Since a simple method for unlocking most Switch hardware was revealed back in March, much of the hacking community has been focused on developing homebrew software/emulators for the system. But a small community of Super Mario Odyssey fans has been using their expanded Switch access to modify the game with new costumes, gameplay features, and even entirely new levels.
The modifications started a few months ago with simple save file edits that let players overflow the game’s coin counter or unlock all the game’s costumes, including some costumes that have yet to be officially released. From there, hackers started to figure out how to make cosmetic edits to in-game files, leading to mods that replace the power moons with old-school power stars or give Mario a Sonic the Hedgehog outfit, for instance. And why listen to that boring Mario music when you can replace it with “Despacito” (or watch a “Despacito” music video on a screen in Snow Kingdom)?
It wasn’t long before the hackers were digging into the game code to modify the way Super Mario Odyssey plays, too. Hacker Simon Aarons created a mod that lets players run with super speed and “moon jump” to otherwise impossible heights. Others have made mods that let Mario breathe indefinitely underwater or play as Bowser in unintended areas of the game.