Super Mario 74: A Survivor’s Journey Log 9 – Ice-Crystal Tower

Super Mario 74 – Log 9: Ice-Crystal Tower

Platform: Steam Deck
Mode: Original Edition
Rules: No savestates (except between entries)
Format: No Commentary

Video: Ice-Crystal Tower exploration, King Whomp rematch, red coins, and Wing Cap climbs (no commentary)


With Stalagmite Cave done, I stayed in the same room and moved into the next course: Ice-Crystal Tower. Every time I enter, there’s a Goomba waiting to start something. I’ve made a point of ignoring it unless it becomes a problem. So far, that’s worked well enough.

The first task was a rematch with King Whomp. I spent enough time practicing the route up to him that it’s become familiar, even if I wouldn’t trust myself to do it without thinking. The fight itself is different this time. Smaller platform, less room to recover, and if you fall, you’re climbing all the way back up to try again. There is a metal box that can help, but positioning matters more here than anything else.

I’ve seen the trick where you phase through him with a ground pound, but I’ve never managed to make it work consistently, so I stuck with what I know. Wait for him to turn away from the box, move in, ground pound, and reset. It’s slower, but it works. Three clean hits later, the fight was done and the star was mine.

Waters of Pain was next, a section I’d already passed through on the way up. The ice behaves more like lava here, which changes how you approach everything. The star itself sits in a box above a small platform, just out of reach unless you commit to the jumps properly. I didn’t quite get it right, clipped the ice, and ended up bouncing onto the platform anyway. Not clean, but effective enough.

Almost the Top lives up to its name. The climb back up is familiar by this point, but the risk doesn’t really go away. One mistake and you’re either back on the snow or falling out of the level entirely. The Spindrifts are the main problem here, each one placed just well enough to knock you off if you’re not careful. This time they stayed out of the way, and the star was taken without issue.

The red coins came next. Some of the jumps here felt worse than the earlier climb, mainly because there’s less room to recover if anything goes wrong. I started the 100-coin collection at the same time, but it became clear fairly quickly that I wasn’t going to reach the total on that pass. Rather than force it, I settled for the red coin star and moved on, knowing I’d come back to the full collection properly.

How High Can You Get? turned into the real 100-coin attempt. The plan was simple enough — climb as high as possible, then use the Wing Cap to cover the remaining platforms. In practice, it didn’t go cleanly. Two separate mistakes, both costing time and momentum, both forcing me to adjust mid-run. Eventually everything lined up, and I was able to collect the remaining coins before reaching the top. Not perfect, but enough to secure the star.

The final star, Very Well Hidden Star, needed the Wing Cap again. The name isn’t exaggerating. The star sits below the starting platform, easy to miss even if you know it’s there. My first attempt went straight past it, which wasn’t surprising given the angle. The second attempt was better. Adjusted the approach, lined it up properly, and this time the landing worked.

With that, Ice-Crystal Tower was done. Another course cleared, and one less area left hanging over the run.


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Super Mario 74 – Log 10 (coming soon)

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Super Mario 74: A Survivor’s Journey Log 8 – Stalagmite Cave

Super Mario 74 – Log 8: Stalagmite Cave

Platform: Steam Deck
Mode: Original Edition
Rules: No savestates (except between entries)
Format: No Commentary

Video: Stalagmite Cave exploration, descent route, red coins, obstacle courses, and Cap-Combination attempts (no commentary)


With Dice-Fortress finally behind me, the obvious next step would have been to head back to the Tower of the East and continue there. The problem is that the next course in that area needs the Vanish Cap, and I’d rather avoid unnecessary backtracking if I can help it. So instead, I stayed where I was, unlocked another star door, and made use of what was already available. Inside was the pink Bob-Omb, who opened a cannon I’ll be coming back to later, but for now there were two courses to choose from. The first of those was Stalagmite Cave.

The first star, Downwards, doesn’t leave much room for interpretation. A sign at the top makes two things clear before you even start: once you go down, there’s no going back, and there are no coins waiting at the bottom. With that in mind, I took the drop. The plan was to land cleanly in the water. The reality was the same as it had been during practice — not quite. Close enough to recover, though, and once I was in the water the star was straightforward to collect.

