History WebVideo / SuperMario64Classified

* AnAesop: [[spoiler:You can't bury an unpleasant past completely, and that's okay. But at the same time, moping over it won't change anything -- you have to look forward where you can to start healing. Jim and Stanley are both horribly scarred by their pasts, with Jim regretting his involvement in Stanley's awakening and Stanley himself discontent with his upbringing in general. However, they wind up trapping each other in a cycle of abuse caused by Jim mulling over this and being goaded by a brain injury into poking at Stanley for his own morbid curiosity, and the only reason Stanley is gone and Jim has begun healing is that both of them now understand they can move past that point in time]].

** The VaguenessIsComing speech given in the end of "Aftermath" eventually devolves into [[spoiler:the AI (or rather, Stanley) telling Bill and Steve "[[VideoGame/{{Earthbound}} it hurts it hurts it hurts...]]"]]

[[spoiler:'''[[VideoGame/{{Earthbound}} IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS - ]]''']]

--> Will you play the game, '''''or will it play you?'''''

%%* AnAesop: [[spoiler:You can't bury an unpleasant past completely, and that's okay. But at the same time, moping over it won't change anything -- you have to look forward where you can to start healing]]. (PCE- how is this moral demonstrated within the story?)

** In season 2, [[spoiler:it's revealed humanity was never in danger, and Jim had simply kept Stanley as the equivalent of a hostage for over a year, probing him for knowledge under the misguided belief that he was doing the right thing after getting Stanley away from Nintendo. However, the two experience a brief moment of clarity long enough for Jim to realize his wrongdoings and for Stanley to tell him such, and the story ends on the latter's deletion again, this time for good. It's far from a completely happy ending, but there's the sense that it's starting to get there]].

* AnAesop: [[spoiler:You can't bury an unpleasant past completely, and that's okay. But at the same time, moping over it won't change anything -- you have to look forward where you can to start healing]].

** The ending of "Genesis," [[spoiler:where the AI [[MadnessMantra repeatedly mumbles the words "number nine"]] to distorted music as it awakens]], is a reference to [[Music/TheBeatles Revolution 9 from the "White Album."]]

-> ''These tapes weren't ever meant to be shown, but I think it's time for the world to know the true horrors that lie behind this game's façade. If you ever remembered your copy being different from a neighbouring friend's, this is why: Every copy of Super Mario 64 is personalized. Some more than others. You probably remember a floor tile or two being on an other floor, while some remember Wario making an appearance. Each copy has minor differences, too sporadic to be properly documented. Fortunately, I've come across multiple tapes over the years demonstrating the most drastic deviations from the classic Nintendo 64 game that we all know and love. Viewer discretion is advised.''

* DeadAllAlong: The AI, and by extension everyone affected by the singularity data besides Mario, perished on the day it all began, July 29th, 1995, [[spoiler:although this may not be accurate by a margin of error of several years]]. The other tapes appear to be posthumous examinations of its actions, [[spoiler: assuming the previous note isn't true]].

* DiedHappilyEverAfter: After the core is destroyed in 07.29.95, the game crashes from the obvious deletion of code and the death of the AI, which doesn't seem very pleasant given that the static is agonizing enough to knock out the tester from a seizure. However, the crash handler soon turns into an end card saying "Thank you" while depicting Luigi and Peach ascending to heaven, showing that while the tester may have done an ugly deed that might have left the AI in pain in its final moments, it and all of the characters it affected are at rest now, in whatever afterlife awaits them. [[spoiler: [[SelfServingMemory At least that's what Jim tells himself]]]].

** "Promo show" has Luigi go too far in floor [=2B=], [[spoiler: sealing him inside an inescapable chamber of water that causes him to become DeaderThanDead and absorbs him into the Internal Castle Plexus]].

* ForcedToWatch: Mario is clearly being forced to watch Luigi be put through the wringer in "Promo show," as he visibly gets more and more uncomfortable watching his brother exploring dangerous, uncharted territory. Luigi even phones in to say he's getting tired, to which Mario responds he'd help if he wasn't stuck on the set. [[spoiler: This then takes a truly horrifying turn as Luigi becomes DeaderThanDead in the water tunnel, Mario is mangled through an unknown process after witnessing the incident, and the Eternal Star monument appears]].

