Driving around a go-kart dressed as Mario is one thing, but when powerups are involved it’s a whole different story.
Freddie Wong has made some pretty amazing short films using visual effects in the past, but his latest doesn’t involve guns. Forget the other real life Mario Kart video, this is what Mario Kart would actually be like in the real world, powerups and all.
I just wish the race could have been run on a fancier course, like Rainbow Road or in Bowser’s Castle. Wong definitely has a great sense of humor, slapping his own head onto Lakitu, the overseer of all Mario Karting, in a very creepy but appropriate way.
The extent to which filmmakers like Wong can express videogame situations in real life never ceases to amaze me. The little things, like the drivers smashing through “?” blocks and then pushing the pieces around the track, and the realistic-looking red shells, are very well done. Wong had some SFX help from Corridor Digital, known for a live-action Minecraft short and other productions.
So, yeah, while Mario Kart looks like it’d be fun, I don’t envy Toad, Mario, Peach, Donkey Kong, and the other Super Mario Bros. characters forced to take part in these races after seeing these powerups in real life. I really don’t want to get hit by one of those shells.
