Video Highlight: Mario Kart 8 Goes Retro
We put together a side-by-side comparison of Mario Kart 8 and a recent retro demake. Check it out!
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A new retro demake approaches. Witness Super Mario Kart 8 in all its 16-bit glory.
Earlier this week, a fan took it upon themselves to hack a few of Mario Kart 8's best tracks into the original Super Mario Kart. We thought it would be fun to do a quick side-by-side comparison, and the result is as you see below.
Another fun feature? This hack apparently has online multiplayer.
Over the years, a lot of games have received demakes after a fashion, usually in the form of mock-ups like these. Mario Kart 8 is one instance of a fan actually following through and doing the legwork to recreate the tracks in the game. They aren't exactly 1:1 recreations—there's just no way to effectively simulate hover pads in Mario Kart—but they're at least recognizable.
Ultimately, demakes can be a fun way of putting modern games in perspective. Strip away all the glitz and the polygons, and you can see a bit more of what made a game special (or not so special) in the first place. Looking over some of these mock-ups, my heart now aches for a 16-bit remake of Uncharted 3.
Obviously, this patch represents a hack of a commercial ROM, and USgamer in no way endorses piracy. The optimal way to enjoy this demake is to backup your own copy of Super Mario Kart and apply the patch. Instructions on how to do so can be found in the link above. Enjoy!