Sweating Tunnel came next, and getting there meant heading back up through the level. Wall kicks, careful movement, and just enough awareness to avoid losing progress to something minor. The bat up there isn’t dangerous, but it’s the kind of thing that can break your rhythm at the worst possible moment. I passed the Thwomps and the Chuckya platforms on the way, both of which I knew I’d be dealing with later, and kept moving toward the lava path. A series of descending platforms over lava isn’t the place to hesitate, so I stuck with long jumps and kept the momentum going. It worked this time, though I know from practice that it doesn’t always.

The red coins and 100-coin star followed, and this part of the course felt more controlled. There’s space to move, room to plan, and not much pressure unless you create it yourself. I made a point of leaving the final coins close to where the red coin star would appear, just to avoid any unnecessary movement at the end. It paid off. No mistakes, no wasted time, just two more stars added cleanly.

Hot Obstacle Course was next, though the name doesn’t quite match what it asks of you. This is where the Thwomps come into play properly. Three of them, spaced just far enough apart to force you to commit to each jump. It’s more about timing than anything else. Get that right, and the star is waiting at the end.

Chuckya’s Challenge lived up to its name a bit more. Platform to platform, each one guarded, each one needing just enough precision to avoid being grabbed and thrown back. I decided to push back a little on one of them, which didn’t go to plan the first time, but the second attempt was cleaner. A few long jumps later, and that was another star secured.

That left the reason I came here in the first place: Cap-Combination. This one needs both the Metal Cap and the Wing Cap active at the same time, which meant heading back down the slide and setting things up properly. I grabbed the Metal Cap first, then the Wing Cap, partly out of habit and partly because I trust the Wing Cap timer slightly more, even if I don’t know exactly how much difference it makes.

From there, it was a matter of flying over to the underwater switch, activating it, and dealing with the timed path that follows. It’s longer than it looks, and the slope works against you just enough to make every second count. Walking is possible, but I found jumping kept the pace up better. Even then, it took a few attempts to get everything lined up properly. Timing, positioning, momentum — all of it had to come together. Eventually it did, and once it did, the rest of the path felt manageable.

One final flight to the star, and Cap-Combination was done.

There’s still another course in this area to deal with, but that can wait for the next entry. For now, Stalagmite Cave is cleared, and more importantly, one of the more awkward stars in this section is out of the way.


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Super Mario 74 – Log 9

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Super Mario 74: A Survivor’s Journey Log 7 – Reaching the Top

Super Mario 74 – Log 7: Reaching the Top

Platform: Steam Deck
Mode: Original Edition
Rules: No savestates (except between entries)
Format: No Commentary

Video: Tower climb, Lava-Switch of Eruption stars, wing cap flights, and Dice-Fortress completion (no commentary)


Options were starting to narrow. I still needed to unlock the remaining caps, and the next one was waiting at the very top of the tower in this area. Getting there was the problem. The only way up was a chain of triple jumps, one after another, and missing even one meant dropping all the way back to the start. It took more attempts than I care to count before I was confident enough to even start recording, so when it finally came together in one clean run, it felt earned.

At the top sat the pipe leading to Lava-Switch of Eruption, the Wing Cap switch course for this area. First priority was the switch itself. I’d rather have the cap unlocked before worrying about anything else, so I went straight for it. With that done, there were still three stars left in the course, and the first attempt didn’t go well enough to keep. A quick reset and a change of approach made more sense.

I went for the red coins next. They’re spread across towers and platforms, and in theory it’s straightforward, just a matter of planning the route. In practice, I managed to ignore my own plan and leave the highest coin until last. The course forces you to use the cannons to reach everything, and timing matters more than it first appears. On the first proper attempt, the Wing Cap ran out just as I was closing in on the final coin. Close enough to see it, not close enough to reach it.

The second attempt went better. I got the last coin, the star appeared, and then the same thing almost happened again. The Wing Cap ran out just as I was going for the star itself. This time though, I was low enough that the fall didn’t matter. No panic, no recovery needed, just a clean landing and the star collected.

Under the Tower was next, and this was the one that caused problems earlier. This time it didn’t. One clean attempt and it was done, which made a nice change. The Tallest Tower followed, and although I’d already been there, the star itself wasn’t where you’d expect it. You can go for it with the Wing Cap, but dropping down to it felt more reliable, so that’s what I stuck with.

