One of the unique but underappreciated parts of Super Mario Odyssey is Hint Art. Hint Art can be found in almost every kingdom of the game, and each piece of artwork gives a hint at where a moon is located in another kingdom. Not only is there one piece of Hint Art in every main kingdom, as well as 10 in Dark Side, but there are also 20 that were posted by Nintendo after the launch of Super Mario Odyssey, revealing 8-bit Luigis (and possibly other characters) that gave you a bunch of coins for finding them. Some pieces of Hint Art are easier to analyze than others, so let’s take a look back at all the hint art in Super Mario Odyssey, as well as all of the game’s DLC artwork, and rank them from easiest to hardest. And with that, let’s-a-go!
#41: Snow Kingdom Hint Art
There’s some Mario Odyssey hint art that shows a strange diagram leading you somewhere, and then there’s some like this. You shouldn’t need any help with this hint art as it is obviously in the Lost Kingdom by an area with Tropical Wigglers. You can even see the trees in the background which are the same trees surrounding the Odyssey, so this hint art is pretty straightforward.
#40: Metro Kingdom Hint Art
Here’s another one that’s straightforward. While it may be a bit difficult to tell which kingdom it is, most will probably realize that this is inside the Water Plaza in Lake Kingdom. Once you know that, you can find that this art shows an area higher than the other areas below, which can make it pretty simple to find where to go for this moon.
#39: Lake Kingdom Hint Art
Here’s a piece of hint art where you have to find the difference. Whatever is different in one of the two artworks is where you’ll find a power moon. Unfortunately, it’s very obvious as one of the fossils next to Uncle Amiibo is not in the left image. Ground pound there for a simple power moon.
#38: Moon Kingdom Hint Art
While it is very easy to tell that this is in the Wooden Kingdom (given the steel structures and leaves everywhere), it can be a bit hard to tell exactly which part of Steam Gardens is where Poochy found this moon. However, that scarecrow is only in a few spots in the kingdom, which definitely narrows the options, making this a fairly easy moon to collect.
#37: Dark Side Hint Art 1
There’s no doubt that this moon is in Fossil Falls, right? It’s not like there’s grassy platforms and huge waterfalls, right? Well, anyway, finding this moon can be a bit tricky as a lot of spots in the kingdom are at the edge facing the distant falls. However, the hill Poochy is on definitely helps, as it makes it easy to find this moon’s location.
#36: Extra Hint Art (Seaside Kingdom)
While this art can be a bit confusing as the X is on the ceiling of the air, if you look closely, something won’t look right with the underwater structures found in the Seaside Kingdom. In fact, this art is actually upside-down, as this area in the kingdom actually has the Komboo walking on the ceiling. Once you realize that, it’s very easy to find.
#35: Extra Hint Art (Cap Kingdom)
If you recognize the pattern of the platform is the same as Bonneton’s grass, or that there’s a paragoomba flying by, this moon isn’t too hard to locate. If you don’t remember this area by the Top-Hat Tower that leads to a sub-area, it isn’t hard to find as Cap Kingdom is a very small kingdom. Once you find the area, 8-bit Luigi isn’t hard to locate.
#34: Extra Hint Art (Sand Kingdom #1)
This art might be a bit confusing at first glance, but remember, where in the kingdom can you find upside-down triangles? Well, there’s no other choice by Sand Kingdom and its iconic Inverted Pyramid. That is represented by the large triangle, while the smaller one represents the smaller inverted pyramid, also known as the Island in the Sky from a painting from another kingdom. Right under that island is the 8-bit Luigi.
#33: Extra Hint Art (Bowser’s Kingdom)
Here’s another hint art where it’s easy to tell which kingdom it’s in, but it isn’t very easy to tell exactly where in the kingdom Poochy found this glowing spot. Well, that’s unless you noticed the curvature of the platform in the background as the battlefield where you fought the Mecha-Broode. That makes this art much easier to pinpoint.
#32: Extra Hint Art (Lost Kingdom #1)
While not as simple as the Snow Kingdom’s hint art showing the Forgotten Isle, this art isn’t much more difficult as it’s easy to tell that the colorful circles represent the Tropical Wigglers. Just remember where there are two of them next to each other in the kingdom and it should be easy to find where this hint art leads to.
