It's been nearly a year-and-a-half since Nintendo first said it was "looking into" virtual reality, though we have yet to see any concrete signs of that "look" outside of a vague patent application. Thus, it came down to Nintendo partner Namco Bandai to give the world its first official taste of what a popular Nintendo franchise would look like on a modern virtual reality headset (no, the Virtual Boy does not count).
Apparently, it will look a lot like Mario Kart Arcade GP VR, a title being teased for Japanese arcades in a newly released 30-second trailer now making the rounds. The slickly produced, first-person trailer shows players puttering somewhat slowly down familiar looking track settings (Peach's Castle grounds, Bowser's airship, a Thwomp-filled fortress) while throwing turtle shells and banana peels and even bonking opposing players with a hammer.
Though the trailer is making a big splash today, the game's existence was first revealed a month ago as part of a preview event for Namco's upcoming VR arcade games (an event we seem to have missed amid the bustle of E3). A report from The Japan Times explains and shows a bit more about how the game works, with users sitting in a small kart that bumps and shakes as they drive with an HTC Vive strapped to their heads. Vive trackers strapped to the back of the wrists track players' hands (via rubber gloves) and allow them to grab virtual items out of the air and throw them at opponents with real-world motions. IGN Japan has even more footage of people playing the game (note the commentary is all in Japanese).
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