Mario‑Costumed Speedrunner Shaves 0.33 Seconds Off Super Mario Bros. World Record on Halloween
Niftski broke his own any% Super Mario Bros. record by 0.33 seconds while livestreaming in full Mario costume.
Niftski, the current record holder for Super Mario Bros., kicked off a Halloween livestream in a full Mario outfit. While he expected only a festive session, the speedrunner ended the night by improving his own any% world record.
In the run, Niftski defeated King Koopa, rescued the Princess and finished the game in 4:54.299, shaving 0.33 seconds off his previous best of 4:54.332 set in August. The new time is two frames away from a theoretical perfect run.
“Hopefully I don’t get this today because that would be very stupid,” Niftski said moments before the record‑breaking finish.
At 22 years old, Niftski already tops the leaderboards for warpless, glitchless and any% categories. His any% record, set a few months earlier, was the first sub‑five‑minute run since the game broke the five‑minute barrier around 2010 when Andrew Gardikis introduced a new blueprint for runners.
During the five‑hour stream, the runner maintained the Mario persona, complete with the iconic mustache and a voice that “verges into something more Yakov Smirnoff.” He admitted the stunt was a bit loathsome and joked that fans could blame his mother for buying the facial‑hair prop, but ultimately claimed the character’s voice helped him stay calm.
“It made me not nervous at all,” Niftski said. “It doesn’t even feel real. It felt so casual.”
When the timer hit the new record, the streamer shouted, IT’S MARIO! WHAT IN THE WORLD I CANNOT BREAK CHARACTER!
The achievement underscores how competitive Super Mario Bros. remains, with glitches and exploits thoroughly explored and the community now approaching the limits of human skill.
While the stream featured no new game announcements, the Nintendo Direct that followed provided updates on the upcoming edition of Pikmin 4, Pikmin Bloom and crocheted hats.
