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  • Aims for fastest time
  • Abuses programming errors
  • Manipulates luck
  • Takes damage to save time
This is a run that attempts to beat Mario 64 in the fastest possible time. In doing so it beats the previous movie by 55 seconds. Our summary of how this was done follows...

Swordless Link's comments...

The original goal of this run was to achieve a time lower than 6:40, and thanks to several timesavers which AKA mentioned to me (the glitch we used to access Bowser in the Dark World, the glitch we used to get from there to the basement), this seemed more than possible. I also had some ideas of my own, which we put to good use, such as the alternate route in BitDW which saved about a second over the older route. The obvious thing to mention about this run, however, is that it finishes the game with zero stars, something which was previously impossible. It all started out with a theory which AKA had, which involved performing a backwards long jump on the stairs in the basement, and getting Mario wedged inside one of the pillars in the room with the Dire, Dire Docks painting, just like what we did after exiting BitDW. This proved impossible, as Mario had way too much speed to be able to move to the sides of the room. It was at this time that I began thinking about adding an extra long jump outside the door, because logically, this would still cause his speed to increase, and then did another one when I was inside, as I realised that this would cause his speed to increase even more. This gave me enough speed to break the DDD painting, but there was only literally one frame I could've long jumped on while inside the DDD room to have enough speed to break it. This discovery of mine took about 45 seconds off the overall time. Overall, I'm very happy with this run, it definitely seems a lot more optimal than the other runs which AKA and I have co-authored, probably because we re-did so many things so many times in this run.

Mitjitsu's comments...

During Rikku's submission, I wasn't too interested in doing another run. I decided that I'd only work on another run if there was a way to notably improve the current run. Firstly, I was utterly convinced that there was an alternate lobby glitch which was faster. It took countless revisions, but I eventually found one that worked. Secondly, I thought there would be a way to get quickly to the basement without re-entering BitDW. And last of all, I had a good theory on how to bypass DDD, although Swordless Link was the one who eventually found a way to do it, and it was a lot faster and smoother than I ever could have been conceived. Also, I knew that a few frames could be saved if diving was used over long jumping where applicable, although that alone wasn't enough to warrant another run. The main timesaver that I found was how to get to the basement door quicker. Although, again, I would never have thought that it would have turned out that good. We put an extra special effort into this run, but it was worth it in the end, and I hope that most of the viewers will agree. If you calculate the number of re-records per frame, then it has one of the most dense re-record rates on the site if you base the re-record rate on re-records per frame (since the game is 30fps), then this run would be third overall if you discard the ALttP glitched run.

How it came about...

AKA (21:34:18): Just confirming frame numbers
Swordless Link (21:34:35): k
AKA (21:44:27): Now to get myself something to eat :y
Swordless Link (21:44:55): I'm still stuffed from dinner
AKA (22:09:54): Good luck on testing
Swordless Link (22:11:06): Thanks, *actually begins now*
Swordless Link (22:20:24): FUCK YES
Swordless Link (22:20:24): YES
Swordless Link (22:20:30): FUCKING YESSSSSSSSSSSSSS
Swordless Link (22:20:31): I'VE DONE IT
Swordless Link (22:20:32): I'VE DONE IT!
Swordless Link (22:20:35): I'VE GOT THROUGH!
Swordless Link (22:20:56): WE'VE DONE IT AGAIN, MY FRIEND
Swordless Link (22:21:22): I didn't even use the pillar!
Swordless Link (22:28:47): Dammit, where are you? =(
Swordless Link (23:17:47): God dammit
Swordless Link signed off at 23:17:50.
Swordless Link signed on at 23:17:59.
Swordless Link signed off at 23:18:50.
AKA (23:18:58): What have you done?
Swordless Link signed on at 23:19:48
AKA (23:19:57): What have you done?
Swordless Link (23:20:10): Observe, and be amazed, it's HUGE
AKA (23:20:35): Can't wait to see this
FILE TRANSFER
AKA (23:21:56): Fuck me
Swordless Link (23:22:41): You found the method for 1 star, I found the method for 0 star, there's nothing we can't do! ^_^
AKA (23:23:18): We can't theoretically improve the game anymore, apart from opening the door in the moat, which is impossible.

With thanks to...

Myles Bukrim: For supporting the run and checking parts of it regularly to see if there was anything which could be improved.
mr_roberts_z and Rikku: Their previous run served as a good guide for this one, as theirs was about as optimal as a run which follows that route can get.
laughing_gas: For telling us that diving is definitely faster than long jumping, which allowed us to save quite a number of frames.
adelikat: Accepting for publication as an improvement to the 1-star movie.

