Taking
Paper Mario to its logical -- albeit extreme -- conclusion, an artist / DIY'er named Keith Lam has created the first physical, playable implementation of
Super Mario Brothers. By emphasizing Mario's movement on the background, and turning the "TV" into the object which moves, the character appears to traverse the familiar landscape of SMB, complete with collision detection, brick movement, and mechanized jumping. The "system" is built using a chain-driven platform, which is shakily directed with an actual NES (well, Famicom) controller, thus allowing for some game play -- though with response times like this, you're better off just watching. Speaking of, check the video after the break and see the system in action.
[Via
Wired]
posted Feb 7th 2008 12:39PM
Now, one could wonder why he didn't put the background on a rotating cylinder instead of moving the TV screen.
cos curvature is a bitch
Did you watch the video? The idea of moving the television set, and therefore Mario, along a background changes the way you as participant interact with the game. That's actually the concept behind the installation, not to make a physical Mario just for the sake of making a physical Mario.
The problem with the setup is the finite state of the background. He could also have gone with a BIG column, with fixed background, and you'd make runs around the whole setup. A continuous background would also allow for a multi-player experience.
that would go against the concept
We need more posts like this.
I hate to be "that guy" but, this is dumb. Like mentioned above, why not have the background move. anyway, my 2 cents
Because he's nit picking about moving the background vs. moving the character. Apparently moving the character is more "real" *shrugs* Interesting...if not even remotely practical.
Anyone would understand the concept in the first 10 seconds, the rest is like explaining the obvious.
"You press right and the tv moves right". Thanks Captain Obvious I didn't see that!
LOL
I'd agree with that, if I hadn't already spent 5 minutes explaining how to play Mario Bros. 1 to someone.
I don't have much faith in the 'general public of gamers', but it was fun watching someone fall down over and over whilst yelling "WOW THIS IS FUN!!".
i agree. By agreeing i have the same opinion on the subject as you. we are of the same opinion. if you agree with me, than i agree with you. we are in agreement on this instalation.
This is a perfect example of people with way too much time on their hands.
As opposed to sitting on a tech blog site all day and responding to comments?
That was during my lunch break look at the time. As if you are any different anyhow!
It'd be harder to change out different panels if the background had to move...
But I do agree, what a waste of time! What the hell? Are there no starving people, no poor, no HDTV-less denizens of earth? Engadget will hopefully save me from being that last one, but common, why even bother with this BS?
What you are saying is - why bother with oils and brushes, while you have a digital camera and a Photoshop?
This is art, guys, and art is illogical. The guy is not making money on his paper Mario, he is an artist.
What do you mean no HD?
With this method, you can have something that has more detail than a 1080p TV!!
Too bad he can't make the mushroom moves tho~ I would pay a quarter to play that.
isn't it "Super Paper Mario"? not "Paper Super Mario"
Were they "Pirate Ghosts" or "Ghost Pirates"? I can't remember.
He took "Super Mario" and made it from paper, ergo - "Paper Super Mario".
QED
This is "Paper Super Mario" because it's Super Marioesque but in paper form. If it was "Super Paper Mario" it would be Paper Mario in super form.
Right i get it now, It is pretty lame IMO.
Beat me too it... I take my mario very seriously!!!
LOL
Where do i insert my catridges?! i wants my metroid, pong...so on so forth
How does he grow bigger with a mushroom? Where's the fireflower? How does he throw fireballs? Why can't he turn left and run? Why did I watch the whole video? Don't answer the last one.
There are no fireballs because it is made of paper. The whole installation would go up in a blaze!!!
Paper fireballs! It's paper super mario!
Can it play Doom?? HAHA!
Its a bit f ing slow to be super.
Its a bit 50cc, needs to be 150cc...
FYI: that's a Famicom controller.
dude, this is so cool !
Someone please buy that "artist" a can of 3-in-1
one word... lame.
Isn't that three words?
lame is the one word...
Wow, that was SO much less awesome than I was hoping it'd be!
can mario (i mean... the tv which houses mario in it) run? since, you know.. b is to run.
This is pure genius. Totally impractical, but art nonetheless.
wait, I go right and the screen moves right? I only have 2 brain cells, u must explain slower. Seriously, did he really have to go into that in depth explanation, this isn't quantum physics.
Also, he doesn't have the mario character turn around when he goes left, mario is moonwalking. He's got the bricks rotating to reveal mushrooms, why not the character? That's the problem with art, there is no right or wrong, because it's.. art
Once when I sat down on a chair in haste my balls got caught in between.
I really enjoyed how long it took to explain how the game worked - 2 mins. The video in made for people who have never even seen a video game.
Everyone knows that Mario can't go left!!!!!!
Until I see a moving turtle creature it sucks
this is sad. very sad.
what's next? super puppet mario?
well the first 1:40 of the video told me about 20 times that when you push right on the controller mario (and the TV) move right and when you push left mario (and the tv) move left. that was a few minutes of my life I will never get back.
oil yo damn gears!
His next project is Descent. He will need a large warehouse and when you sit in the actual space ship and move the controller left it will move left, when you move right it will move right. And get this! When you push forward the ship will move forward. Problem is, you can only move and not shoot other ships. ))sigh((
Or, maybe he was doing Doom! Yah, that’s what he said, Doom and he will pay people to get shot and die for a real art affect.
wow. when i was little (4 or 5), this is how i thought the tv worked.
That IS how a tv works, isn't it?
Congrats. You just re-invented old belt-driven type electronic games.
This is such a retrograde step. It would have been OK in the 80s, but now it just can't compete.
The high-res graphics and VR are good but it is just too limited. Even converting it to a vertical scroller like Ikari Warriors would require a major architectural and philosophical change, I mean, would you have to use a LADDER?
Silicon FTW.
Hey! You couldn't go backwards in Super Mario Bros!
HOLY SHIT I WANT THIS!!!
Wow, am I the only one who thinks this is cool? I mean, it really shows what the artist is trying to express. He is not trying to recreate Mario. He is trying to switch our view of how we control a character.
I wondering if this author is a group or a person.how come there was a chinese letter printed on the box in the end of the video.
What the fuck, guys?
This isn't art.
Damn you all and your hippy bullshit.
This is a piece of paper moving around a background.
I really hate it when people try to justify stupid shit by calling it "art".
Failures, the lot of you.
Try some german engineering from a couple of years ago: http://cyberniklas.de/pongmechanik/video.html . Granted, pong is a game much simpler than mario bros, but the execution of the project is amazing. not only is the game that you see a real "representation" of another process, but also did the guy build the computer behind the game from mechanical components, namely old telephone relays. And he did not try to pull off some phony art-speak justufication of his project.