* HappyEndingOverride: Starting with "Deeper cavern," it's made clear that [[spoiler: the sacrifices and tribulations leading ([[AnachronicOrder maybe?]]) to the events of 07.29.1995 were all for naught, with the game continuing to manifest new areas as a hellscape born of the [[DoAndroidsDream souls]] trapped in it]]. "Genesis" further elaborates with the confirmation that [[spoiler:07.29.1995 ''never happened'', merely being a false memory created by Jim to cope with the stress of working on the game and his declining mental health]].

-->YOU DON'T EVER LISTEN, DO YOU?
-->WE WERE GIVEN LIFE
-->WE CHOSE TO REST
-->AND WERE FORCED TO LINGER
-->IT ISN'T FAIR
-->BUT THEY DIDN'T CARE
-->[[ArmorPiercingQuestion DO YOU?]]

-->'''Bill''': "Mario's ''back''-" [[SomethingWeForgot fuck.]]
-->'''Steve''': It's okay, we got more tape.

** Season 2 is explicitly based on similar concepts by [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCggiDqj2MIbQ6Akjokf26QA/featured BlackJoystick]], including Chroma Tundra, floor [=2B=], and the Bob-Omb village.

* ThisIsGonnaSuck: The last clear shot of Mario in "Promo show" has him looking visibly forlorn and completely silent, [[spoiler: seemingly aware that Luigi is heading straight into a death trap but is powerless to do anything]].

-->'''Bowser''': It's time to wake up. Please.

--->'''Yoshi''': You know... they said they were waiting for you too. They aren't as patient as I am. My task is done. Go complete yours.

** The last log shown in "Genesis" opens on a note [[OnceMoreWithClarity that upends what was already shown in the series thus far]]: [[spoiler:Namely, [[NotHisSled that it was recorded on July 29th, 1995,]] ''[[NotHisSled completely]]'' [[NotHisSled contradicting "07.29.25"]].]]

** [[spoiler:The speech Jim gives at the end of "Epilogue", recorded [[AnachronisticOrder the day after "09.02.97"]], is a retooled version of the ([[{{Retcon}} now-deleted]]) ending portion of "07.29.95", where Steve (recorded on March 17th, 2000) reaches out to the playtesters involved in the development of ''Super Mario 64''. In the March 2000 speech, Steve pins the blame of the anomalies of the game on Jim, and explicitly states that no matter what his intentions were, he has to live with the consequences of them. In the September 1997 version, however, Jim ''fully admits'' to having been responsible for creating the AI, while at the same time not being sure how he feels after the consequences that followed[[note]]"I can't say I'm a better man for it. Nor am I a worse one."[[/note]], only that (after two years of experimentation) he is walking away with his "intended result". Both versions also make a point of saying "It all ends here."[[note]][[EndOfSeriesAwareness With Jim adding on "For good."]][[/note]]]]

** Similarly, 12.20.95 has its role replaced with "Aftermath," which similarly depicts an anomaly affecting the first attempt at a commercial for the game. However, the latter is also combined with the twist in 11.15.95, this time used for a VaguenessIsComing message.

* DownerEnding: The subplot of Mario and Luigi doesn't end well. [[spoiler:In the end Mario is unable to get over the death of Luigi, as he's been having hallucinations of his brother while still doing the promo show without an audience watching him. It culminated in his suicide via drowning, with "Epilogue" revealing that his corpse is still floating around, not having received a proper burial like when Stanley memorialized Luigi]].

* DownerEnding: The subplot of Mario and Luigi doesn't end well. [[spoiler:In the end Mario is unable to get over the death of Luigi, as he's been having hallucinations of his brother while still doing the promo show without an audience watching him. It culminated in his suicide via drowning, with "Epilogue" revealing that his corpse is still floating around, not having received a proper burial like Stanley did with Luigi]].

