New Super Mario Bros. DS

This randomizer adds Archipelago support to New Super Mario Bros. DS. Clearing levels, collecting Star Coins, and finding secrets gives items to players in the multiworld. Items received from other games unlock worlds, routes, and Power-Ups. Single-player seeds are also supported.

For installation, patching the game, and connecting to a room, see the Setup Guide.

Checks & Logic Guide Complete Check List

Unstable release: This version is still being tested. Gameplay, item delivery, and tracking may have bugs.

Features

• Four goals; World Passes, Keys, Star Coin gates, and Power-Up Permits.
• Level, Star Coin, boss, Toad House, red-coin, secret-exit, and block checks.
• Level and music shuffling, character colors, and lower-screen backgrounds.
• Power-Ups, bonus items, 28 traps, and configurable Death Link.
• Client hints, item reserve, death counter, activity feed, and world-map saving.

Goals · Checks · Progression · Items · Client · Death Link · Traps · Customization

Goals

Goal	Requirement
Defeat Bowser (default)	Defeat Bowser & Bowser Jr. in World 8-Bowser's Castle.
Star Coin Hunt	Receive the selected number of Star Coin items.
World Tour	Defeat all 9 Castle bosses.
Completionist	Defeat all 9 Castle bosses and receive the selected number of Star Coin items.

For Star Coin Hunt and Completionist, Required Star Coins sets the target from 30 to 240. The default is 80. All 240 Star Coin checks stay available, even with a lower target.

Received Star Coin items pay for signs on the world map and count toward the Star Coin goal. Spent Star Coins still count toward the goal. Overview tab shows the available balance, the amount spent, and the total received.

Checks

Check category	Available checks	Included by default?
Level goals	80	Always
Star Coins	240	Always
Castle boss defeats	9	Always
Toad House rewards	34	Yes
Red Coin Challenges	30	Yes
Secret exits	18	No
Hidden or flying 1-Up Blocks	43, plus 8 in the World 6-2 bonus room	No
Blocksanity	1,038 Coin and Power-Up Blocks, plus 120 in the World 6-2 bonus room	No

Secret exits include the Mini-Mario exits in the World 2 and World 5 castles. Red Coin Challenges are completed by collecting all eight red coins before the ring's timer runs out.

Toad House checks cover the 34 fixed houses on the world map. Temporary houses spawned by finishing with matching timer digits do not add AP checks.

A Star Coin pickup completes a randomized check. Star Coin currency comes from received Star Coin items.

Star Coin Tracking

This setting controls when a Star Coin pickup completes its check:

• Instant (default): the pickup counts immediately and stays collected if Mario dies or leaves the level.
• After Level Completion: finishing the level is required to keep the pickup, as in the original game.

Blocksanity and the World 6-2 bonus room

Blocksanity adds checks for supported Coin and Power-Up Blocks. This greatly increases the number of checks. It is off by default. Some special blocks, including hanging blocks, are not included yet.

World 6-2 Bonus Area enables the room's 128 flying blocks: 120 require Blocksanity, and eight require 1-Up Block Checks. All three options are off by default. These bonus-room checks never contain required progression items. At most 16 can contain items for other players, the rest contain local filler or traps.

Hidden and difficult checks

Advanced Location Item Placement controls items at difficult or hidden checks:

• Allow Progression (default): checks can contain items needed for progress.
• Non-Progression: checks cannot contain items needed for progress.

Both settings keep these checks in the game. Non-Progression reduces the need to find hidden secrets or complete difficult jumps to get required items.

1-Up Blocks and Blocksanity have separate item placement settings:

Setting	Allowed items
Excluded	Ordinary filler items and enabled traps.
Non-Progression (default)	Filler, useful bonuses, and enabled traps. No items needed for progress.
Progression	Any item, including items needed for progress.

