Am I the only person in the world who didn’t know Mario could hold two objects at once in Super Mario World? Because he can, and I had no idea.
Browsing Twitter on my lunch break today, I came across a post from a video game history account called VideoGameArt&Tidbits with a scan from an old Super Mario World guide called Mario Mania from 1991:
I feel I responded appropriately.
So, I did a quick bit of digging to see if it was true. I was pleased to see that not only was it true, but I wasn’t alone in my surprise. It appears people have been routinely finding out about this quiet little piece of Super Mario World for several years now. It goes around the traps periodically, picking up a new wave of surprised players on each round.
To explain it: You can effectively stack items on top of each other and then pick them up. Pick up an item and move it over to the second item you’d like to hold. Drop the item you’re holding directly on top of the second item so that they occupy the same space. You can then push X or Y+Down in the controller to stack them on top of one another. Press X or Y again, and Mario will pick them both up.
The guide that VGArt&Tidbits has shared states that this move is really only useful when Mario crosses the goalposts at the level’s end. This is true, it is a good way to rack up some extra points as you exit the level. However, I can also imagine speedrunners using this trick to propel themselves into glitches and ever-faster completion times.
Anyway, did you know about this? Let me know in the comments. I’m pinning my lack of knowledge on this one entirely on growing up a Mega Drive kid.
Image: Nintendo
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