Super Mario Bros. Speedrun History (2024)

History of Super Mario Bros. Speedrunning: Real and Virtual Realms

Part 1: The Real Realm[]

Super Mario Bros. Basics[]

Super Mario Bros. Basic History[]

Super Mario Bros. was released on September 13th, 1985 by Nintendo Inc. It was one of the first games to feature the widely-known Nintendo characters, Mario and Luigi. Bundled with the original NES console, the first widely-known 8-bit console made by Nintendo and was popular until the start of the 21st century. However, it wasn’t until then that people started speedrunning the game to push it to its absolute limits. During the mid-2010s, Super Mario Bros. speedrunning became very popular due to the short amount of time to complete the game, and the concept of “swag tricks” was very trendy around this time.

Super Mario Bros. Gameplay[]

The Super Mario Bros. game has 8 worlds, each world representing a rank on a chessboard and 4 areas in each world. The first area is a simple overworld level, the second stage is either overworld, underground, or underwater levels, the third is an “athletic” level where Mario (or Luigi) has to jump over trees and avoid falling into the pits, and the fourth being a castle level with a Bowser fight at the end. World 1-2 and 4-2 both feature warp zones that let you skip several worlds in the game, causing the speedrunning community of Super Mario Bros. to be divided into an Any% category, and a warpless category.

The D-pad of an NES controller controls your character’s movement: Left and right move the character, down causes him to crouch when giant or enter a pipe, and up makes him climb a beanstalk. A makes Mario/Luigi jump, and B makes him sprint. Select and start are used infrequently in gameplay, they are mainly used on the title screen. You have 3 lives to beat Bowser, although you can collect 1-ups along the way, and when you lose all lives, it’s game over.

Super Mario Bros. Level Elements[]

Mushrooms cause Mario or Luigi to “blow up” in size and become giants. Flowers make fire run in their blood, giving them the ability to shoot fire from their bodies. Stars give invincibility, 1-ups give extra lives, and pipes/beanstalks can be used to enter a “bonus area”, which is usually safe and houses coins, powerups, or warp zones. However, the plumbers must avoid enemies, as they shrink them down, or make them fall. Enemies include Goombas, Koopas, Paratroopas, Hammer Bros, Bloopers, Cheep-Cheeps, Lakitu, Spinies, Buzzy Beetles, and the boss Bowser. Ouch! That looked like it hurt. -Super Mario Bros. Death Message

Each level is composed of brick blocks, stairs, mystery boxes, and invisible blocks. A flagpole is at the end of every non-castle stage, along with a castle where Mario or Luigi walks into to end the level. In a castle stage, there is an ax to make the Bowser Bridge crumble which speeds up the Bowser killing process to finish the world. At the last castle stage, World 8-4, the Princess grants you your victory and you can play again in hard mode, where the enemies go faster, the Goombas are replaced with Buzzy Beetles, and all levels are in their “harder” variant.

Super Mario Bros. Speedrunning Introduction[]

Speedrunning Basics[]

A speedrun is a type of gameplay that involves beating the game as fast as possible. Some speedrun categories have restrictions on how you have to beat the game, but the Any% speedrun involves the absolute fastest run, using anything crazy you can think of, ranging from wall jumps to credit warps.

In Super Mario Bros., the speedrun is timed precisely to the frame, which is 1/60 of a second, as the NES runs on 60Hz or 60 frames per second. The timing starts when you have control of your character, and ends when the sprites disappear after touching the final ax. However, in every level, there is a “framerule” system where the game only checks if you’ve beaten a level every 21 frames, therefore, you can only gain/lose time every 21 frames. This determines if a certain swag trick can save time. Remember darbian’s analogy of a framerule being a “bus" that takes you to the next level.

The First Speedrunners[]

Humble Beginnings[]

Speedrunning and Twin Galaxies[]

There are several runs out there in the 1990s and the early 2000s that have no video proof, but we can prove them from the website they submitted their runs on Twin Galaxies. Twin Galaxies was a very popular gaming and speedrunning website in the 2000s where the first speedrunners would upload their runs. Back then, Twitch didn’t exist, so they had to stream their speedruns on a VCR or a camera. However, due to the help of the Internet Archive, several lost runs were discovered. The first "speedrun" was a 9:51 by Casion on April 6th, 1999. This video was more of a gameplay than a speedrun, but still, several minor swag tricks were executed, making it one of the best gameplays of that time. However, another speedrunner of the name YY actually got a 5:17 on August 11th, 1999. The first section of the run was clean and barely lost any framerules, but once he made it to the second half, he started to be a little more careful. For example, he hesitated in the World 4-2 section where you have to climb the beanstalk to the warp zone, and he had a few slowdowns in World 8-1. In 8-2, he bonked on the tricky pipe jump, and decided to stomp on the Koopa shells after clearing the wide gap. He got 3 fireworks in World 8-3, costing him 1.7 seconds. Finally, in the last room in World 8-4, he waited for the Hammer Bro and Bowser to throw hammers and move. However, he was the first speedrunner to implement a glitch, which we will talk about later.

Jeff Ninneman and Jason Harmer had a recorded Super Mario Bros. race in front of a crowd in 2002. Both had times of 5:50 (5:53 from pressing Start), though Jason Harmer (on the right) was a bit faster. The article mentions Jeff Ninneman having finished with 5:11 and Jason Harmer having finished with 5:09. These may refer to their personal best times at the time of the race or at the time of article (February 26, 2006).

The first speedrunner was a guy named Aaron Collins, who got a 5:25 sometime in 2002. This run had no video evidence, and the same thing happened to another guy, Cam Allen’s 5:17. The first speedrunner who completed Super Mario Bros. and managed to have a video we can watch today was Scott Kessler, and he got a 5:13. This run had minor mistakes that were easily overlooked at that time, and then he, and another player, Trevor Seguin, tried to lower the time as much as they could, getting a 5:10, and a 5:09. However, a child prodigy was also speedrunning the game, and managed to get a 5:09 on his own. We’ll talk about him later.

Kessler’s last record submitted on Twin Galaxies was a 5:08 which required execution of the swaggest tricks known back then, and it was considered the “Holy Grail” of gaming records, and this run was used as the “base framerule” for future runs.

Glitches Welcome[]

TASing and Twin Galaxies Rules of Legitimacy[]

A TAS, also known as a tool-assisted speedrun, is something in which a human programs a computer to press a certain set of buttons on a specific frame since the console is powered on. Most TASes use a variety of glitches to lower as much time as they can and also add unnecessary superswag to hyperswag glitches to make the speedrun look nicer.

A Super Mario Bros. TAS uses several glitches that are way too swag for a human to replicate at that time, like wall jumps and wall clips, and fast accelerations in every stage. Some of the glitches are humanly possible, like the pipe jump dubbed by Marionaire as “Kosmic’s Favorite Wall Jump” in 2012, and a backward “wrong warp” in the 3rd room. Super Mario Bros. can only load 1 warp destination at a time and will determine which room Mario/Luigi goes to depending on the screen position. Therefore, it is possible to warp down the second pipe before the lava pit and still go to the water section, instead of the proper pipe across the lava pit. TASers Bisquit, Mana., and Michael F were the first people to really complete Super Mario Bros. as fast as possible using computer control.

However, Twin Galaxies has a strict policy on the legitimacy of runs, and one of the rules that separates honest runs from cheating runs is the use of glitches. One possible reason why the Twin Galaxies staff think glitches are a way to “game the system” is that some glitches can be used to bypass a huge chunk of the game that is meant to be played, and they were worried all glitches have that capability, so the glitches are usually not used in real-time speedruns. Finally, Twin Galaxies thinks all glitches are TAS-only, and at that time, you needed a license in order to TAS (by TASing Introductory Mario, a ROM hack of Super Mario Bros., within 15 minutes), and if you execute a glitch, you will be considered TASing the game, and they will ask for your TASing license.

The Dawn of the Gardikan Empire (Real World)[]

World 4-2 is the level where you get to climb a beanstalk to take the “Mine Collapse Emergency Exit”, dubbed by Marionaire because the miners were worried the mine might collapse when they were mining, so they made an emergency exit out of the cave using a beanstalk. However, TASers were able to take the pipe that was supposed to lead to the underground mining storage room and still magically get teleported out of the caves! Marionaire called this trick the “Forward Wrong Warp”, as it is the reverse of the “Backwards Wrong Warp” in 8-4, where you go to a room when your character is at the right of the screen, and not the left. This saves a tremendous amount of time as Mario doesn’t have to climb a beanstalk and wait for the plant to grow out of the mine before running to the warp zone.