Blocksanity Global Check Percentage controls how many block checks can hold items for other players. The remaining checks contain local filler or traps. The normal host limit is 30%; the World 6-2 room keeps its separate limit of 16.

Progression

World Passes

World 1 is available at the start. The Desert, Isle, Jungle, Glacier, Mountain, Cloud, and Volcano Passes open Worlds 2 through 8. Worlds can become available in a different order from the original game.

Normal Castle-clear routes can also unlock later worlds without their Passes. The alternate Mini-Mario and Warp Cannon routes count in logic when their settings are enabled.

Tower and Castle Keys

Tower & Castle Keys is enabled by default. Each Tower and Castle has its own matching Key to unlock its route. Worlds with two Towers use separate Keys, and World 8's Castle and Bowser's Castle also have separate Keys.

With this option off, these routes do not need Keys. The route to Bowser's Castle also requires clearing the level at the World 8-Tower 2 entrance.

Star Coin signs

Signs need Star Coins. Star Coin gates always use tiers. Higher tiers require more total received Star Coins. No Keys keeps those tiers and the Star Coin price.

Star Coin Gate Mode	Requirement
No Keys (default)	Enough received Star Coins for the sign's tier.
Progressive	Enough Star Coins and Progressive Gate Passes, which unlock tiers in order.
Individual	Enough Star Coins and the named Gate Pass matching that sign.

Later tiers need more total received Star Coins. Star Coin Gate Gap sets the step between tiers and the price of opening each sign, from 3 to 5 (default: 5). It applies to all 32 signs, including signs leading to side levels. For example, with a gap of 5, tier 3 needs 15 total received Star Coins; opening the sign spends 5 from the available balance. Spending does not reduce the total received or goal progress.

No Keys and Individual modes shuffle the signs' tiers for each seed. Progressive mode uses the fixed gate order.

Power-Up Permits

A Permit allows use of one Power-Up type. It does not give that Power-Up. The Power-Up must still be found in a level or received as an item.

Each license setting can be enabled separately: Mushroom, Fire Flower, Blue Shell, Mini Mushroom, Mega Mushroom, and Touchscreen Pocket. An enabled license requires its Permit. A disabled license allows normal use without a Permit.

By default, Fire Flowers, Blue Shells, Mini Mushrooms, and Mega Mushrooms need their Permits. Ordinary Mushrooms and the touchscreen pocket are usable without one.

Regular in-level Power-Up pickups disappear when their required Permit is missing. Power-Ups received through Archipelago wait in the client until the Permit is available. These items are not lost.

Powerup Permit Placement controls early access to selected Permits:

• Normal (default): no extra placement restrictions.
• Early: the Permits chosen in Selected Powerup Permits must be logically reachable by check sphere 2.

Selected Powerup Permits includes Mushroom Permit, Fire Flower Permit, and Touchscreen Pocket Permit by default. Each selected Permit needs its license setting enabled. Permits with disabled licenses are ignored. An empty selection disables early placement. This setting affects Permits only. Permits in the starting inventory do not need early placement.

Selected Permits can be placed in another player's game.

Secret routes and cannons

Secret-exit shortcuts, the Mini-Mario routes to Worlds 4 and 7, and Warp Cannon routes have separate settings. When enabled, the randomizer can expect these routes to be used to reach checks. All three logic settings are off by default. Secret Exit Checks separately controls whether exits award AP items. The physical exits and cannons remain available when their logic settings are off.

Level Randomization

Level Randomization can keep the original layout, shuffle levels within each world, or shuffle them across all worlds. Towers, Castles, secret-exit levels, and ordinary levels stay in their matching groups. Bowser's Castle always stays in place.

Check names follow the original level. For example, World 3-3 Star Coin 3 means the coin inside the original World 3-3 level, even if the level moved. Keys and map routes follow the entrance on the world map. The special Mini-Mario exits to Worlds 4 and 7 stay tied to their World 2 and World 5 Castle entrances.