#31: Extra Hint Art (Luncheon Kingdom #1)
This art doesn’t make it completely clear which kingdom it’s in, but if you can decipher what shape those purple coins are or what the platforms at the top of the screen are, it’s easy to confirm that this art leads to Mount Volbono. There aren’t many 2D sections in the kingdom, making it simple to narrow down your choices for place to search. The X on the ceiling might be confusing, but since this area is on the ground, invisible before you go through the pixelated pipe, ground pound the area on the ground for the 8-bit Luigi to pop out.
#30: Mushroom Kingdom Hint Art
This artwork might be confusing at first, but once you understand it, it’ll make much more sense. Obviously this art is in the Cap Kingdom, if you didn’t notice the huge Top-Hat Tower. To get this moon, you have to stand on a certain spot on the Glasses Bridge so you can see the moon pretty much centered behind the tower. When you are in a spot where you can see this, ground pound the spot for a moon. It’s creative, but also a bit tricky to understand.
#29: Extra Hint Art (Cloud Kingdom)
Unless you are able to quickly realize that this is a Cloud Kingdom hint art, this can be a tricky piece of hint art. You have to ground pound a certain spot at Nimbus Arena, which is marked by the numbers and letter on the sides. These numbers and letters mark the sections on the map shown as a grid on the kingdom map. Find this spot on the grid and ground pound to discover the prize.
#28: Wooded Kingdom Hint Art
Remember this Sand Kingdom Koopa? He’s the one who will give you moons for beating the Trace-Walking challenge. If you can decipher the sand or just notice the sombrero on the Koopa, it’s pretty obvious this is in the Sand Kingdom. The compass in the top right corner goes straight north, so go north of the Koopa all the way to this spot on the edge of the kingdom with these bushes for the moon. It can be a bit hard to understand, but once you do the artwork is pretty straightforward.
#27: Dark Side Hint Art 5
While it is obvious to tell which kingdom this moon is located in, it still isn’t very easy to find the spot to ground pound. For this art, you have to make your way to the race course area under Shiveria Town and ground pound the top of the arch at the cliff of the area. While it does seem like it is an arch from the art, it’s hard to tell that at first glance.
#26: Dark Side Hint Art 7
This one might look strange at first, but once you get it, it’s much simpler to find. If you can decipher the texture and color of the ground, then you’ll know it’s the ground in the Lost Kingdom, specifically the main path and the dirt area under the trees. The C and the 4 are part of the grid on the kingdom map, so find the ground that’s this shape in that part of the map to find the moon.
#25: Bowser’s Kingdom Hint Art
It’s not like it’s hard to tell where this moon is, if the red sandy ground and cactuses didn’t give it away. So, obviously, this hint art leads to the Sand Kingdom. While it is difficult to tell where exactly this spot is since there aren’t any notable landmarks around it, just walk around the edges of the kingdom to find it. There is also a part in the back with a small path lower than the main area, which also helps.
#24: Extra Hint Art (Metro Kingdom #2)
This one could be hard to find, depending on how well you notice the subtle details in each kingdom. Well, in Metro Kingdom, every street is named after a Donkey Kong Country character. The green background and white letter font might also help as it looks like a street sign. In the very center of the intersection of Expresso Street and Kroll Street, ground pound to get the moon.
#23: Dark Side Hint Art 6
This was always one of my favorite hint art moons. Based on the umbrellas and columns, it’s fairly simple to confirm that this moon is in the Seaside Kingdom. From there, you’ll almost need to complete a small scavenger hunt. From Talkatoo by the beach house, go north to the Robot Binoculars, then east to the three umbrellas at the Hot Springs, then south to these two columns. Ground pound in the middle of them to find the moon. It’s really neat, but also a bit simple.
#22: Sand Kingdom Hint Art
This art isn’t as straightforward as some others. If you know your Crazy Cap store designs, then you’ll know that this art leads to Bowser’s Kingdom — specifically on the Souvenir Shop island. If you’re wondering what the 6 and 3 mean between the store and checkpoint flag, they’re actually talking about the stones on the ground. Walk six from the shop or three from the checkpoint flag and under the middle stone is the power moon. It isn’t very clear that these numbers represent the stones, so this hint art isn’t very easy to understand at first glance.