There are 2 main methods to live this pipe dream: Clip through the wall or use vine teleportation. This wrong warp needs an X-position of 84 (NOTE: these numbers are in hexadecimal, or base-16). Mario’s X-position caps at 70, so 14 more pixels are needed to achieve this wrong warp. The more pixels gained, the easier the wrong warp. These 2 methods are sufficient to gain 14+ pixels and secure a smooth wrong warp.

However, the same child prodigy I discussed earlier discovered a 3rd method: The Backwards Bump Method. If you get bumped backward, you can gain 7-A pixels, and 3 of them can set you up for an X-position of 85 to 8E, meaning you can have 1-A pixels as a “safety net”. This prodigy executed this glitch, but had slower times in future levels, saving 4.32 seconds from the previous record, entering the negative framerules. This prodigy was revealed to be in a triumvirate that ruled a virtual empire called the Gardikan Empire, and he was Andrew I, along with Marionaire and adika23560, the other triumvirate members. In April 2007, the triumvirate, in the real world, got the first 5-minute run with glitches. This ushered in a new era of Super Mario Bros. Speedruns: The Reign of the Gardikan Kings.

Once again, The Triumvirate had achieved a nearly perfect run – he had beaten what was considered to be a “Holy Grail'' by 5 whole seconds. For a few years, no one came close to beating this trio’s run, so they were on top of the world of the retro community. Finally, in late 2010, adika23560 asked Andrew I, “Is a sub-5 minute run possible?” According to legend, this triumvirate had beaten Super Mario Bros. Germaphobic Speedrunner’s Edition and Mario Mafia 2 without savestates and was determined for this challenge. They, once again, grinded through, achieved a 5:00.4, and were able to get a 4:59 as a Christmas present.

Getting a 4:58, and (almost) a 4:57[]

In 2011, Marionaire was experimenting with speedruns himself and discovered the fact that hitting the top of the flagpole is faster than the bottom due to fast acceleration, and hitting the beanstalk despawns the Piranha Plant in the wrong warp pipe, and he told it to the other 2 triumvirate members, and a 4:58 was made.

At this point, Windows XP was coming to an end within a year and 4 months, and The Triumvirate was speedrunning its hardest to get a 4:57, using whatever it took. Andrew, I speedran in the morning, Marionaire in the afternoon, and adika23560 in the evening, 4 hours each. That’s a total of 12 hours of speedrunning each day! Thank god Andrew I didn’t have to speedrun all of it himself.

A 4:57 is possible using the Bullet Bill Glitch, or the BBG, which is a type of flagpole glitch, or FPG, where Mario gets stuck behind the flagpole block, and the timer ticks down as there is a solid block on every castle that triggers the timer to tick down, and the flagpole block is an example of one. This, minus the time it takes for the Bullet Bill to shoot, is a double framerule save. Marionaire, who discovered subpixels from his Create Account TAS, ruled this method out as it involves luck and precision. However, a faster version of 4-2, discovered by adika23560, involved 2 bumps instead of 3, but this trick is just as precise as you need to get A pixels for every bump, and that barely gives 14 pixels to enter the pipe. (Hexadecimal numbers)

One day, a run dubbed “World War I”, by Marionaire went underway, with Mario as Russia, was running, leading his soldiers through the battlefields to defeat Austria-Hungary to gain territory and a huge advantage, but when General Mario went to Vienna, he noticed the Austro-Hungarian king was dressed differently… except the king was not Austro-Hungarian, but he was…

GERMAN. (ICH? DES RUSS?) (ICH WILL SUPER MARIO BROS SPIEL?!?!?!?!) (O, СеЏЮББмЕЎҡЃџђѵэМАЭЕьѨ…) Behold the power of Germany!

Kaiser Wilhelm II was FURIOUS to find Russians in his castle and called his militia hammermen to hammer down General Mario and his soldiers. Because Russia went into the wrong castle, it lost the battle. Sorry, РОССИЯ. However, Andrew I, whoҝдСи wasn’t Any% Russian (good pun indeed), yelled out, “NO!” at the top of his lungs, and Marionaire and adika23560 screamed after.

But they never gave up, and their time kept dropping but stayed at 4:58. Their last run was 4:58.089 on March 25th, 2014, exactly 2 weeks before Windows XP’s end-of-life. Around this time, revolutions in The Triumvirate’s virtual empire were escalating.

Post-Revolution Speedruns[]

Who got the 4:57? Who got the 4:56?[]

The Gardikan Revolution[]

VIVE LA REVOLUTION! The Gardikan Revolution hit due to protests against kings through the Gardikan Empire. King Deko “The Dragon”, who was a QUEEN, was executed, gaining independence of the virtual republic of Super Mario Bros. Remember its motto: Liberté, Égalité, et Positivité, virtual for Freedom, Equality, and Happiness, which granted rights to all human beings living there.

The leader of the execution was a man named Blubbler, or Saradoc, and in the real world, he got a 4:57 with the BBG without fast 4-2, using a new principle called the “Golden Frame '', where enemy patterns are influenced by previous enemy patterns. This was the first run on a framerule that is not divisible by 0.35: The previous run was a -7.00, but this was a -7.12, due to a framerule save and a 0.23-second wait on the title screen.

The Restoration[]

After that, the monarchy was restored with a constitution by darbian, the guy who invented the “bus framerule” system. He got a 4:57.42 with fast 4-2 and BBG at the same time, and a 4:57.26 later. At that time, a 4:56 was a pipe dream, and everyone was trying to get a 4:56. With fast 4-2 and BBG, they would enter 8-4 on the -7.47 framerule, However, a 4:56 is barely possible as 8-4 would have to be completed super fast, 1 frame faster than the human sum of best.

By late 2015, runners were trying to find ways to execute the inconsistent flagpole glitches at the end of levels. To do the FPG, you must adjust your subpixels in a way to get a D70 position.

In Super Mario Bros., your position is based on a 24-bit integer with the first byte representing your chunk, or a unit of 16 blocks. The next nibble represents your block, which is equivalent to 1 meter in the real world. The last 12 bits represent your pixels and subpixels, respectively. However, the last nibble is usually not used in subpixel determination, so you could have 256 pixel-subpixel positions.

With the right subpixels, you need to “clip” through the flagpole base to skip the flag coming down, saving 19 frames and saving a framerule in 90% of the levels. In August 2016, DoorTK was the first person to execute an FPG from the stairs, and mav6771 then perfected it by starting it from a savestate from the pipe. However, this FPG wasn't consistent, until Sockfolder, the famous guy who discovered a cannonless setup in Super Mario 64, found a consistent setup for the FPG. The FPG can be easily executed in 1-1, 4-1, and 8-3 because the subpixels usually remain the same throughout the level. Once you reach the stairs, land on the 3rd block to the top without holding B, hold B 1 frame later for 2 frames, then jump. To clip in the flagpole block, you need to press left for exactly 1 frame, press nothing for another frame, press right for 1 frame, press left and A for 1 frame, press nothing for another frame, and press right for 1 frame. However, in 1-1 and 4-1, the D70 positioning requires a 4-frame slowdown, causing it to only save 15 frames with this trick, but it doesn’t matter as they still save the framerule. Using a D70, an FPG can theoretically be executed on any level, however, the setups are harder on some levels.

These 1-1 and 4-1 FPG setups allowed the first 4:56 to be obtained by darbian, and that entered a new era in Super Mario Bros. speedruns: The Frame Wars. Since Fast 4-2 wasn’t so reliable, people tried to find other ways to make the framerule. One way is the old wall clip found in TASes of the game ever since 2003, and it was first done by Andrew I, the same guy who was in the triumvirate that got a 4:59 and a 4:58. Another way is to do the 4-2 block clip that gains 11 frames instead of 7-A frames from a backward bump, but that was ruled out as it required pressing left and right at the same time. Pressing left and right (or up and down) at the same time is a valid console input, but it is impossible to do it on a real controller. Try pressing left and right at the same time on your Nintendo D-pad and see if you can do it!

However, a new way of getting the pipe dream framerule was discovered by doing a wall clip that gives you the desired 14 pixels to make the wrong warp work, discovered by some speedrunner who surely loves WWII, which made 4-2 more reliable to speedrunners. This, along with the 8-3 FPG, allowed lower 4:56 records to be made by Kosmic and darbian. This also caused the Glorious Revolution in the virtual world.

