Assuming everyone was getting tired of playing video games every hour we were awake while socializing at home, Nintendo released two IRL video game experiences last year that, it turns out, could be unofficially combined to a even better real-life Mario experience.
While a bit pricey ($ 100 for one car, plus the cost of a Nintendo Switch console for each vehicle), we found Mario Kart Live, which turns your home into a real Mario Kart track, which is almost as satisfying and enjoyable to play as the popular racing game, while Lego Super Mario was a great alternative for those who wanted the Mario experience, however without the hand-eye coordination to master a controller.
Both experiences rely on image recognition to bring their respective games to life, with Mario Kart Live using an in-car camera to recognize markings such as corners and starting gates, while Lego Super Mario has a scanner to read special barcodes printed on other characters are pressed and obstructions. Both are reverse engineered, allowing anyone to create their own track markers (in this case with Lego bricks) and barcodes (using a regular household printer), which is what the people behind the YouTube channel Playfool To create this mashup that works so well, you’d be tempted to believe Nintendo planned it this way.
To ride the Lego Super Mario figure on the RC Mario Kart, you will need a custom paper saddle made by Playfool (the template can be downloaded here) whose figure hangs on the rear of the vehicle so that the scanner beneath it can read all the barcodes it is driving on. Perhaps the most complicated part is adding a piece of tape so that the saddle doesn’t come loose on a particularly thrilling lap.
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You will also need to include the special Lego Super Mario barcode elements in your Mario Kart Live racetrack, including start and finish markers that activate the timer on the Lego Mario figure, power-ups and even baddies to drive over. But it’s also as easy as downloading, printing, and cutting one collection of natural elements that Playfool has already gone to the trouble of creating them and putting them on your court.
Just keep in mind that the score and achievement tracking that you can collect and unlock in Mario Kart Live and Lego Super Mario remains completely separate; the Lego Mario figure still cannot connect to your Nintendo Switch and affect your race scores and vice versa. The hack doesn’t do much to improve the Mario Kart Live experience, but if you’re tired of manually guiding Lego Super Mario around a Lego version of the Mushroom Kingdom you’ve built, this mashup should breathe some life back in those toys.