#21: Extra Hint Art (Lost Kingdom #2)
This one might be a bit confusing, but what other kingdom has the Odyssey by a group of things with three, narrow parts? Those represent the trees in Lost Kingdom, with their three branches. Based on the Odyssey’s location, it’s fairly easy to find the right spot to ground pound, as it’s between the two southern-most trees in this art. Ground pound there for the 8-bit Luigi.
#20: Extra Hint Art (Luncheon Kingdom #2)
This one might also be a tough one, as it isn’t very clear what the landscape is. However, the colors might give it away, especially with the pink. The pink represents the lava found in the Luncheon Kingdom, while the multiple pegs represent the small platforms found across this area of lava by Peronza Plaza. Using the opening in the bottom area of the lava, ground pound on the platform with the X on it for Luigi to pop out.
#19: Extra Hint Art (Sand Kingdom #2)
For some reason, it took me forever to find this at first. While it is obviously in the Sand Kingdom, it isn’t exactly clear where – sort of. Based on the walls with flowers, it’s safe to say that this is probably an area in Tostarena Town, but where? The most throwing-off element is the sand, as it isn’t actually the sand surrounding the kingdom like you’d expect. A building in town as a small pile of sand atop it, which is the sand seen in the art. If yoh don’t look hard enough, you’ll easily miss it.
#18: Dark Side Hint Art 8
Here’s another find-the-different hint art, only this time it’s much harder to spot the difference than the one in Lake Kingdom. Here, there’s a very small detail that’s different. A fork behind the big pot of stew is in the right picture, but not the left. That’s the difference. Ground pound right there for a power moon. Because of how much is happening in this picture, it’s very hard to spot what’s different between the two images.
#17: Luncheon Kingdom Hint Art
It’s obviously in Seaside Kingdom, but where? So, based on the rocky wall and the scale-design on the platform, plus the fact that the image looks underwater, it’s pretty easy to tell that this is a Seaside Kingdom picture. But this platform can be found everywhere underwater. An area in the back as the specific one where Poochy dug up this hidden treasure.
#16: Cap Kingdom Hint Art
This one might seem confusing, but if you look at it closely, you’ll find it. This art isn’t very clear what kingdom it’s set in, but that’s where the colors come in. The grays and the black top only represent one kingdom: the Moon with it’s view of the black void of space, and that blue thing in the back is earth. These rectangles represent the characters looking at the Earth near the Odyssey in Moon Kingdom. Under the character represented in the art is the moon.
#15: Dark Side Hint Art 2
This power moon is pretty easy if you take a close look at the details in each kingdom. In Metro Kingdom, heliports can be found in a couple spots in the city. One of them is even a checkpoint. The heliport to the right of New Donk City Hall is where you’ll find this treasure, as the icons on the art match up perfectly with the heliport logo on top of the building in New Donk City. Ground pound in the specific spot for the power moon.
#14: Extra Hint Art (Wooded Kingdom)
Here’s where hint art can really get confusing, as this might not look like anything in Super Mario Odyssey, even when analyzing the colors. This grid actually represents the wall that you can break in the Wooded Kingdom using sherms to make your way to the Summit Path checkpoint. The specific block mentioned on the art is where you can ground pound on the wall to find Luigi.
#13: Extra Hint Art (Snow Kingdom)
If that ground doesn’t look familiar, it isn’t very obvious. However, if you look close, the details actually show that it’s water, further details with the wavy shadow of the beanstalk. Mixed with the white ground, there’s only one kingdom with shallow water and a white bottom: Snow Kingdom. This specific spot is below the beanstalk, near a group of six coins. Ground pound the spot for Luigi to pop out.
#12: Dark Side Hint Art 9
This hint art is very hard to decipher unless you analyzed every little detail of every structure in Super Mario Odyssey. If you did, then you may notice that these columns resemble the columns in the Lake Kingdom’s Water Plaza, with there even being three broken colums on the right. Ground pound where the moon is in the art for your power moon.
