Super Mario 64 speedrunner ‘Kanno’ is once again the zero star world record holder after over 20,000 attempts at reclaiming the top spot.
For speedrunners, there are few games more coveted and prestigious than Super Mario 64 and its four main categories: 120 stars, 70 stars, 16 stars, 1 star and 0 stars. The latter can be incredibly complicated, but oh so worth it.
While many may be wondering how it’s possible to beat Super Mario 64 with zero stars, it was discovered awhile ago that by jumping at just the right angle with complex controller inputs, it’s possible for Mario to access areas in the game that otherwise wouldn’t be available.
This includes doors players need to access to fight Bowser bosses, obtain keys and move on in the game. It can all be very complicated, with some techniques more difficult to pull off, which is why the game has the different categories.
For Japanese speedrunner Kanno, January 26 was the day he finally reclaimed his throne as the world’s top zero star runner.
The record prior to Kanno’s run was Dowsky, who finished the N64 title in just 6m 32s 150ms.
In order to beat it, Kanno tried a whopping 20,471 times until finally, he got it. Sitting shirtless on the floor, the streamer was on pace to reach his goal as he sent Bowser flying into the remaining bomb in the corner of the battle arena.
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At first he was unsure he got it, sighing “maybe not the world record, sorry” to his viewers. However, once he scored the finishing blow and the big star appeared, the streamer’s eyes lit up with glee.
“Yo, what?!” he cried, speechless with what he accomplished. “World record! Thank you so much!”
Despite now holding the record with an incredible 6m 31s 520ms, the streamer is promising to lower the record even further.
“Next will [be] sub 6:30!” he said in his video submission to Speedrun.com.
It’s always amazing to see a streamer’s hard work pay off, especially when so many hours and attempts go into reaching a goal. It’s definitely a record to watch from beginning to end given how difficult it is to obtain.