Mudkip
Encyclopedia
Mudkip, known in Japan as , is a Pokémon species in Nintendo
and Game Freak
's Pokémon
franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori
, Mudkip first appeared in the video games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire
and subsequent sequels, later appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated and printed adaptations of the franchise.
Known as the Mud Fish
Pokémon, Mudkip first appeared in 2003 in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire
, as one of three starter Pokémon the player can choose from at the beginning of the games. Mudkip have appeared on the boxart for Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team, Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire
, Pokémon Channel
, and Pokémon Dash
.
Pokémon, are small blue Pokémon with a large fin on their head that allows them to sense movements within the air and water, acting as a radar. While in the water, they use the orange, spiky gills on their cheeks to breathe while using their large tail fin to propel themselves. They are extremely strong, despite their small bodies; they are able to lift or crush large boulders. When sleeping, they bury themselves within the soil at the edge of the water. Mudkip and members of its evolution family dwell in swamps or other wetlands, deep inside isolated islands, because of their dislike of fresh water lakes and ponds. According to The Illustrated Encyclopedia of North American Reptiles and Amphibians, Mudkip and its evolutions are based on salamanders.
and its remake Pokémon Emerald. Mudkip is one of the three starting Pokémon that players may choose from including Treecko
and Torchic
. After gaining enough experience in battle, Mudkip evolves into Marshtomp, which will then evolve into Swampert. In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver
, Mudkip, along with Treecko and Torchic, can be obtained from the character Steven Stone after obtaining all 16 badges and beating the final boss, Red.
Outside of the main Pokémon titles, they appear in Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire
, Pokémon Trozei!
, the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon
titles, the Pokémon Ranger
titles, Pokémon Channel
, and PokéPark Wii: Pikachu's Adventure. Mudkip appears in Super Smash Bros. Brawl
as a trophy that can be obtained through special means.
, Brock
, a Pokémon breeder and former Gym leader, obtains a Mudkip on Dewford Island. As Ash Ketchum
and his companions climb a waterfall, they come across a group of young Mudkip. Brock rescues one of the Mudkip from being washed away in a stream. Brock's Lotad and Mudkip work together to defeat Team Rocket, at which point the Mudkip decides to join Brock's team. Mudkip's primary role is to assist Brock during water related situations, such as searching for objects in the ocean, such as an Illumise and a pearl belonging to a Spoink. Mudkip also guides the Pokémon when Brock, Ash and May aren't around. It evolves into Marshtomp during a training battle versus Ash's Grovyle. A separate Mudkip also appears when the group meet a trainer called Nicolai, a young trainer, who is training his first Pokémon, Mudkip, which later defeats May's Torchic in a battle. Nicolai connects with his Pokémon in battle by dressing up in a suit resembling his Pokémon, wearing both Mudkip and Zigzagoon outfits in the episode.
during the arc based on Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, Ruby, the male protagonist, obtains a Mudkip named Zuzu as his starter Pokémon from Professor Birch. Ruby becomes a Pokémon coordinator, a person who uses their Pokémon for contests rather than battles, and uses Zuzu in those contests. At the beginning Ruby was disappointed with it because it wasn't pretty enough like his other Pokémon, but then he decided that Tough Contests would be perfect for it. Zuzu was first used to battle against Sapphire, Ruby's rival in the manga. Zuzu evolved into a Marshtomp unexpectedly while Ruby was in Slateport City, and again into a Swampert, while training near Fortree City.
called Mudkip a recognized Pokémon. Mudkip has received many tribute videos on YouTube
due to the popular internet meme, "so I herd u liek mudkipz." GameFAQs
's sixth and seventh annual character battles featured Mudkip, with him losing in round one against Luigi
in 2007, and against Mega Man X
in 2008. GamesRadar
listed 4chan
memes as one of the pieces of "game-culture shit we're sick of constantly hearing about" and used the Mudkipz meme as an example. On April 1, 2008, DeviantART
played an April Fool's Day joke on its members, changing all their users avatars
to images of Mudkip.
