Kraid Bouncing Creature

"Space Pirate encrypted data decoded."

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The subject of this article is not named in-game.
The current title is from the game's internal data.

Kraid Bouncing Creature
A Kraid Bouncing Creature ejected from Kraid's stomach.
Featured in	Metroid Dread
Size	Small
Knownlocales	Cataris
Known worlds	ZDR
Behavior	Infesting Kraid's stomach
Color(s)	Purple
Distinctions	Shelled backside, purple fluid spray
Attacks	Bouncing
Weakness	Beams, Missiles
Battle music	Boss Kraid 002

The Kraid Bouncing Creature is a species that appears in Metroid Dread.

Description

A Kraid Bouncing Creature resembles a worm or pillbug, with a thicker head and body that becomes thinner towards the end of its tail. Its backside is covered with a purple carapace with bright blue circular patterns, in contrast with the softer appearance of its underside. It sprays an unidentified purple fluid when it bounces off surfaces. Kraid Bouncing Creatures are only seen curled up into a ball.

Kraid Bouncing Creatures only appear in Cataris on ZDR, during the second phase of the boss battle against Kraid. An undetermined number of these creatures have infested Kraid's middle stomach hole. Since the Bouncing Creatures did not appear during previous battles against Kraid at full health on Zebes, they are likely parasites contributing to the festering stomach hole's unhealthy condition, which appears infected and produces a purple pus similar to the fluids sprayed by the creatures. The orifice also glows and spurts out a bright pink hazardous goo. Although the infection has not hindered the stomach hole's standard ability to launch spikes, it has left the orifice sensitive enough to not only be irritated from the outside with direct attacks from Samus, but to also inflict Kraid with massive damage if she is to drop Bombs inside it.

Nevertheless, Kraid has managed to weaponize his affliction and makes use of the parasites along with the glowing fluid as new additions to his arsenal. When Samus Aran is on the platform above the lava, Kraid will occasionally eject Kraid Bouncing Creatures from his stomach; this attack is telegraphed by a small amount of purple fluid splashing out of the infected hole. They bounce along the floor with arcs at various heights, although each individual creature will maintain a consistent arc. When a Kraid Bouncing Creature reaches the left wall, it bounces off and continues in the opposite direction until it hits Kraid's stomach, at which point the creature explodes in a spray of purple liquid. Since Kraid can release multiple creatures in quick succession, they may become difficult to dodge. Samus can destroy the Kraid Bouncing Creatures with her Beams or Missiles (with the Charge Beam being the most efficient), causing them to release Energy Capsules or Missile Ammo. The buildup of pink fluid caused by the organisms in the infected hole will also be ejected from time to time as a harmful globule that splashes across the floor in both directions. Although the splash waves can be avoided with a mere jump, this becomes challenging to do so if the parasites are moving around the platform.

Trivia

• Kraid Bouncing Creatures noticeably use exaggerated "squash and stretch" animations, causing them to appear flat when hitting the floor and then stretching thin when bouncing back up again.
• If Samus shoots Kraid's middle belly hole where the parasitic organisms have taken up residence, the dark purple cracks surrounding the irritation will gradually fill with a pink glow, serving as a visual meter to indicate his tolerance threshold. When the cracks are completely filled, Kraid briefly puts his hand over the orifice in pain as a yellow fluid gushes out from it, then retaliates by launching spikes from all three belly holes simultaneously which removes the glow from the irritated area. This process, which can be repeated, unintentionally helps Samus due to the triple spikes' impact on the wall bringing down a blue magnetic strip that can be used against Kraid.
• A Sequence Break enables Samus to achieve a quick victory by detonating 12 Bombs in Kraid's infected belly hole. While inside, the pink pus inflicts eight points of damage to Samus every few seconds. If she were to do a Sequence Break that grants her Power Bombs instead and she enters the afflicted stomach hole, she will be trapped until the pus kills her.
• The infection caused by the Kraid Bouncing Creatures seems to have affected Kraid's entire body. Despite the other two stomach holes being unoccupied by the parasitic organisms, purple fluid can be seen bubbling out of all three holes when they launch spikes, which themselves have the rear coated in the substance. The same liquid will also spray out of the back of Kraid's claws when they are thrown, as well as from the stumps left behind on his fingers.