Overview
Floating blocks are found in a number of classic video games, mysteriously hovering above ground in the game world. They typically serve as platforms designed to help the player get to otherwise unreachable goals. They are usually destructible, and may dispense power-ups or other collectible items. Most are placed stationary within the level, though some are found moving throughout the environment; this may be an indicator that the block contains something of value.
Floating bricks are featured prominently in the Super Mario series. Most blocks in the Mario games dole out coins once hit, and most of the franchise's iconic power-ups are found in floating blocks. In the Iwata Asks interview for New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Shigeru Miyamoto explains that he initially found it strange that a single block can float in mid-air, and jokingly suggests that it is actually "connected round the back".
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