User:TurkeyCookTime/Version-exclusive ABC strategies

This page details any differences between versions of Super Mario 64 that are relevant for the A Button Challenge.

Currently Used

Spawning Displacement

This glitch is exclusive to the N64 JP 1.0 version of the game. It allows moving platforms to affect Mario for one extra frame when he exits a stage. It is possible to collect three stars in Tick Tock Clock while on a spinner, allowing it to move Mario for that extra frame. This is enough to allow Mario to land on top of the clock instead of on the floor below, allowing him to re-enter the stage without needing an additional A press. This saves three A presses over most versions of the game, making N64 JP 1.0 the optimal version for a 120 Star run.

Platform Drift

This glitch is exclusive to the Wii VC versions of the game. Those versions have a bug where numbers round to zero instead of to the nearest float value. This allows the oscillating platforms in Bowser in the Fire Sea to slowly rise, allowing Mario to bypass the pole without needing an A press. This saves one A press over most versions of the game, although it is not optimal for 120 Star as the JP 1.0 version saves three. However, due to Bowser in the Fire Sea being a required course, this does make Wii VC versions optimal for a 70 Star run, and the only versions where the entire game is beatable in 0 A presses.

TTC Glitchy Ledge Grab

This strategy is possible on every version of the game except for Wii VC. Due to the same round-to-zero bug, certain walls in TTC are aligned properly. In most versions, the wall just behind the Star 1 cage has two slightly misaligned triangles, allowing for a glitchy ledge grab. However, on Wii VC, those two walls are flush, meaning it is impossible to get enough height with a squish cancel ground pound chain to reach the ledge. This means that Wii VC versions require four more A presses in TTC to reach the three stars past the pole.

Obsolete

Coin Counter Overflow

This strategy is exclusive to the N64 JP 1.0 version of the game. Due to a bug with the coin counter, it is possible to indefinitely increase the coin count, given that an infinite coin glitch exists. After collecting enough coins, the coin counter wraps around and becomes negative, and this allows for spawning multiple 100 Coin stars by reaching a coin count of 100 multiple times. This strategy was proposed for collecting To the Top of the Fortress 0xA, where the Breaking/Disappearing Cork Box glitch could be used to collect infinite coins, then two Star Dance Clips would be used to get on top of the bullet bill launcher and the tower itself. However, due to being extremely time-consuming, it was not TASed, and a different strategy was later found that was possible on all versions of the game. This strategy was finally TASed for the first time in 2026, 11 years after the original idea was proposed, and took 10 days, which would have made it the longest strategy ever used in the ABC for a single star if it was TASed originally.

Camera in Parallel Universe

This strategy is possible on all Wii VC, Wii U VC, 3D All-Stars, and NSO versions of the game. On the N64 and iQue, allowing the camera to enter a Parallel Universe will cause the game to crash, but on all other versions it does not. The original strategy for entering the Secret Aquarium 0xA required entering PUs in the castle interior, which meant that the camera also had to enter a PU as it is impossible to lock the camera in the castle interior. This was obsoleted after a strategy was discovered that did not require PU speed.

Bully Death Cancel

This strategy is possible on all non-Shindou versions of the game. By hitting a Bully on the same frame it falls into the lava, it enters a glitched state where it does not die and constantly oscillates between two separate positions. This makes Bully Battery possible, which was used to collect Elevator Tour in the Volcano by building up enough speed to enter parallel universes. This was obsoleted when it was discovered that bully battery was also possible by getting the bully stuck in the crushing wall of the volcano, both massively reducing the required time for the star and making it possible on all versions.

The current strategies being used for Bowser in the Fire Sea 0xA also require the bully death cancel, so this strategy will very likely become relevant again in the future.

Table

Version	Spawning Displacement	Platform Drift	TTC Glitchy Ledge Grab	Coin Counter Overflow	Camera in PU	Bully Death Cancel
N64 JP 1.0	✅	❌	✅	✅	❌	✅
N64 US	❌	❌	✅	❌	❌	✅
N64 PAL	❌	❌	✅	❌	❌	✅
N64 JP 1.3	❌	❌	✅	❌	❌	❌
iQue	❌	❌	✅	❌	❌	❌
Wii VC JP	❌	✅	❌	❌	✅	❌
Wii VC US	❌	✅	❌	❌	✅	✅
Wii VC PAL	❌	✅	❌	❌	✅	✅
Wii U VC JP	❌	❌	✅	❌	✅	❌
Wii U VC US	❌	❌	✅	❌	✅	✅
Wii U VC PAL	❌	❌	✅	❌	✅	✅
3D All-Stars	❌	❌	✅	❌	✅	❌
NSO JP	❌	❌	✅	❌	✅	❌
NSO US	❌	❌	✅	❌	✅	✅
NSO PAL	❌	❌	✅	❌	✅	✅