With the Wing Cap course cleared, it was time to go back to Dice-Fortress and finish what I’d left behind. The Observation Tower was first. At the top, along with the star box, was a sign pointing out what I already suspected. To reach the platforms ahead, I’d need to start my flight from the highest point in the map. Which naturally leads into the final star: Secrets in the Sky.

Finding that highest point wasn’t as straightforward as I remembered. The video makes that fairly obvious. I ended up going in the wrong direction more than once, even managing to grab the Observation Tower star again by mistake. At one point I even tried to kill Mario just to reset my position, and somehow failed at that as well. Not exactly the cleanest part of the run.

Once I finally found the right spot, the plan was simple. Launch from the highest point, hold the jump button to glide, and keep as much height as possible on the way over. Simple on paper, less so in execution. It took several attempts before the flight lined up properly, but eventually everything clicked, the box was broken, and the final star was free.

One more flight to reach it, repeating the same route, and this time it worked without issue. With that, Dice-Fortress was complete.

That brings the total to forty stars. Still a long way to go, but progress is steady. One hundred and eleven left.


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Super Mario 74 – Log 6

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Super Mario 74 – Log 8 (coming soon)

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Super Mario 74: A Survivor’s Journey Log 6 – System of a Town

Super Mario 74 – Log 6: System of a Town

Platform: Steam Deck
Mode: Original Edition
Rules: No savestates (except between entries)
Format: No Commentary

Video: Tower of the East exploration, System of a Town stars, rooftop routes, sewer navigation, and red coin collection (no commentary)


With the other star door still out of reach, there wasn’t much reason to stay where I was. The next step was to move into the next hub area, the Tower of the East. There are multiple courses here, along with a few other stars scattered around, but I had already decided where I was going first. System of a Town felt like the right place to start.

The first star, Rooftop Climbing, suggests taking the obvious route. Climb the buildings, follow the path, work your way up. That is the intended approach, but not necessarily the one I went with. There is another way to get there, and I ended up taking that instead. The star itself sits inside the building that also has another star resting on its roof, something I kept in mind for later.

From there, I moved into the sewer system. This is one of those stars that is easy to miss if you’re not paying attention. Once you drop into the water, there’s a path off to the left that doesn’t stand out at first glance. Follow that, and you’re into a series of jumps that range from straightforward to just awkward enough to slow you down. Nothing too difficult, but enough to keep you from rushing through it.

The Secondary House Entrance turned out to be much simpler than I expected. The name gives it away if you think about it for a moment. Find the house with the chimney, drop in, and the star is waiting. No tricks, no pressure, just a quick entry and a clean star.

Find The Secret Room was less straightforward. I already knew where the star was from earlier practice, but getting there was another matter. Two platforms, slightly different heights, and a triple jump that needs to be just right to reach the house. While I was practicing, the Chuckya on the second platform made sure I didn’t get it right the first time, or the second. This time it stayed out of the way, though it still took a couple of attempts to get the jump lined up properly. Once inside, a ground pound revealed the room, and the star followed.

The red coin star was next, along with the 100-coin star alongside it. This one was more about movement than difficulty. Working through the course, checking corners, moving between rooftops and streets, making sure nothing was missed. As expected, the red coin star itself sends you back to the start once it’s done, which at this point is more routine than surprise.

That left the star I had noticed right at the beginning, sitting on top of the building. The Mansion’s Secret Star. This was where all the wall jumping came back into play. Climbing up wasn’t difficult at first, but near the top I nearly lost it. A slight mistake, a bit of panic, and for a moment it looked like I was going to drop back down and start again. Instead, a quick recovery with a jump kick chain got me back into position, and the star was secured.

With that, System of a Town was complete. One course cleared cleanly, and a good amount of progress made in this new area. I’m still not quite at the point where I can open the next star door, but I’m close. More importantly, I know the remaining caps are in this area, which means more options will open up soon enough.


