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How to hack a Super Mario Bros

How to hack a Super Mario Bros cart to erase everything but the clouds.

Reader comments

JaimeMar 09, 2004 at 2:04PM

I think that is one of the most serene/beatiful things that I have seen in a while. I also realize that I probably sound like an idiot.

It is calm yet there is an inherent impatient quality to the piece. I am waiting for something to appear that never will.

That would make an awesome screensaver, or wall installation. Ok, I'm off to smoke some more rocks.

akMar 09, 2004 at 3:38PM

just right click on the image and select "set as background" - then choose "stretch" in the display properties (to give it that extra rough, 8-bit feel). You now have an animated mario cloud wallpaper for your PC.

Anyone know if it's possible to do the same thing on a Mac?

Jake of 8bitjoystick.comMar 09, 2004 at 4:50PM

Or you could just hack the emulation rom with a plethora of ROM editors.

vitafloMar 09, 2004 at 5:59PM

I think Corey Archangles other stuff is better than his Mario Clouds hack. For example, I Shot Andy Warhol. Then there's the hardcore hacks like the hack of the Legend of Zelda called Outlands, which takes the original game code and makes an entirely new quest (and it's damn hard).

Then there are NES sound hacks that don't really create new music, but certainly destroy the original (in this case Mega Man 2).

RobbyBMar 10, 2004 at 12:23AM

ak: I did the background trick. It looks nice, but doesn't animate. :-(

davidMar 10, 2004 at 3:35PM

I had the same problem with the animation. Once the animating clouds gif loads in your browser, right-click, save the image to your computer. Manually go into the desktop properties and set the background image to be that .gif. Animated for me that way.

akMar 11, 2004 at 6:22PM

and if that still doesn't do it, try right clicking anywhere on your desktop and select "refresh"

mbostockMar 15, 2004 at 4:02AM

Here is how to do the same thing on a mac. Note you must have QuickTime Pro.

1. Open QuickTime Player.
2. File > Import... > cloudscroll.gif
3. File > Export...
4. Under "Export:" choose "Movie to Image Sequence"
5. Save to a new folder, e.g. "Clouds"
6. Open System Preferences > Desktop & Screen Saver
7. Click on "Choose Folder..." and select the new folder, e.g. "Clouds"
8. Check "Change picture:" and select "every 5 seconds"

It's a little slow, but it does the trick and you get a neat fade effect that make the clouds even more ethereal. :)

This thread is closed to new comments. Thanks to everyone who responded.