This Hacker Converted a LEGO Mario Figure Into an Actual Controller for Super Mario Bros.

LEGO is known for many things: innovation, creativity, and, most of all, business-savvy licensing agreements with the media franchises we’re obsessed with. Over the years, there have been tie-ins with Star Wars, the DCU and the MCU, The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and even Spongebob Squarepants. All of those proved to be quite lucrative, and so LEGO is always on the lookout for similar opportunities. Earlier this year, they partnered with Nintendo to license everyone’s favorite plumber. But LEGO Mario isn’t just another Minifig, and Rick was able to convert his Mario figure into a fully-functional controller for playing Super Mario Bros.

LEGO Mario is unlike any other toy set that LEGO — or anyone else for that matter — has ever made before. The centerpiece of the set is the Mario figure, which is much larger than a standard LEGO Minifig. It was designed that way so that they could fit all kinds of electronics inside, including LED eyes, a screen on Mario’s chest, a gyroscope, and a camera on the feet for reading barcodes and colors. You can use special bricks to build your own levels, which mirror those found throughout the Super Mario Bros. video games. After building your level, you can “play” it by physically moving the Mario figure across the bricks. The figure’s sensors detect the type of brick Mario is on in order to collect coins, damage enemies, and so on.

The Mario figure can also connect to a companion app via Bluetooth. That app can be used to send firmware updates, display tutorials and other information, and so on. In this case, Rick has hijacked that Bluetooth connection to turn the Mario figure into a gamepad. He has the figure connected to his Apple MacBook Pro and uses that to receive data from the sensors. It’s not entirely clear exactly how he achieved that or how “open” the data is. But, however he did it, he was able to get the information coming from the gyroscope and foot sensor. He then converted that data into gamepad commands for the original Super Mario Bros. that is running on an emulator on the MacBook. Tilting the Mario figure forward causes the onscreen Mario sprite to run forward, lifting it up causes him to jump, and so on. He can even shoot fireballs and enter warp pipes by tapping the foot sensor onto the corresponding bricks.