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Super Mario 74: A Survivor’s Journey Log 5 – Azure-Abyss Cleared

Super Mario 74 – Log 5: Azure Abyss Cleared

Platform: Steam Deck
Mode: Original Edition
Rules: No savestates (except between entries)
Format: No Commentary

Video: Azure Abyss red coins, 100-coin star, Metal Cap puzzle, and Wall of Failure attempts (no commentary)


Back to Azure Abyss, and straight into what I knew was going to be a longer task — the red coins, or Red Treasure Hunt as this one is called, along with the 100-coin star on top of it. The layout of this course makes it awkward to rush anything. It’s deeper than it first looks, and the last thing I wanted was to be scrambling for air because I got careless. So I took it slower, moving between the land sections and the underwater routes, trying to keep things controlled rather than efficient.

Somewhere along the way I realised my swimming had improved without me really noticing. I’m not about to claim anything close to speedrunner level, but there was a rhythm to it that I don’t remember having before. Funny how that happens just by playing more. It made the coin collection smoother, even if it didn’t make it any shorter.

The red coin star itself sits safely above the water, which helps, but by the time I had all eight coins I was still short on the total. That’s when it turned into a bit of a hunt. I hit 97 coins and started running out of places to check. I didn’t want to spend more time swimming if I could avoid it, so I went after one of the flying enemies, hoping it would drop what I needed. It dropped two coins. 99. Close enough to be frustrating.

I eventually tracked down the final coin, though it took longer than it should have, and with that both the red coin star and the 100-coin star were done. Not difficult, just drawn out enough to make every mistake feel like wasted time.

Next was Heavy Metal Required, and the name doesn’t leave much to guess. I needed the Metal Cap. I’ve seen this done without it, but I’m not interested in making things harder than they need to be, so I stuck with the intended route. With the cap active, I could sink properly underwater and push the purple switch, which brought out the timed blocks.

Everything felt fine at first. The jumps were clean, the timing felt right, and then right at the end I walked straight off the final block. No complicated mistake, no bad angle, just walked off. The second attempt went the way the first one should have, and the star was mine without any further issues.

That left one final star in the course: Wall of Failure. The name fits. I knew exactly what I needed to do — get onto the platform, long jump, grab the ledge — and in theory it’s simpler than the alternative route. In practice, it took far longer than it should have. I lost count of the attempts. Too much distance, not enough distance, missing the ledge entirely, every variation you can think of showed up at least once.

When it finally worked, it wasn’t clean or dramatic, it just… worked. Mario grabbed the ledge, pulled himself up, and the star was there. That was Azure Abyss done.

Even with the course complete, I’m still two stars short of opening the next star door in this area. That means next time I’ll be heading through the double doors instead. I already have the key from Bowser, so it’s time to open up more of the castle and see what else this hack has waiting.


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Super Mario 74: A Survivor’s Journey Log 4 – Toxic Stars & Unexpected Progress

Super Mario 74 – Log 4: Toxic Stars & Unexpected Progress

Platform: Steam Deck
Mode: Original Edition
Rules: No savestates (except between entries)
Format: No Commentary

Video: Metal Cap switch course cleared, Toxic-Switch of Danger stars, and first stars in Azure-Abyss (no commentary)


With Bowser beaten, I could have moved straight into the next area, but there were still a couple of places left in this overworld that I hadn’t touched yet. One of them was the pipe leading to the Metal Cap course, Toxic-Switch of Danger. Technically I could have gone here right at the start of the hack, but I wanted to give myself a bit of a warm-up first. I remembered this level having toxic gas everywhere, and the only way to move through it safely is with the Metal Cap, which meant I already knew this was going to be one of those courses where you either stay calm and get through it, or you rush and fall straight into a hole.

There are five stars in this course, so I decided I might as well deal with all of them while I was here. Like before, I’m using the names from the wiki since the game itself doesn’t show them, and the first thing I did was go for the easier ones before even activating the switch. The first star, The Correct Hole, looks like a trap at first. The level is full of bottomless pits, and one of them has a coin floating over it, which usually means you shouldn’t trust it. This time though, it actually was the right one. I dropped down, grabbed the coin, and came out with the star without any problems, which was a good sign considering how this level is supposed to go.

The next star, Behind the Switch, is exactly where the name says. It sits in a small alcove directly behind the Metal Cap switch itself, which makes it easy to miss if you don’t know it’s there, but also one of the simplest stars in the course once you do. With those two done, there wasn’t really any reason to avoid it anymore, so I activated the switch and made the Metal Cap blocks active, including the one inside this level that I was about to be using a lot more than I expected.

