List of New Super Mario Bros. glitches

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This is a list of glitches in the game New Super Mario Bros.

Glitches

NOTE: Unless otherwise noted, all names are conjectural.

Above the Ceiling

In World 2, 3, and World 5-Tower, the player must go to the top of the tower. Then, they fight Bowser Jr., and must stomp on him twice. Then, he goes his usual routine trying to jump on the player. The player must time it right so when he jumps to the highest point, they can jump on him. Also, the player must use the technique where they can jump higher off an enemy. The player has to aim towards the ceiling, and, if done correctly, Mario or Luigi should be on top of the roof. The usual animation of Bowser Jr. running away shows and the Mario or Luigi face signal turns halfway because the player can't see Mario.

Behind the Flagpole

To perform this glitch the player must go to World 1-1 and go to the end of the level. Mario/Luigi must go up to the flagpole but run to the wall on the other side and wall jump. This causes him to land on the flagpole, but as soon as he touches it, he is flung to the other side of the flagpole. The flag goes down, but then flips over to Mario.

Bowser Jr. Death by Falling

In World 5-Castle, the player should get to the boss. Then, they must walk to the edge while Bowser Jr. charges at them. If done correctly, Bowser Jr. charges off the platform. Then the screen zooms out to show an empty area. The only way to escape is to fall off the platform. Once the player loses a life, the screen shakes and teleports them to the map.

Bowser Jr. Knockout

In any of the first Bowser Jr. battles (ones where he doesn't throw Green Shells), if the player has a Mega Mushroom in stock, the glitch becomes possible. When the player is in the battle and activates it, eats it, and stands still, when Bowser Jr. touches Mario or Luigi, Bowser Jr. becomes unconscious. If the player waits until they turn back to normal and jumps on Bowser Jr., he is knocked out on the floor. Even if the player is jumping on him, this does not do anything. The only way to attack him then is to do a ground pound.

Bandana Glitch

When fighting Bowser Jr. with his bandana over his mouth, the player must wait until he throws a Green Shell at them. Then they must jump on the shell and grab it. When he hides in his shell, the player has to throw the shell at him and he appears without his bandana.

Caged

This glitch can be done on multiplayer mode. The host must choose the underground level, and Player 1 must go to the pile of Brick Blocks right of the red Koopa Troopa. Player 1 must then ground pound the third vertical row of brick blocks, without pounding the last brick that makes Mario fall in the bottomless pit. Player 2 then must grab the star while Player 1 ducks inside the vertical row of brick blocks they previously pounded. If done correctly, Player 1 ends up inside the pile of brick blocks.

Continuous Boss Music

If the player uses a Mega Mushroom to beat Bowser, then defeats Bowser Jr., the final boss music continues to play.

Die while Invincible

This glitch requires very precise timing and is best done in multiplayer. One player must be without any power-up and the other must carry a Bob-omb. The first must collect eight Coins to get a Star: the second must throw the Bob-omb at him when they are about to collect the power-up. If done correctly, the first player does the die animation, but be rainbow-colored (effect of the Star), even if the animation is stopped. The first player then re-emerges from the starting Pipe, ending the glitch.

Easy Out of Bounds

In any level where there is a wall down from the ceiling, the player should have challenge mode active. If there is the right amount of space between the edge of the sreen and the ceiling, the player should jump into it and the player stands on nothing. If they jump up to the ceiling they are pushed through to the right until the wall ends. This is easiest achieved in 6-1 on the wall leading upwards to the area with second power up.

Falling Skull

To do this glitch, the player must be playing World 1-Tower. They must go to the place with the first Star Coin and jump on the Dry Bones so its skull tumbles onto the one-way platform. Then, as the moving platform moves down, the skull falls through the floor for no apparent reason.

Floating P Switch

A floating P Switch.

This glitch must be performed in a Mario form other than Small Mario or Mini Mario in World 4-A. This doesn't work in World 5-C strangely enough. If the player finds the P Switch atop a breakable Brick Block and breaks the Block, the P Switch does not fall and remain floating in midair.

Frozen Ghost House

Playing as either Mario or Luigi in World 4-Ghost House, the player has jump onto one of the spin dials that turns around and takes the player to the next room. However, the player must jump right on the very left or very right of it, then jump straight off. The whole room freezes. The player can smash blocks but they become frozen as half-destroyed blocks. The player can also fire fireballs but they freeze too. If the player goes on the spin dial properly or touches an enemy, the level goes back to normal.