Getting a 4:55 and the reign of Kosmic[]

The 4:56.462 and the 4:56.265[]

On October 20th, 2017, darbian had the crown in his hands with a 4:56.528 until Kosmic beat him with a 4:56.462 on February 13th, 2018. Somewes, a third-place speedrunner, was practicing and then managed to get a 4:56 on his own on May 11th. He then improved to a 4:56.495, 2 frames behind the world record. He kept trying, and he set a new world record: 4:56.245. Using a trick dubbed as “Get 347” by Andrew I, the person who discovered this trick by clipping in the pipe to save 1 framerule in 1-2, along with the other tricks in his Any% speedrun plan, (FPG, Return of FPG, Pipe Dream, Judges?, BBG, and FPG Strikes Back), he was determined to get the first 4:55. However, after 6022 attempts, Bowser kept winning the 4:55 away from him. That’s because 2147 FPG’d 795 got the setups for getting 347, but only 442 managed to get the 347. 271 of the runs made the FPG return, and only 81 had the pipe dream green blob let them through to World 8. 43 runs got the judges, 12 runs BBG’d, and only 2 of the remaining runs made the FPG strike back. Both of these attempts failed at this place: Kosmic’s Favorite Wall Jump. The first jump was too early, and the second too late. That’s how hard a 4:55 is.

The 4:55[]

Meanwhile, Kosmic started speedrunning again to beat somewes’ record, and he got his own 4:56.265 in October 2018. Then, he tried playing through the game a few times, just for fun, but this happened…

The FPG came, and then the 347. The FPG returned, and the pipe dream took over. Judges were present, the BBG hit, and the FPG struck back. It was a matter of time in 8-4.

And he did it. The first 4:55 was made: A 4:55.913. However, just a few weeks later, somewes beat Kosmic’s record with a 4:55.796 with a better 8-4. However, this run is still far from perfect.

In 8-1, another framerule can be saved by doing a fast acceleration at the beginning of the level that saves 2 frames, and a swag FPG that doesn’t lose any time because of subpixel manipulation. Since World 8-1 is usually finished without any frames to spare, you need to save an entire 21 frames to save a framerule. Therefore, you need to save an extra 2 frames from fast acceleration. To get a D70, you need to release right for 1 frame twice in specific areas in this level and press A for 3 frames after jumping. Sometimes, you can get an FPG by jumping late for 1 frame, but this wouldn’t save the framerule. To do a fast accel, you need to press B for 1 frame, press A, B, and right the next frame, and press B and right the following frame. This trick roughly has a success rate of 1‰. This trick is not enough to get a 4:54.

Modern Speedruns[]

Nothing is impossible[]

KosmicZ 8-2[]

8-2 is also known as the “Complicated Level” in Super Mario Bros. speedruns. It involves getting a Golden Frame for the BBG to be reliable and not too slow. However, in a TAS, an extra framerule can be saved in this very stage.

The TAS does a fast accel just like in 8-1, and also there are no frames to spare. After a superswag pipe jump after the gap, the Bullet Bill barely gets fired early enough to make this framerule possible. Along with this Golden Frame principle, this level was ruled out by lots of speedrunners to match the TAS. Theoretically, if BBG wasn’t executed, you would finish the level with a 343 with this jump, getting fireworks.

However, on September 2nd, 2019, Taven Webb, creator of the Pellson Practice ROM of SMB speedrunning, discovered this framerule save as possible. If you use a double fast accel, you can have up to 3 Golden Frames that save this framerule. Due to Kosmic’s last record in the Any% category, a 4:55.646 without this framerule, this trick was dubbed “KosmicZ 8-2” by Miniland.

Lightning 4-2[]

4-2, The Infamous Level, was dubbed this for years due to the wrong warp out of the mines to the warp zone. This level, besides World 8-4, is the level where the swaggest tricks were executed by a TAS. To get the 14 pixels as fast as possible, (Hexadecimal, again) you need to clip them on top of the wall and play the underground section perfectly. Then, you wouldn’t need to do any fast acceleration or swag turnarounds in the warp zone. For several years, this method was ruled out, but as I said, nothing is impossible, and a guy is trying to prove them wrong…

On March 6th, 2019, miners were mining (another pun, right?) their own business when Mario clipped in the rocks to gain his 14 desired pixels, and he rocketed through the mines into the pipe that leads to the storage room but wrong warped to the warp zone. Then, he stayed on target and entered the pipe with barely any frames to spare, saving the last framerule. Now, the human sum-of-best to World 8-4 is on par with the TAS all thanks to Kriller37, the person who made the world’s first top clip HappyLee Style.

Another Lightning 4-2 trick was also discovered by getting a swag B-pixel bump off the mystery boxes in the mine, but the chances of getting this trick were 1 out of 650, which is very unreliable. Also, you need to do a fast accel in the warp zone, which puts this trick slower by 2 frames. Because of this, a 4:54 will probably feature the top clip or the FPG in 8-1, along with the faster 8-2…

The revival of Any% speedruns[]

Kosmic’s 4:55.646 stayed on top of the leaderboards for several months, but several young talents are trying to take him down: First, on October 13th, 2020, a young speedrunner did KosmicZ 8-2 but opted out of the FPG in World 8-3, tying the record. Next, another runner we all know as Niftski came speeding through 8-2 to get the framerule, and also got the 8-3 FPG! Along with a slower 8-4, he got a 4:55.430, bringing Kosmic’s reign to an end. Then, Miniland got a 4:55.314 and a 4:55.230, with an extra-fast 8-4 to put Kosmic’s power in the dust. Finally, the first 4:54 was achieved on April 7th, 2021, by Niftski, with pl8-1 and KosmicZ 8-2, and a nice 8-4.

The Human Limit, the 4:53, and Super Mario Bros. Extended[]

Introduction to the Limits of Speedrunning[]

Is 4:53 possible?[]

Now, there is only 1 level to improve, and that is World 8-4. With the swaggest tricks, there are, humans were finally able to tie the TAS through the WHOLE GAME, resulting in a sum-of-best of 4:54.265. Niftski got a 4:54.881 and a 4:54.796, the time theorized to be the human limit when the first 4:55 was attained.

Now, with the 4:54 done, people started asking this question, “Is a 4:53 possible?”, and the quick answer is yes, it is possible. Using a ROM hack called Super Mario Bros. Extended, it is possible to get a 4:53.749 by saving an extra framerule.

The difference between the original Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros. Extended

Super Mario Bros. Extended is a ROM hack of the original Super Mario Bros. but with 5 new worlds (9, A, B, C, D) in Lost-Levels style (there are poison mushrooms, red piranha plants, upside-down red piranha plants, upside-down pipes, wind, a "Luigi Game'' instead of a multiplayer mode, with Lost-Levels Luigi physics, and Lost-Levels style on 1-upping by flagpole or fireworks. Speedrun Categories: Any%, Warpless 8-4, Warpless D-4, Worlds A-D Any%, and Worlds A-D Warpless. There is no Minus World as the warp zones take you to the 1-2 exit area if you perform the Minus World trick, so the 1-2 best time is still a 347. In the Any% category, an additional framerule can be saved in 8-3, because an ending of 3 or 6 doesn't guarantee fireworks (Speedrunners should worry about their coin count between levels), making a 4:53 Any% 8-4 possible. The first 8 worlds are mostly the SAME as the original game, so no new speedrunning tricks would be found in the first 8 worlds. Glitches such as FPG, BBG, wall jumps/clips, wrong warps, and the framerule system still exist.

1-1 is the same as the original Super Mario Bros. level. By doing FPG with a precise underground section, it is possible to finish the game with a 370 on the timer, finishing the game 1 frame behind and saving another framerule.

1-2 is also the same as the original, with the enemy dodges and the pipe clip to finish the level to get a 347 on the timer (AndrewG calls the 1-2 pipe clip to get the TAS framerule "Get 347"). What is different is if you don't load the warp zone, the pipe will send you to the exit area instead of the Minus World due to the levels being played Lost-Levels style.

4-1 is the same as the original with the FPG and perfect play.

4-2's underground section is the same, with the wrong warp that works if the X-position is greater than or equal to 0x84, or 132, to skip the beanstalk animation and go to the warp zone. The warp zone for 4-2 is the Lost Levels 5-2 warp zone, with pits that require jumping. The warp zone length is the same as its beginning counterpart, so no frames could be saved, and the level finishes 1 frame behind the next framerule.