Pillar Jumping was next, and it’s exactly what it sounds like. I went for a long jump to the pillar and followed it with a wall kick to grab the ledge. Apparently the intended way is to triple jump, but the long jump and wall kick worked for me, so I stuck with that rather than trying to be clever. One more jump after that and the star was mine, which left the two I remembered giving me trouble years ago.

Toxic Wall Kicks was the one I had been thinking about before I even entered the course. Back when I first played this hack, this star caused me more problems than I care to remember, and part of the reason I didn’t come here first this time was because I didn’t want to get stuck on it straight away. Somehow though, this time it just worked. One attempt, no panic, no missed jumps, and the star was collected before I really had time to expect anything to go wrong.

That only left the red coins, and that’s where the level finally decided to push back a little. The first attempt ended almost immediately when I misjudged a jump for the very first coin and dropped straight into a hole. Second attempt went much better. The coins are scattered across small platforms and narrow ledges, and a few of them hang just far enough over pits to make you think twice before jumping. Most of them came together without much trouble, but the last one slowed me down. To reach it I had to land on a small platform, then jump to another even smaller one, and every time I thought I had the angle right, Mario would come up just short or drift a little too far. That meant more trips back to the Metal Cap block, because I wasn’t about to risk running out of time in the gas while trying to fix my own mistakes. Eventually the jump worked, the last coin was collected, and with it the final star of the course.

Finishing that level with less trouble than I remembered honestly surprised me, so instead of stopping there I decided to keep going and head straight into Course 3, Azure Abyss. For some reason I had it in my head that this level had a lighthouse and was much darker than it actually is, which makes me think I’m mixing it up with another hack, but once I got inside it was clear I wasn’t remembering it quite right.

The Deepest Dive was the first star, and it’s exactly what it sounds like. Straight into the water, swim down to the bottom, grab the star, done. Cave Exploration was similar, but this time with a hidden passage to find before the star shows up. Once I spotted the opening it didn’t take long, and by that point I was already thinking about whether I should go for one more before stopping.

I decided on Pillars of Precision, which thankfully didn’t involve another long swim, just a short dive into a cave with three narrow pillars waiting at the end. I fully expected to miss at least one jump and have to repeat the whole thing, but somehow everything lined up perfectly and the star was collected on the first try. That was the point where I stopped and just sat there for a moment wondering what was going on, because years ago this hack gave me serious trouble, and now I had just cleared the Metal Cap course and taken three stars from the next level without much resistance at all.

I’m not going to get overconfident. I know this hack well enough to know it will push back sooner or later. But for now, I can honestly say I’m having a blast playing this again, and I don’t remember the last time I got through this much of Super Mario 74 without feeling like the game was trying to throw me out of the castle.


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Super Mario 64 Randomizer – Log 14: Wrong Turn, Right Reward

Progress: Wing Cap Unlocked
Platform: Steam Deck
Settings: Vanilla Mario & Music

“This was not the route I planned. It was, however, the route I needed.”

With access to the Tiny-Huge Island paintings finally unlocked, I head in expecting something useful.

Instead, I arrive in Hazy Maze Cave.

This is a course I actively dislike. I would genuinely take any other level over this one.

That said, there is one reason not to immediately leave: this is where the Metal Cap switch normally lives.

If the randomizer has put anything important here, this is where it would be.

Hazy Maze Cave: Reluctant Progress

Before committing to the cap route, I pick up a couple of stars tied to the swimming beast in the cavern.

While doing that, I start mentally tracking Red Coin placements.

Future me is going to regret this level.

Eventually, I reach the metal-cap transition.

It isn’t the Metal Cap.

It’s the Wing Cap switch.

The Wing Cap: Problem Solved

I wasn’t prepared for this.

Still, there’s no chance I’m leaving without activating it.

I hit the switch, unlock the Wing Cap, and leave immediately.

No exploring. No celebration. Just exit.

Just to Be Sure

Out of curiosity, I check the other painting in the area.

It also leads to Hazy Maze Cave.

Noted.

What This Changes

Finding the Wing Cap clears several long-standing blocks:

  • Shifting Sand Land can now be completed
  • Bob-Omb Battlefield is no longer locked behind flight
  • The Basement Wing Cap stage is now accessible

That’s a large chunk of the castle back on the table.

