Talk:Super Mario All-Stars

Debug Mode
I seem to remember there still being a debug mode in this. I know there's the one that still exists for SMB3, especially on the earlier copies, but I seem to remember coming across a code that activated it for all the games. I specifically remember there being an option or two for SMB2, but I can't remember. I don't recall what options there were for SMB1 and The Lost Levels though. -- Rick 20:11, 6 May 2010 (EDT)

IIRC, there is a global debug flag in SRAM (yes, the battery-backed RAM on the cart) that enables it for all the games. I'll have to find it again. It did let you do some neat stuff in a couple of the games, like freely move around the screen in SMB1/LL. --BMF54123 01:43, 7 May 2010 (EDT)

I thought it was there. I remember accessing it with a Game Genie code somehow, but I lost the code. -- Rick 01:58, 7 May 2010 (EDT)

Done and done. I could've sworn there was another debugging flag that activated a few other things, but I'm probably thinking of some other game. :\

Important discovery: the "old-school" debug mode for SMB3 still works, and is activated by writing to --an uninitialized part of the stack. The original NES game sets this to when you start the game, but SMAS does not do this! Theoretically, given the unpredictable state of RAM when the console is powered on, one could get lucky and wind up with a value of at that address, thus enabling debug mode. Could it be that early cartridge revisions are not to blame, but rather individual SNES units? :o --BMF54123 04:41, 7 May 2010 (EDT)
 * Doesn't the SNES clear RAM to when powered on, or is that just something dumb emulators do? HyperHacker 04:58, 7 May 2010 (EDT)
 * I believe that's just a "universal" value that emulator authors settled on because it worked with the most games. The SNES does not do anything to RAM at startup; that's what initialization routines in games are for. --BMF54123 05:10, 7 May 2010 (EDT)
 * Reading that again, there is a flag in SRAM that activates debug mode... were cartridges' SRAMs initialized coming off the assembly line? As far as I know, they weren't (hence checksums), so these "early revisions" could simply have gotten lucky with that flag. For that matter, if they were initialized, then probably the only difference between the early and later revisions is their initial SRAM content (no ROM differences at all). HyperHacker 00:53, 22 June 2010 (EDT)
 * It doesn't matter, because the SRAM flag is always set to 00 in the game's init code. Besides, this flag has nothing to do with the original SMB3 debug mode, which I'm pretty sure everyone with an "early revision" was specifically referring to (press Select to change suits). None of them ever mentioned seeing weird features in any of the other games. --BMF54123 01:02, 22 June 2010 (EDT)
 * Although this is a very old topic, I was wondering if the SRAM thing has been confirmed for SMB3. I used to have a copy of Super Mario All-Star that occasionally would allow me to cycle through the power ups by pressing select. This did not work all the time I have only had it happen 2-3 times ever, but I have not seen much on why it happened. I have heard early releases had debug accessible, but I was never able to do it at will as some claimed was possible. Ledah 01:08, 6 February 2013 (EST)
 * There is no "SRAM thing" for SMB3, and it has nothing to do with how old your cartridge is. The game (and only this game) reads its debug flag from the stack area of work RAM, which is left uninitialized by the game. If this area happens to contain $80 after the console is powered on, debug features will be activated. This bug is present in all versions of SMAS, and is entirely dependent on your SNES (some consoles are more prone to setting this value than others). --BMF54123 13:40, 6 February 2013 (EST)
 * Thank you for the answer. I apologize for my ignorance on the "SRAM thing" I thought from the previous posts it had something to do with SRAM. I am a layman so my basic understanding is that there is a chance when you power on your console that you will have access to the debug in SMB3, and that some consoles are more likely than others. If I have a different SNES than the one it used to happen on could I theoretically keep powering it on and off to reproduce the effect? Would this be possible on the Wii version of the game? Also sorry if I am posting this in the wrong area. Ledah 14:09, 6 February 2013 (EST)
 * I wouldn't bother trying to force it to happen on a real SNES; you'll probably wear out the power switch before you see any results. Just use a Game Genie. :P
 * It's not possible to activate debug mode in the Wii version because it is emulated, and (most) emulators initialize the emulated RAM to a predefined value. You could probably still activate it with some kind of cheating tool, though, if you knew what to look for. --BMF54123 14:27, 6 February 2013 (EST)

