I collected all 100 Moons, and enjoyed every single moment of it. The description this hack provides simply doesn’t do it justice. You’re easily getting at least 3x the amount of content the original game provided, possibly more if the game proves to be a challenge to you. On my casual run, I clocked in at over 500 deaths and I’d say about 2-3 hours of playtime at minimum. Which is a substantially lengthy experience despite the modest “minihack” label.

Not only is this relatively bug-free aside from some minor graphical glitches, but every single aspect regarding the overall quality is a finely polished gem that’s as replayable as it is rewarding. From the crisp platforming mechanics, to the stellar level design, and everything in between (chiptunes/graphics/collectables/secrets); Celeste Mario’s Zap & Dash delivers in spades. Even tosses in a meme or two for good measure, provided that you can find them.

I wouldn’t consider this hack a Kaizo, but it pushes the boundaries just enough to continuously keep you on your toes throughout the adventure. The checkpoint system is usually very forgiving enough to encourage you to keep going. Which is also aided by the save system and hints the game provides. It does require some fineness in mastering one technique in particular, but it does tell you about it and it’s not very hard to do. Not to mention how it’s only really required for the game’s harder challenges that are tucked away, and you only need 60 Moons to experience the full game so there’s a bit of wiggle-room if you’re not too keen on finding everything.

My only real complaints are that while I understand how there’s no story to speak of, a small congratulatory message appearing for collecting all moons would’ve been nice to have. That, and while the map does show locations for most of the moons, it also doesn’t show areas where secret moons are found. Nor does it keep track of the moons you’ve collected in each of the game’s 3 worlds aside from a general total counter. Having some additional features to address this complaint, as well as a means of telling the player that there are 100 moons to collect in total, and I’d say that this hack would basically be perfect for what it set out to do. So while it isn’t flawless, it’s close enough to being such that I can easily forgive these minor grievances. If you’ve played Sunshine, you’ll know what I mean (Blue Coins).

I guess another minor complaint is that the coin system could use some work? Not really a huge issue, but their value could be enhanced to some degree. All they’re used for is for the moon radar, and a single hint block for some reason. A shop of sorts would’ve been icing on the cake at least for cosmetics or something (Luigi?). But it’s also not a huge deal since coins are largely pointless in the main series of games anyways. There could also be an easy mode for a more lenient difficulty setting so that more players could enjoy the game (seeing how there’s unused hearts for the stamina bar), but I digress. None of these really detract from the overall experience, and are just some random musings on my own end. As far as I’m concerned, this game already stretches the limit that it needs to in order to feel complete, so just ignore my ramblings here.

Regardless, do yourself a favor and play this game. I promise you that it’s a real treat, and I’d love to see speedrunners pick this one up. To w7n and his team, thank you. It was a blast through-and-through. And I look forward to playing Mario Machina/Gaiden whenever it is complete.

9.5/10, and a phenomenal experience. Far and away the best hack I’ve played of the original game. Well done!

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EDIT: So I actually missed a single moon towards the end of the game. No, it’s not one of the “secret moons”, but rather one tucked away inside a ceiling. It’s in a spot where you really don’t have time to use the moon radar since you have to stay idle to use it. I won’t give this spot away per-se, but instead I will leave you all with a hint. Good luck, and hope this helps!

When the Underground Theme/1-2 Music plays: “1, 0, 0, 0 - 1 - 3, 1, 0, *5*, 0″

Alternatively, just look for Slash-18’s 100% deathless run instead. He obtained all the moons before I did (Congrats!). But yeah this is partially why it’d be nice to have a list of moons somewhere in the menus, I’d say. Ah well. Fun game nonetheless.

Anywho, there are 101 moons total, NOT 100. I saw a trailer that said 100, hence my confusion. Wasn’t until later that I realized I was just one short (I thought the red hint block would have it; it didn’t lol). Keep your eyes peeled!