#11: Dark Side Hint Art 10
This one can be difficult to tell where exactly it is, even if you recognize the kingdom. If you can’t, look closer at the black rocks and dirt platform. This is actually the Ruined Kingdom, in a small area by the Odyssey where there’s a small hill with dirt at the bottom. Against the rocky barrier, you can ground pound to find the moon at the glowing spot discovered by Poochy.
#10: Dark Side Hint Art 3
There’s really only one detail in this art that gives away which kingdom you have to go to, and even most people probably won’t realize it. In this weird grid, there are two icons of circles with stars in them. These are what the Mushroom Kingdom’s purple coins look like, a callback to the coins in Super Mario 64. Once you know it’s in Mushroom Kingdom, it’s pretty easy to find. This are is the garden where Toad wants four seeds to plant into large flower gives Mario four moons. A fifth moon is underneath Mario where it is mentioned on the artwork.
#9: Seaside Kingdom Hint Art
This is one of the most unclear hint arts in all of Super Mario Odyssey, as all it says is KEEP. If you head off to Metro Kingdom and walk just past the Main Street Entrance checkpoint, it says CLEAR KEEP on the road. Ground pound above above the letters between both Es for the moon. Again, it’s extremely unclear giving no hints of where it could be.
#8: Extra Hint Art (Mushroom Kingdom #2)
This one might be very odd, as it includes two bosses from two entirely different kingdoms – sort of. While you first fight Knucklotec in Sand Kingdom and Torkdrift in Wooded Kingdom, you can refight both bosses in Mushroom Kingdom for multi moons. Between the towers that you enter to fight both bosses, there’s a certain spot you can ground pound for Luigi to come out.
#7: Extra Hint Art (Cascade Kingdom)
Here’s another hint art that you’ll know where it is if you notice the details. In Cascade Kingdom, the rocks have small 8-bit designs of certain enemies embedded into the rockwork. Near the 2D Wall in Fossil Falls, there are two large rocks. One of them has the left bullet bill and the spiny, while the other has the fire bro and the other bullet bill. Ground pound in front of the rock with the bullet bill to find the treasure.
#6: Extra Hint Art (Metro Kingdom #1)
This hint art might look obvious, but it’s really not. This kingdom is indeed in the Metro Kingdom, but where? This New Donk City logo is found literally everywhere in the kingdom. The specific place where you’ll have to look for Luigi to pop out is on top of a building next to New Donk City Hall. This building has a pool on it, with the New Donk City logo at the bottom. Ground pound for Luigi to give you all his coins.
#5: Extra Hint Art (Mushroom Kingdom #1)
This shape might look super strange if you don’t understand where it’s in. This hint art actually leads to the Mushroom Kingdom, as there’s a path in this exact shape from Mushroom Lake to Toad’s sheep pen. If you ground pound at the spot on the path marked on the artwork, you’ll find 8-bit Luigi.
#4: Dark Side Hint Art 4
While it might seem like this is a Moon Kingdom moon, it’s actually for the Cloud Kingdom. The kingdom has large indents around the edges, just like this artwork. Using the shadows on the indents, you can find which one you have to ground pound for the moon.
#3: Extra Hint Art (Moon Kingdom)
This is one of the more clever hint arts in Super Mario Odyssey. While it might look like the Moon Kingdom wedding hall and the C/D give directions to the moon, they actually have nothing to do with tracking down Luigi. This art depicts the left flap on Mario’s map of the kingdom. Next to the picture of the wedding hall is an area with moving spikes. Ground pound there for the 8-bit Luigi. It’s very creative, but also very difficult.
#2: Extra Hint Art (Ruined Kingdom)
If those scratches don’t familiar, they probably won’t because they are very subtle. On the Ruined Kingdom battlefield where you fight the Ruined Dragon, there are two large clawmarks on the ground. Ground pound to the one west of the other to get Luigi to pop out.
#1: Extra Hint Art (Lake Kingdom)
The only real hint you have to find where this is is the Crazy Cap, as the texture of the area around the door might give away that this is a Lake Kingdom picture, especially since there aren’t many Crazy Cap stores that close to a checkpoint flag. The cracks in the floor can spell Mario is one look, so find that and ground pound the O for Luigi’s reward. It’s very strange, but also incredibly clever – and of course, incredibly difficult.
What do you think is the hardest Power Moon to find in Super Mario Odyssey? Let me know in the comments.
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