Japan's Insane Real-Life Version of Mario Kart Is Coming to Brisbane

Speedsters of Brisbane, it's time to don your best red cap, slide into a pair of overalls and jump behind the wheel. If you want to take part in Mushroom Racing, the outfit isn't optional — if that's not your style, you could pick a green hat or a dinosaur costume instead.

Not content with zipping through the streets of Tokyo and causing quite a stir, a real-life version of Mario Kart made its way to our shores this year, starting in Melbourne and Sydney. If you're a Brisbanite eager to dress up as your favourite character, get cosy in a go-kart, race till your heart's content and collect stars to win prizes, don't worry — our fine city is next on the agenda.

While Tokyo's MariCar lets racers zoom along the city's actual roadways — yes, really — that's not the case here. And, throwing shells or bananas at your opponents isn't be allowed either. Sure, that's all well and fun when you're mashing buttons and trying not to fall off the Rainbow Road while you're playing one of Nintendo's many console versions (or counting down the days until the first Mario Kart smartphone game is released), but it's definitely not cool in real life. Instead, you'll get your Mario Kart fix while you're speeding along a custom go-kart track.

If you're keen, you can sign up to receive further information when it comes to hand, with Brisbane dates and a venue yet to be revealed. Organisers are calling it "the rally of a lifetime", and while that's definitely overstating the significance of driving around pretending you're Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario or whichever other character you like, you know you're eager to give the novelty a go. And, let's face it, it's not quite as ridiculous as human bowling.