Super Mario Bros. Speedrunner Lays Out Claims Of Sabotage

Key Points:

• Speedrunner Niftski, aiming to tie a theoretically perfect Any% TAS speedrun of Super Mario Bros., accuses the Speedrun.com moderation team and current world record holder averge11 of conspiring to ban his preferred input swapping technique and sabotage his progress.
• Input swapping, which involves switching between keyboard and controller to optimize gameplay, was initially allowed by an 8-1 vote last October but was banned in a 14-2 vote in February after Niftski’s TAS tie progress prompted reconsideration, a move he believes was influenced by averge11.
• Niftski alleges averge11 sent negative messages about him, manipulated the vote by encouraging bans and closing it early, and celebrated the ban with derogatory remarks in private chats, while another prominent speedrunner was allegedly excluded from the voting Discord until after the vote closed.
• Averge11 acknowledged some past inappropriate behavior but emphasized accountability, without directly addressing the conspiracy allegations; both parties remain vocal in the community amid calls for reconsideration of the input swapping ban.