''Lunar Magic'' is a
level editor created by FuSoYa for ''
Super Mario World''
that allows the user to edit and create custom graphics, blocks, sprites, levels, backgrounds, music,
overworld maps, and full title screen and credits.
The program is distributed as freeware and runs on
Microsoft Windows
Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...
.
''Lunar Magic'' has been used to create various custom levels, particularly
kaizo levels. It inspired various creators, such as
PangaeaPanga, who later used his mapping skills to create levels in ''
Super Mario Maker'' and
its sequel.
History
According to FuSoYa, he started the development of ''Lunar Magic'' for the
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System, commonly shortened to Super Nintendo, Super NES or SNES, is a Fourth generation of video game consoles, 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan, 1991 in No ...
game ''Super Mario World'', in February 2000, with the first public release coming on September 24, 2000. FuSoYa, who coded the editor and reverse engineered the base game as a solo developer, also created ''Super Demo World'' as a way to showcase what the new editor was capable of creating.
New releases with improvements have regularly come over the years, with the most recent update coming on December 25, 2024, to version 3.51. As of December 2024, it remains the only publicly released level editor for ''Super Mario World.''
Reception
Reception for ''Lunar Magic'' has been positive. ''
Kotaku
''Kotaku'' is a video game website and blog that was originally launched in 2004 as part of the Gawker Media network. Notable former contributors to the site include Luke Smith, Cecilia D'Anastasio, Tim Rogers, and Jason Schreier.
History ...
'' praised it, noting it was a "Cool level editor for Super Mario World" and stated "''Lunar Magic'' is sure to revive the seemingly, never-flagging love for the ultimate side-scroller." ''
Boing Boing
''Boing Boing'' is a website, first established as a zine in 1988, later becoming a group blog. Common topics and themes include technology, futurism, science fiction, gadgets, intellectual property, Disney, and left-wing politics. It twice wo ...
'' thanked the editor's creator for making it.
' 2005 book ''Gaming Hacks'' by
O'Reilly Media
O'Reilly Media, Inc. (formerly O'Reilly & Associates) is an American learning company established by Tim O'Reilly that provides technical and professional skills development courses via an online learning platform. O'Reilly also publishes b ...
describes it as "One of the most spectacular, fully formed level editor hacks of all time".
''
1UP.com'' stated that "This unprecedented editor allows for easy creation of brand new levels for Super Mario World."
Vice
A vice is a practice, behaviour, Habit (psychology), habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhe ...
noted that ''Lunar Magic'' has continued to stay relevant even after the release of the official editor Super Mario Maker, citing better customizability as the main reason.
The website Super Mario World Central, or SMW Central, was created in 2006 and is mostly dedicated to showing off ROM hacks made using ''Lunar Magic''.
See also
* ''
Kaizo Mario World''
* ''
Super Mario Maker''
* ''
Super Mario Maker 2''
References
External links
FuSoYa's NicheSMW Central
{{Unofficial Mario media
Video game level editors
Unofficial works based on Mario