Super Mario 63/Secrets

This page describes the many secrets you can access in Super Mario 63.

Hidden Sign Text

Upon zooming in on a sign with text on it, you may be able to make out something on it. It says:

Cheat Menu

(DOES NOT WORK ON OLDER VERSIONS) On the main menu with the options Story, Extras, and Options, type in "cheat". You'll be taken to a new menu with two options: "Unlock Everything", which unlocks everything on the next file you choose, and "Toggle Shine Sprites on Star Map", which allows you to click on the Shine Sprites and Star Coins on the Star Map, allowing you to get every Shine Sprite and Star Coin by simply clicking.

Note, though, that there's a price to pay. That price is that music won't play anymore. It drains the fun, doesn't it? But this can be easily fixed. If you go to options menu while in a file and turn off "Mute Music" it solves the issue.

Skip to Final Battle

It is possible to go to the final level, Bowser's Castle, with only 9 Shine Sprites, rather than the standard 32. To do this, you must have Rocket F.L.U.D.D. unlocked, which means you'll have beaten Outskirts of the Mushroom Kingdom, which means you'll have beaten Bowser's First Trap.

First, get the Hover F.L.U.D.D. found in the secret passageway connecting the Bob-omb Battlefield and Shifting Sand Land rooms. Then, go to the main hall and enter the passageway on the right wall. This will take you to the elevator room. Use Hover to fly up to another passageway and enter the Star Door there. You can do this without the Hover F.L.U.D.D with a few well timed jumps, but this method is much easier. You will be in a secret room in the Upper Hallway. Grab the Rocket F.L.U.D.D. Now, we see how to get to the castle. Go to the main hall again and stand underneath the huge sun. Use Rocket and voila! You're in the room with the Sling Star to Bowser's Castle: The Final Challenge.

This exploit can be used for other purposes too. Walk to the left in the Bowser's Castle room and you'll go through a secret passage and find yourself at the endless stairs. Go down and out the door and you'll be in the Star Room. You can go to courses like Rainbow Ride and Tick Tock Clock. Going back further will take you to the room with Lethal Lava Land and Tall, Tall Mountain. This part of the exploit may or may not have been intended by the developers.

(NOTE: This is also the ONLY way to reach the final boss while playing as Luigi.)

Skip to Final Battle 2.0

Even better than beating the game with only 9 Shine Sprites, it is possible to beat the game with only 1 (the one acquired from the first tutorial). To do this, once you enter the castle, walk to the right and enter the first door you see (which should be third from the right). You'll be in a room with a white wall on the right. If you triple jump (get to the right, and jump 3 times consecutively, you can move left and right in the air and still accomplish this), you can get into the wall and be able to walk right. From there, keep walking right, and you will see the two rooms where you get the Shine Sprites for having 16 and 48 star coins. Continue walking to the right and you will enter the room with the trap door that takes you to Bowser in the Dark World. Finish that, and you will be taken to the second tutorial. After completion of the tutorial, you have to climb to the door under the green mushroom, and enter it. Go to the right like you did earlier, except this time, jump into the wall on the left, which is kind of high, so you will have to double jump and possibly triple jump, and you will be standing in black. Next, you will have to triple jump to find an invisible staircase (it isn't hard to find, you have to make a triple jump and go to the right). Climb up it and you will find a star door that you can enter. From here, you can follow the rest of the first Skip to Final Battle from the words "Go to the main hall again", where you can beat Bowser, but with one star, not 9.

Star Coin Prizes

Star Coins are prizes you can find in just about every level. Getting a certain amount unlocks stuff for you.

5 - Level Designer
10 - Grass Tileset
13 - Cave Tileset
16 - Secret Shine Sprite
21 - Snow Tileset
25 - Volcano Tileset
28 - Desert Tileset
32 - Play as Luigi
38 - Castle Tileset
43 - Other Tileset
48 - Secret Shine Sprite
64 - The Mush Room