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Update [Wed 8th Mar, 2023 09:40]: Since publishing this article, the video is no longer available on YouTube. Instead, the video has been replaced with the statement: "This video contains content from Nintendo, who has blocked it on copyright grounds".
We've updated this article to include RiazorMC's tweet, which shows off the full course, and removed the video.
Original article [Tue 7th Mar, 2023 10:00 GMT]: We already know that the Legend of Zelda and Mario Kart are a match made in heaven thanks to Hyrule Circuit in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. We're quite surprised we haven't seen another Zelda-themed course in the game, to be honest. But, don't worry, modder and YouTuber RiazorMC has taken matters into their own hands and popped the world of Ocarina of Time into Mario Kart (via Twitter).
Zelda Ocarina of Time Circuit is a custom track mod from RiazorMC and is based on the 3DS remake's version of Hyrule. The course starts at the mouth of the Deku Tree and takes the racers through Kokiri Forest, Hyrule Field, Gerudo Valley, and Lake Hylia — where there's a spectacular gliding section going from the Valley to the Lake.
Everything has been considered, from underwater travel to even the lap names — the course one big line rather than being a three-lap round race. The race finishes at the top of Death Mountain after a tense finish that sees Mario targeted by an infamous blue shell.
At the moment, the course itself seems very open, and it might be a little tricky to navigate because of the lack of directional arrows and barriers, but we're really impressed with just how well the track is put together, and just how cool it is to drive through Ocarina of Time's world. We'd love to see more crossover tracks in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, but this will have to do for now.
Give the video at the top a watch right now, and let us know in the comments if you want to speed into Hyrule Fields in Mario Kart 8.
[source youtube.com, via twitter.com]
Comments 37
Pretty cool! But I'm surprised the coins aren't rupees.
I'm not really impressed with the idea that only stuck by zelda and mario stuffs without branching to other stuffs.
You can still able to make beautiful racing tracks without using the ideas from zelda stuffs too much.
I love the concept, but it seems unless you know the correct route, it's very hard to know which way you're supposed to go
@Melee_Ace
Yeah, considering the Hyrule race track in MK8 already had rupees, they could've implemented that too.
Since it's a one-lap race with checkpoints, it may be a modification of a track like Mount Wario instead.
That is brilliant, yes there are small arrows, but it is abit confusing where you can drive.
It sure is...barren :/
I like it but it’s confusing which way to go and which ways is the correct way.
. Great work
It seems chaotic as there is little indication of the way you should take, but otherwise it seems incredibly well implemented. I really like the gliding section
Cool idea but very confusing. I think some barriers to delineate the actual course would have been useful.
It's a great demonstration of just how expansive OOT was for its time, though.
I love the idea and I can't be too critical since it's just a fan having a good time with modding. Obviously it would have been great to get through more areas, with more going on, and better music, and I can see myself getting lost in this course very easily, but I might still try it out someday if it's a work in progress.
Mmmmmmmm seems a mess.
Impressive, albeit perhaps slightly too divorced from the idea of an actual racetrack to work as anything other than a youtube curio. Also, WHERE ARE THE CUCCOS?????
That would have been great if there was an actual track … that’s just the Ocarina of Time map with racers on it … it was a fun watch though ….
Aesthetically, this is what I wanted from a Zelda track in Mario Kart. I want it to be themed around a specific game. When the DLC was announced for Mario Kart 8 on Wii U all the way back in 2015, I thought we might be getting a Skyloft track to coincide with the playable Link that looked closer to the Skyward Sword model than anything. If not that, I envisioned an Ocarina of Time course, not too different from the custom one here.
The Hyrule Circuit track we ended up getting just felt very generic, and while this might sound sacrilegious to some, it's honestly one of my least-favorite courses in the whole Mario Kart franchise. It has some charm, like replacing coins with Rupees, Piranha Plants with Deku Babas, and Swoopers with Keese. But I still just find it incredibly boring and uninteresting. The Animal Crossing track and Splatoon battle map are much better representations of their respective franchises, as is the new Yoshi course dropping soon.
Could use some fine tuning but way more interesting and nostalgic than the actual Zelda course in Mario Kart 8.
Even in a fan-made Zelda track, you can't escape the Biddy Buggy with Rollers.
@canaryfarmer Have you played OoT lately?
I gotta tell you. It was perfect, perfect down to the last minute details
I don't think I like this as a track, but it is impressive to see all these areas from Ocarina of Time 3D interconnected.
The concept is great, looks really good visually, but the layout is practically nonexistent, making this almost impossible to actually race on!
As others said they should've put barriers, arrows etc. to delimit the actual track to make it much, much better gameplaywise.
Yikes. The directionlessness reminds me of that awful race mode in Halo 1 multiplayer. Flat dropping Mario Kart racers into OoT looks awkward. It'd be more fun to replay the timed segment of the trading sequence. Good effort though.
I think people are too strictly viewing this as an "audition for inclusion in a real MK game" rather than as a "look how cool this is" type of thing. Sure, I agree with some of the critiques people have if we are assessing its viability as a publicly-available course, but I don't think this course ever had "for general public use" in mind. Maybe I'm wrong.
What I do know is that I had a blast watching it as a simple novelty, and that's what I hoped to get when I clicked Play.
Nintendo should totally copy this concept and make their own where it's a little clearer where the raceway is, but otherwise this is a great idea for a track that drives you through most areas of the game!
I'm glad I'm not the only one who was confused by the direction of the track. I would get so lost and quit in frustration
Sure, this would be bad as an actual track, but it was sure fun to watch the video!
It definitely looks good, but misses some of the marks of what makes the standard tracks great. Its layout is confusing, it has too many narrow pathways that discourage tense close-quarters racing, and even had a hairpin turn on the last lap that required totally slowing down, uncalled for in a race. It has potential, but I guess this shows us just how much the Nintendo-made tracks were carefully planned and laid out.
@Dr_Corndog Not lately, but I have...the magic mix of course design is having that initial 'location' concept, like here, but then adding to it in a way that makes it seem also like a Mario Kart track, which is something very else entirely, and therein lies the fun! This is just....the landscape.
@canaryfarmer Sure. I just think it's impressive that they took all these locations separated by load screens, combined them into a single space, and made it work in Mario Kart. It's not professionally designed and not the greatest track for racing, but it's novel and cool from a technical perspective.
@Dr_Corndog It's a good rough draft
It's cool but you can tell it's fan made. If they really made this there would be a lot more guiding and signposting to make sure you stay on the correct route. Also lots of course hazards. But cool to see someone race around the actual map.
What a dream! A real track would need to lock you in to a set path of course, as opposed to being essentially a test of whether or not you know exactly what the developer intended you to do, but that's the wonderful thing about mods! Get a couple of likeminded people to race with and this would be spectacular.
This is not a racetrack it literally just driving around the ocarina map, impressive bit of programming but that's about it.
Mario Kart Maker anyone?
Very Cool! But...it looks confusing. I know there's arrows but I would get so lost.
This is just an amazing effort. The track and where you are supposed to drive is hard to be sure about. But who cares, the track is glorious!
EDIT: and having just gone and played OoT on the n64 emulator, omg the 3ds version is so much prettier
EDIT EDIT: For shame Nintendo, blocking was not necessary. They must like throwing money at lawyers. Whatever happened to any publicity is good publicity
I always wanted a Mario Kart Maker, or for the next Mario Kart game to have a course maker.
I think Nintendo blocked it because they're actually working on a Ocarina of Time course for one of the last 2 waves for Mario kart 8 Deluxe.
Aww..Nintendo blocked it! It was so cool! ☹️
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