Flipping Out

In the second chapter of StarTropics, Mike Jones meets a distressed mother dolphin who speaks in clicks and squeaks. Thanks to the Nav-Com translator, he’s able to understand her perfectly. She explains that her son has gone missing, and this leads to a quest where Mike rescues a baby dolphin from a giant octopus. As a reward, the mother dolphin swims ahead and safely guides him to the next set of islands. The game’s final act sees Mike stranded in the ocean after escaping an exploding alien spaceship. Things look bleak until the same dolphin appears and carries him back to shore. This is a wholesome bookend to the dolphin side story and a heartwarming callback. I always make a point to rescue baby dolphins from nefarious sea creatures, just in case I’m left stranded in the ocean after an alien encounter.

Orcas might seem out of place on this list, but they are technically dolphins. (Specifically, they are the largest member of the oceanic dolphin family, Delphinidae.) With that out of the way, this list would not be complete without a quick visit to Emerald Coast in Sonic Adventure. As Sonic sprints along wooden jetties, a massive orca bursts from the water and rocks the floating platforms. As the massive beast relentlessly pursues Sonic from behind, it breaches the waves and smashes through the pier. The manual suggests that the orca is just playing, but that doesn’t make the scenario any less dangerous. If Sonic slows down for even a second, the orca will chomp the planks out from under him and send him to a watery grave. This scene was a perfect showpiece for Sega’s newly-minted Dreamcast in 1998, and it’s one of the highlights of the entire Sonic franchise.

In Grand Theft Auto V, rare peyote plants have psychoactive properties that can potentially trigger hallucinogenic episodes. If Michael, Franklin, or Trevor find a glowing plant underwater, they’ll be able to “transform” into various marine animals. (Peyote plants are exceedingly rare, but you’ll hear an echoing dolphin sounds as a hint when you’re near the target.) As a dolphin, the protagonists can swim freely at high speeds, perform graceful flips out of the water, and explore the ocean depths around Los Santos. This is a temporary Easter egg with no story impact, but it’s a wonderful way to experience some underwater mayhem in one of gaming’s biggest open worlds. It should be noted that the bottlenose dolphin hallucination is not guaranteed, and the heroes can also transform into sharks, stingrays, and even killer whales.

Spanky (known as Whity in Japan) is a sapient spinner dolphin who pilots various experimental fighter jets. He takes great pride in being the world’s first dolphin pilot, and his aircrafts often use water-themed weaponry. He relies heavily on splash missiles, naval mines, and devastating bomb attacks that summon massive riptide waves. Although he’s not especially fond of hot or dry environments, he’s otherwise cheerful and delightfully absurd. He’s usually depicted wearing a brown aviator’s cap with goggles, and he brings pure chaotic joy to serious aerial dogfights. Few characters on this list have appeared in more games than Spanky. (He skipped the first Aero Fighters, but he has been featured in every sequel.) He’s easily one of gaming’s most iconic animal pilots, and I’d rank him alongside Fox McCloud and Tails.

Dolphins are fairly common in Wave Race 64, and you can see many of them freely swimming around in the aptly-named Dolphin Park. If you follow a dolphin during a warm-up race and mirror its movements for a couple of laps, a baby dolphin will emerge and start following you. A larger dolphin and an orca will eventually join the fray too! In the Japan-only Shindō Pak Taiō version of the game, a dolphin filled the role of a time trial ghost and would represent your previous best time. The game also features a delightful Easter egg that lets you trade your jet ski with a ridable dolphin! You’ll have to successfully pull off every trick in the stunt mode before you can unlock it, but it’s worth the effort. The dolphin can do the same flips, barrel rolls, and submarine dive that the jet skis can, but they’re much more whimsical.

Super Mario World introduced many new enemy characters, but Mario also made a few friends during his adventure. In some levels, goggle-wearing dolphins leap rhythmically in and out of the water to create temporary stepping stones that allowed our heroes to hop across hazardous seas. Even though they weren’t hostile, Yoshi could eat them in the original Japanese version of the game. (This was removed from the Western release, because it made Yoshi look like a jackass.) The Nintendo GameCube was codenamed “Project Dolphin” during development, and Super Mario Sunshine leaned heavily into dolphin themes. The game did not actually feature any living dolphins, however, and I’ve always viewed this as one of gaming’s biggest snubs. The Mario World dolphins have landed small cameo roles over the years, but they deserve a brighter spotlight.

May is the anchor-wielding first mate of the Jellyfish Pirates. Mr. Dolphin serves as her beloved aquatic sidekick… and signature special move! They have been friends since the first Guilty Gear, and they inspire fear in the hearts of their opponents. May can call various nautical friends for help, but none are more versatile than Mr. Dolphin. If May hops aboard, the dolphin will rocket forward like a living torpedo. He can also launch in a high arc, functioning as a powerful overhead strike. Depending on the circumstance, he can be apply pressure on the ground or act as an effective anti-air tool. Mr. Dolphin compliments May’s cheerful personality, and he contributes to her reputation as an aggressive character. May’s iconic shout whenever she calls Mr. Dolphin is the stuff memes are made of. Totsugeki!

The Like a Dragon games mostly focus on Japan’s criminal underbelly, but Infinite Wealth is set against the backdrop of a tropical paradise. Although most of the game’s events unfold in sunny Honolulu, you can also voyage to the quaint Dondoko Island if you need to get away from the getaway. A cheerful dolphin named Dolphine serves as your trusty ferry to the Animal Crossing-style resort, and hopping aboard triggers a fun cutscene where Ichiban rides him across the waves. Dolphine provides fast travel between the main story hub and the resort, and he also lets you cash out your Dondoko Bucks for US dollars when heading back to the big island. Dolphine perfectly captures Like a Dragon‘s bizarre sense of humor. The entire scenario is wholesome, lighthearted, and over the top in the best possible way.

Mr. Dolphin is a cheerful, high-jumping companion of an equally cheerful girl named Priscilla. He’s also your ticket into the high-security city of Upper Junon. In the original Final Fantasy VII, Mr. Dolphin could launch Cloud onto a high platform if a training whistle was used at the right time. In Rebirth, his role was expanded and he became the focal point of a proper dolphin show minigame. In this outing, you grab on for dear life as he races through an aquatic obstacle course filled with beach balls, buoys, and ramps. Whether he’s being used a makeshift trampoline or a veritable jetski, Mr. Dolphin increases the entertainment value of the otherwise tense Junon section. Befriending him also gives you the perfect excuse to hang around Priscilla, and that’s reason enough to include him on this list!

Ecco is a time-travelling bottlenose dolphin who uses sonar abilities to fight alien invaders. The distinctive markings on his forehead are ever-present reminders of a tragic shark attack that claimed his mother’s life, and they also happen to map out the constellation Delphinus. It’s clear that Ecco’s destiny was written in the stars. His epic journey requires him to solve puzzles, navigate treacherous underwater realms, battle sea creatures, and ultimately travel to ancient Atlantis. Whether he’s outsmarting sharks or overwhelming alien queens with well-timed thrust attacks, he has a remarkable ability to adapt to any environment. His role expands as the series progresses, and he evolves from a curious survivor into a wise guardian of the planet. Regardless of the situation, his intelligence, compassion, and humility are always apparent.