# Mario platformer projects: choose SM64 co-op, Wonder Recomp or GalaxyPad

Canonical: https://playable.wtf/guides/mario-platformer-versions/

Written: 2026-10-17

Start with the Mario game you want, then its project. SM64 co-op has native releases; Wonder and GalaxyPad ask you to build. Mario crossover mods still need their host game.

## Choose the game and project

Choose [sm64coopdx](https://playable.wtf/games/coop-deluxe-sm64coopdx/) to share Super Mario 64’s worlds with friends. Choose [GalaxyPad](https://playable.wtf/games/super-mario-galaxy-galaxypad/) if you want to prepare a native iPhone or iPad app for Super Mario Galaxy. [Wonder Recomp](https://playable.wtf/games/super-mario-wonder-recomp/) is an earlier source-build project for a different game, with documented progress through the opening and course 1-1.

These three projects run as installed applications. A Mario character inside Halo, Doom or Minecraft is a separate kind of experience: the surrounding game and its installation still matter.

Choose the adventure before choosing the project

| Game and project | Preparation | Reason to choose it |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Super Mario 64 · sm64coopdx](https://playable.wtf/games/coop-deluxe-sm64coopdx/) | Native release; your own SM64 `.z64` ROM | Online co-op with synchronized enemies and level events, plus Lua mods |
| [Super Mario Bros. Wonder · Wonder Recomp](https://playable.wtf/games/super-mario-wonder-recomp/) | Compile from source with your own Switch 1.0.0 data, keys and firmware | Explore an experimental native Wonder build (Early-course progress; rendering and stability work continues.) |
| [Super Mario Galaxy · GalaxyPad](https://playable.wtf/games/super-mario-galaxy-galaxypad/) | Build on an Apple Silicon Mac, sign the app, then import your USA revision 0 WBFS | Galaxy with touch, controller and pointer controls on iPhone or iPad (Experimental; full-game completion remains open.) |

## Share Super Mario 64 with friends

sm64coopdx’s useful difference is a shared world: another player can interact with the enemies and events you see. Its Lua mods can change the session further, so agree on ordinary star collecting or a particular mod before inviting a group. The [official site](https://sm64coopdx.com/) directs players to the native release and asks them to drag their own `.z64` ROM onto its window.

1. Download the release for your operating system through the [sm64coopdx project listing](https://playable.wtf/games/coop-deluxe-sm64coopdx/), open it and supply your ROM.
2. Use the N64 and Extras controls menus to review your bindings before starting a room. The v1.5.1 release adds reset buttons for both.
3. Choose **Host → CoopNet**. An empty password creates a public lobby; set a password for a private session.
4. Friends use **Join → Public Lobbies** or the private-lobby choice that matches your room.

CoopNet avoids configuring a direct server on your home network. Direct Connection is another option with separate networking requirements; it is not necessary just to create a private CoopNet room. Discord invitations need Game Activity enabled and do not send while you appear offline. The [hosting guide](https://github.com/coop-deluxe/sm64coopdx/wiki/Hosting-and-joining) explains those alternatives.

If you are updating a Linux or Mac installation to v1.5.1, the [release notes](https://github.com/coop-deluxe/sm64coopdx/releases/tag/v1.5.1) specifically require a manual update to replace the application and updater.

## Prepare an early Wonder build

Wonder Recomp targets the Switch game’s **1.0.0 base release**. Prepare its ExeFS and RomFS from your own copy, with your own keys and firmware, before following the source build. A Nintendo 64 ROM or Galaxy disc image cannot supply this data. The [build guide](https://github.com/BelmanteGu/SuperMarioWonderRecomp/blob/7c2531d9bdce94506bad9bf53d8a9848b240f111/docs/BUILD.md) separates extraction, code recompilation, shader translation and the final platform build.

The creator now documents Apple Silicon macOS, Windows, Linux x86-64 and Android arm64. Linux uses Vulkan 1.3; Android remains experimental. Desktop keyboard and gamepad input are documented, while Android adds an on-screen stick, A to jump and Y to dash. Touch controls hide when a Bluetooth or USB controller is in use.

The useful expectation is an early native build reaching the opening, map and course 1-1. Rendering issues and a reported Windows crash after character selection remain in the [project’s current limitations](https://github.com/BelmanteGu/SuperMarioWonderRecomp/blob/7c2531d9bdce94506bad9bf53d8a9848b240f111/README.md). Raising the display rate above 60 does not provide a normal unlocked mode: the creator warns that it changes game speed.

