Bowser's Kingdom: the Japanese castle that closes Odyssey

LocationBowser's KingdomSuper Mario Odyssey

The Koopa King has swapped his medieval fortress for a Japanese castle. The thirteenth and final kingdom before the Moon, Bowser's Kingdom lines up concentric walls, a garden, a tea house and poison moats. This guide breaks down its two homegrown captures — the Pokio and the Jizo statues — the forced wedding being prepared there and the closing fight against the RoboBrood.

The thirteenth and last major kingdom before the assault on the Moon, Bowser's Kingdom (Pays de Bowser in French) is one of the most surprising settings in Super Mario Odyssey: the Koopa King has traded his medieval fortress there for a sumptuous Japanese castle.

Poison moats, wall-climbing birds, stone statues and a giant mech: this signature setting concentrates everything that makes Odyssey special in order to close out the long chase. Guided tour.

Contents

• The 13th kingdom: when Bowser trades medieval Europe for Japan
• Pokio, the pheasant that climbs walls
• Jizo statues, skeleton keys carved in stone
• The forced wedding, the thread running through the whole kingdom
• RoboBrood: the Broodals' last stand
• Wrapping up the adventure: 62 Moons and off to the Moon
• Quick recap
• FAQ

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The 13th kingdom: when Bowser trades medieval Europe for Japan

The area known as Bowser's Kingdom is the thirteenth kingdom visited in Super Mario Odyssey, and its setting catches the player completely off guard. Forget the spike-studded European medieval fortress that has served as the Koopa King's lair for decades: here, Bowser has treated himself to a traditional Japanese castle, lush green and covered in flowers.

The architecture is laid out as a series of concentric walled enclosures dotted with inner courtyards, plus a genuine Japanese garden, a tea house and a central keep crowned with curved roofs. The enclosures rise in tiers toward that keep, so the climb takes you from one flowering esplanade to the next. The detail that seals the sense of elsewhere: the moats do not carry the usual lava but a purplish poison, lethal the moment you take a dip. This aesthetic break is not gratuitous: the whole building was raised for one specific event, the wedding Bowser is forcing into place.

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Pokio, the pheasant that climbs walls

To get over the ramparts, the kingdom introduces the Pokio (Pikonio in the French version), a bird inspired by the green pheasant, Japan's national bird. You mostly run into them here, plus a few specimens in the Seaside Kingdom and on the Darker Side. By capturing one with Cappy, Mario takes over its greatest asset: an oversized beak.

Driven into the walls, that beak turns every façade into a climbing wall: Mario hooks on, pivots, then launches himself from one surface to the next to reach the castle heights. The same beak smashes rock, grabs objects, sends cannonballs flying back and floors most enemies in a single hit. Unlike Mario, the Pokio's beak cannot be damaged, which allows acrobatics that would otherwise be suicidal. So the bird is not just one more opponent: it is the key to traversing the kingdom, and it comes back into play during the final fight.

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Jizo statues, skeleton keys carved in stone

Second signature mechanic: the Jizo statues, those stone effigies modelled on the Buddhist bodhisattvas you meet along Japanese roadsides. You will find several near the souvenir shop in particular. Once captured, a Jizo moves in little hops — shaking the controller makes it speed up — and turns into a genuine skeleton key.

Its weight presses down P Switches and holds them down, which opens up bonus rooms, and it also smashes certain cracked blocks. Immune to spike traps, the statue crosses unharmed through passages that would be fatal to Mario and turns up coins and hearts hidden in the sparkling patches of ground. Some secret rooms rest entirely on it: you have to hold down three switches at once, a puzzle that calls for finely judged jumps. Slotted into a line of statues that is missing a link, it also opens the way to more Moons.

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The forced wedding, the thread running through the whole kingdom

If the castle is this carefully turned out, it is because it houses the preparations for the forced wedding between Bowser and Princess Peach, the narrative engine of the whole adventure. The Koopa King has combed the kingdoms to gather the pieces of the ceremony — the dress in the Lake Kingdom, the cake in the Luncheon Kingdom, the bouquet, the ring — before heading home to put the finishing touches to his ceremony.

It is the Broodals, the rabbit quartet of wedding planners (Topper, Hariet, Spewart and Rango), who stage the event in Bowser's service. Already met as bosses in several earlier kingdoms, these party-crashers have been hounding Mario since the very start of the journey and are playing their last card here. The ceremony itself will not be held at the castle: Bowser flees with Peach to the Moon Kingdom for a finale under the stars.

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RoboBrood: the Broodals' last stand

The kingdom's boss fight pits Mario against the RoboBrood, a giant mech shaped like a mechanical hen perched on long spindly legs. At the controls, the four Broodals crammed into a single cockpit for their final confrontation in the main storyline. The duel plays out inside the castle walls themselves.

The strategy cleverly recycles the local mechanic: the RoboBrood hurls out a Pokio that Mario has to capture, then uses its beak to jab the armour on the legs or send the robot's own bombs back at it. Once the legs are destroyed, the machine collapses and the Broodals, beaten for good, leave the adventure for ever — the payoff to a running gag as long as the game itself.

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Wrapping up the adventure: 62 Moons and off to the Moon

On the collecting side, Bowser's Kingdom holds 62 Power Moons: 61 standard Moons and one Multi Moon, a total not to be confused with the 64 you sometimes see quoted. To fuel the Odyssey and set course for the Moon Kingdom, you only need to gather at least 8, the rest can be picked up in the post-game, once the adventure is over.

The sound design completes the change of scenery: the score blends gagaku (Japanese court music) with live-recorded taiko drums, under the direction of Koji Kondo, Shiho Fujii and Naoto Kubo. Between its visual break, its two brand-new captures and its closing boss, this signature kingdom brings the long hunt for Bowser to a fitting end before the final assault on the Moon.

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Bowser's Kingdom at a glance

Name (FR)	Pays de Bowser
Name (EN)	Bowser's Kingdom
Game	Super Mario Odyssey (2017)
Visit order	13th kingdom
Main location	Bowser's Castle (Japanese style)
Key captures	Pokio and Jizo statues
Boss	RoboBrood (piloted by the Broodals)
Power Moons	62 in total, 8 required to leave

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FAQ

• Why does Bowser's castle look like a Japanese castle?
  Nintendo deliberately broke with the usual European medieval fortress. For his wedding to Peach, Bowser had a traditional Japanese castle built, with concentric walls, a garden, a tea house and moats filled with poison rather than lava.
• What is a Pokio and what is it used for?
  The Pokio (Pikonio in the French version) is a bird inspired by Japan's green pheasant. Once captured, its long beak lets you latch onto walls, climb, break rock and send cannonballs back. It is the kingdom's traversal tool.
• How many Power Moons does Bowser's Kingdom have?
  The kingdom holds 62 Power Moons in total, that is 61 standard Moons and one Multi Moon. You need to gather at least 8 of them to fuel the Odyssey and reach the Moon Kingdom.
• Who pilots the RoboBrood?
  The RoboBrood, a giant long-legged mech, is piloted by the four Broodals: Topper, Hariet, Spewart and Rango. This fight marks their final confrontation in the game's main storyline.
• Does the wedding of Bowser and Peach take place in this kingdom?
  No. Bowser's Castle houses the preparations, but the ceremony itself then takes place in the Moon Kingdom, where Bowser flees with Peach for the finale of the adventure.

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