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.
[source gameinformer.com]
Comments 16
It was pretty cool! I wish it was still on google.
Now I want to be able to download some Dragon Quest games.
Aren't some of those speakers employees of Squeenix?
"Turn the power on"
Everyone: 0.o
"Blow on the cartridge to fix bugs"
Still love it. XD
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!
@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!
@Holmfry. Cool! Thanks for the link.
@Joshers744 No problem
I like how it shows castles in the location you search. It's a cool feature.
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.
One of the best April fools pranks I have seen in a long time. I was playing with it for hours lol.
Awesomeness.
Yes, I noticed the copyright info at the bottom.
Google Quest.
Nice joke. Especially when you read that people thought it was true.
@Geonjaha #3
I cracked up and had nostalgia.
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.
Show Comments
Leave A Comment
Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment...