 Upon growing to certain heights, the Star Plant grows through larger floating islands. These islands, along with the smaller ones surrounding the Star Plant, contain power-up crystals which can be collected to provide B.U.D. with extra abilities. Creatures and other plant life can also be found throughout the game's islands, as well as environmental features, such as caves and water currents. Some parts of the environment, such as leaves growing off of both the Star Plant and Star Shoots that allow the player to jump to greater heights than normally possible, can affect how the player moves throughout the world. Teleportation pads allow the player to move around the world quickly and act as save points. The player also respawns at their last activated teleportation pad if they die, which can be caused by falling long distances, being in too much water for too long, or by the player making B.U.D. self-destruct. Additionally, players can scan various flora and fauna into the teleporters to retrieve data from them. Items can be picked up by the player and stored in B.U.D.' s backpack one at a time, such as flower parachutes that make the player fall more slowly towards the ground, and leaf gliders that allow the player to travel further through the air.
