New Video Shows Nintendo’s Mario Running In Unreal Engine 4
Awhile back last March, Epic Games made their video game physics engine Unreal Engine 4 free for the public to use, which was an awesomely generous gesture and should help a lot of indie game designers. The caveat is that if you make over $3,000 with the product you created from it, Epic Games must receive a 5% royalty on gross revenue.
Unreal programmer and YouTuber aryoksini wanted to know what a famous gaming mascot would look like with the finest graphics and shaders around, and so he whipped up a Mario model and set it loose through over five minutes of footage rendered in Unreal 4.
Mario runs, zips and leaps through dungeons, caves and abandoned hallways — very few of which look like they would fit in his normally exaggerated world, but they all came from pre-packaged assets available with the UE4 license. Mario himself is a custom creation, so he has a couple of subtle differences from his official doppleganger, but all his moves are functional, including the wall jump.
Of course, if Nintendo ever used Unreal Engine 4, they would have to cut Epic Games a 5% royalty check. And Nintendo doesn’t share with anyone. So….it’s never happening, but it’s not like Nintendo doesn’t have talented graphic designers of its own.