on the white spot on his backside (or anywhere whenever his spikes retract). After three hits, the second phase begins, where he retains his previous attacks along with rolling across the arena and summoning Sea Urchins. Once the third phase commences after three additional attacks, Fugu inflates himself to a gargantuan size and slowly revolves around the perimeter of the arena, occasionally dropping down and possibly dislodging the hermit crabs that line the walls, floor, and ceiling. He also quickly jets around the arena and summons increasingly difficult hordes of mostly Sea Urchins with the occasional green fish. Once hit three more times, the final phase ends and the Kongs can punch Fugu into the background.
Combat[edit]
To defeat Fugu, the Kongs will have to damage him nine times by several means, which include ramming into his backside while he is bloated, ramming a green fish into him, or by hitting him while he is deflated.
Statistics[edit]
| Fugu | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| |||||
| World | Sea Breeze Cove | Level | Fugu Face-Off | ||
| Hits to defeat | 9 | Reward | Juicy Jungle | ||
| << | Directory of bosses (#4) | >> | |||||
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | パンパップー[?] Panpappū |
From「パンパン」(panpan, bulging) and「プー」(pū, onomatopoeia for puffing) | |
| French | Fugli, l'Effroyable[?] | Fugli, the Frightening | |
| German | Pfuigu, der Pfuiminante[?] | Phoougu, the Phooey Undermining (Phoougu is a portmanteau of Pfui ("phooey") and "fugu" | |
| Italian | Fugu, il fanfarone[?] | Fugu, the braggart | |
| Spanish | Fugu el Furibundo[?] | Fugu the Furious |
Trivia[edit]
- Fugu is the second pufferfish that serves as a boss in the Donkey Kong franchise, the first being Puftoss. Incidentally, both bosses are also fought in the fourth world of their respective games.
- Fugu is the only boss in Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze to be shown fully in the level clear screen; the others only have their head shown.
- Whenever Donkey Kong gets hit while Fugu is enlarged, Fugu will break the fourth wall by looking at the screen and chuckling.