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Posted: 12/5/2007 7:44 PM
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bkDJ
Joined: 7/26/2006
Posts: 1215
A2ZOMG wrote:
If anybody obsoletes this by anything less than 30 seconds I will stab myself.
less? If anything there is at MOST 5 seconds of improvement using the current route. Also this won't be the last run submitted. New 120star in the works!
Posted: 12/5/2007 7:51 PM
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Soulrivers
Former player
Joined: 12/27/2006
Posts: 532
Location: Göteborg, Sweden
bkDJ wrote:
A2ZOMG wrote:
If anybody obsoletes this by anything less than 30 seconds I will stab myself.
less? If anything there is at MOST 5 seconds of improvement using the current route. Also this won't be the last run submitted. New 120star in the works!
Don't forget the BLJ-less 70-star run. :)
My published movies [03:45:05] <Naohiro19> Soulrivers: ... [03:45:19] <Soulrivers> ? [03:46:35] <Naohiro19> <Soulrivers> No! <Naohiro19> So? <Soulrivers> Yes! [03:46:48] <Naohiro19> joke
Posted: 12/5/2007 9:22 PM
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Chiles
Joined: 12/5/2007
Posts: 5
Holy shit. The movie that finally caused me to both download Mupen and register. I give this my official (so official that it has, in fact, hitherto never been used) seal of brokenness.
Posted: 12/5/2007 10:12 PM
(Edited: 12/8/2007 8:04 PM)
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Azorae
Player (98)
Joined: 9/27/2007
Posts: 103
Location: Florida
I have to admit, I was a skeptic. But wow, I never thought it could be improved by THAT MUCH, even with DDD skipped. Instant yes vote here. Good job guys. EDIT: Interesting screenshot choice for the published run.
Posted: 12/5/2007 11:21 PM
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HHS
Active player (282)
Joined: 10/8/2006
Posts: 356
The power of the stars is restored to the castle... right? Aren't they Mario? Don't tell me you misplaced them again, you useless bastard! You can forget about that cake!
Posted: 12/5/2007 11:31 PM
(Edited: 12/5/2007 11:33 PM)
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A2ZOMG
Joined: 5/30/2007
Posts: 28
Location: Southern California. YAY!
bkDJ wrote:
A2ZOMG wrote:
If anybody obsoletes this by anything less than 30 seconds I will stab myself.
less? If anything there is at MOST 5 seconds of improvement using the current route. Also this won't be the last run submitted. New 120star in the works!
Oh yeah, forgot about the 120 star one. But my point is I'll be damned if this game can be broken any further, and a submission to obsolete this run in terms of time would hardly have any extra entertainment value to it. If anybody is going to TAS for fastest time possible, you either break the already incredibly tiny existing bits of the game that have so thoroughly been put through a blender, or you don't bother doing another TAS of the "fastest time possible" of SM64.
HHS wrote:
The power of the stars is restored to the castle... right? Aren't they Mario? Don't tell me you misplaced them again, you useless bastard! You can forget about that cake!
The irony indeed. XD
Posted: 12/5/2007 11:32 PM
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OgreSlayeR
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Joined: 7/12/2004
Posts: 524
Location: USA
The cake is a lie!
Working on: Command and Conquer PSX Nod Campaign
Posted: 12/6/2007 1:24 AM
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negjay
Joined: 9/26/2007
Posts: 55
Location: Michigan
I'm surprised no one's posted a link to this yet. I'll give this a yes vote on the grounds of how impressive it was to make Mario 64 entertaining to watch. Given the eventuality of good Gamecube emulation I wonder if you guys will be able to make Mario Sunshine entertaining or if all hope for that snorefest is lost.
Posted: 12/6/2007 2:39 AM
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Naohiro19
Joined: 12/29/2006
Posts: 119
Location: Japan, Anjo
This video uploading to Nico Nico Douga. http://nicopon.jp/video/player/sm1696676(Nicopon) http://www.nicovideo.jp/watch/sm1696676(Nico Nico Douga, nessary account.) Today infomation(2007/12/6 11:37 JST) Play counts:29,897 Comment counts:4,496
DiffCalc .NET Frameworks 3.5 required.
Posted: 12/6/2007 3:16 AM
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mmbossman
Experienced player (822)
Joined: 11/18/2006
Posts: 2426
Location: Back where I belong
GBx TAS of 2008
As I have grown as a TASer, I have come to understand a lot about the technology that is behind a TAS, and the ways and means of getting to the end of the movie. But, up until this run I had yet to see a perfect example of why I TAS: to discover something that no one else on earth has ever seen. You two were the first ever to do this, and that must be a simply remarkable feeling. It is that chase for the perfect unknown that drives me, and I thank you once again for producing this.
Living Well Is The Best Revenge My Personal Page
Posted: 12/6/2007 3:26 AM
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SaxxonPike
Any
Joined: 6/8/2005
Posts: 236
Location: Madison, Wisconsin
Please tell me that you've included a change of pants in that zip file.
Music - https://www.sanxion7.com Code - https://github.com/SaxxonPike