8-1 is the same with the fast accel and the 19-frame FPG giving the RTA runs 0 frames to spare, so speedrunners need to play the level perfectly.

8-2 is also the same, with the enemies lining up to produce a golden frame that allows KosmicZ BBG, which saves 3 framerules then no BBG at all. This framerule save has 0 frames to spare, making 8-2 another perfect level.

You guessed it! 8-3 is the level that has a framerule save. Since fireworks are programmed Lost-Levels style, they only come out if your coin count's last digit matches the timer's last digit, making a 243 not necessarily producing fireworks. Therefore, a 243 FPG is possible. The slowdowns could be removed, but it would have a bad subpixel position for FPG. To get a D70, you must release B for 1 frame, land on the first pixel of the 3rd block without B held, hold B as you land, jump 2 frames later, and do the FPG by clipping in the block.

How much time does it save? The timer ticks down every 24 frames, and a 242 FPG stops the timer on the first frame of 242. The first frame of 243 is 24 frames ahead of the first frame of 242, but an FPG with 243 finishes the timer on the sixth frame of 243, saving 19 frames. Normally, you finish the level with 13 frames to spare, but if you add 19 you save 32 frames, saving a framerule with 11 frames to spare.

8-4's level layout is the same, permitting Kosmic's world-famous walljump and the turnaround wrong warp. You need to wait 4 frames to get a good Bowser pattern due to the framerule save. Starting early will produce a Bowser pattern that requires slowing down, which costs more time than waiting. Because of all of this, 1 framerule-4 frames=17 frames, 17/60=0.283 seconds, 4:54.032-0.283=4:53.749

Super Mario Bros. The Lost Levels is a separate game from Super Mario Bros., and many speedrunners of Super Mario Bros. speedrun this game, starting from The Triumvirate to Niftski, from an 8:33 to a 7:51 using wall jumps/wall clips, FPGs, and fast 8-4’s.

World 9 is just a castle level similar to World 9-3 from the Lost Levels with a fake Bowser, world A contains an overworld, underground with a warp zone to World B, bridge, and castle levels, world B contains an overworld, underwater, Lakitu athletic, and castle levels with a warp zone to world D, world C has a Lakitu overworld, a Hammer Bro-filled overworld, an athletic level in an underground area, and a castle level with 2 underwater sections. World D has 2 overworld levels, the latter being athletic, the 3rd level a castle athletic level, and the 4th or last level is a castle with an overworld section being the same as World D-2. The B-4 warp zone is the same area as the pipe intermission area. The Hammer Bros charge at the character in Worlds A-D, worlds 5-D has red Piranha Plants, and the fake Bowsers in Worlds A-C are the same in the Lost Levels SNES version.

Also, the warpless run is complicated. There is no "hard mode", as all levels were in hard mode: Worlds 1-3, 1-4, 2-2, 2-3, and 2-4 are their "harder" variants, and worlds 4-3 are world LL1-4 (LL means Lost Levels), world 5-3 is world LL3-3, world 5-4 is LL2-4, world 6-4 is LL4-4, world 7-2 is LL3-2, and world 7-3 is LL2-3. The fire flower is still needed to make the bridge not crumble, but in the end, you have to wait for the timer to tick down to 0 before you move to the next world. Because of that, there wouldn't be a sub-19 or even a sub-20 in warpless 8-4. The 4-2 warp zone is the LL5-2 warp zone, but it can be finished at an equal pace.

A warpless run is a run that involves playing all levels without using a warp zone. A similar paradigm shift from Twin Galaxies to use glitches and the pipe in World 1-1, followed by FPGs and the BBG, was used. The Triumvirate, Saradoc, darbian, and Kosmic were speedrunners of this category, and, of course, Niftski. The current world record is 18:55 by Niftski, from 22:40 by Cam Allen. The main difference is that Mario gets powered up by the giant and is too fiery to kill Bowser with fire to prevent the bridge from crumbling.

How to get a 4:53?[]

There is only 1 way to get a 4:53, and this is: Do FPG in World 1-1, get a 347 in World 1-2, do FPG in World 4-1, do the World’s First Top Clip HappyLee Style in World 4-2, do pl8-1 in World 8-1, do KosmicZ BBG in World 8-2, do 243 FPG in World 8-3 to save a framerule, and then complete World 8-4 6 frames faster, 5 frames off the tool-assisted speedrun. This is the ultimate milestone of Super Mario Bros. speedruns, and this method is sufficient enough to get a 4:53.998.

Other Super Mario Bros. Speedruns[]

Super Mario Bros. Misc. Categories[]

Minus World Ending[]

In the FDS version of Super Mario Bros., the Minus World, also known as World 36, is accessible by going into the 1-2 warp zone when the pipes are not fully loaded. This is because, the 36th tile of the game is the tile for a space, so it looks like “World -1” to the viewers (notice the increased space between “World” and “-1”) Also, if you take the middle pipe, you can get sent to World 5, giving birth to Beat 5-4 and 1 Warp category extensions. The first level is an underwater section of 5-3, with 2 princesses, a misaligned Bowser, a Hammer Bro, and several other enemies you wouldn’t see underwater. The second level is a clone of World 7-3, and the third level is an underground variant of 4-4 filled with Bloopers that can be stomped for 1000 points. After you hit the ax, the world-clear message pops up, and you have beaten the game. In the NES version, it is just an underwater version of World 7-2 that loops infinitely.

Darbian was also the world record holder back then with a 2:35 because he used a mushroom to blow Mario up just like the warpless runs. Then, Andrew, I managed to beat him as regular Mario using the pipe clip used to get a 347 in the original runs. This, and the -2 FFPG and the -3 wall clip, a 2:30 was achieved.

Any% All-Stars[]

The All-Stars version of Super Mario Bros. is a 16-bit counterpart of an 8-bit NES game on an SNES cartridge. In the All-Stars version, the gameplay is quite the same, except for some differences: The BBG couldn’t be executed without softlocking the game, 1-2 pipe clips get 351s instead of 347s, and World 1-1, 1-2, and 4-2 are levels without framerules.

The Triumvirate, darbian, and Kosmic, the returning speedrunners of Super Mario Bros., all speedran the game, but it wasn’t until now that Miniland started searching for swag tricks to push the time down. Even better, in this version, a 4:52 is possible, with newer time saves.

Part 2: The Virtual Realm[]

Introduction to the Virtual Realm[]

What is the Virtual Realm?[]

Minecraft: Escape from the Overworld and the Virtual Realm[]

The Metaverse is divided into 4 quadrants: The Real Quadrant, The Virtual Quadrant, The Imaginary Quadrant, and The False Quadrant. Our Multiverse is located in the Real Quadrant, and the Serververse is located in the Virtual Quadrant. It is theorized that all matter in one quadrant cannot interact with matter in another quadrant but this was disproved when in Minecraft: Escape of the Overworld, where a real-life human (Infinite-bit) touched a Minecraft character (64-bit), without glitching out. Also, it is possible to view pictures from other quadrants using technology, except the opposite quadrant, and sometime in the future, when time travel is possible, it is possible to travel to all 4 quadrants in the Metaverse. Using Stevie’s computer, it is possible to travel from the real quadrant to the virtual quadrant, and when you are in the virtual quadrant, you can learn things from the Fake quadrant.

Virtual Numbers[]

A virtual number is a number with a negative absolute value. This can cause prime polynomials to have up to 6 terms.

History of the Virtual Realm[]

Virtual Realm Time and Location[]

Let’s assume somewhere in the Metaverse’s Server Verse, there is a world with land and water similar to Earth, and all of the people representing a game or website live in a certain country. Let’s assume the retro games are located in Europe, as Europe is the “old country”, the new games/websites are in North America (not Mexico), the futuristic science and technology are in Japan, and all sorts of games/websites are located in other parts of the world. Time goes 72x faster than in the real world, due to Minecraft time. The year 0 on the Gardikan calendar represents the birthdate of Andrew I, one of the triumvirate members, and it corresponds to December 26th, 1990. Whenever 1 year passes forward or back in the real world, 72 years will pass forward or back in the virtual realm. For example, 1970, 20 years before 1990, in the real world, is equivalent to 1440 BCE in the Serververse, as 20 real years is equal to 1440 virtual years. (All times listed after will be virtual years)

History of the Serververse[]

The Serververse existed for billions of years, but they weren’t visible to the people in the real world until 2200 BCE when ARPANET connected Stanford and UCLA in California. 360 years later, the first WAN network was created. Around 1500-1100 BCE, LAN became popular for linking the Real and Virtual Quadrants. The first social media network was created in the Virtual Realm around 800 BCE. In the late 3rd century BCE, internet routers started to link the virtual world to the real world. Tim Berners-Lee created HTML and proposed the Internet around 50 virtual years before Andrew I was born, and 100 virtual years after that, the World Wide Web was created. Through the first virtual millennium, the Internet gained popularity, with Mosaic, the first web browser, released in the virtual year 200, followed by Internet Explorer in 400. However, it wasn’t until the second 1000 virtual years that the Internet gained popularity: YouTube was released in 1080, Minecraft in 1470, and by the virtual year 2000, 4 billion real users had access to the Internet. August 8th, 2022, in virtual time, is May 25th, 2347.

