Neo Mario Galaxy – Daredevil Edition Entry 2: Silver Stars Under Pressure

One hit resets everything. Sometimes you don’t even need that.

Back to Galactic Garden

With Dino Piranha down and only one more star available, I head back to Galactic Garden Galaxy and select the next objective: Silver Stars in Wuthering Heights.

The opening looks familiar. Same starting platform as before, but this time there are clouds to work with, along with the cloud power-up.

Cloud Mario again. Shake the remote, place a cloud, and keep moving before it disappears.

The first section isn’t too bad. The clouds are large enough that missing one doesn’t feel likely, and even if I do, I’ve got a cloud ready to save it.

Wind and Timing

The next section looks worse than it actually is.

There’s wind pushing clouds upward, sometimes shifting direction slightly, but nothing too unpredictable. The real problem is when it stops.

That’s when it starts to matter how many clouds I’ve got left.

There are also those spiky flower things around the area, which don’t help. There’s room to work with, but not enough to switch off completely.

I spot a mushroom along the way. Not sure if it’s needed or not, so I leave it for now. If it matters later, I’ll come back.

Silver Stars, No Margin

Then it’s onto collecting the five silver stars.

This is where Daredevil Edition really starts to show.

Normally, this wouldn’t be much of a problem. Here, every jump feels like it matters more than it should. One misjudged platform and it’s straight back to the beginning.

It doesn’t help that I can’t see where everything is until I’m close enough to it.

There’s also the stamp for this galaxy to grab. I use my last cloud to reach it.

I regret that decision almost immediately.

The next section needs wall jumps, and there’s barely anything to land on beyond a platform sitting at a right angle to the walls.

Somehow, it works. I avoid what felt like certain failure and grab the final silver star.

No reset. No second attempt. Just barely holding it together.

Of course, it appears back at the start of the area.

I also realise at this point that I could have used camera controls to make some of those blind jumps easier.

That would have helped.

Second Star Secured

I make it back to the start without undoing everything and collect the shine.

Second star done. First attempt.

The Run

This is how it actually went.

Back on the Ship

Back on Starship Mario, I head into the collection room and take a quick look at the cloud power-up again.

I’m not entirely sure how many stars are needed before Galactic Garden Galaxy is considered complete, but another thought comes up.

If I switch to Luigi, does Starship Mario become Starship Luigi?

Not sure yet, but it feels like something worth testing.

Continue the Journey

← Entry 1: One Hit Is All It Takes

Neo Mario Galaxy – Daredevil Edition Archive

— All attempts in this challenge.

Super Mario ROM Hacks Archive

— All Mario ROM hack content.

Dolphin Setup Guide

— How this is even running on Steam Deck.

Entry 3 →

Neo Mario Galaxy – Daredevil Edition Entry 1: One Hit Is All It Takes

One hit resets everything. No checkpoints. No second chances.

Back to Neo Mario Galaxy

Ever since I managed to get Super Mario Galaxy ROM hacks running on my Steam Deck, I kept thinking back to Neo Mario Galaxy. It was the first one I tested as a proof of concept.

This time, I wanted to try something different: Daredevil Edition.

At the start, you’re given the choice between Mario or Luigi, along with the option to enable Daredevil Mode. Once it’s on, that’s it. There’s no turning it off later.

I accepted it.

What Daredevil Edition Changes

Daredevil Edition effectively puts every star under Daredevil Comet rules.

One hit, and the star resets. No checkpoints. No recovery.

Every section has to be done cleanly from start to finish. Mistakes don’t slow you down, they send you straight back to the beginning.

No safety net.

First Attempt

The first star takes place in Galactic Garden Galaxy, with the goal of defeating Dino Piranha.

It didn’t take long for the first attempt to go wrong.

I needed to grab a flower and float across to another platform. Simple enough in theory.

In practice, I misjudged the distance and walked straight off the edge.

Didn’t even get hit.

Just fell.

Second Attempt

The second attempt went better.

I made the jump properly this time and reached the next platform without too much trouble. From there, it was on to collecting five launch star bits spread across three giant apples.

There are enemies on each of them, which doesn’t help. After failing once already, the idea of going all the way back again was sitting in the back of my mind the whole time.

Once the launch star was active, the next section introduced a giant Piranha Plant. Not difficult, but enough to keep things tense.

Behind it was a Comet Medal, along with a brief moment as Rainbow Mario. For once, there was no risk. Just a short break from worrying about getting hit.

That didn’t last long.

Successful Attempt

This is the run where it actually goes right.

Dino Piranha, No Mistakes Allowed

Then it was time to face Dino Piranha.

This is probably the first time in a long while I’ve actually had to think about this fight. Under normal conditions, it’s straightforward. With one-hit rules, it feels very different.

I don’t think I’ve ever done a full no-hit run in any game before, so this was new territory.

Thankfully, it went cleanly.

Dino Piranha went down, and the first star of the run was secured.

First Impressions

The hack only has 42 stars in total, but it’s already clear this isn’t going to be straightforward.

Even simple sections feel different when there’s no room for mistakes.

One star down. Plenty left to go.

Continue the Journey

Neo Mario Galaxy – Daredevil Edition Archive

— All attempts in this challenge.

Super Mario ROM Hacks Archive

— All Mario ROM hack content.

Dolphin Setup Guide

— How this is even running on Steam Deck.

Entry 2 →