Posted: 12/6/2007 4:05 AM
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dunnius
Active player (423)
Joined: 9/7/2007
Posts: 329
Computer TASer of 2015 Computer TAS of 2015
WOW! Absolute yes vote! I am still hoping that a 70 star run will be made.
Posted: 12/6/2007 4:29 AM
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superjupi
Joined: 10/15/2007
Posts: 685
Hamm wrote:
5th shot would be my choice. btw, since you commented about entering the door in the moat as the only remaining thing that might be able to skip something, I wanted to ask if that's actually impossible, or just undiscovered. Is it a door that you just can't enter because you're swimming, or is it simply a texture and doesn't become a door until after the moat drains. Is it possible to do something like in Sunshine where you glitch under the water and the game thinks you're still walking on land? Not that any of that matters to this run, just thoughts on your thoughts.
Just to answer your moat door question: the door is fully operable while the moat is full. The only thing stopping you from using it is that you cannot manipulate doors while swimming. Also, it's theoretically impossible to pass that door with the moat full due to there being no clear path to clip through the wall. Doesn't mean it can't be done, it just means that there doesn't appear to be a way to do so. Positioning is everything.
Kirby said so, so it must be true. ( >'.')>
Posted: 12/6/2007 5:31 PM
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Hamm
Joined: 7/29/2004
Posts: 136
Location: Temple City, CA
superjupi wrote:
Just to answer your moat door question: the door is fully operable while the moat is full. The only thing stopping you from using it is that you cannot manipulate doors while swimming. Also, it's theoretically impossible to pass that door with the moat full due to there being no clear path to clip through the wall. Doesn't mean it can't be done, it just means that there doesn't appear to be a way to do so. Positioning is everything.
So if something were to be found that would allow enough gain of speed to clip through the surface of the water, Mario should indeed fall to the ground, perhaps take damage, and be able to enter the door. I don't remember anything that would allow it, so I'll agree with the theoretically impossible statement, but it'd sure be cool if someone found a way. Afterall, 1 & 0 star runs were also considered impossible at one point. Here's hoping!
"How can you prove you exist? Maybe we don't exist..." -Vivi Ornitier (Final Fantasy IX)
Posted: 12/6/2007 5:52 PM
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Mitjitsu
He/Him
Banned User, Experienced player (532)
Joined: 4/24/2006
Posts: 2997
TAS of 2007 N64 TAS of 2007
In B+K and DK64, it is widely known that the game does surface checks in relation to the water. While they may seem very different games OoT and SM64 have very simalar engines and both games share simalar water physics, although how the characters interact with the water is a different subject. Both games have water environments definined by a large square, with the water stretching infinitly downwards, and I know from playing OoT that you can make Link fall off the edge of the map and then move him into the defined water area, then he will start swimming again. You can also do a similar thing with Mario on the WF and TTM courses. So to conclude, my belief is that charging through the surface would not cause Mario to ignore the water environment. EDIT:
superjupi wrote:
Just to answer your moat door question: the door is fully operable while the moat is full. The only thing stopping you from using it is that you cannot manipulate doors while swimming. Also, it's theoretically impossible to pass that door with the moat full due to there being no clear path to clip through the wall. Doesn't mean it can't be done, it just means that there doesn't appear to be a way to do so. Positioning is everything.
You can actually get past the moat door if you use the moat glitch , although it doesn't allow you to open the door. Before other unrelated question pop up the answer is "no".
Posted: 12/6/2007 6:18 PM
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adelikat
He/Him
Emulator Coder, Site Developer, Site Owner, Expert player (3598)
Joined: 11/3/2004
Posts: 4738
Location: Tennessee
TASer of 2010 NES TASer of 2010 DS TASer of 2010 Arcade TAS of 2010 NES TASer of 2008 NES TAS of 2008 Funny TAS of 2008 TASer of 2007 NES TASer of 2007 Funny TAS of 2007
Faster, more entertaining and more epic than the 1-star movie. A winner in every aspect. Easy yes vote.
It's hard to look this good. My TAS projects
Posted: 12/6/2007 7:56 PM
Quote
Hamm
Joined: 7/29/2004
Posts: 136
Location: Temple City, CA
AKA wrote:
In B+K and DK64, it is widely known that the game does surface checks in relation to the water. While they may seem very different games OoT and SM64 have very simalar engines and both games share simalar water physics, although how the characters interact with the water is a different subject. Both games have water environments definined by a large square, with the water stretching infinitly downwards, and I know from playing OoT that you can make Link fall off the edge of the map and then move him into the defined water area, then he will start swimming again. You can also do a similar thing with Mario on the WF and TTM courses. So to conclude, my belief is that charging through the surface would not cause Mario to ignore the water environment.