## Build GalaxyPad for iPhone or iPad

GalaxyPad’s current iPhone/iPad route uses its New engine, based on MacioGalaxy and Petari. Its older engine and Mac development tools have a different setup. For a phone or tablet, use the [current PadMint installation guide](https://github.com/chrissotraidis/galaxypad/blob/d7ad659fd823002a958023aecede11a6f41ac470/docs/INSTALL_IPAD.md).

1. On an Apple Silicon Mac, prepare full Xcode 26 or later with the iOS platform and about 20 GB of build space.
2. In PadMint 0.5.2 or later, choose **GalaxyPad → iPhone / iPad**. It builds your personal IPA; the project does not provide a ready-made public IPA.
3. Sign and install that IPA using the documented sideloading workflow.
4. In GalaxyPad, open **Game Data & Saves → Import or Reimport Game Data**. Select your own USA `RMGE01` revision 0 single-file WBFS and allow at least 9 GiB free on the device.

Galaxy’s pointer has a job separate from movement. For a Pull Star, aim until the hand appears and hold A. The default controller mapping also puts A on the right shoulder so your thumb can keep aiming. The New engine uses the main stick for Star Ball and Ray rides; older tilt-stick instructions describe the deprecated engine. See the [control guide](https://github.com/chrissotraidis/galaxypad/blob/d7ad659fd823002a958023aecede11a6f41ac470/README.md#controls-and-the-three-dot-menu) before changing layouts.

Update in place with the same signing tool, Apple ID and app identifier. Deleting the app can remove local progress. Keep a backup before changing that installation boundary, using the project’s [save guidance](https://github.com/chrissotraidis/galaxypad/blob/d7ad659fd823002a958023aecede11a6f41ac470/docs/SAVE-AND-NAND.md).

## Mario inside another game

For Mario’s movement inside a game you already own, start with the host game. [G64](https://playable.wtf/games/ckosmic-g64/) adds Mario to 64-bit Garry’s Mod on Windows; [SMC64](https://playable.wtf/games/kodyjking-smc64/) targets Halo CE in the Steam Master Chief Collection. Neither is a standalone Super Mario 64 campaign. The [libsm64 project](https://github.com/libsm64/libsm64) supplies Mario’s movement and rendering for use inside other engines.

The same distinction applies to [sm64-san-andreas](https://playable.wtf/games/headshot2017-sm64-san-andreas/), [gzdoom-sm64](https://playable.wtf/games/headshot2017-gzdoom-sm64/) and [ER Mario](https://playable.wtf/games/deltarooo-er-mario/): choose them for a crossover in San Andreas, Doom or Elden Ring. Their base-game and Mario-file requirements belong to each mod. [Retro64](https://playable.wtf/games/retro64-minecraft/) is a separate unfinished Minecraft mod source project.

For racing, [the Mush8 guide](https://playable.wtf/guides/mush8-mario-kart-8-deluxe-apple/) covers Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on Apple devices. Its Switch files, controls and multiplayer setup do not apply to these platformers. For another adventure, compare the different game editions and setups in [the Zelda project guide](https://playable.wtf/guides/zelda-game-versions/).

## Project reading

- [Coop Deluxe · release and ROM import](https://sm64coopdx.com/)
- [sm64coopdx · co-op and modding](https://github.com/coop-deluxe/sm64coopdx)
- [sm64coopdx · hosting and joining](https://github.com/coop-deluxe/sm64coopdx/wiki/Hosting-and-joining)
- [sm64coopdx · v1.5.1 update notes](https://github.com/coop-deluxe/sm64coopdx/releases/tag/v1.5.1)
- [Wonder Recomp · platforms and current scope](https://github.com/BelmanteGu/SuperMarioWonderRecomp/blob/7c2531d9bdce94506bad9bf53d8a9848b240f111/README.md)
- [Wonder Recomp · source-build workflow](https://github.com/BelmanteGu/SuperMarioWonderRecomp/blob/7c2531d9bdce94506bad9bf53d8a9848b240f111/docs/BUILD.md)
- [GalaxyPad · installation and game import](https://github.com/chrissotraidis/galaxypad/blob/d7ad659fd823002a958023aecede11a6f41ac470/docs/INSTALL_IPAD.md)
- [GalaxyPad · engine, controls and save guidance](https://github.com/chrissotraidis/galaxypad/blob/d7ad659fd823002a958023aecede11a6f41ac470/README.md)
- [libsm64 · Mario inside other engines](https://github.com/libsm64/libsm64)