Oddities

This is a sub-page of Super Mario 64 DS.

Internal Names#

To do:
under the moat (?) lift object name

Type	Filename	Translation	Identification	Notes
Sequence	SNOW2	Snow 2	Snow	This filename suggests that there were once two versions of the snow theme, or that the theme was revised.
Sequence	MOTOS	Motos	Lethal Lava Land/Shifting Sand Land theme	A leftover from an early internal name for Lethal Lava Land in the original game.
Model	e3_start_map_r00.bmd	-	VS Mode starting room	This filename suggests that this model was created for the E3 2004 demo, which it does appear in. It is unknown what the "r" stands for - there is no "r01" or similar.
Model etc	obj_door0_star10*	-	8-Star Door	These filenames suggest that the 8-Star Door was once a 10-Star Door.
Various	wrecking_crew	-	Coincentration minigame files	Reference to the NES game.

(Source: Original TCRF research)

Levels#

VS. Castle Grounds#

It is actually possible to go on top of the roof of the multiplayer version of the castle without glitches by using Yoshi's flutter ability, and there it's possible to notice a few differences from the main game's map:

The towers and hills have a different kind of collision which makes them way more slippery (the towers especially), making it hard to get on the roof.
The central tower lacks collision, as does the extension of the roof where Peach's stained glass is. The roof's collision also doesn't match the model, particularly the area adjacent to the hill.
The castle's back, which normally is entirely modeled, is missing here.
The boxes, fences, and 1-ups are missing.

Unseen Chunk#

There's a weird grey chunk floating just outside the entrance to the Big Boo Battle room. It is made from three triangles and serves no purpose, as there's no collision mapped where it's positioned. The developers probably left this in by mistake.

Strange Hitboxes#

This needs some investigation.
Discuss ideas and findings on the talk page.

While these are technically used, in Tall Tall Mountain and possibly more levels, many of these strange invisible hitboxes are hidden out-of-bounds on the map. They can only be interacted with if you have the Super Mushroom, and show a number when standing in them. If you kill an enemy before touching one of them, the number above your head will increase; otherwise, it will just show the number 1. They play a "box breaking" sound when hit. They cannot be found in the level files, meaning they are most likely hard-coded into the game. It is important to note that these are not duplicates of the secrets, as they function differently (for example, secrets can be hit regardless of whether you have a mushroom or not, and the number they show isn't based on the number of enemies you hit).

Pre-Renders#

To do:

Check the VS. Mode course icons
Check the touch screen maps

Castle Grounds#

To do:

I remember seeing E3 2004 demo footage in which you can see one of the players being fired out of the square/alcove, suggesting it used to contain a cannon, maybe as a method to reach the floating island that existed in the demo.
Do the pre-rendered flags look the same as the ones used in-level, other than the angle possibly being different?
There are supposedly leftovers of the alcove in the collision map

File Select Render	In-Game

E3 2004

(Source: Mario 64X4 - Gameplay E3 2004)

This render uses a different skybox (which turns out to be based on the N64 version of the desert background), and lacks the two trees near the sandy slope on the left, and the sandy slope itself(!). The central tower also appears to be much shorter, and the surrounding hills on the left much higher. Infamously, there is also what appears to be a square or alcove on the right castle wall, which was present in the game's E3 2004 demo. The flags are animated sprites that are overlaid over the main image.

While the render itself is accurate aside from missing the trees, it's the way the texture is used in-game that is quite an oddity. It shows the lake being on the right while the little clearing is on the left, which is due to the texture being accidentally flipped in-game.

This render used in the "Loves Me...?" minigame is missing the trees, the sign, and the fences; a piece of the fence still remains near the flower bed, though. The background (and likely lighting) are different for the purpose of the minigame, of course.

Castle Courtyard#

Here the trees and signs are missing... that's pretty much it, really.

Bob-omb Battlefield#

This render uses a different skybox, which looks overcast as opposed to clear and sunny. The floating island (bottom-right of the bob-omb in the middle) and the bridge leading to the higher part of the mountain are difficult to see due to the texture compression.

Whomp's Fortress#

While this render keeps the original N64 render's viewing angle, this one did add the two floating islands which used to be missing... except their position still isn't accurate.

Tall Tall Mountain#

Much like in the original N64 render, there are additional mushrooms that do not exist in-game. The skybox is also different, lacking the far-away islands and having different cloud formations. The portal to the mountain's slide also appears completely white, as opposed to being hidden as a regular wall.

Sunshine Isles#

Once again the skybox is entirely different, alongside the small isles being closer to the larger central one (maybe the image was taken in orthographic view).

Rec Room#

To do:
re-take the in-game screenshot/render so it includes the door

This texture of the floor is different, namely missing its purple spots. A few stars were also moved here and there, and some are colored differently.