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8:35 is all it takes to beat SMB: The Lost Levels photo

Are speed runs still cool or are people, like, so not impressed with that stuff anymore? I still think anyone that can pull off a feat like beating a game in some sort of super speed is pretty impressive, but I suppose with computers and technologies anything can be faked these days. Well, I choose to believe, damn it! I have to believe -- it's all I have.

Thus I choose to believe that some crazy guy beat Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels in just eight minutes and 35 seconds. If you haven't played The Lost Levels they are basically the Japanese Super Mario Bros. 2 and were never released until the SNES revamp in the U.S. because they were thought to be far too difficult. So that makes beating them really quickly highly impressive. Even more impressive is the fact that they did it with Luigi. Think how much faster they would have gone if the older, better brother had been involved.I suppose Mario would not have been able to make a lot of those jumps though since they played differently in The Lost Levels. Documentary footage of the events is below.


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31 comments | showing # 1 to 31

zig83's Avatar
zig83 at 04/19/2009 13:15
In the end it says... "Now try a more difficult quest..." wtf o_O
Batthink's Avatar
Batthink at 04/19/2009 13:17
Speed-runs should still be cool, it just depends on how many death-defying acts the player has to do in the process on a difficult game.
SWE3tMadness's Avatar
SWE3tMadness at 04/19/2009 13:22
Pretty cool. Was this single-segment, TAS, or what?
NihonTiger90's Avatar
NihonTiger90 at 04/19/2009 13:25
I duynno, at least one of those jumps looks real sketchy to me in World 8-4...
Mr Kite's Avatar
Mr Kite at 04/19/2009 13:25
I donwloaded this from the Virtual Console, so I played the original version and not the pussy version in Allstars where you can just retry at the beginning of the level instead of at the beginning of the world. So anyway I got to level 6 or 7 and instead of quitting to the wii menu I just turned off my wii. Imagine my surprise the next time I turned that game on and saw the title screen. FUCK says I. And to this day I haven't turned it on, I must say that game is a bitch.
Drewcifer000's Avatar
Drewcifer000 at 04/19/2009 13:30
Speed runs are still cool. But new games don't do anything like warp zones or have any secrets. There are easter eggs and such, but I like when games let you go outside the main path of a game. Or when it has glitches and such that just add a bit of fuck around fun to it.
CelicaCrazed's Avatar
CelicaCrazed at 04/19/2009 13:40
Or you can be a crazy motherfucker and attempt a speed run of Pokemon like Picklemick.
Jack Maverick's Avatar
Jack Maverick at 04/19/2009 14:02
"Think how much faster they would have gone if the older, better brother had been involved"

I don't approve on how you put down Luigi like that. :(

Anyway, the game never really started screwing with you until it put in those wind parts. And the hidden blocks that you had to find in order to scale up an impossibly high wall. Also, water area in Bowser's castle? lolwat. But I still managed to be impressed.
Doomsday Forte's Avatar
Doomsday Forte at 04/19/2009 14:04
I like watching TASes because they show a game at its absolute limit. I still get jaw-drop moments when I watch SM64 beaten in about ten minutes with zero stars too. XD

Mario can be a fucking ninja if he wanted, despite his body size...
psycho terror2's Avatar
psycho terror2 at 04/19/2009 14:06
i don't think i'll ever get tired of seeing super metroid speed runs. some of the techniques and sequence breaks are amazing, and even more so considering that they are still being discovered now.
Isay Isay's Avatar
Isay Isay at 04/19/2009 14:22
@ NihonTiger90
Seconded
Chronic Logic's Avatar
Chronic Logic at 04/19/2009 14:23
Regular speedrun.
No damage speedrun.
100% speedrun.
Tool Assisted speedrun.

But the best speedrun is the ones doing some incredibly weird shit while beating the game. Like beating the entire game while lvl 1 or beating the entire game using nothing but your beginning gun.
Artemus's Avatar
Artemus at 04/19/2009 14:32
Speed runs scare me...
Man, I love this game!
I remember how excited I was to play it! Finally the true sequel to Super Mario Bros. came to the States! And the graphics blew me away! Yeeeaaa!
TJF588's Avatar
TJF588 at 04/19/2009 14:38
I was thinking through this "no way, gotta be a TAS," until that little nudge toward the Piranha PLant after the water section ('bout started typing "segment"). That little bit gave credence toward an actual, living person doing this, as there's no entertainment value in that for a TAS.

"Regular speedrun.
"No damage speedrun.
"100% speedrun.
"Tool Assisted speedrun."
^
What you describe after this I know as "low-%", mostly since I became truly familiar with SpeedDemosArchive through Metroid [series] runs. Ah, but with TASes, this Symphony of the Night one where, to pass the time, Alucard mimicked a Fleaman before killing it and moving on. Little silliness(es) like that.
TJF588's Avatar
TJF588 at 04/19/2009 14:38
I was thinking through this "no way, gotta be a TAS," until that little nudge toward the Piranha PLant after the water section ('bout started typing "segment"). That little bit gave credence toward an actual, living person doing this, as there's no entertainment value in that for a TAS.