History of Super Mario Bros. in the Virtual Realm[]

First Super Mario Bros. Peoples[]

Super Mario Bros. peoples started as minor tribes, each with its tradition, language, religion, and culture. Using DNA fingerprinting, these tribes’ ancestors dated back to the Nintendo Adam and Eve, who lived more than 10,000 years ago! They might have evolved from other humans who existed eons ago. Those paleolithic virtual humans were nomadic and lived in caves, in virtual Africa. They migrated to Europe during the Nintendo migration, but it wasn’t until 1300 BCE when they entered the Neolithic Era and settled in Europe, which had lots of fertile soil and a mild climate, which was ideal for creating a civilization. The Super Mario Bros. tribes separated from the other Nintendo tribes in the mid-4th century BCE. At that time, Billy Mitchell’s empire, the first virtual European empire, was dawning in southern Europe.

The 32 Super Mario Bros. Tribes[]

By the 600s, the small tribes united to form 32 larger tribes, representing each level of Super Mario Bros. Tribe 8-4 was the biggest tribe, and the tribal chief wanted to be the most powerful than the other chiefs in the land. In 874, Aaron I “The Great” of World 8-4 crowned himself king of 8-4 and renamed the tribe the Kingdom of 8-4. Meanwhile, another kingdom, the Kingdom of Alanis, briefly conquered the Kingdom of 8-4 in 948. 60 years later, World 8-4 got its freedom through the downfall of the Alans, and Scott I became king. Over the next few decades, minor civil wars were fought between the House of Kessler and the House of Seguin to find out who would be the next king after the death of Scott I. The war lasted for 40 years, and the House of Seguin won, and Trevor I became king.

The Gardikan Empire and Super Mario Bros.[]

In the late 1100s, after Trevor III of Seguin died, his heirs were quarreling on who would be the new king of World 8-4, and a new civil war was about to start, until, The Triumvirate killed the entire houses of Seguin and Kessler and then shared the crown of World 8-4. Within 30 years, all 32 tribes of Super Mario Bros. were conquered by the Gardikan kings. Under the power of Andrew I, the 32 tribes were united, so 1 tribal member could speak to another tribal member of a different tribe and share their traditions, as the Gardikan kings allowed the practice of their culture.

30 years later, Andrew II “The Swag” took over the Gardikan Empire and then made the other 2 triumvirate members his fiefs, ruling over his puppet states. The Super Mario Bros. and the Gardikans were living peacefully for centuries until the empire declined, and revolutions happened.

The Gardikan Revolution, The Restoration, and the Glorious Revolution[]

By 1730, lots of protests against the Gardikans were happening, and lots of revolutions were taking place. Lord Saradoc, the leader of the Gardikan Revolution, overthrew King Deko “The Dragon”, because she was a queen, and she couldn’t run the kingdom as well as a king. The monarchy was gone, and the republic was born. People got the rights they wanted.

However, in the middle of the 19th century, the monarchy was restored, but with a constitution that limited the power of the kings due to the president acting like a dictator and taking advantage of the people. His last line of the presidency was, “No. The legend must live.”, representing a tribute to monarchies. The people decided that Brad I of Darbian would be the new king of Super Mario Bros.

In 1930, Kosmic, who always thought peace was the way to solve conflicts, took the throne in the Glorious Revolution. This revolution didn’t have any fighting or weapons and was resolved by a simple chess game. He then created a list of rights granted to everyone living in Super Mario Bros. so everyone could be happy.

Modern Super Mario Bros.[]

The final form of government Super Mario Bros. adopted was a federal democratic government, with 3 branches rather than a complete government. The new constitution was signed in 2070, and Niftski became the president. Right now, the president serves up to 2 4-year terms, and a group of 500 people runs the government as representatives of Congress.

History of the Gardikan Empire[]

The Rise of an Empire[]

Independence and Conquer of Alanis[]

No one knew the trace of the ancestral DNA of the Gardikan people, but we all know how they started: From a tiny puppet state to a huge empire.

During the 900s, Alanis was the dominant empire of northern Europe and covered quite a bit of land. Every person living there had to adapt to the culture of the Alans, and they had to live their life to what their king wanted them to. However, 3 brave people, Andrew I, Marionaire, and adika23560, decided to form a triumvirate to combine their powers. They had enough of the Alan culture, and they started to gain strength in politics.

The first Gardikan wars took place between the Triumvirate and the Super Mario Bros. 3 tribes, around the late 10th virtual century, which resulted in a defeat, but they never gave up. In 1062, the Alan king was shamed in a quick defeat by the Gardikans in the Alano-Gardikan War. Alanis was destroyed forever, and the entire kingdom became Gardikan. The Triumvirate decided that the capital of Alanis would be the capital of their new kingdom.

The Dawn of The First Gardikan Empire[]

After the fall of Alanis, The Triumvirate felt powerful and decided to conquer more lands to turn their little kingdom into a big empire. They targeted the tribes of Super Mario Bros. 1, 2, and 3, as well as Super Mario World, The Legend of Zelda, F-Zero, Tetris, SSBM, Dr. Mario, and Track and Field, which are the weakest tribes and could easily be invaded and conquered. Adding up these territories will make an empire similar in size to Charlemagne’s empire in real life, stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the boundaries of the Former Soviet Union, from Denmark to central Italy, Iberia, and the Balkans. The Rhine and the Danube Rivers will be essential for trade with other empires, as well as a way to access the ocean. They even thought they would have Super Mario Bros. conquered within a decade if things went well, and they proposed a mythical tribe called Contra on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean.

The Gardikan kings were good at ruling their empire, and they had total power in the government: They made the laws, they saw that laws were carried out, and they decided if laws were broken. They lived in a ridiculously huge palace, surrounded by armed guards and a moat filled with Nile crocodiles. Each king had his fiefs, or nobles, who ruled over the puppet states of the empire. An empire is composed of a royal domain, where the kings directly rule, and several puppet states, where the fiefs of the monarchs govern.

One of the most famous Gardikan traditions is the tradition of playing chess. Every king, fief, prince, knight, baron, count, and duke must play chess at a designated time of the day to build up their abilities to plan, just in case the empire gets invaded by any prodigies like the Visigoths and the Vandals did to the Roman Empire. However, the kings had a special juggling talent, and they could shock their servants by juggling their crowns, orbs, swords, and wigs without getting hurt or breaking anything.

In the 1170s, World 8-4 of Super Mario Bros. was easily conquered by the Gardikans due to quarreling on who would be the next king. This caused the motivation to flow through The Triumvirate’s minds on the conquest of the other Super Mario Bros. tribes. By the dawn of the 13th century, all 32 tribes of Super Mario Bros. fell to the Gardikan Empire, and they got united into not a puppet state, but a part of the empire itself.

The 1200s were the earliest years of the Gardikan Golden Age, which started after the conquest of Super Mario Bros., gaining a huge outlet to other countries on other continents. The Super Mario Bros. 2 and Super Mario World tribes didn’t stand a chance against the Gardikan soldiers, and their tribal chiefs and kings instantly stepped down from their thrones to honor The Triumvirate’s nobles as their new ruler.

In 1312, Billy Mitchell gained control of The Werewolf, a set of tribes around the southern limits of the Gardikan Empire. He then planned to conquer the entire empire by playing a chess game to gain control of the Gardikan royal domain. The game was intense, but Andrew II, “The Swag”, scored a close victory after losing his queen in the opening, but he gained it back from a pawn promotion.

