Pannenkoek2012

Super Mario 64 was the first video game Buchanan ever played as a child. In 2013, while still in college, he started uploading Super Mario 64 videos to YouTube. These videos showcased his attempts to complete all of Super Mario 64 without pressing the A button (the jump button, Mario's primary ability), making use of environmental hazards and various glitches instead. These alternative strategies are often only possible with tool assistance.

Buchanan has produced many in-depth YouTube videos deconstructing the mechanics of Super Mario 64, which have been described as esoteric "programming lessons".{{cite web|url=http://www.polygon.com/2016/5/16/11683934/super-mario-64-pannenkoek2012-videos-rng|publisher=Polygon|title=Watch how Super Mario 64 is teaching millions the nitty-gritty of game design|last=Frank|first=Allegra|date=2016-05-16|access-date=2016-06-13|archive-date=2016-06-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160617020446/http://www.polygon.com/2016/5/16/11683934/super-mario-64-pannenkoek2012-videos-rng|url-status=live}} In one video, he explains how a player can manipulate the random number generator of Super Mario 64 by kicking up dust in a certain way. Despite their highly arcane nature, videos on the pannenkoek2012 channel regularly get hundreds of thousands of views.

Buchanan also runs a second channel, UncommentatedPannen, where he uploads raw footage without commentary. He does not upload videos to his main channel if they fail to meet his standards of quality.{{cite news |last=Hernandez |first=Patricia |date=August 14, 2017 |work=Kotaku |title=YouTube's Mario 64 Genius Sounds Overwhelmed With His Popularity |url=https://kotaku.com/youtubes-mario-64-genius-sounds-overwhelmed-with-his-po-1797832360 |access-date=December 12, 2022 |archive-date=August 15, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170815024316/http://kotaku.com/youtubes-mario-64-genius-sounds-overwhelmed-with-his-po-1797832360 |url-status=live }}

File:Nintendo 64 controller face buttons.jpg showing the A button (bottom, blue), which pannenkoek2012 has challenged himself to avoid pressing]]

The bulk of pannenkoek2012 videos are about the "A button challenge" (ABC), a self-imposed challenge whose ultimate goal is to complete Super Mario 64 while pressing the A button as little as possible, or not at all. In regular gameplay, the A-button makes Mario jump; this is one of the fundamental game mechanics of Super Mario 64, a platformer whose gameplay has been described as "all about jumping".{{cite web|url=http://www.usgamer.net/articles/youtuber-manipulates-enemies-makes-parallel-universes-to-grab-star-in-super-mario-64|publisher=USGamer|title=YouTuber Manipulates Enemies, Makes Parallel Universes to Grab Star in Super Mario 64|last=Oxford|first=Nadia|date=2016-01-27|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624094917/http://www.usgamer.net/articles/youtuber-manipulates-enemies-makes-parallel-universes-to-grab-star-in-super-mario-64|archive-date=2016-06-24}}{{cite news|title=Der Mann, der "Super Mario 64" ohne zu springen meistert|url=http://derstandard.at/2000013104369/Der-Mann-der-Super-Mario-64-ohne-zu-springen-meistert|access-date=2016-10-28|work=derStandard.at|date=2015-03-18|language=de|archive-date=2016-10-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161028084345/http://derstandard.at/2000013104369/Der-Mann-der-Super-Mario-64-ohne-zu-springen-meistert|url-status=live}} It is possible to jump without the A-button in very rare, but often useless circumstances.{{Citation |title=Jumping Without Pressing A |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzUEzHk-ioQ |access-date=2023-12-07 |language=en}} In one video, it is shown that collecting the star "Mario Wings to the Sky" in the level "Bob-Omb Battlefield" is possible without pressing the A button at all. To do this, Buchanan uses glitches that enable him to "clone" a large number of Goombas to form a ladder. This strategy took two years of planning, and the video took 55 hours to make.{{cite web|url=http://kotaku.com/19-years-later-super-mario-64-player-finds-new-way-to-1709100452|publisher=Kotaku|title=19 Years Later, Super Mario 64 Player Finds New Way To Use Goombas|last=Hernandez|first=Patricia|date=2015-04-06|access-date=2017-01-05|archive-date=2017-01-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170106011615/http://kotaku.com/19-years-later-super-mario-64-player-finds-new-way-to-1709100452|url-status=live}}

On January 12, 2016, Buchanan uploaded a commentated video in which he explains in depth how to complete the level "Watch for Rolling Rocks" in "half an A-press".{{cite news|last1=Devore|first1=Jordan|title=This Mario 64 glitch walkthrough broke my brain|url=https://www.destructoid.com/this-mario-64-glitch-walkthrough-broke-my-brain-333841.phtml|access-date=2016-10-28|work=Destructoid|date=2016-01-12|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161028084920/https://www.destructoid.com/this-mario-64-glitch-walkthrough-broke-my-brain-333841.phtml|archive-date=2016-10-28}} His strategy originally took 14.8 hours from start to finish,{{cite news |last=Gach |first=Ethan |date=2017-12-17 |work=Kotaku |title=Mario 64 Experts Discover An Even Shorter Way To Beat Level Without Jumping |url=https://kotaku.com/mario-64-expert-discovers-an-even-shorter-way-to-beat-l-1821369600 |access-date=2022-12-10 |archive-date=2022-12-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221210235034/https://kotaku.com/mario-64-expert-discovers-an-even-shorter-way-to-beat-l-1821369600 |url-status=live }} most of which were spent using a glitch to accelerate Mario to the high speeds necessary for "parallel universe" movement.{{cite news|last1=Wilbur|first1=Brock|title=How 'Mario 64' Teaches Us About Parallel Universes|url=https://www.inverse.com/article/11417-how-mario-64-teaches-us-about-parallel-universes|access-date=2016-10-28|work=Inverse|date=2016-02-11|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160630021138/https://www.inverse.com/article/11417-how-mario-64-teaches-us-about-parallel-universes|archive-date=2016-06-30}}{{cite news|last1=Klepek|first1=Patrick|title=Expert Mario 64 Player Demonstrates His Most Advanced Techniques|url=http://kotaku.com/expert-mario-64-player-demonstrates-his-most-advanced-t-1752728065|access-date=2016-10-28|work=Kotaku|date=2016-01-13|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161028084516/http://kotaku.com/expert-mario-64-player-demonstrates-his-most-advanced-t-1752728065|archive-date=2016-10-28}}{{Failed verification|date=December 2022}} This was reduced to 5.4 hours in 2017. The video became popular and was widely spoofed online for its incredibly obtuse and technical content, especially Buchanan's "half A-press" notation (meaning that he began the level with the A button already held down) and his use of parallel universes (a collision glitch caused by integer overflow).{{cite news|last1=Ligman|first1=Kris|title=Cultivating parallel universes in Manifold Garden|url=http://www.zam.com/article/771/cultivating-parallel-universes-in-manifold-garden|access-date=2016-10-28|work=ZAM|date=2016-07-11|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161028083704/http://www.zam.com/article/771/cultivating-parallel-universes-in-manifold-garden|archive-date=2016-10-28}}{{Better source needed|date=December 2022}}

On October 1, 2023, Buchanan uploaded an updated video of Watch for Rolling Rocks in 0 A presses{{Citation |title=HMC Watch for Rolling Rocks 0xA |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFx7woWkZbc |access-date=2023-10-02 |language=en}}{{Cite web|work=GamesRadar+|title=After 7 years, the most infamous meme in the history of Mario speedrunning has been put to rest with a 14-hour time save|last=Bailey|first=Dustin|url=https://www.gamesradar.com/after-7-years-the-most-infamous-meme-in-the-history-of-mario-speedrunning-has-been-put-to-rest-with-a-14-hour-time-save/|date=2023-10-03|access-date=2023-10-07 |language=en}}{{Citation |title=SM64 - TAS Console Verification - Watch for Rolling Rocks in 0x A Presses by pannenkoek2012, Marbler, and Thadortin - rcombs on Twitch |date=2023-10-01 |url=https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1940310418 |access-date=2023-10-17}} using a technique named "Mario's Platform Adventure" documented by Thadortin only a week prior.{{Citation |title=HMC New Elevator Glitch (Elevator Escape) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E79jvV41R60 |access-date=2023-10-02 |language=en}} This strategy also saved time over the previous Watch for Rolling Rocks ABC run in 1:49:16.77 by Marbler from 10 days earlier.{{Citation |title=HMC: Watch for Rolling Rocks 0.5xA Faster PU Route [TAS] |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sKytFn1EgZk |access-date=2023-10-02 |language=en}}

