Seeing the Unseen
The Astral Projection Glitch is a glitch in Super Mario 64 that causes the desyncing of Mario's movement and the model itself in an unintended way. The only known cause of this glitch comes if Mario manages to be held by Chuckya while holding said enemy at the same time. This causes the Mario model to stand in place while the "structure" of Mario can move around. This glitch can only be done in Wet-Dry World with the water and in Rainbow Ride using both the "light Chuckya" and "Hands-Free" glitches and going to the fireplace.
Analysis[]
In Super Mario 64, there are two factors in calculating the position of Mario. The first factor would be Mario's model itself, which is the visible factor found in the game. The second factor is the "structure" of Mario, which is used for calculation, status, collision, the camera's placement, along with most of the other behaviors and such of Mario. This second factor is invisible through normal play of the game. In most circumstances, the two factors sync up with each other. However, an exception to this revolves around enemies catching and throwing Mario, particularly the Chuckya.
When Mario is held by the Chuckya, the Mario model desyncs with the structure. The Mario model stays in Chuckya's hands, while the structure usually stays in the position before the model is caught by the enemy. This explains why the camera does not focus on Mario while he is held by the Chuckya. The structure of Mario usually stays in place while Chuckya holds the Mario model, and snaps back in sync to said model when the enemy throws Mario. This is the intended behavior for both Mario's model and structure when caught by the Chuckya enemy.
However, the intended process can be interrupted by manipulation of Mario's structure through collision with things like water and lava. This can cause the Mario structure to enable movement. This would be how the Astral projection glitch can be done, since the Mario structure is the factor that can carry objects like the Chuckya. When the structure is enabled movement, it can be used to grab the Chuckya while it holds the Mario model. This causes the Astral Projection glitch to occur, as the event where Mario's invisible structure can move around freely while the Mario model's in a different place can be permanent unless the structure throws the Chuckya. The Chuckya held by the Mario structure is also invisible.
Trivia[]
- The name of the glitch refers to the term "Astral projection", which refers to particular out-of-body experiences via the soul going outside of the body. This term fits for the glitch, since the model and structure of Mario could be parallel to the body and soul of a person.
References[]
- https://youtu.be/thuY_6Zr8Qg?t=1677 ("Held Mario" segment in "Seeing the Unseen", a video by Pannenkoek2012/UncommentatedPannen)
- https://ukikipedia.net/wiki/Astral_Projection