I know that there is a surface check on the boundaries of the square that contains the water. I just can't see a volumetric water with checks beyond the surface in an N64 game when in the Gamecube game of Super Mario Sunshine the surface is the only place the check occurs (check for glitches of Yoshi walking underwater, etc for examples of this if need be). I'll admit, I don't know the code of the game, nor do I fully understand all of the glitches. On all of the examples you mentioned, the character does not pass through the surface with such speed that they fail to trigger the swim animation. They just fall/walk/jump into the area "normally". I guess it doesn't matter though, as far as I know, there are no areas where you can BLJ and get enough speed to break the surface of the water and end up underneath...so it can't be tested anyways.
"How can you prove you exist? Maybe we don't exist..." -Vivi Ornitier (Final Fantasy IX)
Posted: 12/6/2007 8:03 PM
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jaysmad
Other
Experienced player (834)
Joined: 12/1/2006
Posts: 629
Location: Mom's
A big yes for you guys. Congratulations on making my statement true. I guess we all knew a no star run would come around one day. Big star for a NO star run. Hooray!
Posted: 12/6/2007 8:34 PM
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DJLO
Joined: 7/22/2007
Posts: 17
i got this game when i was seven, and thought i had to get 120 stars to win. years later i learned it was more like 10 stars. now i know i was wrong both times also, i came.
Posted: 12/6/2007 9:06 PM
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JSmith
Joined: 8/1/2006
Posts: 428
Hamm wrote:
I guess it doesn't matter though, as far as I know, there are no areas where you can BLJ and get enough speed to break the surface of the water and end up underneath...so it can't be tested anyways.
There are a few places (like CCM underneath the penguin) where you can enter a region of water from the side and end up swimming.
Trying 127.0.0.1... telnet: connect to address 127.0.0.1: Connection refused telnet: Unable to connect to remote host
Posted: 12/6/2007 9:11 PM
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superjupi
Joined: 10/15/2007
Posts: 685
AKA wrote:
You can actually get past the moat door if you use the moat glitch , although it doesn't allow you to open the door. Before other unrelated question pop up the answer is "no".
Aaaah, yes. Now I remember, you CAN clip through it, but the room isn't loaded yet. Sorry, I should have remembered that from the front door glitch. Never wrong, often incorrect, etc etc...
Kirby said so, so it must be true. ( >'.')>
Posted: 12/6/2007 11:25 PM
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minglw
Joined: 4/3/2006
Posts: 269
Bisqwit wrote:
AKA wrote:
I think this would make a good screenshot
Nice one. "What stars?" So, ?
When I first look at the picture and the 0 star completion run, I was saying the same "??? restoring the star".... However, if you really pay attention to it, Mario did pick up one power STAR. After he beat browser for the third time, he pick up a power STAR and then fly away. Yeah, I know, many people can argue that's not what "STAR" really means. But it's a STAR regardless how you argue it. So, I think when this run gets published, I think it should be starred like this: (or maybe even throw the in there as well )
Posted: 12/7/2007 12:44 AM
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Raiscan
Joined: 11/11/2006
Posts: 1235
Location: United Kingdom
Or for the more tech savvy users, you could have !
<adelikat> I am annoyed at my irc statements ending up in forums & sigs
Posted: 12/7/2007 12:59 AM
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Baxter
Skilled player (1402)
Joined: 5/31/2004
Posts: 1821
TAS of 2013 SNES TAS of 2013 Speedy TAS of 2007 Innovative TAS of 2007
Isn't it the 120 star version of Mario 64 that has the current star? I'm not quite getting if people are joking about a 0 star movie getting a star, if people didn't consider that it was the 120 star version has the current star, or if people are serious about giving the Mario 64 star to the any% version... just wondering.
http://tasvideos.org/Baxter.html
Posted: 12/7/2007 1:04 AM
(Edited: 12/7/2007 1:10 AM)
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mr_roberts_z
Former player
Joined: 7/21/2006
Posts: 747
Location: Northern Hemisphere
Baxter wrote:
Isn't it the 120 star version of Mario 64 that has the current star? I'm not quite getting if people are joking about a 0 star movie getting a star, if people didn't consider that it was the 120 star version has the current star, or if people are serious about giving the Mario 64 star to the any% version... just wondering.
Are stars for more than one category not allowed? No sarcasm or anything, I'm just curious. Personally I think this is a perfect example of an any% run, and the 120 star is a perfect example of an all% run.
Super Mario 64 TASes and stuff.
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