The party is ON! Join us at TNW Conference 2021 in Amsterdam for face-to-face business!

The heart of tech

This article was published on July 24, 2017

    Mario Kart in real life is the best use of AR so far

    Mario Kart in real life is the best use of AR so far
    Tristan Greene
    Story by

    Tristan Greene

    Tristan Greene
    Story by

    Tristan Greene

    Editor, Neural by TNW

    Tristan covers human-centric artificial intelligence advances, politics, queer stuff, cannabis, and gaming. Pronouns: He/him Tristan covers human-centric artificial intelligence advances, politics, queer stuff, cannabis, and gaming. Pronouns: He/him

    Anyone still wondering what the hype around augmented reality (AR) is all about need look no further than Hado Kart. This Mario Kart for AR is available at a Japanese arcade called 3rd Planet, a VR-focused playground.

    We’ve seen AR based on Super Mario Bros. before, and it was awesome. This time we get a glimpse into multiplayer AR gaming, and there’s a lot to get revved-up over:

    Bye-bye physical banks?

    Video banking might be the end of branch managers

    READ ARTICLE

    Players drive real go-karts around a track while trying to grab virtual coins. An AR headset allows the players to see the video-game aspects of the experience in a realistic over-lay, while still providing a clear view for driving.

    This is what we’ve all been hoping for with AR: a way to enhance an already-fun, albeit traditional, experience. The look of pure unbridled happiness on those lucky players’ faces says it all.