McGregor Square to host Mario Kart on the Big Screen

If you’ve ever dreamed of throwing a red shell at your friend on a screen the size of a small building, McGregor Square just made it happen.

The downtown Denver plaza, right next to Coors Field, is hosting Mario Kart on the Big Screen this Thursday, Aug. 20, and it’s exactly what it sounds like: the classic Mario Kart 64, blown up to a 66-foot LED screen, with four players going head-to-head in 30-minute racing sessions from 1 to 6 p.m. It’s free to play, free to watch and family-friendly, which is good, because the trash talk between strangers playing Rainbow Road on a six-story screen is going to be absolutely unhinged.

Registration is required, and space is limited. You choose your race time when you sign up through Eventbrite, so if you want a slot, don’t sit on it, these things tend to fill up fast. Four players race at a time, and we fully expect at least one person to show up in a Luigi costume.

And here’s the bonus: once the racing wraps at 6 p.m., McGregor Square is screening “Super Mario Galaxy” on the same 66-foot screen starting at 6:30 p.m. as part of their Movies at McGregor series. So you can spend your afternoon dominating Toad on the starting line and then immediately watch a Mario movie under the stars. That’s a full Thursday.

Here’s what you need to know:

• What: Mario Kart on the Big Screen
• When: Thursday, Aug. 20, 1-6 p.m. (movie screening at 6:30 p.m.)
• Where: McGregor Square, 1901 Wazee St., Denver, CO 80202
• Cost: Free (registration required via Eventbrite)
• Details: 30-minute racing sessions, four players at a time, Mario Kart 64 on Nintendo Switch projected on a 66-foot LED screen