Two months ago a HoloLens developer posted a video of a proof of concept demo featuring an augmented reality (AR) version of the original Super Mario Bros. Videogame in New York’s Central Park. The demo attracted much interest, and now someone has recreated the feat using Apple’s ARKit.
In June developer Abhishek Singh recreated the first level of Super Mario Bros. Using the HoloLens and proceeded to play it in New York’s Central Park. Since that video was posted, a number of fans have been keen to play it as well, but Singh had no stated plans to release the demo. So another developer took the concept onto Apple’s newly released AR toolkit.
Similar to the HoloLens demo, the ARKit version allows users to stomp on Goombas, jump to hit boxes and collect coins, only it takes place indoors instead of outside. It is not as detailed, or quite as accurate to the original videogame, but it still fairly close. The demo was created by Bjarne Lundgren.
There is no word on if this is ever likely to see commercial release. Considering Super Mario Bros. Is a Nintendo property, a whole tangle of legal and licensing issues will need to be dealt with before it can get a full release, if the developer even plans on taking it that far.
Many fans will probably be waiting and hoping for the AR Super Mario Bros. To get an official release on a platform that is significantly cheaper and more easily available than the HoloLens.
You can watch the demo video below.
VRFocus will continue to report on ARKit projects.