The client command /level finds level entrances:

Command	Result
/level W3-3	Entrance for the original World 3-3 level.
/level World 3-3 Star Coin 3	Entrance for that check.
/level world 3	Levels on the World 3 map.
/level all	All level entrances.

Hints also show the entrance for shuffled locations.

Items

Item	Effect
Mushroom, Fire Flower, Blue Shell, Mini Mushroom, Mega Mushroom	Adds the matching Power-Up to the waiting items.
Starman Buff	Gives 15 seconds of invincibility.
Starman Lite	Adds five seconds of invincibility, up to the normal buff duration.
1-Up Mushroom	Adds one life.
3-Up Moon	Adds three lives.
Small Coin Bundle / Coin Bundle / Large Coin Bundle	Adds 10 / 25 / 50 normal Coins.
Time Capsule	Adds 30 seconds to the level timer.
Small Care Package	Adds 15 seconds, five normal Coins, and one life.
Trap Shield	Blocks the next trap. Multiple charges can be stored. Shown as a cyan shield.
Life Insurance	Prevents the next death from costing a life. Shown as a green heart.

Item Reserve

Received Power-Ups are delivered through the touchscreen reserve pocket. If the pocket is full, or a required Permit is missing, they wait in the client. The Power-ups list in Overview shows what is waiting and any missing Permit.

Settings → Item Reserve has two modes:

• Automatic: an empty pocket refills automatically. Use SET NEXT to choose the next waiting Power-Up.
• Manual: use SEND 1 to select one copy for delivery when the pocket is available. Further copies wait for another selection.

Waiting Power-Ups and the selection are saved for the current seed and player slot across client restarts.

The same controls are available in the client chat:

• /nsmbds_reserve automatic or /nsmbds_reserve manual changes the mode.
• /nsmbds_powerup Fire Flower selects one waiting copy; /nsmbds_powerup cancel clears the selection.

Client

The NSMBDS Client needs connections to Archipelago and BizHawk during play. Overview shows goal progress, completed checks, received unlocks, Star Coin balance, and waiting Power-Ups. Hints shows hinted items and locations.

A separate NSMBDS PopTracker pack supports map tracking. With the client and tracker connected to the same slot, it can open the matching world or level map.

Save Anytime

The patched game enables SAVE in the World Map menu. Saving is available at any time on the world map. Use the same in-game save when continuing a seed.

Death Counter

Settings → Death Counter shows the player's death total in Overview. The counter keeps tracking when the display is hidden, including when Death Link is disabled. Totals are saved separately for each seed and player slot.

/deathcounter shows the total and the number of Death Link deaths. Other players' shared totals appear when available. Without shared totals, the list shows Death Links received while the client was connected. Missed Death Links are not added after reconnecting.

Normal deaths, insured deaths, and lethal timer drains count. Damage, time loss, or Coin loss alone do not count as a death. Mario must actually die.

Emulator activity feed

The in-game feed shows checks and item transfers. Settings controls its width, position, fade-out time, and whether it is enabled. Press Ctrl+Shift+H to temporarily hide or show it. Older messages may reappear after reconnecting; this does not apply used bonuses or traps again.

Death Link

Death Link is off by default. When enabled, deaths are shared with other players who use Death Link. Their deaths can affect Mario too.

Setting	Effect
Amnesty	Share every death, every fifth death, or another chosen interval. Default: every eligible death.
Grace Percentage	A 0–75% chance to ignore an incoming Death Link.
Cooldown Seconds	Ignore further incoming Death Links for a while after an effect is applied.
Effect	Defeat Mario, apply damage, remove 100 seconds, remove all normal Coins, or choose randomly.
Random Effects	Choose which effects are allowed when using Random.
Trigger on Insured Deaths	Share deaths prevented from costing a life by Life Insurance. Off by default.

Damage removes a Power-Up and defeats Small Mario. Removing 100 seconds can also defeat Mario when the timer reaches zero. Incoming effects wait until a level is active and the game is not paused.

