->Eyeballs were unable to be found...
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MARIO, appropriately made by a man named M A R I O (yes, with the spaces) is a ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' hack detailing an unknown point in Mario's life. Some theorize it is Mario turning evil, while some think it is his suicide. It was posted in 2010 on the [[http://www.smwcentral.net/?p=viewthread&t=42510 SMW Central]] forums by the user Adam, detailing his experiences with the hack in {{Creepypasta}} fashion. Unlike most Creepypastas, [[http://www.smwcentral.net/?p=section&a=details&id=6416 the hack actually exists]]. Read about it [[http://www.smwcentral.net/?p=viewthread&t=42510 here]] and download it [[http://www.smwcentral.net/?p=section&a=details&id=6416 here.]]

The hack's levels are strange and empty, and the message boxes weird and unsettling. The game progresses through weird levels until you defeat the boss, after which a gruesome description of "Victim #1" is shown. A text file that comes with the game can be decoded to an image, turning into a very, VERY NightmareFuel type picture that fits the description of the victim.

Something lesser known is that there happens to be ''several'' hacks, although you'll need to do some digging through the forums and other sources in order to find intact downloads (best place to start for the sequels would be [[http://www.smwcentral.net/?p=viewthread&t=43771 here]]). However, early investigations on the various threads turned up fruitless, and the author resumed being a "normal" forum member on SMW Central before getting banned. As a result, [[DeadFic the ARG portion of the hack has never been solved]].

In 2023, answers about the fic and its ARG have come forward in an unexpected way: following [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOD6A_E0xjY a popular YouTube investigation by "Hey Peter"]] revisiting the project and bringing it back into the limelight, the fic's original creator came forward in the comments with proof of their identity and several revelations, namely that the ARG was never intended to be "solved". The creator made the Creepypasta and its hack for fun and was surprised that they took off, with [[WritingByTheSeatOfYourPants everything coming afterwards being made up as it went along with no end goal in mind]] based off tropes that his 14-year-old self was a fan of until he got bored. The disturbing image from the files was also discovered to be a highly saturated and compressed edit of a Music/DirEnGrey cosplayer. While the answers the ARG raised will never be adequately resolved, the whole project can definitively be called "complete".
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!! This monstrosity contains examples of:
* AllLowercaseLetters: Some of the edited level names, such as "never come back" and "leave now."
* AlternateRealityGame: Had all the trimmings of one with hidden images and cryptic messages in Notepad.
* BleakLevel: The entire game is made up of these, with little to no enemies or hazards, and sometimes no music. Special mention goes to "Yoshi's Island 7" which is just a straight path to the goalposts.
* TheConscience: Yoshi's messages seem to try to get Mario to feel bad for whatever crime he committed.
* DeadFic: The author never made another game after the sequel. He eventually got banned from SMW Central altogether, almost guaranteeing that there will not be a third one.
** Actually, [[http://www.smwcentral.net/?p=viewthread&t=71828&page=1&pid=1125979#p1125979 there was a third hack]].
* DrivenToSuicide: Some theorize that the game involves Mario killing someone and then committing suicide because he can't face what he's done.
* EyeScream: The description of Victim #1 notes that their eyes were missing.
* FaceHeelTurn: Heavily implied in the first game that Mario did something horrible and became a FallenHero.
* JumpScare: The sudden loud helicopter noise in the beginning of "never come back."
* LavaPit: "#1 GO BACK" (Iggy's Castle) has boiling grey lava ''on the ceiling.'' Touching it kills you instantly. ...Except not exactly; [[LogicBomb you can swim on it for a while]], but if you go way too high, you'll die.
* TheMostDangerousVideoGame:
** According to the [[http://www.smwcentral.net/?p=viewthread&t=42510&page=3 original conversation]], the image can set itself as your desktop background.
** While playing the game the person who wrote the story about it noticed his chatroom quiet up, only to bustle again when he was done playing.
** Not to mention the blood dripping down one guy's hand after decoding the image.
* NightmareFace: The image.
* NoEnding: The game just ends with a black screen.
* NothingIsScarier: Several of the levels are missing all or most of the enemies, objects etc. that they would normally have in the regular game. Also, the message blocks in the castle, when hit, just give a blank box with Yoshi's signature at the bottom.
** As mentioned above, when playing the game, the writer alleges the IRC chatroom he was frequenting just went dead silent until he finished the game.
* NumberOfTheBeast: When the image sets itself as your background, it saves at a resolution of 666x666.
* SoundtrackDissonance:
** The standard cheerful victory theme plays during Victim #1's {{Gorn}}-filled description.
** In "leave now," the Ghost House theme plays, even though there are no enemies, let alone Boos.
* StylisticSuck: The levels are deliberately empty or barely hacked in order to achieve a creepy feel.
* UnwinnableByDesign: The game deliberately crashes and gives you a black screen in Donut Plains 1.
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[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder: Victim #3, the victim was found slumped over his computer reading an article on Website/TV Tropes about a creepy Mario rom hack... ]]

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