Play Super Mario Bros. on the Street: The Matchmoving Video and How to Play Today

Can you play super mario bros on a real street instead of a TV screen? Student Andreas Heikaus made it look possible in a short film that went viral in 2010. This article shows the video, explains the visual effects trick behind it, and covers the official ways to play Super Mario Bros. today.

Quick answer: The street version of Super Mario Bros. is a visual effects film, not a real game, made with a technique called matchmoving. To actually play the original Super Mario Bros. today, use Nintendo Switch Online, which includes classic NES games, or play newer Mario games on Nintendo consoles and phones.

Super Mario Bros. on the Street (Video)

Andreas Heikaus made this video as part of his Bachelor thesis at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Hannover, Germany. Mario runs, jumps and grabs coins across roads, sidewalks and tree shadows, as if the Nintendo game had escaped the TV.

It runs about seven minutes, so skip around to see Mario racing along the road and the sidewalk, under trees and through shadows. It still looks amazing.

How the Video Was Made: Matchmoving

The secret is matchmoving (external site), a visual effects technique that inserts computer graphics into live-action footage with the correct position, scale, orientation and motion relative to the real objects in the shot. In simple terms:

1. Film the real scene with a moving camera.
2. Track the camera in software that follows points in the footage to work out how the camera moved.
3. Add the graphics (Mario, blocks, coins and pipes) in a 3D scene that uses the same virtual camera.
4. Composite the graphics over the footage so they appear to sit in the real world.

The same technique is used in movies and TV every day, and it is the idea behind augmented reality apps that place virtual objects in your camera view.

How to Play Super Mario Bros. Today

You can’t play the street version, but the original game is easy to play legally:

• Nintendo Switch Online (external site): the subscription includes a library of classic NES games, including the original Super Mario Bros.
• Super Mario Run (external site): Nintendo’s Mario runner game for iPhone and Android phones.
• Nintendo consoles (external site): newer Mario games, such as Super Mario Bros. Wonder on Nintendo Switch, keep the side-scrolling style of the original.

Avoid unofficial “free Mario” websites and downloads. Many are unlicensed and some carry ads or malware. If you like classic browser games, Google still hosts a playable Pac-Man doodle, and there are more fun extras in our list of Google Easter eggs.

Why This Video Still Matters

In 2010 this kind of effect usually needed a film studio. A student project made it look easy and showed how far affordable visual effects tools had come. Today, phones can do simple real-world tracking for AR games, but well-made matchmoving like this still takes skill and patience.

It also shows how much people love Mario. The original Super Mario Bros. came out on the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1985, and fans still remake, remix and reimagine its first level decades later. Few video game worlds are so instantly recognisable that a few coins and a brick block on a city street tell you exactly what you are looking at.

FAQ

Is the street Super Mario Bros. a real game?

No. It is a visual effects video made for a university thesis. The graphics were added to filmed footage.

What is matchmoving?

Matchmoving tracks how a real camera moved so computer graphics can be placed into the footage with matching position, scale and motion.

Where can I play the original Super Mario Bros.?

On Nintendo Switch through Nintendo Switch Online, which includes classic NES games.

Is there a free official Mario game?

Super Mario Run can be downloaded free and tried before you buy the full game.