Spriteling
| Spriteling | |
|---|---|
 A Spriteling jumping with joy | |
| First appearance | Wario World (2003) |
- “Wario! Hi! I've been waiting for you! I'm one of the Spritelings of the forest! I have really bad news. That evil black jewel you stole is sucking up all of the negative greed energy swirling around in your castle, and terrible things are starting to happen! Honest!”
- —Spriteling, Wario World
The Spritelings are forest sprites who assist Wario in Wario World. They come in five colors and will give him hints and tips to defeat the Black Jewel if he rescues them from their cage prisons. Despite their friendly demeanor, they are listed in the enemies section of the Wario World instruction manual, although Wario claims that this is because they are his "enemies' enemies".
Each of the eight levels in Wario World contains five Spritelings to rescue, for a total of forty in the game.
Wario seems to show dislike for the sprites, instead preoccupying himself with regaining his treasure. However, it is the Spritelings that rebuild Wario's ruined castle at the end of the game, and the more Spritelings Wario rescued throughout the course of the game, the better his new castle will be, though the unrescued ones will also be in the ending still in their cages. In the ending, a red Spriteling will talk to Wario and after the first line, extend his arm out.
Spritelings live in the depths of the Sacred Forest. They are a tribe rather than a group, and they prefer secluded areas.
They are similar in concept and design to the Merfles of Wario Land: Shake It!, as they were another colorful, fairy-like, people that needed rescuing.
Profile
- Wario World North American instruction manual, page 31: "These guys are your enemies' enemies, so they're your allies...or so they say! From what I gather, theu're trying to do away with the evil black jewel just like I am! Whatever the case, I just don't like their smug little smirks. Oh well... If you've got the time ,save these little guys and make sure they give you something good in return!"
Gallery
The first caged Spriteling found in Greenhorn Forest
A red Spriteling
A chartreuse Spriteling
A green Spriteling
A blue Spriteling
A purple Spriteling
Wario talking to one of the elfish sprites in the ending of the game
The Spritelings stuck in their cages
The Spritelings rebuild Wario’s Castle
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ネッコロ Nekkoro |
Play on「根っこ」(nekko, root) and「コロポックル」(koropokkuru, korpokkur) |
| German | Wichtling |
Pun on "Wichtel", imp- or gnome-like beings in folklore |