An IGN
article opined that "Mudkip isn't anything very special" when considering its later forms and that "[t]he ecology of the Mudkip is similarly bland". GameZone
editor "jkdmedia" commented on Mudkip's design, stating that he cannot even describe what it is beyond a "funny-looking water creature". GameSpot
's Greg Kasavin wrote that Mudkip "fit[s] in well with the tried-and-true classics like Pikachu
, Psyduck
, and Koffing". IGN
wrote that while Mudkip was unpopular, is the best starter in Ruby and Sapphire due to its advantage over the early gyms and its Ground/Water type combination. GameSpy
's Michael Vreeland called Mudkip "bizarre" and "balanced". IGN's Pokémon Chick chose Mudkip as her starter, but was disappointed with how Swampert turned out and argued that other Water types were better. Comics Alliance's Chris Sims wrote that the starter Pokémon found in games after Red and Blue were inferior and cited Mudkip as an example.
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
and Game Freak
Game Freak
is a Japanese video game developer that currently creates games exclusively for Nintendo. It has developed the Pokémon series of role-playing games and several other games.-History:...
's Pokémon
Pokémon
is a media franchise published and owned by the video game company Nintendo and created by Satoshi Tajiri in 1996. Originally released as a pair of interlinkable Game Boy role-playing video games developed by Game Freak, Pokémon has since become the second most successful and lucrative video...
franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori
Ken Sugimori
is a Japanese video game designer, illustrator, manga artist, and director. He is most famous as the character designer and art director for the Pokémon franchise. Sugimori is also credited with the art direction for other titles, including Pulseman. Sugimori drew all of the original 151 Pokémon...
, Mudkip first appeared in the video games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire
Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire
are the third installments of the Pokémon series of role-playing games, developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance. The games were first released in Japan in late 2002 and later released to the rest of the world in 2003 . Pokémon Emerald, a special edition version,...
and subsequent sequels, later appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated and printed adaptations of the franchise.
Known as the Mud Fish
Mudfish
Mudfish may refer to any of many different fishes, including:* In New Zealand and Australia:** Neochanna species* In North America:** Amia calva* In South America:** Lepidosiren paradoxa* In Africa:** Labeo capensis...
Pokémon, Mudkip first appeared in 2003 in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire
Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire
are the third installments of the Pokémon series of role-playing games, developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance. The games were first released in Japan in late 2002 and later released to the rest of the world in 2003 . Pokémon Emerald, a special edition version,...
, as one of three starter Pokémon the player can choose from at the beginning of the games. Mudkip have appeared on the boxart for Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team, Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire
Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire
Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire is a pinball game developed by Jupiter and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance handheld game console. It was first revealed at E3 in 2003, and was released in the same year – on August 1, August 25, and November 14 in Japan, North America, and PAL regions...
, Pokémon Channel
Pokémon Channel
Pokémon Channel, released in Japan as is a virtual pet video game for the GameCube, developed by Ambrella. Its focus is the adventures the player has with Pikachu, most of them involving a new television network...
, and Pokémon Dash
Pokémon Dash
is a racing video game developed by Ambrella for the Nintendo DS. It was a launch title in Japan and Europe. Dash was released in Japan on December 2, 2004; Europe on March 11, 2005; North America on March 13, 2005; and Australia April 7, 2005....
.
Concept and characteristics
Mudkip, known as the Mud FishMudskipper
Mudskippers are members of the subfamily Oxudercinae , within the family Gobiidae . They are completely amphibious fish, fish that can use their pectoral fins to walk on land...
Pokémon, are small blue Pokémon with a large fin on their head that allows them to sense movements within the air and water, acting as a radar. While in the water, they use the orange, spiky gills on their cheeks to breathe while using their large tail fin to propel themselves. They are extremely strong, despite their small bodies; they are able to lift or crush large boulders. When sleeping, they bury themselves within the soil at the edge of the water. Mudkip and members of its evolution family dwell in swamps or other wetlands, deep inside isolated islands, because of their dislike of fresh water lakes and ponds. According to The Illustrated Encyclopedia of North American Reptiles and Amphibians, Mudkip and its evolutions are based on salamanders.
In the video games
Mudkip first appeared in Pokémon Ruby and SapphirePokémon Ruby and Sapphire
are the third installments of the Pokémon series of role-playing games, developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance. The games were first released in Japan in late 2002 and later released to the rest of the world in 2003 . Pokémon Emerald, a special edition version,...
and its remake Pokémon Emerald. Mudkip is one of the three starting Pokémon that players may choose from including Treecko
Treecko
Treecko, known in Japan as , is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, Treecko first appeared in the video games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire and subsequent sequels, later appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated and printed...
and Torchic
Torchic
Torchic, known in Japan as , is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, it first appeared in the video games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire and subsequent sequels, later appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated and printed...
