Why This One Super Mario 64 Attack Is Virtually Useless

There are many details you likely never knew about "Super Mario 64." The developers working on Nintendo's "Super Mario 64" had ambitious plans for the game that didn't ultimately pan out. This shouldn't be too much of a shock: such is the chaotic nature of game development. Like many games that came both before and after it, "Super Mario 64" had a whole host of features that didn't make it into the final version of the game. 

Interestingly, however, there is one feature that did make it into the final game, but serves no purpose. Why? Because it was originally meant to be used in features that were cut out by the developers. Nevertheless, perhaps due to oversight, the feature — an attack that can be used by Mario — appears in the final game. 

If you're a fan of "Super Mario 64," you may have wondered for some time what exactly this attack was for and, thanks to an in-depth YouTube video, the answer to that question has finally been revealed.

The video, posted two years ago on the DidYouKnowGaming?, revealed that Mario's crouching trip kick made it into the final version of "Super Mario 64," despite being completely useless. According to DidYouKnowGaming?, the "Super Mario 64" assistant director, Yoshiaki Koizumi, made roughly 250 animations for the game and was forced to cut around 50 of them. 

"A few animations didn't get cut but ended up virtually useless," the video explained. "like the crouching trip kick." Koizumi revealed that this kick was originally designed to be used against a specific enemy type that didn't make it into the final game. So, if for years you've been bothered by Mario's strange, useless kicking animation and wondered what it was for, now you finally know.