Misc Gfx
Incoming wall of moonspeak! These were all taken from the US ROM, since I figured any leftover Japanese in there was either unused, or didn't need to be overwritten (i.e. an English font already existed). That's how I found the unused text in SMB3, after all. :)

updated: --Tauwasser 09:22, 6 September 2010 (EDT) original: --BMF54123 05:25, 31 May 2010 (EDT)

After looking through the Japanese game, here's what I found.
 * The characters in the Japanese3a and Japanese4 pictures are used for the font of Super Mario Bros. 3. Japanese 3a is used for the Princess Peach letters.
 * The first three words of Japanese5 are used for the pause menu screen. However, またもうやめ is not used at all! So that's something.

Everything else that seems unused is. I'm pretty sure the ---BG--- is used as a marker too. --GoldS 11:31, 6 September 2010 (EDT)

Misc. Button Combos
There are more button combinations. I recall some involving the D-pad (maybe with select and/or on controller 2) that would set the timer to various values in at least SMB1. HyperHacker 00:53, 22 June 2010 (EDT)

Anti-piracy
There are still more anti-piracy messages, and a few methods on how to access them. All you need is a PAR MK3 to access them the easy way. Nensondubois 21:44, 22 June 2010 (EDT)

More? Damn, there must be a lot. You also have to take into consideration the differing messages. If there are 2 anti-piracy messages per game and region, that's at least 4. How do you access them, exactly? SGR

"Unused" features
Sorry, nensondubois. That "unused feature" that changes the ground blue or yellow is just a glitch caused by moving the pause menu pointer out of bounds. The same code is called during the bonus game when you match two symbols; the three windows flash blue and yellow and a drum roll plays. --BMF54123 01:38, 21 July 2010 (EDT)


 * I did check the code enough to be assured that it is legitimate. I made the code using Gieger's debug version of SNES9x. I'll look into Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World and see what I can find. I also undid your revision before I knew you were an administrator, sorry. Just letting you know I didn't do it purposely. Nensondubois 01:59, 21 July 2010 (EDT)


 * No, that code IS a glitch. I just watched the menu code execute after setting $7E078E to 04. The jump table for the pause menu only contains three addresses; everything after that is 65816 code. Specifically:

$14DB02: AD 8F (07 D0) 05 .. ..


 * Setting the index to 04 causes the game to read and interpret the bytes in parentheses as an address of $D007; while technically valid code, it was not intended to be accessed this way. Thus, the code is invalid, and does not belong on the wiki. --BMF54123 02:20, 21 July 2010 (EDT)


 * I only cared about it being valid code and didn't further check it to the extend that you did so I added it. My mistake. Nensondubois 12:23, 21 July 2010 (EDT)


 * Alright. Just keep in mind that I only remove/change things if, after examining them myself, I am 100% convinced they're invalid. I've been doing this for a long time, I know out-of-bounds pointers when I see them. Just because a game is executing 65816 code without crashing doesn't mean it's supposed to. ;) --BMF54123 13:32, 21 July 2010 (EDT)

Super Mario Bros. 3 Unused Levels
The unused Ice level from the NES version exist in the Super Mario All-Stars version, and can be accessed by using the PAR code: 7E072700 and following these directions: Go to World 5, using above, switch the code on while the world 5 (Land) map then enter the Level 1. Note: You must switch the code off after you start the level so you do not get stuck on the world 1 map after you die. Here is a picture of the Ice Level. . I don't have time to properly format it into the article, nor make a true level modifier to check for the other unused levels. Nensondubois 16:12, 28 July 2010 (EDT)

Good news: I've found the enemy pointers for all 15 of the unused levels.