Traps

Trap Percentage controls how often traps replace ordinary filler items. It defaults to 15%; setting it to zero disables traps. Traps selects the allowed effects. An empty selection disables traps. Filler Items selects the helpful bonus categories. An empty selection fills ordinary filler slots with Nothing; enabled traps can still appear.

Most timed traps last 15 seconds. Spotlight lasts ten seconds and I'm Stuck lasts three. Bonk Trap can optionally be allowed to kill Small Mario.

Movement and controls

Trap	Effect
Super Speed	Makes Mario move much faster.
Slowness	Makes Mario move more slowly.
Slippery Gloves	Temporarily disables wall jumps.
Ground Bound	Temporarily prevents jumping.
Hyper Confusion	Reverses left and right.
No Sprint	Temporarily disables sprinting.
Button Swap	Swaps the jump and sprint buttons.
Ice Shoes	Makes stopping and turning slippery.
Heavy Mario	Lowers jumps and makes Mario fall faster.
Can't Stop	Forces Mario to keep running.
Sticky Buttons	Briefly keeps released directions held.
No Turnaround Trap	Locks movement to the first chosen direction for 15 seconds.
Boo Curse	Repeatedly reverses horizontal controls.
I'm Stuck	Holds Mario in place for three seconds.

Camera and screen effects

Trap	Effect
Camera Drift	Pulls the camera to one side.
Screen Flip	Turns both DS screens upside down.
Drunk Camera	Makes the camera sway left and right.
Screen Tint	Covers the game with a colored tint.
Retro Filter	Adds an old-screen color and scanline effect.
Spotlight	Darkens everything outside a small visible area.
Pixelation	Makes the game view appear pixelated.

Damage, time, and item loss

Trap	Effect
Ground Clap	Ground pounds temporarily damage Mario.
Head Bonk	Hitting a block from below temporarily damages Mario.
Bonk Trap	Immediately damages Mario.
Coin Tax	Removes up to ten normal Coins.
Coin Thief	Removes all normal Coins.
Time Drain	Removes 50 seconds from the level timer.
Power-Up Pickpocket Trap	Steals the touchscreen reserve Power-Up.

The usual host limit is a 50% trap rate. Higher trap rates and higher global Blocksanity percentages depend on the host allowing them.

Customization

Character colors and lower-screen backgrounds

Mario and Luigi have separate color settings. Options include original colors, preset colors, Random Preset, and Crazy Random.

Presets include Crimson, Emerald, Sapphire, Purple, Monochrome, Pastel Rosa, Gold, Silver, and Peach. Random Preset chooses one preset for the seed. Crazy Random randomizes the model's palette colors. Both random modes stay consistent for the seed and player.

Secondary Screen Background can shuffle the five in-level lower-screen wallpapers or use one design in every level: White Bricks, Star Pattern, Blue Bricks, Mario Silhouette, or Classic Overworld. Vanilla (default) keeps the original assignments. Randomized shuffles all five designs once per seed and player, with every assignment changed. Levels that shared a wallpaper still share its replacement.

Music

Music can stay unchanged, shuffle in levels only, shuffle in levels and on world maps separately, or mix both groups. Mixed music can place a world-map track in a level or a level track on a world map.

Music choices stay consistent for the seed. Boss music, ambience, jingles, menus, minigames, and Power-Up themes are unchanged. Level music retains the BAH cues that enemies react to.

Other

The generated YAML explains each setting. Groups such as Star Coins, Secret Exits, Red Coin Challenges, 1-Up Blocks, Blocksanity, and Toad Houses allow settings to apply to a whole check category. Excluding checks from progression does not remove them from the game.

For bug reports, /nsmbds_diag full shows the current connection and sync state.

For planned features, see the Roadmap.

Credits

• xDesyyx – Testing
• Stigimon – Testing
• JunoWuno – Ideas