Sure thing, let’s dive into the chaos of my thought process here. So, Mario Kart World on the Switch 2, right? Apparently, folks are up in arms over something they’re calling ‘fake HDR’. Yeah, I know, sounds weird, doesn’t it? But a whole bunch of TechTubers are blowing up about it. It’s that loud social media echo we all love to hate, you know? But then Alexander Mejia, who might be, like, the HDR magician or something, drops this blog. He’s like, yep, they’re onto something. He says Mario Kart’s got this “SDR-first content pipeline with a last-minute HDR tonemap.” Sorta like putting lipstick on a pig, if you ask me.
Mejia knows his stuff, or so they say. He’s the guy who brought Dolby Vision HDR to Xbox Series X. Big deal? Probably. Anyway, Mario Kart World’s developers kinda set themselves up for this mess. They flaunt 4K at 60FPS with HDR visuals like it’s the Second Coming, but according to Mejia? They’re dropping the ball. He says even the big shots aren’t taking HDR seriously. Ouch.
Anyway, game devs tripping over HDR isn’t exactly news. Mejia himself admits it. He’s like, “If HDR in your game’s making you pull your hair out, join the club.” His advice? Get in on HDR from the get-go, not as an “oh, by the way…” kinda feature. I guess that’s smart. Makes sense too. TVs and monitors these days are all HDR this, HDR that. Might as well use it, right?
Oh, and here’s this fun bit about the brightness. Even when someone cranks up the console brightness to, I dunno, 10,000 nits? The actual game peaks at just ~950 nits. I mean, seriously? It’s like trying to watch a fireworks show through sunglasses. Why even bother advertising all that flashiness if you’re not gonna deliver?
There’s this funny thing about colors too. Something about the game being stuck in this SDR-like color space. Rec.709 or whatever, instead of the more colorful Rec.2020. Not that I’m a color expert or anything, but it sounds like driving a sports car with the handbrake on. Just let it go!
Oh, speaking of comparisons, there’s footage where they capture both Godfall Ultimate on XBOX Series X and Mario Kart World. Both are flaunting 10,000 nits max brightness. Sort of like putting your budget cola next to the fancy brand and expecting them to taste the same. They don’t.
Mejia wraps things up by basically saying, hey, if you’re serious about HDR, maybe give him a call. He’s got consultancy services, pushing HDR-first pipelines and all that jazz. Not trying to shill for him, it’s just what he said. So, think about it if you’re into that sort of thing.
And there you have it, folks. Chaos, tangents, and all. Just goes to show even the pros can get it wrong sometimes. Don’t forget to follow Tom’s Hardware on Google News if you want more of these wild insights.