Bad news: Because the levels have been modified from the original version, and due to the way the level object pointers are formatted, I haven't found the unused stages' level objects yet. They probably exist though. --GoldS 22:48, 2 September 2010 (EDT)

Well then, I plan on looking for the level pointers in a few days, that is if no one else searches. Nensondubois 23:57, 2 September 2010 (EDT)

Woo! Turns out that the level object pointer wasn't as complicated as I thought. The tough part was figuring out that editing a level object pointer on the world map would only work if the level you're editing has the same tileset (E.X. Changing 1-1 to Unused Level 2. Both use the Plains tileset). So I should get some more of these done soon. --GoldS 07:18, 3 September 2010 (EDT)
 * Mission complete! I now have the level object and enemy pointers for all 15 unused levels. --GoldS 23:36, 3 September 2010 (EDT)

WONGA! Now I don't have to do that. Nensondubois 12:06, 4 September 2010 (EDT)

Unused Graphics


In addition to the unused levels still existing, some of the unused *graphics* appear to remain as well. For example, I was able to locate the wheel/drills via vSNES... Not *everything* seems to be there; the extra minigame graphics are gone, as are many of the extra map graphics (such as that weird castle), but the side/back view map sprites for Mario still exist... No Doki Doki Panic leftovers or our iconic little smiley face seem to remain in SMB2's graphics, either, sadly. I'll keep poking around. -YK 02:30, 4 September 2010 (EDT)
 * I'm still wondering what the hell the wheel is supposed to be for in the first place. I've never been able to think of a place where it would fit in. -- Rick 02:35, 4 September 2010 (EDT)
 * My guess would probably be the two tank stages in World 8. At least, that's the *only* spot I can think of where they wouldn't be grossly out of place... -YK [[Image:YK-sig.png|link=User_talk:YK]] 02:36, 4 September 2010 (EDT)

According to the article, the wheel and spikes "weren't updated"... but I beg to differ. I can see quite a change, myself...

The latter definitely looks slightly more up-to-date; the coloring and shading are considerably more advanced. -YK 02:38, 6 September 2010 (EDT)
 * Neat! I'll rip those, then. Thanks. --GoldS 02:49, 6 September 2010 (EDT)

Another find: It appears I was wrong about the minigame graphics having been cut. No sign of the koopa or hammer bros., but I found what is very clearly the *blocks* from the minigames. They don't appear to have been updated, though. -YK 03:36, 6 September 2010 (EDT)

SMB2 Spikes
Are you sure those "unused spikes" aren't the back half of the Hawkmouth miniboss from Wart's Castle? :P --Peardian 13:07, 10 September 2010 (EDT)
 * I HAVE BEEN BAMBOOZLED. --GoldS 13:11, 10 September 2010 (EDT)

Super Mario Bros. 2 - Unused Music
That jingle for Super Mario Bros. 2 is completely unused in Super Mario All-Stars as stated, but it does eventually find a home in Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 as the Spade(/Heart/Club) House victory jingle. I'm not sure if it's used before then in any of the other Game Boy Advance remakes, though. I'm also not sure if it's worth mentioning on the main article here, which is why I mention it here! ~ Doc Lithius (Info|Chat|Edits) 22:44, 15 November 2011 (EST)

Unused Spade Game Behavior - Used in BS Super Mario Collection?
Take a look at this: http://superfamicom.org/blog/2008/05/wheres-the-rest-of-this-niconicodouga-bs-super-mario-collection-1/

BS Super Mario Collection was basically a companion to BS Super Mario USA and evidently were Satellaview ports of the other games (the only known ones were SMB1 for Episode 1 and SMB3 for Episode 3 - I can only assume TLL was 2 and perhaps World was 4). Episode 1 is pretty unique in that it is the All-Stars SMB1 with an overworld and mini-games. One of the mini-games is the slot machine returning from SMB3 after rescuing Toad, but this time that counter that was missing for so long appears to be in use (it's 17:23 - 19:23 in the video). Unfortunately, BS Super Mario Collection is pretty elusive and apparently only the third episode is floating around in emulated form so I don't know the extent of the unused counter, whether there be some way to change the value or if it was merely done via timer. LinkTheLefty 23:23, 23 February 2012 (EST)

Update: It is in the third episode and it seemed to last as long as the timer, so maybe the variable was nonexistent or lasts longer than the timed game. The game is also only playable in SNESGT and possibly bsnes-x2. LinkTheLefty 14:48, 2 May 2012 (EDT)

Unused Sprites
These are a bunch of unused sprites that are not featured on the article, as well as some that are, these are the correct color.



