Super Mario Bros. - hints and tips from my own epic struggle

[grittykitty]

though i've owned super mario bros in some shape or form since 1989 (nes cartridge, sm allstars, rom file) i have never beat the game on my own! well recently i have decided to change that and i have been struggling to beat this game. to further elaborate, i'm avoiding warp zones, game cheats, and freeze/defrost states from the emulator. in other words, i'm doin' it old school. i highly recommend this task to the hardcore gamers who read this! after all, super mario bros is the father/mother of video games (pong would be the grandfather/grandmother, though revolutionary... is just old and not really deep. pacman would be the cousin of pong, donkey kong is one of the nephews... this anecdote is too long)

-obervations/hints- (for beginners and noobs alike)

-mario can stand on a block/platform with one foot up to his "heel". after that, he'll fall
-you can change direction in mid-jump
-you can't jump "over" the flagpole. but it's fun to try! 5000 is the max points for height
-if you stand directly next to a pipe or bullet bill machine, they won't come out
-it's possible to score a 1up by kicking a turtle shell into a bunch of baddies, if there's enough. very few chances for this however
-you don't get bonus points on bowser's stage by using the axe at the end of the bridge or for your remaining time. take your time!
-you do get 5000 points for killing bowser with fire balls
-get as many coins as possible! you will need those extra lives (100 coins = 1up of course)
-a sometimes good strategy when facing bowser as small mario is to just run straight ahead without stopping before bowser is on screen - then jump over him!
-beginning from world 6-4, bowser throws hammers so jumping over him is a bad idea!

i think that's about it. see if you can beat the game without warping! (by the way, does anyone remember the "no warping" contest held by nintendo power for "the lost levels" back in summer '93?)