...and now, the final floor of Mario's Time Machine for Super Nintendo, as well as the best ending.
Printing Press Block - Mainz, 1455
When young Johann Gutenberg was growing up in Germany at the turn of the 15th century, books were very rare and expensive because a scribe had to duplicate each copy by hand. Since Johann was a child of great curiosity who loved to read, he dreamed of a faster, easier way to make books. Luckily, Johann had inherited a large fortune. This allowed him to dedicate all his time to the invention that would soon change the world. The secret, he realized, was in finding a way to print words, so copies would be quick and effortless.
Gutenberg first tried carving letters from wood, but the printing came out crooked and blurry. He continued to experiment, spending all of his father's money during the 30 years it took to perfect the printing press. The final press, made with movable metal type, worked perfectly. His childhood dream realized at last, Johann printed his first books in 1455. They are known today as Gutenburg Bibles.
Astrolabe - The Pacific, 1521
The importance of perseverance has few better examples than Ferdinand Magellan. When Columbus reached America in 1492, he thought he had found a western shortcut to India. By 1519, when Magellan's five ships sailed west to find the Spice Islands, explorers suspected that the Amercias were a vast new region unconnected to Asia. After a year of exploring the eastern coast of the "New World" for a way west, Magellan entered the rough seas between "Tierra Del Fuego" and the tip of South America.
After 39 days of struggle, Magellan entered the vast Pacific Ocean. Sailing west, his crew endured malnutrition and scurvy until they reached the Philippines. There, Magellan was the victim of hostile natives, but Juan Sebastian Del Cano pressed on. "Victoria," the sole remaining ship, rounded the cape of Africa and returned to Spain. Thus, Magellan's expedition became the first to sail around the globe. In so doing, it demonstrated the true scale of the oceans and proved that the Americas were indeed a new world.
Chisel - Florence, 1503
Michelangelo Buonarroti, one of Italy's most impressive artists, was born in Caprese, Italy, on March 6, 1475. Raised by a family of stonecutters, at the age of thirteen he was apprenticed to learn the basics of paintings at the Ghirlandaio brothers' studio. Michelangelo, however, considered himself a sculptor, and he broke his contract so that he might study in the sculpture gardens of the great patron Lorenzo de' Medici.
Indeed, Michelangelo's fame as a sculptor is unmatched. His remarkable "Pieta" was carved when he was only 23. Shortly thereafter, his 13 1/2 foot "David" was wrought from a single block of marble. When commissioned to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, though, Michelangelo implored Pope Julius II that the painter Raphael could do better. Michelangelo was given the job anyway, and ironically, the result was his true masterpiece. Five hundred years after this accomplishment, Michelangelo's influence as a painter, architect, and sculptor is still felt.
Skull - Stratford-upon-Avon, 1601
Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, King Lear, Othello, Macbeth -- these are only just a few of the famous characters immortalized by the greatest playwright and poet in English literature, William Shakespeare. Born over 400 years ago in 1564, Shakespeare's plays are still performed throughout the world. Shakespeare wrote during England's "Golden Age," a time when Queen Elizabeth I was generously supporting the arts. It is said that Shakespeare wrote a play just for her.
An actor as well as an author, Shakespeare is known to have written some 37 plays. Among them were histories, such as "Richard III" and "Henry V," comedies, such as "The Taming of the Shrew" and "Twelfth Night"; and tragedies, such as "Hamlet" and "Romeo and Juliet." Most of Sheakespeare's plays were first performed at the open-roofed Globe Theatre where bad weather could cancel a performance. Shakespeare lived until 1616, having made a modest fortune. He was buried in the village where he was born, Stratford-upon-Avon.
Royal Staff - Alexandria, 47 B.C.
Upon their father's passing, Cleopatra and her brother were named to rule the kingdom of Egypt. However, Cleopatra's selfish brother, Ptolemy XII, didn't want to share the throne, so she banished his sister to the capital city of Alexandria. It was up to the Roman ruler, Julius Caesar, who served as Egypt's guardian, to restore Cleopatra to the throne. Thus, a second coronation was held for the queen in the year 47 B.C..
Meanwhile, Caesar fell deeply in love with Cleopatra, and she eventually bore him a son named Caesarion. However, on March 15th, 44 B.C., Julius Caesar was done away with by members of the Roman senate. One of Rome's new leaders, Marc Antony, had once been an officer in Caesar's army. Cleopatra, who had a penchant for powerful rulers, soon married Antony and bore him three sons. A Roman civil war soon followed in which Antony's forces were defeated in a great sea battle. Soon after, both Antony and Cleopatra took their own lives.
Remember what I said about there being three endings?
Well, if you return all five things on all three floors from left to right, and you complete each and every time period in one shot, you'll get the best ending. Bowser gets squished by a dinosaur foot! Hell yes!
If you only do one of these things, you'll get an ending just like it, but the dinosaur foot doesn't squash Bowser.
If you fail to do both things, or if you take more than one attempt to complete the levels, you'll get the worst ending, where Bowser escapes to Paradise and chillaxes in style.
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