--Mariofan5000 14:59, 4 July 2013 (EDT)


 * Which ones are unused? Mario Weaboo 11:16, 3 July 2013 (EDT)


 * The vast majority of those are Super Mario Bros. 2 player sprites. In fact, very few things here are actually unused or undocumented. Have you actually played SMB2? --BMF54123 13:54, 3 July 2013 (EDT)


 * Yes, I have, and the used sprites have a 3rd walking pose, a few different ones and completely different small character tiles. And to answer the question, none of these are used. --Mariofan5000 18:21, 3 July 2013 (EDT)


 * I did a quick comparison between sprite sheets (http://www.spriters-resource.com/snes/supermariobros2/) of the sprites used in-game and the ones you've shown, and there are some differences in the small sprites. Small Luigi's head is way bigger in the sheet you've posted, while small Mario's head is drawn differently in your sheet. Teflon 18:34, 3 July 2013 (EDT)


 * Those SMB2 player sprites are only just reshaded from the NES version. The used ones, have been edited to add extra sprites, or to fix colours or details (or in Peach's case, completely re-drawn.) And the 2 is used in the Japanese version for their "Super Mario Bros. 2: For Super Players" title screen. Also, that green vine is used in SMB1. The Tomato, Slot Machine graphics, Japanese text, and NES styled SMB tiles are already on the page. The rest seems to be unused and NOT on the page.Geno2925 19:33, 3 July 2013 (EDT)


 * The green vine in the sheet is from the tilesets, the used ones are sprites. --Mariofan5000 16:15, 5 July 2013 (EDT)


 * This is a bit of a tangent, but the hill tiles caught my eye. Never before had I realized what the triangle pattern on the hills and ground in the original NES version were supposed to be, and now it makes so much sense. As great as All-Stars looked, it really obscured a lot of the stage-prop visuals. --Peardian 19:46, 3 July 2013 (EDT)


 * I'm just mentioning it, but I find those 2up, 3up, & 5up bonuses, as well as that target, and the diamond patterned block interesting because THEY WEREN'T IN THE ORIGINAL GAMES! Strange, isn't it?Geno2925 22:57, 3 July 2013 (EDT)


 * Actually, the target is also in the NES version as an unused enemy, the diamond patterned block was found among background tiles, so it might be used somewhere, and some of the unused SMB2 tiles are leftovers from the NES version, some were also unused there.


 * EDIT:Which diamond patterned block are you talking about, the one to the right of the map screen stuff or the other one? --Mariofan5000 14:59, 4 July 2013 (EDT)


 * I am talking about the one underneath those SMB1 tiles. Actually, now that I think about it, that diamond "block" might just be the border used when someone wins at the Battle Mode game.Geno2925 15:16, 4 July 2013 (EDT)


 * I found it among the SMB2 Wart Background stuff, so no. --Mariofan5000 16:13, 5 July 2013 (EDT)


 * Mind you, in the ROM, the used SMB2 player graphics are in the middle of the SMB3 section. But I checked, and those diamonds are NOT in the Battle Mode background. And during that little search through the graphics, I found something new in the SMB2 section.
 * https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/5237238/SMAS-SMB2-UnusedFireball.png
 * It's the fireball from the NES SMB2!Geno2925 12:27, 6 July 2013 (EDT)


 * Oops!!! I guess I was in such a hurry-scurry that forgot to rip that one. I'll update it right away.
 * EDIT: Done. --Mariofan5000 13:10, 6 July 2013 (EDT)