We kick off SXSW 2014 with some real-life Mario Karting (video)
The first few days of SXSW have brought quite a bit of excitement for our team on the ground. After starting the show with a stun-copter demo, we stopped by the Palmer Events Center to play a little a live-action Mario Kart. Pennzoil has set up a go-kart track here in Austin to promote its new Platinum line of natural gas-based motor oils, though -- let's face it -- we were really only here to be Mario (and Luigi, Bowser and Princess Peach) for a day.
Each of the four karts on the track were mounted with a GoPro camera to document each racer's point of view. In addition to tracking each banana peel and speed booster we ran over, the footage apparently teases some elements from the upcoming Mario Kart 8 title. Our own Joseph Volpe also wore a GoPro of his own, so you can see just how disappointed he was when Terrence O'Brien stole the lead. Check out the video below.
Video note: Unfortunately the Karting team was unable to locate our race footage, so we've included a four-panel view from a similar race later in the day, as an example of the video sent to each participant following the competition. Engadget editors appear earlier in the video.
Zach Honig contributed to this report.