In August 2013, when Buchanan began working on the A button challenge, over 200 A-presses were required to complete Super Mario 64.{{Cite web|title=History of the A Button Challenge|date=23 January 2021|url=https://ukikipedia.net/wiki/History_of_the_A_Button_Challenge|access-date=2021-03-18|archive-date=2022-12-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221228052606/https://ukikipedia.net/wiki/History_of_the_A_Button_Challenge|website=Ukikipedia|url-status=live}}{{User-generated source|date=December 2022}} As of October 2023, a 120-star playthrough of Super Mario 64 can be completed in as few as 13 A-presses.{{Cite web|title=The Remaining 14 A Presses - YouTube|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_IEhqUAuCY|access-date=2022-11-13|website=Youtube|archive-date=2022-11-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221120152640/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_IEhqUAuCY&pp=wgIGCgQQARgB&attr_tag=puiLi5Fz5AZvTJwB%3A6&parentCsn=MC44Njk5MDg2ODc1NTkyMjg5&parentTrackingParams=OhJwdWlMaTVGejVBWnZUSndCOjY%3D|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|title=SM64 120 Star ABC Route|url=https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wVD60DYcPPjWmfObqwV-1Kb0ic478dsL9znCMqM2X4M/edit#gid=0|access-date=2022-09-06|website=Google Docs|archive-date=2022-12-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221208175110/https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wVD60DYcPPjWmfObqwV-1Kb0ic478dsL9znCMqM2X4M/edit#gid=0|url-status=live}}{{Primary source inline|date=December 2022}} A 70-star ABC (70ABC) or 98-star max% run can be completed in 0 A presses, but only on the Wii Virtual Console versions of the game, due to a version-exclusive floating-point rounding error in which certain moving platforms in Bowser in the Fire Sea rise slowly over time, which can be used to save an A press.{{Cite web|url=https://www.ukikipedia.net/wiki/Wii_VC_Round-to-Zero|title=Wii VC Round-to-Zero|website=Ukikipedia|date=October 2024}} A 70ABC run has also been completed without tool assistance by a runner named Marbler.{{Cite news |date=2024-05-23 |title=After almost 28 years, Super Mario 64 has been beaten without using the A button |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/after-almost-28-years-super-mario-64-has-been-beaten-without-using-the-a-button |access-date=2024-06-07 |work=Eurogamer.net |language=en}}

In June 2014, Buchanan collected what was known as "the impossible coin", an item hidden in the level "Tiny-Huge Island", which was originally considered impossible to reach. The coin was discovered in 2002 by a GameFAQs message board user named Josiah.{{Cite web|url=http://www.sm64.com/impossiblecoin.html|title=www.sm64.com - The Impossible Coin|last=Bright|first=Curtis|website=www.sm64.com|access-date=2016-07-11|archive-date=2016-07-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160708071306/http://www.sm64.com/impossiblecoin.html|url-status=live}} Likely due to an oversight by the game's developers, the coin was placed underneath the ground. Buchanan managed to collect it using tool assistance by jumping and kicking on a single frame while moving out of water. He noted that it should be possible to collect the coin without tool assistance, but he added that doing so would be very difficult and require a lot of practice.

In the Super Mario 64 level "Bowser in the Sky", Buchanan discovered a misplaced Goomba located at the bottom of the level, which he dubbed the "mystery Goomba". Since Goombas drop a coin once killed, and the enemy currently seems to be impossible to kill, he called the mystery Goomba's coin the "new" impossible coin.{{cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/the-quest-for-super-mario-64-s-impossible-coins-and-1798271238|publisher=The A.V. Club|title=The quest for Super Mario 64{{'}}s "impossible coins" and "mystery Goomba"|last=Gerardi|first=Matt|date=2014-08-08|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160701211859/http://www.avclub.com/article/quest-super-mario-64s-impossible-coins-and-mystery-207910|archive-date=2016-07-01}} In October 2016, he discovered another impossible coin in "Tiny-Huge Island".{{cite news|last1=Frank|first1=Allegra|title=Super Mario 64 has one coin you will never be able to collect|url=http://www.polygon.com/2016/10/24/13381862/super-mario-64-impossible-coin-video-pannenkoek2012|work=Polygon|date=2016-10-24|access-date=2016-10-25|archive-date=2016-10-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161025174640/http://www.polygon.com/2016/10/24/13381862/super-mario-64-impossible-coin-video-pannenkoek2012|url-status=live}}

In September 2013, Twitch streamer DOTA_TeaBag encountered a glitch in the Super Mario 64 level "Tick Tock Clock" in which Mario suddenly teleports upwards. In 2015, this "upwarp" caught wider attention, as replicating the glitch could allow players to skip large sections of the game or reduce the required number of A-presses. Buchanan offered a {{Currency|1000}} prize to anyone who could recreate the upwarp glitch without modifying the game.{{cite web|url=http://kotaku.com/1-000-bounty-offered-for-mario-64-glitch-1722134626|publisher=Kotaku|title=$1,000 Bounty Offered For Mario 64 Glitch|last=Plunkett|first=Luke|date=2015-04-08|access-date=2016-06-13|archive-date=2016-06-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160612203754/http://kotaku.com/1-000-bounty-offered-for-mario-64-glitch-1722134626|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/win-a-1000-bounty-for-finding-this-mario-64-glitch/|publisher=Motherboard|title=Win a $1000 Bounty for Finding This 'Mario 64' Glitch|last=Maiberg|first=Emanuel|date=2015-08-05|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160629051411/http://motherboard.vice.com/read/win-a-1000-bounty-for-finding-this-mario-64-glitch|archive-date=2016-06-29}}