Before finishing up, I do some light scouting and manage to grab one more star.

Log 14 Status

  • Wing Cap: Found
  • Major Blocks: Removed
  • Hazy Maze Cave: Still unpleasant

I’m not sure where the next log will focus, but this finally feels like proper progress again.

YouTube – Log 14 Video

After all this time, Mario can finally leave the ground.

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Game: Super Mario 64

Super Mario 64 Randomizer – Log 13: Red Coins and Sunken Progress

Progress: 70+ Stars Reached
Platform: Steam Deck
Settings: Vanilla Mario & Music

“Today’s plan was simple. The execution, less so.”

I went in with one goal: finish Jolly Roger Bay and Dire, Dire Docks. Two courses I’d already poked at, now ready to be properly cleared.

Jolly Roger Bay: Chests, Coins, and Precision Jumping

First up was the treasure chest star. Finding the first chest took less time than expected, which immediately made me suspicious.

Chests two and four were conveniently paired together. Chest three, naturally, required a cannon.

With the chests dealt with, only the Red Coin Star and the 100-Coin Star remained.

The 100-coin star was painless. No drama. No surprises.

The red coins were another matter.

One coin sat in a position that rejected every sensible solution I tried. Triple jumps failed. Cannon angles failed. Repeated attempts achieved nothing except frustration.

In the end, the answer was a backflip. One precise position. One clean jump.

It worked immediately.

Jolly Roger Bay: cleared.

Dire, Dire Docks: Clean Water, Better Decisions

Next stop was Dire, Dire Docks.

This time, I changed approach. I focused on collecting all the red coins first, or at least most of them, before worrying about the 100-coin star.

The level behaved itself. No forced exits. No sudden ejections back to the castle.

I didn’t get sucked out of the course this time, which confirms that last log was just bad luck rather than punishment.

With the red coins secured, the 100-coin star followed naturally.

Dire, Dire Docks: finished without incident.

Log 13 Status

  • Total Stars: Past 70
  • Courses Cleared This Log: Jolly Roger Bay, Dire Dire Docks
  • Remaining Stars: 50
  • Wing Cap: Still missing

Two more courses off the board. The castle is opening up fast now.

Fifty stars left.

YouTube – Log 13 Video

Steady progress. Fewer exits. Still no Wing Cap.

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Game: Super Mario 64

Super Mario 64 Randomizer – Log 2: Chuckya’s Revenge

Platform: Steam Deck
Settings: Vanilla Mario & Music — chaos left entirely intact.

“Gravity and Chuckya joined forces today. I call it a hate crime.”

Fresh off the high of conquering Bowser and the Secret Slide, I decided to revisit Shifting Sand Land. One more star there couldn’t hurt, right? A quick trip across some quicksand later, I added another to the tally and figured it was time to see what lay below the castle.

That’s when I wandered into the Boo garden — home to ghostly giggles, hidden secrets, and one particularly smug Boo concealing a course entrance. I gave chase, stomped the spook, and jumped straight into the portal. The result? Tall, Tall Mountain. Great name. Terrible welcome.

Watch Log 2:

Thrown Off the Deep End

My very first spawn placed me in arm’s reach of a Chuckya. Before I could even process what I was looking at, the purple menace grabbed me and threw me off the mountain. Ten seconds in, one life down, ego shattered. I went back in for a rematch because apparently I enjoy suffering.

Round two went much better. I methodically climbed the slopes, dodged monkey theft, narrowly avoided falling logs, and picked up six of the seven available stars. Not bad for a course that literally tried to throw me away on entry.

The lone survivor is the 100 Coin Star, which I’ll tackle next time—assuming I can convince myself that collecting loose change while balancing on ledges is “fun.”

Log 2 Summary

  • Stars Collected: 13
  • Stars Remaining: 107
  • Lives: 8

After the sandstorms and the mountain’s murderous intent, I’m learning that no amount of preparation can outmatch the randomizer’s sense of humour. Still, progress is progress—and at least this time I didn’t get flung into the void twice in a row.

Lessons from Log 2

  • Chuckya exists solely to ruin your day.
  • Always expect ledges to betray you.
  • Boos are pranksters, not friends.
  • Six stars and a grudge is still a win.
Continue the journey:
Log 1 |
Log 2 (You Are Here) |
Log 3

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