After the game, the Gardikan generals were very confident that they could reconquer The Werewolf, and if they did, Billy Mitchell would cede all of his land north of the 40th parallel to the Gardikan Empire. That war was a success, and now the small kingdom has grown into a big empire, followed by the successful conquest of Yo Noid, Marble Madness, and Pro Wrestling, which is currently a puppet stage of the Gardikan Empire.

Life in the Gardikan Empire[]

Before the Gardikans conquered the Super Mario Bros. tribes, each tribal member was living life in ways to respect nature and play it safe, causing everyone to do the same thing over and over again, which their ancestors thought could keep them alive because everything comes with a risk. They usually farm in the spring and summer, growing crops from their seeds every year, and hunt in the cold winter for food and warmth. The parents usually tell stories about nature to their children before bedtime, and the children always liked to play outside, but they weren’t allowed to go beyond the limits of their town due to the dangers of the outside world.

However, after the Triumvirate conquered the land, the tribes were forced to adapt to the Gardikan imperial way of life, which involved taking risks, the one thing the people thought would cause death or serious injury. However, the Gardikans took lots of risks to conquer their empire, which caused the tribes to assimilate with them.

The Gardikan Empire used a feudal system to determine the social pyramid of society and had a variety of levels based on occupation: The Gardikan kings had the most rights and voice in government, followed by their fiefs, princes, dukes, counts, barons, and other major royal members, the knights had some power, but not as much as the royals, and the commoners had few rights.

The commoners were categorized by their career to determine their social level: The priests and bishops were on top of the commoners’ level, followed by the artisans, or craftsmen, the merchants, and, of course, the farmers, or peasants, who were forced to grow the crops and sell them to make money and provide food for other people to eat.

Women weren’t given the right to participate in government activities or get any jobs that men usually worked, such as priests, artisans, or merchants. Their responsibilities are simply to take care of the house and do the chores, as well as to raise children and homeschool them if the family can’t afford formal education.

A Gardikan town usually consists of a church, where everyone comes every Sunday morning to practice their religion, a general store where people can buy food, household tools, and other needs and wants, a school for the kids to receive their education, a manor where the rich people live, usually consists of a farm and a big house, and the neighborhoods, where the majority of the people live. There is also a castle where the fief of the Gardikan kings live and is usually located on the edge of town facing the Gardikan royal domain, and several guard towers designed to prevent any invasion of the towns.

Gardikan Culture[]

The Gardikan kings had a clear goal in their minds: To unite everyone and give them better lives while preserving their tribal heritage. To do that, they must create an imperial culture, that everyone must follow to know each other.

The Gardikan pound was used as currency for the entire empire. 1 sovereign, the base unit, was equivalent to the worth of 1 troy ounce of pure gold, minted into a coin. Many coins worth less were minted out of gold alloys, silver, and bronze, with the almost worthless coins made of copper. Each pound was divided into 20 shillings, which were divided into 12 pence, meaning there were 240 pence in a pound. The penny, worth 1 pence, was first minted out of pure copper, however, due to inflation, they are now minted with 90% zinc and 10% copper. The most common coins used were the sovereign, the half-sovereign, the quarter sovereign, the double shilling, the dime, the tenpence, the half shilling, the five pence, the fourpence, the threepence, the twopence, the penny, the halfpenny, and the farthing, or quarter penny. Other coins exist, but they are not commonly used. Banknotes, a.k.a. dollar bills were used as gold and silver standards, which means that a person could be paid with them, but they couldn’t pay until they went to a bank and exchanged their bills with gold and silver. Bills up to 100 pounds were printed, and, due to inflation, you don’t have to exchange your bills for coins in the present day.

The Gardikan king also created a standard set of weights and measures as well: The standard unit of length is the pixel, which is around 21 ⁄ 4 inches, or 5.5 cm. There are 16 pixels in a block, which is roughly equivalent to 1 US yard, there are 16 blocks in a chunk, and there are 256 chunks in a byte, the unit of measurement of long distances which is longer than 2 miles.

The standard unit of mass/weight is the ‘shroom, which is roughly the weight of a Mario mushroom, or 1.5 standard ounces. There are 1500 ‘shrooms in a royal, determined by the weight of King Andrew I, the founder of the Gardikan Empire, equivalent to 60 kg, or 132 lb. There are 800 royals in a pipe, the mass of the smallest pipe in Super Mario Bros. consists of a cylinder of steel with a radius of 2m and a height of 2m, making a volume of 6.28 cubic meters. Steel’s density is around 7.85 grams per cubic centimeter, meaning it has a mass of 50 tonnes or 111,000 pounds. This unit is not commonly used unless used in measuring the weight of houses and ships.

The standard unit of time is the frame, which is 1/60 of a second, followed by the tick which is 24 frames long, and there are 400 ticks in a timeframe, 160 seconds in real life, which is the time it takes for the timer to count down from 400 to 0. Then, there are 45 timeframes in a Gardikan hour, the time it takes for all of the timers in every world in Super Mario Bros. to count down and Mario losing all lives to the game over screen, and it catches up with the time measurements on Earth: 12 hours in a day, 7 days in a week, 30 days in a calendar month, 12 months in a year, 365 days in a common year, and 10 years in a decade.

The standard unit of temperature is the Minecraft temperature: 0.15 degrees is freezing, and 0.95 degrees is body temperature. 0.8 Minecraft degrees is equivalent to 37 degrees Celsius, or 66.6 degrees Fahrenheit. The standard unit of volume is the 1-up, which is the amount of space that the blood of Regular Mario, poured into a container, takes up, which is around 1 pint. 8 1-ups is equal to an S-1-up, and the amount of space Super Mario’s blood takes up is approximately equivalent to 1 gallon.

The High Gardikan Golden Age[]

In 1453, Andrew IV made an expedition by traveling the Silk Road in search of other countries to trade with. On his way, he was amazed by a certain event the Japanese emperor was hosting at his palace, and he decided to attend so he could meet the emperor. The event was a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the production of anime TV shows, and lots of people decided to attend. This event was hosted for 15 days, and The Triumvirate seized this opportunity to meet with the Japanese emperor themselves, and they decided to sign a treaty to own the entire country of Japan.

Throughout the next century, the Gardikan soldiers marched on to conquer more land such as the tribes of Kirby, The Legend of Zelda, F-Zero, and Tetris but failed. They did, however, obtain a strip of land in Tetris directly northeast of the empire, which acted like a “buffer zone” between the empire and the outer tribes, as well as gain control of the Russian Attack, Ghoul School, and Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde tribes.

The Gardikan Revolution[]

Introduction[]

In the real world, several revolutions happened. There was the American Revolution for the USA to become independent from Britain, the French Revolution from the lower estates against the taxation of the king, and the Russian Revolution, made by the Bolsheviks, to make Russia strong again by getting rid of the monarch, but, instead, made it a communist state. Not to mention the English Civil War for religion and parliamentary rights, but that revolution didn’t stay successful for long.

Each of these revolutions had a clear goal in mind: To rebel against the king to proclaim rights to everyone living in that specific country. To do this, the king must either be executed or overthrown, or the colonized country must declare its independence. Usually, these revolutions normally feature a revolutionist side (Blue Faction) and an anti-revolutionist side (Red Faction) fighting against each other in a revolutionary war.

To avoid revolutions, the king or president must give out rights to the people when they need them, and solve all of the world's problems while keeping their power. This is the reason why kings have a hard time doing their jobs because their biggest weaknesses are all the same: They must do what’s right. This weakness caused several kings, such as King George III, King Charles I, King Louis XVI, and Tsar Nicholas II to meet a tragic moment in their lifetimes, possibly the last moment.

The Causes of the Revolution[]

In the mid-1600s, after Andrew VIII died, the next Gardikan kings were very weak in ruling their empire and they loved using their absolute power to the maximum. The kings taxed minorities such as Super Mario Bros., Marble Madness, Pro Wrestling, Ghoul School, and Super Mario World and discriminated against them against the other ethnicities including Gardikans, Alans, Excitebike, and other triumvirate kingdom ethnicities, and they made laws that people didn’t want. This caused the minorities to start demanding equal rights, but the kings didn’t want to listen, because they knew God chose them to be kings, and everyone would eventually get used to it, but the people didn’t.

Ever since Gardika was born, it was always governed by an absolute monarch. In other words, the kings have absolute power. This means each king was chosen by God to rule the country, and they had the right to break the rules because they were made to be above the law. If anyone tries to interfere with their actions, he would face legal consequences. Remember the infamous line of an absolute monarch: “Disobey me and baby, it’s off with your head.” This means you should never mess with a king with divine right, and you must cope with his actions.