The bounty has yet to be claimed. However, the glitch's effect can be replicated by modifying the game and flipping a single bit of memory. Since no legitimate method for flipping this bit has been found, it has been speculated that, in DOTA_TeaBag's case, a stray cosmic ray caused the bit to change. This would mean that it is very unlikely for the glitch to occur again naturally.{{Cite web|date=2020-09-16|title=How An Ionizing Particle From Outer Space Helped A Mario Speedrunner Save Time|url=https://www.thegamer.com/how-ionizing-particle-outer-space-helped-super-mario-64-speedrunner-save-time/|access-date=2021-02-09|website=TheGamer|language=en-US|archive-date=2021-02-09|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210209005507/https://www.thegamer.com/how-ionizing-particle-outer-space-helped-super-mario-64-speedrunner-save-time/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web |title=Sorry, a literal cosmic ion ray boost to your Super Mario 64 speed-run only happens once in a trillion |url=https://www.avclub.com/sorry-a-literal-cosmic-ion-ray-boost-to-your-super-mar-1846250037 |access-date=2025-05-02 |website=AV Club |language=en-US}}

Buchanan started working on a video detailing the workings of Super Mario 64{{'}}s geometry in summer 2016. He eventually finished this video in May 2017, releasing it under the title "Walls, Floors, & Ceilings". The video details how Mario's movement is measured in the game―it varies depending on whether Mario is located on the ground, in the air, or in water―and how the character interacts with the hitboxes of objects along the way. Buchanan noted that he considers the information in this video "extremely important", as he has been using this information to help him execute or dismiss strategies for years. Gamasutra described this video as a "passionate delve into the most granular details of level design".{{cite web|url=http://kotaku.com/everything-you-wanted-to-know-about-super-mario-64s-sur-1795621537|work=Kotaku|title=Everything You Wanted To Know About Super Mario 64{{'}}s Surfaces|last=Gach|first=Ethan|date=2017-05-28|access-date=2017-06-07|archive-date=2017-06-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170612103718/http://kotaku.com/everything-you-wanted-to-know-about-super-mario-64s-sur-1795621537|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.gamedeveloper.com/design/speedrunner-breaks-down-the-walls-floors-and-ceilings-of-i-super-mario-64-i-|work=Gamasutra|title=Speedrunner breaks down the walls, floors and ceilings of Super Mario 64|last=Wawro|first=Alex|date=2017-05-30|access-date=2017-06-07|archive-date=2017-06-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170603135343/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/298980/Speedrunner_breaks_down_the_walls_floors_and_ceilings_of_Super_Mario_64.php|url-status=live}} Since then, two more "Walls, Floors, & Ceilings" videos have been released.

In March 2019, Buchanan uploaded a number of "no joystick allowed" videos in which he completes levels in Super Mario 64 without using the controller's analog stick, which is ordinarily how the player moves Mario.{{cite web|url=https://www.polygon.com/2019/3/4/18250581/super-mario-64-no-joystick-bowser|work=Polygon|title=Super Mario 64 player beats Bowser level without using joystick|last=Hernandez|first=Patricia|date=2019-04-03|access-date=2019-03-11|archive-date=2019-03-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190305040115/https://www.polygon.com/2019/3/4/18250581/super-mario-64-no-joystick-bowser|url-status=live}}

On April 13, 2024, Buchanan uploaded a video titled "SM64's Invisible Walls Explained Once and for All" in which he explains the many causes and locations of invisible wall-like phenomena in Super Mario 64{{'}}s stages. With a runtime of just over three hours and forty-five minutes, it is the longest video on the pannenkoek2012 YouTube channel, and as of April 2025, has received 7.3 million views, making it the most viewed video on the channel.{{cite web|url=https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YsXCVsDFiXA|title=SM64's Invisible Walls Explained Once and for All|website=YouTube }}{{Cite web |last=McWhertor |first=Michael |date=2024-05-13 |title=Super Mario 64 fans finally open the game’s ‘unopenable’ door, 28 years later |url=https://www.polygon.com/24155778/super-mario-64-secret-door-cool-mountain |access-date=2024-12-08 |website=Polygon |language=en-US}}

{{notelist}}

{{reflist}}

• {{YouTube|u=pannenkoek2012|pannenkoek2012}}
• [https://www.youtube.com/user/pannenkeok2012 UncommentatedPannen], his secondary account

Category:1990s births

Category:Living people

Category:Mario players

Category:Gaming-related YouTube channels

Category:American YouTubers

Category:Year of birth missing (living people)