Frozen Lakithunder

In World 7-Castle, the player should have a Blue Shell power up while fighting Lakithunder. In his first phase, they must hit Lakithunder two times with the blue shell before he flies up. If done correctly, Lakithunder should be frozen in place and the only way to beat him is to stomp on him or use the shell spin attack.

Goomba in the Air

To perform this glitch, the player must have a Mega Mushroom in their inventory and then do World 4-Castle. Just before they battle Mega Goomba, they need to activate the Mega Mushroom and walk into the Battlefield. Another way to perform the glitch is to scroll the camera over to see the Goomba and then jump while the player is mega to make the Goomba bounce, then walk forward to battle. If done correctly, as the seemingly normal Goomba walks in, it'll be walking in the air. It will then grow massive and continue the battle as usual. Note: This glitch rarely works after the first time it is performed unless you use the scrolling camera way.

Jump on Switch

The player should jump on a ?/!/P switch and immediately jump again. If done correctly, Mario/Luigi do not activate the switch or the switch is activated and Mario/Luigi jump as they would on a platform. This glitch is easier to do with Mini Mario/Luigi. This glitch does not happen in the other New Super Mario Bros. games.

Mini Mario Wall Jump Glitch

When the player is wall jumping as Mini Mario, Mini Mario sometimes jumps from an invisible platform the size of a pixel after jumping from another wall.

Mega Mushroom Storing Trick

When the player finds a "wild" Mega Mushroom in a level (1-1, 1-2, 4-4 and 7-5) (not in a Toad House), they must let the Mega Mushroom run to any unbreakable Block (empty ? Block, empty Brick Block, etc.). The player must jump against the Mega Mushroom and the Block in the same frame. When done right, the character won't become Mega. Instead, a Mega Mushroom appears in the player's Item Storage.

Music Glitch

If the Starman effect ends just as Mario or Luigi reach a level goal, the level music plays while Mario or Luigi falls through the mast, as the music should be stopped. The song stops when the Course Clear fanfare starts. This glitch is easy to do in World 1-1 if the player gets the Starman in a secret block in the middle of world (above the center block of three).

Muted Boss Music

To perform this glitch, the player must have a Mega Mushroom in their inventory. In World 4-Castle, when they are fighting Mega Goomba, the player should use the Mega Mushroom to become Mega Mario, but not kill Mega Goomba. When the effect of the Mega Mushroom runs out, the boss music is muted. This glitch can't be done with other bosses.

Neverending Level

While doing the Walking on Midair glitch, if the player is Super and runs into a certain Piranha Plant at the right time, they end up on top off the level and can't go off the cliff face.

Power-Ups Through Stairs Glitch

The player should go to World 3-Ghost House with any power-up in storage. Then, they should activate the first set of stairs, stand under them and release the power-up, and it will fall down slower as long as it is touching the stairs.

Reusable Mega Mushroom

The player must bring a Mega Mushroom to World 3-Castle. Upon reaching a Whomp, the player should allow it to fall and stand on top of the enemy, without defeating it. Next, the player should drop the Mega Mushroom and grab it while standing on the Whomp. Mario becomes Mega Mario, destroying the Whomp, but there is not enough space to fully transform and the player re-obtains the Mega Mushroom. This allows it to be re-used to defeat Whomps an unlimited amount of times, but it does not work on other enemies.

Saving Peach without Actually Saving Her

In the final fight, if the player defeats Bowser and then uses a Mega Mushroom, they must to jump on Bowser Jr. and hold the jump button. The player should make sure they are right next to Peach's platform and jump to the right as far as the player can. If the player did this correctly, the player should be on the same platform Peach is on.

Side Effect

The player should get a Starman, and go into a pipe just as the Starman wears off. As soon as the character comes out of the pipe, they should immediately jump, and the character should be jumping as if still under the effect of the Starman, even though they're not invincible.

Stomp while Giant

In multiplayer mode, there is a slight possibility that a player under the effect of the Mega Mushroom stomps the other (like normal) when they jump on them instead of just hurting it. This seem to happen random and the causes are unknown.

Stuck above Bubble

Mario or Luigi must need a Blue Shell for this glitch to work. In World 8-3 the player must go into the pipe to get underwater. Then, they must go above the first bubble (on the right). If done correctly, Mario or Luigi keep bouncing on the bubble, hitting the solid above, and are able to move left or right.

