Sodas, Syrups, and other Sustenance

[SMBBQ]

As anybody who's played any of the Mario RPGs knows, food items recover health. But do they really? It seems silly for Mario to be in the middle of a fight, pull out some maple syrup, and drink it to recover FP.

Main question: What's the deal with these items? Are they real, everyday foods, or a medicine-like item?

[PDoogan]

Almost all foods seem to recover HP in the RPGs I think it probably has something to do with energy or nutrients. Kind of like a power bar or that 5-hour energy drink.

[SMBBQ]

But still, is it just the food items carried by Mario&co, or does everyone recover 5FP from a sip of Super Soda? If so, what makes these items this way?

[Sarisa]

It's an old RPG cliche - Earthbound took it to sillier extremes.

Anyhow, I suspect they're special medicine-like foods, since some of the low-level items are still notably rare, and I doubt the average Toad spends 5 coins per meal when the same 5 coins buys a POW block.

[PDoogan]

Yeah, but what's the average toad citizen ever going to need a POW block for?

[SMBBQ]

Defending from invading Shy Guys, duh.

Something to note as well, is that chefs like Zess T. and Tayce T. both cook these food items as if they're an everyday deal. So if they're like medicine, it would mean that they both have some medical knowledge, right?

[Sarisa]

Medical knowledge, no - herbalist knowledge, yes. Since in the MK "healing foods" aren't just marketing blather it's not a huge surprise that an excellent cook would know how to cook them.

[SMBBQ]

Alright, I can accept that as an answer.

So, can we all agree on this?

[Vent]

Yeah.

To carry the topic further, drinks like Super Soda or Froggie Drink might even be Mario's equivalent of Gatorade or Red Bull. If you need to recharge, just take a sip.

[SMBBQ]

I'd always thought Kerokero Colas would taste like Pepsi. No idea why though. And I think it's obvious what Chukola Cola would taste like.

[Vent]

Well is IS called Kero Kero Cola. Why wouldn't it taste like anything but soda?

[Le Mario Bro]

SMBBQ:
...Joke books...?

[SMBBQ]

I've been practicing.

[Le Mario Bro]

I see what you did thar.

[EpicGyllynn]

It doesn't need to be medicinal, the nutrients in food is just good for you, so RPG-makers utilize it as a healing item(Herbs in Resident Evil would be another good example). Also, I wonder if Bowser really was finding hot drum-sticks across the Kingdom, or if we should just regard this as an in-game thing...

[SMBBQ]

Well, if we're going to accept that Mario and Luigi were finding Ultra Mushrooms, we then need to accept Bowser was finding meat eveywhere.

[PDoogan]

Sept 12, 2010 6:45:27 GMT -5 SMBBQ said:

Well, if we're going to accept that Mario and Luigi were finding Ultra Mushrooms, we then need to accept Bowser was finding meat eveywhere.

Yeah but mushrooms tend to grow naturally in the wild, pieces of spicy cooked chicken don't.

[Vent]

Yeah but they come out of ? Blocks. I'd hardly call that "growing naturally".

[kingkoopa]

You know I noticed that if Mario and Luigi go to a Bowser area (you know like Plack Beach or any of those overworld areas that Bowser goes through in the first half of the game) and kill the large enemies (enemies that don't die when Bowser steps on them) or break one of the large Bowser punching bricks. They get drumsticks too, but it immediately goes to Bowser's inventory.

[EpicGyllynn]

And Bowser can drink the Syrup Jars that Mario & Luigi find INSIDE him. Oh, and ? Blocks are natural things, so wouldn't it stand to reason that the things that grow from them are natural as well? Mushrooms, even Magic ones, are natural. Chicken legs, however, are not.