RTA Guide
The ultimate goal of this guide is to serve as a central hub for all of the relevant knowledge needed to get started with and improve at Super Mario 64 Real-Time Attack (RTA) speedruns.
Choosing a Platform
To submit to the official leaderboards, you will need to use one of the supported platforms; Nintendo 64, Virtual Console or Emulator. The Super Mario 3D All-Stars release is supported on the Category Extensions page.
There are major differences between each platform that have a big impact on speedrunning. Understanding those differences may help you decide which platform you’ll choose to run on. More details about these differences can be found on our Platform Differences page.
For more information about each platform, including version differences and controllers, check out each platform’s respective information page.
- Nintendo 64
- Virtual Console (Wii/Wii U/Switch)
- Emulator (Windows/Mac/Linux)
- Super Mario 3D All-Stars (Switch)
Direct links to setup guides for the most popular platforms:
Leaderboard Verification
For a run to be accepted on the official leaderboards, video proof must be provided. While something as simple as pointing a camera at your TV is sufficient, if you plan on playing the game often or you plan on livestreaming your runs, the convenience and quality offered by a proper capture solution can be worth the cost. Here are some pages to help you figure out what you need to record or livestream your runs:
Here is some more information about submitting runs to the official leaderboards:
Categories
Here are routes and guides for each category. See also the list of stages.
Before committing to a particular category, check out the movement guide to learn Mario's general movement options.
For each star, in addition to the demo videos on its wiki page, you can consult the Ultimate Star spreadsheet to see world records and videos of strats, executed with different variations and at different skill levels, and you can submit your own PBs. Beginner strats tend to be missing.
- Ultimate Star Spreadsheet
- Ultimate Star Spreadsheet Extensions (for lesser-used strats)
Main Categories
The most competitive categories, with leaderboards on speedrun.com/sm64.
Category Extensions
Fun challenges with requirements that can differ significantly from main categories, with leaderboards on speedrun.com/sm64ce.
Useful Links
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