"Stuck" Between Blocks

This glitch can only be performed in World 1-4. The player must have a Mini Mushroom in their backup, then must play the level normally up to point where the Koopa Troopa is needed to break the formation of blocks. They must wait until the Koopa Troopa kills itself and drops down to the lower two blocks left. On the right block, they must Ground Pound and Jump, and should hit a hidden block (the player might go through the wall if they time it right). Then, they must use the Mini Mushroom and jump above the left block. The player becomes be "stuck" inside the two blocks.

Swing Glitch

This can be done in World 7-1 in the part with the swings and where the second Star Coin is. If the player jumps off the top swing and jumps onto the cloud on the right side of it they become stuck in the swing position. The only way to stop the glitch is to fire a fireball (or jump if player is Super).

Through the Ground

The top of the ? Block at one pixel above the floor

In World 1-Tower, if there is a flying ? Block, the player has to hit the block so that its top is one pixel above the blue platform. Then they must jump on the empty block and walk towards the center of the platform, possibly going through the platform. If not, the player can try again by jumping at the block and walking to the middle again.

Through the Platform

In World 5-Tower, if the player controls Mario to a Block, he slowly moves downward and eventually ends up losing a life.

Through the Wall

For this glitch, Mario/Luigi must go to World 5-B. He should be at least Super Mario/Luigi and duck and jump at the very beginning. He becomes slightly trapped in the Ice Blocks. If he quickly jumps again, he goes through the wall. This can used to get the secret exit without a Blue Shell.

Trapped

This glitch happens in World 4-Ghost House, and Mario or Luigi need a Mega Mushroom in the character's item slot. They should go to the place where the "Frozen Ghost House" glitch happens (the "room" with the single Boo and invisible blocks in it), and go into the next room (the one that is barren except for a Balloon Boo and a one-way platform). To start the glitch, they should apply the Mega Mushroom and go onto one of the objects that takes the player go to the next room "properly". Their head becomes stuck in a pipe. They can't move horizontally, but they should attempt to jump to start the glitch. Mario or Luigi are unable to jump, and they are taken back to the previous room. To fully activate the glitch, they should jump off and the spin dial will go the previous room. All they can do now is exit the level, or if they haven't completed the level, the player should wait for time to expire.

Under the Flagpole

In World 2-5, the player should use challenge mode for this glitch. The player should have any power-up (excluding the Mini Mushroom). The player should go through the level until the player sees a Boomerang Bro. The player should then go to the right of where it was, and jump into the quicksand. The player must keep hold of right on the D-pad while the player is sinking. When the player starts to move, Mario or Luigi should still be keeping hold of right, then the player must press . Mario or Luigi appear in a place that has gray blocks behind them, as they have to go down. The player should go on a Blockhopper. The player must jump when they are near the ceiling near a Star Coin. The player must keep jumping until they're stuck in a rock. The player is then at the end of the level, and under the flagpole. The player should jump when they are not moving, causing them to go past the flagpole.

Walk On the Ceiling

If the player has challenge mode enabled, then go to World 6-1. In the beginning of the level, the player notices that the mountain ceiling doesn't start for a few blocks. Mario should inch forward until the amount of free space shown on screen is just a bit too small for Mario or Luigi to jump into. After that, Mario should go to the far left of the screen and wait for the Bill Blaster to shoot. The player must on the Bullet Bill and enter the thin gap of space that they have created. If it worked, Mario stands in mid-air in the gap. Once Mario is there, the only thing he can do is jump again, and keep jumping until he has gone far off the top of the screen. Once Mario has jumped enough, he is be able to move again, above the level. Mario can then run to the end of the level, and he does not even fall back when there is open sky. Mario can't run backwards due to the fact that challenge mode has to be on. In the end, the player has to wait for time to run out, since there is no way to get back, or the player has to return to the map.

Walking Backwards oversight

In the World 4 map, after unlocking a green Toad House, the player can put Mario or Luigi in the overworld map on 4-1 and press down on the D-pad. The player now walks backwards until they reach the turn in the path.

Walking in Midair

In World 4-6, the player should go up to where there are three green pipes on a rock above, each with a Piranha Plant. The player should stay there and wait for Dorrie to leave. The player should wait until the time has reached in the 140 mark. Mario or Luigi should go to the far left, but not on the ledge. The player should run and jump, and, if the player is far enough, Mario or Luigi should be walking in the air. However, when the player gets to the pipe, Mario or Luigi are teleported to somewhere, become invisible and unable to move.