"Regular speedrun.
"No damage speedrun.
"100% speedrun.
"Tool Assisted speedrun."
^
What you describe after this I know as "low-%", mostly since I became truly familiar with SpeedDemosArchive through Metroid [series] runs. Ah, but with TASes, this Symphony of the Night one where, to pass the time, Alucard mimicked a Fleaman before killing it and moving on. Little silliness(es) like that.
Jordan Grim Devore's Avatar
Jordan Grim Devore at 04/19/2009 14:46
Man, 8-4 is such a bitch.
Haxan's Avatar
Haxan at 04/19/2009 14:52
If that's not tool-assisted, I'll eat my hat. And I love my hat.

As for that nudge, I didn't look at it as "entertainment value" so much as getting as close as possible to the piranha before it went down, so he had less distance to travel to enter the pipe.
Furyfire's Avatar
Furyfire at 04/19/2009 14:56
@Isay Isay & NihonTiger90

I went back and looked at that jump as well.. there's a platform JUST above the lava there.
naia-the-gamer's Avatar
naia-the-gamer at 04/19/2009 15:29
I'm not sure if I count that, considering he didn't make it all the way to D-4 ;)

I kid...

Also, I don't know how you can say Luigi is inferior to Mario. I was only able to beat that game back in the day as Luigi.

I'm not so sure I could beat the game now though.
Exquisitor's Avatar
Exquisitor at 04/19/2009 16:02
My main problem with tool assisted speed runs is that they require no skill. Anyone with enough time could reproduce the above speed run.

The one that was impressive is the Symphony of the Night speedrun. Considering they are utilizing every known exploit in the game, it must have taken months to do.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=romsRF6iyWE
Los255's Avatar
Los255 at 04/19/2009 17:22
Man, I always admire Speed Runs cause of the near perfection that it requires.

This guy had WAYYY too many close calls with the plants, jumps, everything! I can't say I admire Tool Assisted runs cause non-assisted takes dedication and memorization.
Mista Smegheneghan's Avatar
Mista Smegheneghan at 04/19/2009 17:46
Kay, first off, wtf at 1-2. Never knew THAT was there!

Secondly, anyone else notice the disappearance of the hills between 4:20 and 4:40?

And I might've just gotten too used to 8-3 on the VC game, but wasn't there more scenery in 8-3 on the SNES version? The sudden changes in scenery could mean it's a TAS (processing power or some stuff). Still quite fun to watch though.
Los255's Avatar
Los255 at 04/19/2009 17:50
NihonTiger90: "I duynno, at least one of those jumps looks real sketchy to me in World 8-4..."

If you're talking about the one that looked like he jumped ON the lava, there's a small floating platform that's hard to see because it's orange and he jumps it so fast.
boatorious's Avatar
boatorious at 04/19/2009 18:15
Speed runs are always awesome.
Doomsday Forte's Avatar
Doomsday Forte at 04/19/2009 19:13
I just watched Super Metroid in 12 minutes today. Oh my God, that is incredibly amazing. Skipping bosses?!

I'm seriously trying that trick with Torizo next time I play.
AgentMOO's Avatar
AgentMOO at 04/19/2009 20:45
Now try a more difficult quest in bed
BluDesign's Avatar
BluDesign at 04/19/2009 23:46
Pfft to TAS.

Gimme the run the kid did in the 6th episode of GameCenter CX where he was 12 freaking years old and beat it on a FAMICOM.

That's some dedication.
The Prodigal Son's Avatar
The Prodigal Son at 04/20/2009 01:12
@Chronic Logic: Like the ~12 minute Quake Nightmare speedrun with the grenade and rocket jumping. That shit was silly.
Isay Isay's Avatar
Isay Isay at 04/20/2009 06:12
@furyfire
I was referring to the speedup towards the end of the level when he jumped into the flying Koopa Troopa. I watched the NES version of the run on SDA, that person does something similar but without the speedup. Also the platform you're talking about is better pronounced in that version.
TJF588's Avatar
TJF588 at 04/20/2009 08:23
@Haxan: I can see how that'd be, if the hit box (?) decreases as the plant goes back down (was it going down (on ur MOOOM) when Weegee nudged?).

Also: effing double-posts; any way to get one deletered?
Dexter345's Avatar
Dexter345 at 04/20/2009 13:57
Yeah, this is pretty impressive. What is unimpressive is your proofreading resolve. Come on man, re-read your posts before you put 'em up.
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