We all know speedruns, these challenges whose goal is to complete a game as quickly as possible: but did you know that there is also the category of speedruns with blindfolded eyes ? For the Super Mario Bros. series, this section does exist, a man called Crescendo has just broken the world record on the very first opus of the saga. If you are wondering how it is possible, there are a few specific tips.
Apart from one obviously increased knowledge and exceptional of the title, Crescendo is helped by one element in particular: the sound design. Because if he is indeed blind for the occasion, he is not on the other hand deaf and all the sounds in the game are then interpreted as landmarks. This includes Mario’s jumps, the bricks he explodes and also (and most importantly) the fireballs, which he throws and whose bouncing sound allows him to locate himself in space. Couple to that a perfect understanding of the game (and its shortcuts) as well as a keen sense of timing, and you therefore obtain a “world record” at eleven minutes and fifty-five seconds.
I started considering this run on May 29th and made full attempts on June 19th. I played in hour-long sessions, once or twice a day. In the end, there were about 40 hours of attempts.
Note that Crescendo is also a musician, and that his skills as such apparently helped him achieve this feat, flat seam the previous record blindfolded, which was fourteen minutes and thirty-one seconds, in 2016. Not all superheroes wear a cape (just a night mask, sometimes).