. After gaining enough experience in battle, Mudkip evolves into Marshtomp, which will then evolve into Swampert. In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver
Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver
are enhanced remakes of the 1999 video games Pokémon Gold and Silver. The games are part of the Pokémon series of role-playing video games, and were developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS...
, Mudkip, along with Treecko and Torchic, can be obtained from the character Steven Stone after obtaining all 16 badges and beating the final boss, Red.
Outside of the main Pokémon titles, they appear in Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire
Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire
Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire is a pinball game developed by Jupiter and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance handheld game console. It was first revealed at E3 in 2003, and was released in the same year – on August 1, August 25, and November 14 in Japan, North America, and PAL regions...
, Pokémon Trozei!
Pokémon Trozei!
, released as Pokémon Link! in Europe, is a Pokémon-themed puzzle video game for the Nintendo DS. It was released in Japan on October 20, 2005, in North America on March 6, 2006, in Australia on March 30, 2006, and in Europe on May 5, 2006.-Gameplay:...
, the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon
- Manga :*Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Ginji's Rescue Team, manga adaption of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team and Red Rescue Team*Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Blazing Exploration Team, manga adaption of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time, Explorers of Darkness, and Explorers of Sky.-...
titles, the Pokémon Ranger
Pokémon Ranger
is an action/role-playing video game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS video game console. The game was released at various dates, varying between continents. The game was first released in Japan on March 22, 2006 and was later released in North America and...
titles, Pokémon Channel
Pokémon Channel
Pokémon Channel, released in Japan as is a virtual pet video game for the GameCube, developed by Ambrella. Its focus is the adventures the player has with Pikachu, most of them involving a new television network...
, and PokéPark Wii: Pikachu's Adventure. Mudkip appears in Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl, known in Japan as , often abbreviated as SSBB or simply as Brawl, is the third installment in the Super Smash Bros. series of crossover fighting games, developed by an ad hoc development team consisting of Sora, Game Arts and staff from other developers, and published by...
as a trophy that can be obtained through special means.
In the anime
In the Pokémon animePokémon (anime)
, abbreviated from , is a children's TV anime series, which has since been adapted for the North and South American, Australian and European television markets...
, Brock
Brock (Pokémon)
Brock, known as in Japanese versions, is a video game character in the Pokémon franchise. In the Pokémon video games, he is the Gym Leader of Pewter City and mainly uses Rock -type Pokémon; in the anime series, he left his position as a Gym Leader to travel alongside Ash Ketchum and become a...
, a Pokémon breeder and former Gym leader, obtains a Mudkip on Dewford Island. As Ash Ketchum
Ash Ketchum
Ash Ketchum, known as for all appearances in Japan, is a fictional character in the Pokémon franchise owned by Nintendo. He was created by, and named after, Satoshi Tajiri as the protagonist of the anime and manga series, as well as on various merchandise related to the franchise...
and his companions climb a waterfall, they come across a group of young Mudkip. Brock rescues one of the Mudkip from being washed away in a stream. Brock's Lotad and Mudkip work together to defeat Team Rocket, at which point the Mudkip decides to join Brock's team. Mudkip's primary role is to assist Brock during water related situations, such as searching for objects in the ocean, such as an Illumise and a pearl belonging to a Spoink. Mudkip also guides the Pokémon when Brock, Ash and May aren't around. It evolves into Marshtomp during a training battle versus Ash's Grovyle. A separate Mudkip also appears when the group meet a trainer called Nicolai, a young trainer, who is training his first Pokémon, Mudkip, which later defeats May's Torchic in a battle. Nicolai connects with his Pokémon in battle by dressing up in a suit resembling his Pokémon, wearing both Mudkip and Zigzagoon outfits in the episode.
In the manga
In the manga Pokémon AdventuresPokémon Adventures
Pokémon Adventures, released in Japan as , is a Pokémon-related manga based on the video games. Satoshi Tajiri once stated that the Pocket Monsters Special series is closest to what he imagined the Pokémon world to be:...
during the arc based on Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, Ruby, the male protagonist, obtains a Mudkip named Zuzu as his starter Pokémon from Professor Birch. Ruby becomes a Pokémon coordinator, a person who uses their Pokémon for contests rather than battles, and uses Zuzu in those contests. At the beginning Ruby was disappointed with it because it wasn't pretty enough like his other Pokémon, but then he decided that Tough Contests would be perfect for it. Zuzu was first used to battle against Sapphire, Ruby's rival in the manga. Zuzu evolved into a Marshtomp unexpectedly while Ruby was in Slateport City, and again into a Swampert, while training near Fortree City.
