Endless stairs
- This article is about the obstacle in Super Mario 64 and Super Mario 64 DS. For its musical theme, see The Endless Stairs.
| Endless stairs | |
|---|---|
 In Super Mario 64  In Super Mario 64 DS | |
| First appearance | Super Mario 64 (1996) |
| Latest appearance | Super Mario 3D All-Stars (2020) |
- “To open the door that leads to the "endless" stairs, you need 70 Stars. Bwa ha ha!”
- —Bowser, Super Mario 64
The endless stairs (also stylized with sneer quotes as "endless" stairs) are an obstacle within the Mushroom Castle in Super Mario 64 and Super Mario 64 DS. They are behind the final Big Star Door, which leads to Bowser in the Sky, the final level of the game.
Unless the player has more than 70 Power Stars in Super Mario 64, or has more than 80 Power Stars and is playing as Mario in Super Mario 64 DS, trying to climb this flight of stairs will seemingly gain no ground; they must eventually relent and leave through the room's entrance. After meeting these conditions, the stairs can be climbed normally, granting Mario access to Bowser in the Sky.
The illusion of the "endless" stairs is created by warping the player character back down a few steps once he reaches a certain point,[1] combined with distance fog to hide the top of the staircase. The trick can be spotted by moving the camera uphill from the character as they climb the stairs, as the bottom of the room is more visible, breaking the translational symmetry of the stairs. In the Nintendo DS remake, the player can also see their character's position being moved on the minimap.
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | はてしない かいだん[2] Hateshinai Kaidan |
Endless Stairs | |
| Chinese | 无尽的楼梯[3] Wújìn de lóutī |
Endless stairs | |
| French | L'escalier sans fin[4][5] | The endless stairs | |
| German | Endlosen Vergnügen[6] | Endless Enjoyment | Super Mario 64 |
| Treppe der Unendlichkeit[7] | Staircase of Infinity | Super Mario 64 DS | |
| Italian | Scale infinite[8] | Endless stairs | |
| Korean | 끝없는 계단[9] Kkeut-eobsneun gyedan |
Endless stairs | |
| Spanish | Escalera sin fin[10] | Endless staircase |
Notes[edit]
- There is a glitch with which the player can bypass ever needing to collect at least 70 Power Stars, but this works only for the original Nintendo 64 version, as this glitch was patched in the Shindō Pak Taiō Version, which carried over to Super Mario 3D All-Stars, as well as Super Mario 64 DS.
- However, a different glitch can be used to access Bowser in the Sky with any player character aside from Mario and/or with fewer than 80 Stars in the DS remake.
- The endless stairs are similar to the Penrose stairs, which are also endless stairs, except the latter stairs are formed in a loop to produce the endless illusion, while the former ones follow the more traditional fashion of stairs by going up.
References[edit]
- ^ Blaf Snarten Burg (January 12, 2019). Off Camera Secrets Super Mario 64 Boundary Break (REUPLOAD READ DESC). YouTube. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
- ^ "はてしないかいだんのドアをひらくにはスター70まいのパワーがひつようです･･..." – Bowser, Super Mario 64 (Japanese).
- ^ "要打开通往 “无尽的楼梯” 的门需要70颗力量之星。" – Bowser, Super Mario 64 (Chinese).
- ^ "Vous avez besoin de 70 étoiles pour arriver en haut de "l'escalier sans fin"..." – Bowser, Super Mario 64 (French).
- ^ "Afin de résoudre le mystère de l'escalier sans fin, il te faut récupérer 80 étoiles." – Bowser, Super Mario 64 DS (French).
- ^ "Zum Öffnen der Tür zum „Endlosen Vergnügen“ benötigst Du 70 Sterne. Hua... Hua... Hua...!" – Bowser, Super Mario 64 (German).
- ^ "Um das Rätsel der Treppe der Unendlichkeit zu lösen, benötigst du 80 Sterne." – Bowser, Super Mario 64 DS (German).
- ^ "Per risolvere il mistero delle scale infinite ti servono 80 Stelle." – Bowser, Super Mario 64 DS (Italian).
- ^ "끝없는 계단의 방을 열기 위해선 스타 80개의 파워가 필요합니다..." – Bowser, Super Mario 64 DS (Korean).
- ^ "Hacen falta 80 Estrellas para resolver el misterio de la escalera sin fin." – Bowser, Super Mario 64 DS (Spanish).