Using this advantage, the Gardikan kings decided to use their power to abuse the people, especially the minorities, and take their rights away. Everyone wanted equal rights, so they had to get rid of the monarchy or find a way to limit the power of the ruler. However, overthrowing a king is hard, and there is usually lots of blood involved, so the former option was ruled out.

One time, Kosmic planned to write a constitution limiting the power of the king, and he would be elected as the first Gardikan prime minister who gets most of the king’s power, and there would be elected judges and congressmen as well, and the king would only be treated as a head-of-state rather than an actual absolute monarch. However, the king rejected that option, as he was unwilling to give his power away to anyone else, as he believed in the divine right of kings.

Andrew XII and Andrew XIII[]

In the year 1692, Andrew XII became king of Gardika. Also known as the “Gardikan Sun King”, he ascended the throne at age 5. His first years of royalty weren't easy, as he had to be watched by his knights and servants, and he had difficulty practicing law and doing his duty to rule the empire. One time, he had to flee from the Gardikan royal domain to Super Mario Bros., a puppet state, to avoid a needless war with Billy Mitchell. However, after hitting his edge of 17, his reign became easier.

Throughout his life, Andrew XII focused on making his puppet states stronger and more loyal, so he could be able to resist the revolution going on in Super Mario Bros. by fighting 4 wars. His first war was a war against Super Mario Bros. The Lost Levels, where he scored a quick victory, gaining several duchies and principalities to the northwest, and his second war was against the southern states of Super Mario Bros., and, like the first one, was a win for the Gardikans, but it caused several soldiers to die and several more wounded. There was also a planned third civil war for religion, but it was canceled due to the amount of bloodshed and damage before the first shot was fired.

Andrew XII’s last war was the War for the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The last king of that little kingdom died with no heir, but the people didn’t want a Gardikan king ruling over them, so they drove Marionaire out. However, his knights and soldiers decided to fight back, turning words into blows, a skirmish into a big war. The Gardikans met defeat after defeat but managed to score a victory surprisingly due to an epic blunder. After this war, Andrew XII lived for 40 more years, and he died from complications in 1778. He was 91 years old. After his death, his 25-year-old grandson, Andrew XIII, rose as the new king of Gardika, and he would live with a great legacy…

The Revolution Starts…[]

In 1776, Lord Saradoc was born. A proud revolutionist, he demanded equal rights for everyone, no matter their race, religion, gender, ethnicity, social status, and identity. Right at the age of 3, he started studying politics and government, as well as law and human rights. At the age of 10, he enrolled himself in governor’s school to focus his career in politics and graduated at the top of his class 3 years later. After that, he attended law school and started a career as a politician in his town before joining the military in 1797. 4 years later, Saradoc planned his first invasion of the Gardikan royal domain. The revolutionaries were turned back due to a severe thunderstorm and flood which backed up the only road to the castle. However, they never gave up, and in 1810, the revolutionaries made it to the Gardikan royal domain, but Andrew XIII called his militia to drive the invaders out of his territory.

8 years later, a third invasion occurred, and this happened: The snow was melting, the flowers were blooming, and the revolutionaries started marching. The weather was mostly sunny, with a few rainstorms and fog now and then, and the temperatures were mild. The roads were smooth, the stars were bright, and the animals didn’t mind. Whenever a hot day comes, cool winds refresh the soldiers. The tents were cleaned, and the food was in 100% perfect condition. The weapons were loaded, the horses were fed, and the emergency supplies were packed. The revolutionists were in perfect health, and once they reached the Gardikan royal domain, they camped in the woods a few miles away from the border to regain their energy for storming the castle.

The next day, the knights were on their lunch break, and the drawbridge guards were playing poker in the lounge of the castle to refresh their minds as the revolutionists stormed into the castle. They captured the royal staff and the castle guards and, eventually, achieved what they wanted: They seized King Andrew XIII during his bath.

Lord Saradoc put Andrew XIII, Marionaire, and adika23560 on trial for being a tyrant, treason, and plotting against the security of the country before sending all 3 rulers to get imprisoned in the dungeons of their castle before the date of the trial. Several weeks later, the king pleaded not guilty, and the witnesses told the judges about the king’s abuse of power, they even told them loud and clear that the king was a huge disgrace to his crown, his throne, and his kingdom, and needs to be legally sentenced for his actions. Then, the verdict came, and the judges declared the king guilty of the charges being tried, and the 3 kings were sentenced to death by fireballs being thrown Mario-style by the jury. Each king was put in separate prison cells until the date of execution.

The Chess Game of the Century[]

After Marionaire and adika23560 were executed, the anti-revolutionary people decided to counterattack the revolutionists, and they threatened to drop the charges on Andrew XIII or Lord Saradoc would get himself sentenced to death. Another civil war was starting to erupt until Kosmic, the same guy who decided to create a constitution limiting the king’s power, called a ceasefire and settled this dispute with a chess game, as the Gardikan kings loved chess, and that game could make him die happy and settle the revolution, killing 2 birds with 1 stone.

Then, the chess game was planned. King Andrew XIII will play against a grandmaster who hasn't lost a game and has beaten 3 other professionals who gave up because of him to boost the probability of the revolution being a success. If the king wins, the revolutionaries will admit defeat and will not bother the king for 100 years. If the grandmaster wins, the king will get his execution, and the Gardikan puppet states will become independent, causing all land belonging to the Gardikan Empire to be stripped away, except for the royal domain. A new constitution will be written, and Super Mario Bros. will become a republic with Lord Saradoc as president serving 4-year terms, and every single government employee will be elected by the people.

That day happened. Exactly at noon on Monday, May 16th, 1819, King Andrew XIII was called to a hotel to play against the chess grandmaster, and the entire army of revolutionists was watching the game. The opening started as normal, but the king made some blunders in the middlegame, and it looks like all hope has been lost…

News Reporter: History is being made before your eyes! If Schultz wins, he will make the revolutionists take over Gardika. And that would be the end of the old champion who never lost a chess game or war in his reign. He’s a living legend to his crown, but now his defense is open, and Schultz can checkmate in just a few moves.

[Andrew XIII makes his move]

News Reporter: The legend makes a move and puts his king under attack. Did he just give up like that? Schultz can beat him right now!

Grandmaster: Really? I want to take a break. Let’s finish the game tomorrow. I’ll let the Gardikan king hold on to his crown for 1 more night. Tomorrow, it’s off with your head.

Saradoc: Guards, take him away.

The chess game and execution were delayed until the next day at noon, and Andrew XIII was escorted back to his prison cell to avoid escaping execution. Then, the 24-hour timer started ticking. The king had permission to walk around his castle once again to admire the beauty of being a king for 4 hours, and he had 1 more hour sitting on his throne and taking a bath. Normally, the Gardikan kings spend no more than 30 minutes bathing, but since Andrew XIII was going to die, he broke the record by spending 45 minutes in the castle’s big bathtub. The evening came, and the king had his last dinner with his servants and also had his last evening walk to see the sunset for the final time. As the moon rose and the stars flickered on, Andrew XIII said goodbye to his relatives and did his final practice of law before going to bed. That night, he slept better than he ever had. Meanwhile…

News Reporter: This is unbelievable! Everyone realizes that the legend doesn’t stand a chance… Andrew XIII, how do you rate your opponent’s play today?

Andrew XIII: Mr. Schultz is a pretty good player.

News Reporter: Do you think you still have a chance in this game?

Andrew XIII: I have a couple of tricks up my sleeve.

News Reporter: Mr. Schultz, why did you decide to take a pause? A lot of people say you’ve got it in the bag.

Grandmaster: Oh, you know, as they say, anticipation is half the fun. I’ve been enjoying the triumph. And I’ll extend it for as long as possible.

News Reporter: Do you realize you’ll be a big star after you’ve beaten the living legend? Not only could you beat a king, but also you would give us equal rights and save us from absolute rule by corrupt kings! And everyone would like to thank you for turning the tide of the revolu…

Grandmaster: Buddy, I am a real legend already, I am only 20, there are like 3 grandmasters that left chess crying in heaven as I proved them to be nothing, causing them to get killed by Saradoc’s army! And I’ll prove you to be nothing as well when you go to heaven!

Narrator: Those 3 grandmasters were the Count of World 8-4, the Duke of World 8, and the Sovereign Prince of Super Mario Bros. Now, he is the King of Gardika.

