Square Enix Involved in NES Google Maps April Fool
Posted by Thomas Whitehead
Officially confirmed
When it comes to Nintendo-themed April Fools jokes, Google showed plenty of creativity with Google Maps 8-bit. Some of our readers with a solid grasp of NES classics observed that the music and overall theme of the fictional cartridge strongly resembled the original Dragon Quest: accessing the trial version online also involved clicking on a link titled 'Quest'. It's transpired that this wasn't Google showing appreciation for an old franchise, but actually represented a direct collaboration with Square Enix on the project.
According to a U.S. representative from Square Enix, the famous developer was responsible for all of the lovely sprites and NES assets in the video.
It was a collaborative effort between Square Enix and Google. Google came up with the idea, then we provided the assets and helped them to create the map.
So while some may have spotted the Square Enix mention on the title page, it's interesting that the developer became directly involved in this April Fools. Two industry leaders collaborating on an NES-themed prank is always worth another look: the video is below.
[via gameinformer.com]
#1
Joshers744 said:
It was pretty cool! I wish it was still on google.
Now I want to be able to download some Dragon Quest games.
#2
LzQuacker said:
Aren't some of those speakers employees of Squeenix?
#3
Geonjaha said:
"Turn the power on"
Everyone: 0.o
"Blow on the cartridge to fix bugs"
Still love it. XD
#4
3Dash said:
One of the best April Fools jokes ever. This year, overall, was a really good April Fools year. Nintendo, Google and Square Enix, there were some pretty good YouTube ones too. Good job Google, Square Enix, and Nintendo!
#5
Holmfry said:
@Joshers744 I couldn't believe they'd really only leave it up for the one day either, so I did some hunting.. It's not directly linked from maps.google anymore, but (for now) you can still get to it from this link: http://maps.google.com/?t=8&utm_campaign=8bit&utm_source=yt
Enjoy!
#6
Joshers744 said:
@Holmfry. Cool! Thanks for the link.
#7
Holmfry said:
@Joshers744 No problem
#8
Whirlpool said:
I like how it shows castles in the location you search. It's a cool feature.
#9
mamp said:
They got me good, I somehow got fooled into believing the world had downgraded its visuals and we were all gonna look 8 bit forever.
#10
Tasuki said:
One of the best April fools pranks I have seen in a long time. I was playing with it for hours lol.
#11
ecco6t9 said:
Awesomeness.
#12
Ultra128 said:
Yes, I noticed the copyright info at the bottom.
#13
Wolfenstein83 said:
One of the best jokes ever, and I would totally buy a cartridge if they produced one.
Of course the NES doesn't have the mic like the Famicom does, but still, I want that cartridge now!
#14
Jstar269 said:
Google Quest.
#15
defrb said:
Nice joke. Especially when you read that people thought it was true.
#16
grimbldoo said:
@Geonjaha #3
I cracked up and had nostalgia.
#17
onlyaman said:
Dude, did anyone else notice that "Peru Nazca" (minute 1:49) has what appears to be the bird-shaped ruins from XEVIOUS ??!?! Gmaps be kickin it old-skool.