Kevin's Super Mario 64 page
Kevin's Super Mario 64 page
Mario's Moves
Back in the old days of SMB, our famous plumber had just 6 moves: jump, walk, run, crouch, swim, and fireball. Now, Mario has toughened up with a hoard of moves to crush his enemies and get revenge on Bowser.
Here is a list of Mario's moves:
*Movement on the Ground*
Walk: to walk, just tap the control stick a little from the middle the way you want it to go. Walking is not very useful unless you want to cross a narrow bridge.
Side step: when you need to cross a thin ledge, this is a good technique. Go up against a wall and walk left or right. Mario will slowly edge along the wall.
Crouch and Crawl: hit Z to crouch down, and move the control stick to do a baby crawl. Only useful in a few places.
Run: to run, tilt the control stick as far as it can go, making Mario dash at full speed. You'll be using this a lot to get from place to place.
Slide: just run and hit Z, and Mario will slide a little. not very useful.
Climbing: when you reach a tree or pole, jump on it to hang from it. Use UP and DOWN on the control stick to climb, and use LEFT and RIGHT to rotate around. When you reach the top of a tree, you will do a handstand. You can jump very high when you're at the top of a tree.
Wire nets: when a wire net is hanging overhead, press and hold A to hang on to it. Move by using the control stick. Don't let go of A!!
Hang on to ledges: if you jump a little short when jumping to a platform, Mario will grab the ledge if it is within reach. Beware, there are some ledges that he can't grab!
Climb up ledges: when hanging from a ledge, tilt up on the control stick and Mario will climb up. Press A to climb up faster. Press Z or tilt down on the control stick to let go of the ledge.
*Varieties of Jumps*
Jump: to jump, press the A button. The longer you hold the button, the higher Mario will jump.
Double jump: to make Mario jump higher, press A twice in a row. Mario will stretch jump and say, Whohoo!
Running jump: tilt the control stick all the way to make Mario run. Hit A as soon as he reaches top speed to make Mario jump as high as a Double jump. You can also do a running Double jump in this fashion for extra height.
Triple jump: this is the highest jump in the game, and one of the toughest to master. Get a running start and press A to make Mario jump. As soon as he lands, press A again to make him Double jump. When he lands that, press A again to make him do a high front flip. This jump is very useful to get up high ledges. If you have a Wing cap, use this jump to start flight.
Sparkle triple jump: once you beat the game and gotten 120 stars, meet Yoshi at the top of the castle. He will grant you this special jump. Now, your triple jump will increase in height, and it will have a sparkly, hovering effect! Too bad you only get it after you beat the game...
Backflip: a backflip can get you to the same height of a running Double jump. Hold Z to crouch, and press A to jump backwards.
Sideflip: timing is important to perform a sideflip. Start running one way. After Mario is at top speed, immediately turn the other way and press A. Mario will sideflip the other way, which is the same height as a backflip.
Wall kick: this is also one of the harder jumps in SM64. Run and jump into a wall. Now, right as you bump the wall, jump again and tilt the control stick to where you want to go. Mario will kick off the wall, sort of like Jackie Chan :) Multiple wall kicks can be performed for higher altitude, but timing is crucial to bounce off wall after wall. The sideflip, long jump, and triple jump can also be performed before wall kicks, you can triple jump to a wall and wall kick off.
Long jump: a relatively hard jump to master, the long jump can help you get across humongous gaps. To do it, get a running start. Continue running, and immediately press Z to crouch. Right after that, press A to make Mario do a super-long jump. The longer you run and the sooner you press A after crouching, the further you'll go. This is a jump where lots of practice is needed.
Tree Jumping: when on a tree (or pole), press A to jump off the direction Mario's facing. When doing a handstand on a tree, press A to jump off the direction Mario's not facing.
*Varieties of Attacks*
Punch: to throw a simple punch, press B. A simple punch kills simple enemies.
Pick up: press B while standing near certain things, like Bomb-ombs and boxes, to pick them up.
2xPunch: for 2 punches, press B twice. Duh! The second punch doesn't have as much range as the first.
Combo: for a punch-punch-kick combo, press B 3 times. Mario's kick has pretty good range.
Jump kick: while jumping, press B for an aerial kick. Use this for enemies that can fly. Mario will bounce off anything he happens to hit.
Trip: one of the most useless moves in the game, the trip is preformed when pressing B while crouching(z). It has no range whatsoever, so a normal punch would be a better bet.
Butt stomp: the stomp is one of the best attacks because it can destroy what can't be destroyed otherwise (whomps, etc). Anytime when you're in the air, press Z to make Mario do a front flip and crash butt first into the ground. This move will squash almost any enemy in Mario's range, and this is how you land from a wing cap flight.
Butt stomping can prevent you from taking damage from a fall. If, perhaps, you have mistimed your jump from a high ledge and are falling down to certain doom, press Z right before you land to stomp the ground, taking no damage at all!
Slide: my favorite attack in SM64, the slide is quite useful in many circumstances. When running at top speed, press B. Mario will slide for a long while, killing any enemy he touches. Be sure not to slide while trying to grab an enemy; you'll probably just fall off the platform!
Jumping slide: another good attack, just run, jump, and press B. This slide is harder to control because you're in the air.
Slide kick: a pretty useless move. Get a running start, duck, and immediately press B. Very hard to aim.
*Moves in the Water*
Swim: press A in the water to swim.
Flutter kick: hold A in the water to swim continuously.
Breaststroke: press A right after Mario does a stroke to do a very fast stroke. Fast, but inaccurate.
Splash: I have yet to solve the mystery of this move. If you press B underwater, Mario does a feeble splash that does nothing. Some people say this attack can make you pick up items underwater, but what items are underwater?
Dive: when swimming, tilt the control stick up to make Mario dive. Tilt it down to make him surface.
Jump out:While at the water's surface, press and hold A when tilting the stick down to make Mario jump out of the water.
*Aerial Moves*
Helicopter spin: jump off a flying Shyguy or a Spindriff, and you'll spin around and around high in the sky! Spins can also be performed with dust storms.
Fly: when wearing a Wing Cap, Do a triple jump (A+A+A) to start flight. Control your altitude using the control stick. Tilting the stick backwards at the right time will increase Mario's altitude. Tilt it forwards to make Mario dive down. You can fly incredibly high if you shoot out of a cannon with a Wing Cap on.
Land while flying: when you want to land from a flight, press Z in the air. Mario will flip and butt-stomp to the ground. Make sure you're not high up when you land, because you'll still lose health when you hit the ground. You can also land in a dive by holding the control stick forwards.
*Miscellaneous Moves*
Read a sign/Talk: to read a sign or talk to someone, press A or B when right in front of them. Bosses are an exception-they talk to you automatically. Press A or B again to scroll down and hear the whole message.
