Fire works in Super Mario Bros 1

The first step in my rediscovery of the nes is to play Super Mario Bros. 1. This reminded me of a question that constantly plauged me when I used to play the game in the 80's an i've never been able to work it out.

What dictates whether or not you get the fire works at the end of each level?

If anyone can answer my question is will ease a lifetime of confusion.

Welcome to the forums, Legume Man

If you hit the flag pole while the final number on the timer is 6, you'll get six fireworks. I'm pretty sure if it's 3, you get three, and 1 you get one. I'll have to double check myself on the 1 and the 3... I make sure to always get six

I usually wait for the last number on the timer to reach 9 and begin my run and jump to the flag pole.

Thanks Roth. It looks like a great place. Expect alot of input from me as I rediscover why I loved the nes so much when I was younger.
If you hit the flag pole while the final number on the timer is 6, you'll get six fireworks. I'm pretty sure if it's 3, you get three, and 1 you get one. I'll have to double check myself on the 1 and the 3... I make sure to always get six

I usually wait for the last number on the timer to reach 9 and begin my run and jump to the flag pole.

THANKYOU!!! Upon recollection I think I may have heard something like this along time ago. I'm going to go a play the hell out of that game later today, which will hopfully confirm all you've just said. I owe you debt of gratitude.

I'm happy to report that you're very correct Roth. It worked like a charm. My life seems to have purpose now.

Thanks again.

I never knew that it had to do with what the last number in the timer was!! For all my life I thought that it had to do with how fast you beat the level!! Thanx Roth

well.. i can beat the first level in about 12 seconds if im dedicated enough.. and i get no fireworks. so it's not speed:P plus i already knew it was something to do with the timer..

12 seconds is fast.
What's the WR?

12 seconds... that's incredibly crazy! Geez man... I thought I rocked at games

Anyone have any really good times for beating Super Mario Bros. 3 (the entire game) using the warp wistles and what ever else. I don't have any idea of what a "good time" would be. My friend says he did it in like 20 min. or 30 min. so I was just curious what a decent time is.

I'd say 20 minutes is still a good time, but there are faster. Check out this time, I think it's pretty darn good. Non-tool assisted, too

ive always wondered that as well. Thanks for helping me out

i can probably beat that time if i can get past the three hand levels in world 8. i beat the first world in like 2 minutes.

in Super Mario Bros. 1, probably anyone could beat the first level in 12 seconds. go down the third pipe and you are pretty much done. or did you mean Super Mario Bros. 3? i can do the first level in that in about 12 seconds.

do you mean the ENTIRE game for Super Mario Bros. 3? because it takes about an hour and a half to beat the entire game.

Here's a video I just made of the fastest (real) time you can take at the first level. Just figured I'd post for anyone wondering how or something like that.

That was pretty fast

Cool.

ive seen a video on the net where a guy beat super mario 3 in 12 minutes
using the whistles, i'd post it here but i dont know how, it's at spikedhumor

I wonder if that one you saw was tool assisted, i saw a tool assisted one at about 11:30 or something. But they don't count..

yeah im not sure, if you want to see it its at
-and in the search part type in super mario

im not sure how to link do you just type in address if so this is it

by tools do you mean magic whistles yeah he uses the two whistles from the first world

if you mean cheats, emulators, savestates, or they edited it e.t.c i dont know but it still is pritty amazing, especially with the cannon balls

Yeah, i meant cheats save states, Famtasia, Etc.

that Super Mario Bros. 1 first level video was without using the pipe, and that was perfect. i should post perfect time for each level and post some videos later.

1-1- 380 with pipe (without is 348)
1-2- 346
4-1- 340
4-2- 358
8-1- 200
8-2- 342
8-3- 243 (getting fireworks) 242 without fireworks
8-4- 311

i will probably try to post videos each level with perfect times

Thanks for the comments on the video. As far as suggestions, the hardest parts are jumping the two tall pipes and getting up the steps without slowing down. I just practiced this level to freak people out when I play them, nothing more. (Truth is I've never had the patience to go slow through this game, and I have yet to beat it...)

it seems pretty simple to me, maybe because i have the world record haha.

Probably should post your time here, but I'd guess you already know about it as your name is referenced in one of the runs. Congrats. As for me, I won't quit my day job.

my name is referenced? oh i see in the Super Mario Bros. full completion run. "AndrewG" yep. i beat that time, so soon i will be up there.

The usual 6, 3, and 1 seconds always work, but there is occasionally an error that causes my NES to keep doing the fireworks forever until I hit reset. I've deduced that this happens to me only when I land on the exact border between 9 and the next 0 in the sequence, causing the two numbers to rapidly keep appearing in my time display, even though the time was drained for more points. No idea why this happens, I guess it's just my cartridge.

P.S. Blue is a color.

It's not "just your cartridge" they're all exactly the same.

And the "border" between 9 and the next 0 is non existant. It's the CPU counting down, nothing more. There's no "border" there's a 9, and then there's a 0.