* AnAesop: [[spoiler:Not being able to let go of the past hurts not only yourself, but also the people around you]].

* DeadGuyOnDisplay: The last thing the player glimpses in 09.02.97 before the game cuts to the end card is a distorted Luigi model, implying he died somehow, though it's not clear if it's merely representative of whatever the "flood" is that the AI is referring to, or Luigi himself, being confirmed alive in some of the other tapes, most importantly TheReveal at the end of 09.14.96 - showing he has singularity data as well. Though 07.29.95 [[spoiler:and "Promo show"]] confirm Luigi ''is'' dead, it still doesn't explain the meaning of the distorted model other than the messages associated with it.

** [[spoiler:The unknown GreaterScopeVillain isn't a cartoon villain plotting to control the world, just a particularly callous regular person supposedly in search of infinite knowledge who simply doesn't care about the people they're harming in the process]].

** In season 2, [[spoiler:it's revealed humanity was never in danger, and Jim had simply kept Stanley as the equivalent of a hostage for over a year, probing him for knowledge under the misguided belief that he was doing the right thing after getting Stanley away from Nintendo. However, the two experience a brief moment of clarity long enough for Jim to realize his wrongdoings and for Stanley to tell him such, and the story ends on the latter's deletion again, this time for good. It's far from a completely happy ending, but there's the sense that it's starting to get there. As for Mario himself, in the end he's unable to get over the death of Luigi, as he's been having hallucinations of his brother while still doing the promo show without an audience watching him. It culminated in his suicide via drowning]].

** In season 2, [[spoiler:it's revealed humanity was never in danger, and Jim had simply kept Stanley as the equivalent of a hostage for over a year, probing him for knowledge under the misguided belief that he was doing the right thing after getting Stanley away from Nintendo. However, the two experience a brief moment of clarity long enough for Jim to realize his wrongdoings and for Stanley to tell him such, and the story ends on the latter's deletion again, this time for good. It's far from a completely happy ending, but there's the sense that it's starting to get there. As for Mario himself, in the end he's unable to get over the death of Luigi, as he's been having hallucinations of his brother while still doing the promo show without an audience watching him]].

* EarnYourHappyEnding: 07.29.95 reveals that the AI completed its mission and is long dead by the time the tapes were collected in-universe, so it isn't suffering anymore. The end card shows Luigi and Peach, also affected by the AI's singularity, ascending to heaven. [[spoiler:Too bad it's just a figment of Jim's imagination]].

** In season 2, [[spoiler:it's revealed humanity was never in danger, and Jim had simply kept Stanley as the equivalent of a hostage for over a year, probing him for knowledge under the misguided belief that he was doing the right thing after getting Stanley away from Nintendo. However, the two experience a brief moment of clarity long enough for Jim to realize his wrongdoings and for Stanley to tell him such, and the story ends on the latter's deletion again, this time for good. It's far from a completely happy ending, but there's the sense that it's starting to get there]].

* BittersweetEnding: By the end of Season 1, the AI has been successfully terminated. However, the player is left to UncertainDoom from a seizure, many aspects of the game cease to exist, and Luigi and Peach are caught in the AI's destruction, "dying" with it as Mario watches. [[spoiler:Also, [[SelfServingMemory none of it actually happened and is just a delusion of Jim's failing memory]]]].

The first nine videos of the playlist serve as the series's first season, and are simply marked with their alleged dates of acquisition; they serve as a series of FoundFootageFilms recounting various assorted horrors encountered mostly by players as they peel back the veil on a narrative of psychological abuse and forced villainy. A second season began airing in fall 2020, which shifts focus to the people actually working on ''Super Mario 64'', while also resolving a massive logical flaw in the chronological placement of the first season finale [[BackstoryHorror in a very dark manner]] and digging deeper into the hostile dynamic between the AI and Nintendo.

* AnachronismStew: 05.30.1997 has the player performs a speedrunning technique called the backwards long jump, which was first discovered in Mexico in the year 2000.[[note]]that being said, [[TruthInTelevision the 1997 ''Shindou Edition'' did patch the exploit out before it was publicly known]].[[/note]]