An enthusiastic fan has managed to uncover what they believe is the oldest known YouTube video that features Nintendo content. The short, nostalgia-inducing Nintendo clip certainly serves as a stark reminder of how far the platform has come over the years and, likewise, how far recording practices have come.
Believe it or not, there was once a time when YouTube wasn't owned by a tech giant. In late 2006, long before Google conceived of the doomed Stadia, the company bought YouTube from a group of former PayPal employees who had launched the platform in early 2005. In those days, the platform was a much different beast than it is now. No big corporate channels, no career YouTubers, and no ads.
Now, one internet sleuth has tracked down what could be the oldest existing piece of Nintendo video content on the massive site. Reddit user thevmcampos posted recently, sharing their discovery: a nearly two-decades-old clip of the enduring classic SuperMario 64. The clip is grainy, the aspect ratio is jarring and, if a viewer taps the settings button, they'll notice the video quality caps out at a less-than-robust 240p. The video was posted on the channel tetsuo9999 on December 4, 2005, during the brief window when the platform wasn't overseen by its current owner.
The clip, titled "Mario 64: Castle roof with 0 Stars," shows the famous Nintendo mascot in all his 32-bit glory as the player attempts to gain access to the roof. Inside the castle grounds, they execute a series of jumps, making some creative use of the landscape and architecture, and manage to grasp the edge of the roof and climb up. When atop the castle, viewers can glimpse the rear of the building cutting away unnaturally, angling down toward blue nothingness, a clear sign the player is not supposed to be there. The entire clip is 9 seconds long and features no commentary or intro, not uncommon in those days.
With the thread sparking discussion about the most ancient Nintendo content on the internet, some users chimed in about discoveries of their own. One commenter pointed to a video titled "Luigi is Really Real 2005: The Movie," with a post date even earlier in August 2005. But this video featured a modded version of Super Mario 64, meaning the Mario roof video still holds the title for oldest actual Nintendo content on the site. The video has the titular character replaced by Luigi, a classic example of a fan expressing their love by cracking open and breaking their favorite video game.
With some fans still eager to hunt down content like this, it's clear that enthusiasm for the Nintendo 64 is alive and well. There's no telling what treasure the fan community will dig up next.
Source: Reddit