Super Nintendo World delivers on the ultimate Mario Kart fantasy

Super Nintendo World, which opened Friday at Universal Studios Hollywood, is a deeply immersive and interactive simulacrum of Mario’s world. The Mushroom Kingdom is a colorful set that wraps around the area of the park, giving the impression of playing a game. Visitors can walk through the Warp Pipe to instantly transport them into it. Koopas can be seen moving along green hills that look similar to classic Super Mario Bros. levels. Stacks of Goombas teeter back and forth, and large Thwomp blocks thwomp — though safely out of the way of any park visitors.

The gem in the park’s crown is Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge, a dark ride that uses augmented reality to drop visitors into the classic racing game series. The one attraction in Universal Studios Hollywood’s Super Nintendo World, Bowser’s Challenge has the accompanying chaos of taunts from competitors, shells flying everywhere, and a vehicle that’s prone to a little tailspin when hitting an obstacle.

On the ride, four people share a kart, and zoom together on a track through a series of worlds that mimic Mario Kart’s most famous settings. A Pokey meanders through a desert world, Ty-foos blow at riders during their time flying through the skies, and things get a little twisted as riders get a taste of Luigi’s haunted mansion. No Mario Kart session wouldn’t be complete without a spin down Rainbow Road.

These useful effects blend seamlessly with AR. AR is experienced through a Mario-themed goggles and visor. Peach, Toad and Yoshi are all the competitors, throwing shells at each other and creating a lot of chaos. As the ride goes on, players break virtual, multicolored question-mark boxes to receive shells, which can be to thrown at the other racers and objects around you — like flying Koopas or Bullet Bills whizzing through the sky — by clicking buttons at the top of your steering wheel. The AR glasses allow you to look around, and aim your guns at enemies.

Photo by NBCUniversal

The tech itself isn’t fussy. Attached by a cord to your steering module, the AR goggles magnetically attach to the visors given out while you wait. Aiming feels natural, as you launch shells in the direction you’re physically facing.

Like in multiplayer on Switch showdowns, the winners of the race are determined by their driving skills and their shooting abilities. Team Bowser beat me twice on this ride. However, since I did the test on my own, without any support from teammates, it was a difficult decision. It also means that every time a visitor goes through Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge, they’ll have a slightly different experience.

And each ride on Bowser’s Challenge, like much of the park, can be logged in the Universal Studios Hollywood app. A tap of the park’s Power-Up Band on the Mario logo in the center of the steering wheel records the final score on a park leaderboard, which displays daily and all-time high scores. There’s also a ton of achievement-like stamps to unlock in the app, like for pulling off unique shell throws or feats in the ride. During the two rides, I was able to unlock a couple of stamps that allowed me to hit hidden question blocks.

Photo by NBCUniversal

Super Nintendo World will finally open in Los Angeles, so the wait to ride the train is likely to be lengthy. Even the line leading to the ride is filled with Easter eggs. This will be a delight for Nintendo enthusiasts. The opening bit of the line wraps through a Yoshi-inspired world, with music and iconography from the Super Mario World series — though the park in Universal Studios Hollywood does not have the Yoshi’s Adventure ride, as in Osaka, Japan. (A recently announced port of the park, set for construction at Universal’s Epic Universe park in Orlando, Florida, is expected to expand on the LA footprint to match the Japanese park’s offerings.)

The ride’s queue finally leads into Bowser’s Castle, which is fitted with an enormous throne, a Bob-omb factory line, and tons of funny reference books on topics like wooing princesses and caring for Piranha Plants. Statues and portraits of the villain are displayed around the massive behemoth. As a rider waits, they can also peek out at one of the best views in the park, right at the entrance of Bowser’s Castle — from the perch, all of Super Nintendo World is visible in its full glory.

Super Nintendo World, Universal Studios Hollywood will open to the public February 17,