Uploaded July 2019 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

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[THIS VIDEO IS OBSOLETE | CLICK HERE FOR THE CORRECTED VIDEO: youtu.be/CTJNijf6pK4]
This route is no longer used due to the pathing in 1-4 being different, which makes the setup to get the life shroom no longer applicable in the form present in the video.

Normally a boring stage, we bring life back into 2-3!

Video Notes:
This video is an improvement from my last video on Chapter 2-3 where I completed the chapter in 23x "2" Presses. You can find the video here: youtu.be/MkXp-2MPCKM
Since then, a new way to skip Boomer in 2-1 was found. This method uses a Shell Shock rather than a Life Shroom. This opens the opportunity to use the Life Shroom we obtain in 1-4 somewhere else. Here, we use the Life Shroom to get to the ruby vault without needing Slim. That way, we can first, get the ruby vault, and then get the Slim instead of the opposite order. Doing things in this order allows us to only climb the first two floors of 2-3 once, saving 4x "2 presses". As a note, the Shell Shock method for Boomer Skip takes one additional "2 press" over the Life Shroom method, so overall, this new route only saves 3x "2 presses".

Once again, this chapter is very short if you know the solution to the chapter. Here, we can skip the entirety of the chapter by pre-emptively knowing the password to the 1 million ruby vault. One thing to note is that we cannot just grind the ruby rooms for 1 million rubies to pay off the debt. This is because there's a cap of 18000 rubies for each run-through of the VIP room. Each time, we need to press "2" to initiate a run-through, which easily negates any "2 press" saves by beating the chapter this way.

2 Presses:
1 - To hit the prize block below the vase
2 - To jump onto the prize block
3 - To jump to the platform with the grandfather clock
4 - To jump to the second floor
5 - To jump to the second floor
6 - To jump into the ladder block
7 - To jump to the ladder
8 - To input the password to unlock the ruby vault
9 - To input the password to unlock the ruby vault
10 - To input the password to unlock the ruby vault
11 - To input the password to unlock the ruby vault
12 - To input the password to unlock the ruby vault
13 - To input the password to unlock the ruby vault
14 - To input the password to unlock the ruby vault
15 - To input the password to unlock the ruby vault
16 - To pay off the debt
17 - To jump over the box office
18 - To jump into the star block
19 - To save the game

Challenge Notes:
This is the Super Paper Mario: 2 Button Challenge. The goal of the challenge is to beat Super Paper Mario while pressing the "2 button" as few times as possible. "Beating" Super Paper Mario requires Mario and the other characters to reach the end credits. Any method is allowed.

What does the "2 button" do?
The "2 button" does all of the following:
-Jump
-Swim
-Answer a multiple-choice prompt
-Open the quick menu
-Select any item in a menu
-Enter passwords

Things that look like they need the "2 button" but can be accomplished with other buttons:
-Progress through dialogue ("1 Button")
-Selecting objects with Tippi ("A Button")
-Ground pounding with Thudley ("1 Button")
-Exiting free fall as Luigi ("1 Button")

Each video is only a segment of the larger run and does not consider individual level high scores. This means that the "2 press" count for the segment may not be the lowest "2 press" count possible if considered in isolation. However, the "2 press" count showcased in the video is the lowest "2 press" count with the full game in mind. This also means that each video should link seamlessly to the next video chronologically (more or less). Because we are looking at the full game, we also count any save prompts that appear after the chapter is over.

If you have any further questions, post them in the comment section and I'll try to get back to you.

2 Button Challenge Spreadsheet:
goo.gl/oxPbMh