Reception
KotakuKotaku
Kotaku is a video games-focused blog. It is part of Gawker Media's "Gawker" network of sites, which also includes Gizmodo, Deadspin, Lifehacker, io9 and Jezebel. Named to CNET News' Blog 100, Kotaku is consistently listed in the top 40 of Technorati's Top 100...
called Mudkip a recognized Pokémon. Mudkip has received many tribute videos on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
due to the popular internet meme, "so I herd u liek mudkipz." GameFAQs
GameFAQs
GameFAQs is a website that hosts FAQs and walkthroughs for video games. It was created in November 1995 by Jeff "CJayC" Veasey and was bought by CNET Networks in May 2003. It is currently owned by CBS Interactive. The site has a database of video game information, cheat codes, reviews, game saves,...
's sixth and seventh annual character battles featured Mudkip, with him losing in round one against Luigi
Luigi
is a fictional character, featured in video games and related media released by Nintendo. Created by prominent game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, Luigi is portrayed as the slightly younger fraternal twin brother of Nintendo's mascot Mario, and appears in many games throughout the Mario series,...
in 2007, and against Mega Man X
Mega Man X
The Mega Man X series is the second Mega Man franchise released by Capcom. It debuted December 17, 1993 in Japan on the Super NES/Super Famicom and spawned sequels on several systems, with the PC platform notably having the most releases within the series...
in 2008. GamesRadar
GamesRadar
GamesRadar is a multi-format video game website featuring regular news, previews, reviews, videos, and guides. It is owned and operated simultaneously in the UK and US by worldwide publisher Future Publishing...
listed 4chan
4chan
4chan is an English-language imageboard website. Launched on October 1, 2003, its boards were originally used for the posting of pictures and discussion of manga and anime...
memes as one of the pieces of "game-culture shit we're sick of constantly hearing about" and used the Mudkipz meme as an example. On April 1, 2008, DeviantART
DeviantArt
deviantART is an online community showcasing various forms of user-made artwork. It was first launched on August 7, 2000 by Scott Jarkoff, Matthew Stephens, Angelo Sotira and others. deviantArt, Inc...
played an April Fool's Day joke on its members, changing all their users avatars
Avatar (computing)
In computing, an avatar is the graphical representation of the user or the user's alter ego or character. It may take either a three-dimensional form, as in games or virtual worlds, or a two-dimensional form as an icon in Internet forums and other online communities. It can also refer to a text...
to images of Mudkip.
An IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
article opined that "Mudkip isn't anything very special" when considering its later forms and that "[t]he ecology of the Mudkip is similarly bland". GameZone
GameZone
GameZone is an American multiplatform video game website. GameZone's daily coverage includes reviews, previews, news, hints & cheats, and editorials. Additionally, GameZone offers downloads, a child-targeted website and in association with GameStop, hosts GZGameShop, an online retailer...
editor "jkdmedia" commented on Mudkip's design, stating that he cannot even describe what it is beyond a "funny-looking water creature". GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
's Greg Kasavin wrote that Mudkip "fit[s] in well with the tried-and-true classics like Pikachu
Pikachu
is one of the species of Pokémon creatures from the Pokémon media franchise—a collection of video games, anime, manga, books, trading cards, and other media created by Satoshi Tajiri. As do all Pokémon, Pikachu fight other Pokémon in battles central to the anime, manga, and games of the series...
, Psyduck
Psyduck
Psyduck, known as in Japan, is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, Psyduck first appeared in the video games Pokémon Red and Blue and later in subsequent sequels. They have later appeared in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated and...
, and Koffing". IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
wrote that while Mudkip was unpopular, is the best starter in Ruby and Sapphire due to its advantage over the early gyms and its Ground/Water type combination. GameSpy
GameSpy
GameSpy Industries, Inc., known simply as GameSpy, is a division of IGN Entertainment, which operates a network of game websites and provides online video game-related services and software. GameSpy dates back to the 1996 release of an internet Quake server search program named QSpy. The current...
's Michael Vreeland called Mudkip "bizarre" and "balanced". IGN's Pokémon Chick chose Mudkip as her starter, but was disappointed with how Swampert turned out and argued that other Water types were better. Comics Alliance's Chris Sims wrote that the starter Pokémon found in games after Red and Blue were inferior and cited Mudkip as an example.