News Reporter: Your Majesty, does the old school have anything to say? How will you take your first and last career defeat?

Andrew XIII: Oh, that’s a good one. It’s natural. We need to make some room for the new people. Let the beginners win sometimes.

News Reporter: Andrew XIII, there’s a rumor in this community that you’ll retire after this championship. Is it true? If a legend is going to retire after the championship, we’ll need to know about it! Schultz, how will we celebrate your victory?

Grandmaster: At last, I was waiting for this one! After Andrew XIII was executed, his castle was converted into a museum for the public to take tours. I have a ridiculously huge mansion, and all of you would be invited. It’s going to be a huge event.

Wife: Honey, why don’t we go into the bar?

Grandmaster: Not now.

Wife: OK, how about we order room service?

Grandmaster: Not now.

Wife: Come on, I want to celebrate your victory with you.

Grandmaster: I SAID NOT NOW!

Wife: But you’ve already beaten the old king! Why don’t you want to relax?

Grandmaster: There’s something wrong. It can’t be simple.

Wife: I’m sorry darling. Maybe I can cheer you up.

Grandmaster: Get out!

[The wife leaves the hotel room heartbroken, and the grandmaster slams the door]

[At an interview]

Interviewer: Wow, I am so happy to have a chance to interview you as the first one! So, you were destroying the Gardikan king, the world’s chess legend. I’m surprised you can get into that shape.

Grandmaster: Why so?

Interviewer: Because you were absent from the faction fighting grounds for years…

Grandmaster: Do you want to bring that up?

Interviewer: I’m sorry that makes you uncomfortable, but we all remember that incident you had at the nightclub.

Grandmaster: OK, you only have 10 minutes. Why waste your time talking about this? Let’s make it quick.

Interviewer: People say there was a guy from Earth selling some kind…

Grandmaster: I’m sorry, is this even about chess or politics? I thought you would ask questions about the game or the king’s execution.

Interviewer: How did you get away with that? Did your father help you get out?

Grandmaster: OK, last chance for you buddy.

Interviewer: I’m sorry, but our readers are very interested in how people deal with those kinds of addictions…

Grandmaster: I’m out.

Interviewer: You didn’t want to know how the king gave up to you like that?

Grandmaster: What?

Interviewer: Please, sit down.

Grandmaster: Speak.

Interviewer: Please.

Grandmaster: What did you say about the old king?

Interviewer: But you owe me the inclusive interview after the game.

Grandmaster: OK, fine.

Interviewer: So, Andrew XIII started going out of town lately, and one day, I decided to follow him.

Grandmaster: And?

Interviewer: It was a private clinic. I wasn’t given access to the medical files, but his doctor was very talkative… End-of-life. Windows XP will have its end-of-life on April 8th, 2014, that time based on the Earthling calendar, 2 years 9 months 6 days in the virtual world. On Earth, Andrew I will throw away his computer and take a 2-year break from speedrunning Super Mario Bros., and his triumvirate friends are no longer uploading videos to YouTube. In the virtual world, his doctor even restricted him from attending the championship. The old king is barely hanging on.

Grandmaster: Jesus…

Interviewer: Yeah, see you after the game!

The next day, it dawned sunny and bright. Andrew XIII woke up at 7:00 AM, with only 5 hours until the timer hit zero and the sand ran in the hourglass. He was given 1 hour to do his usual morning routine and another hour to have his last breakfast. After the plates were cleared, Andrew XIII’s relatives hugged him dearly and wished him good luck in heaven as the minutes slowly ticked by into the sands of time. When the clock struck ten, Andrew XIII went on a carriage ride to his chess game, waiting for the final results. By the time he got there, the carriage was empty…

News Reporter: The revolutionaries and Schultz are just impatient. But Andrew XIII is late. The legend doesn’t want to part with the title. But if Andrew XIII doesn’t show up by 1:00 PM, it would be a technical defeat, and he would be executed at his castle. Then Lord Saradoc will become president of the new-independent Super Mario Bros. giving everyone equal rights and a voice in the government.

Interviewer: Hey, everyone, get the front page ready! The legend loses to end-of-life but doesn’t lose to a prodigious grandmaster.

Grandmaster: Whoa, whoa, whoa, what’s the address of his castle?

Interviewer: Do you want to humiliate him right there in the dungeon?

Grandmaster: Give me the address!

Interviewer, OK, OK, OK, OK.

[The grandmaster leaves the hotel]

Interviewer: Wow, it’s going to be sensational!

[The grandmaster drives his Lamborghini to the Gardikan palace]

Grandmaster: Hey, everyone, I ran away from the championship, but I have unfinished business. So I came to King Andrew XIII to finish the game.

Andrew XIII: Guess I can’t avoid it, can I?

Grandmaster: It’s your move.

[Andrew XIII makes his move]

Andrew XIII: You know, chess, politics, and royalty were my life. My first memory was of my grandfather, The Sun King, playing chess on his throne. At that time, I was only the Duke of Alanis. I wasn’t crowned until age 25, after the death of my father and grandfather. I guess these three would be my final memories too. It’s your move, young man.

Now, this would be the final move that changed everything: Whether Gardika would meet its fate or continue to thrive, whether Super Mario Bros. would achieve its independence, government, and human rights, or would stay for a little longer with an absolute rule, governed by a king who was crowned by inheritance, and everyone would have to obey the king and follow his laws and practice Gardikan culture, that was the move, and guess what was the result?

[The chess grandmaster reached for his KING and decided where to move, and he placed his king DOWN, guess who was the winner: The grandmaster, or King Andrew XIII of Gardika]

These words were important, as they changed the face of Gardika:

Grandmaster: No. The legend must live.

[The revolutionists stand in shock, all gasping]

Revolutionist 1: WHAT?

Revolutionist 2: Did he just give up?

Revolutionist 3: NO WAY!

Revolutionist 4: MON DIEU!

Lord Saradoc: Looks like our plan failed, and we are not going to execute King Andrew XIII. It was a fair fight. We just couldn’t win.

Interviewer: So, why did you give up to Andrew XIII, you could have beaten him in one move. So you really couldn’t win a 66-year-old king in a dungeon?

Lord Saradoc: For the record, Andrew XIII of Gardika was the greatest king and chess player of all time. And he remained undefeated until the very end.

And now, the Gardikan Revolution was officially over, but since Lord Saradoc lost the bet that the grandmaster would win, he saved King Andrew XIII from execution due to Windows XP’s end-of-life, so the king would be imprisoned in his dungeon until Windows XP reaches its end-of-life. And he, indeed, died on the very day Windows XP came to an end. He did, however, have a son before the revolution, thought to be Andrew XIV but it turned out to be King Deko “The Dragon”.

The Second Gardikan Revolution[]

After Andrew XIII died, King Deko “The Dragon” became king. However, 12 years later, the king was revealed to be a QUEEN. Gardika never had a queen in its history, and the people knew a woman couldn’t run a kingdom as well as a man, so, even the anti-revolutionaries joined the revolution side. Lord Saradoc created a new currency that was decimalized, a new counting system, and a new set of weights and measures for the second revolution. This time, the second revolution was easy, and the queen was executed due to no disputes, resulting in no chess game being played.

After the execution of Queen Dekkiedot, her nephew, Andrew XIV, became the new king. Instead of stripping Gardikan land, due to the words, “No. The legend must live.”, they just declared Super Mario Bros. independent, resulting in an inter-imperial period. Without Marionaire or adika23560 as a company, Andrew XIV had to rule his entire empire by himself, causing it to weaken.

The Second Gardikan Empire[]

The inter-imperial period lasted for 53 years until Andrew XV decided to reclaim the lost lands from the revolution. He tried to reclaim Super Mario Bros. but failed. Therefore, he decided to conquer minor tribal kingdoms to make up for the lost land. In the upcoming years, Super Castlevania IV, Rad Racer, Kung Fu, Donkey Kong, Pac-Man, 10-yard fight, Track and Field, and Pole Position got conquered, with the 10-yard fight still being a Gardikan puppet state. Right now, the second inter-imperial stage is currently happening. Who knows when the Third Gardikan Empire will come? The 3rd Gardikan Empire will come soon, and then Andrew I will upload more videos, and possibly reunite with his former triumvirate members to get his desired 4:55. The archived videos will also be re-uploaded. He will focus on the Lost Levels until he gets terminated, and that is when he will either stop speedrunning or creating content in his 2nd channel, possibly relating to SSBM.