YouTube / Nintendo
Nintendo's business is in dire straights, and has been for three consecutive years. Perhaps that's why the company let Mercedes-Benz sponsor three new cars into its cartoonish racing game for the Wii U, in the form of a free downloadable content (DLC) package set to release at the end of the month.
The company originally announced just one Mercedes-branded kart for Mario Kart 8 - the Mercedes-Benz GLA - but Nintendo has since added two new models to the game: the W25 Silver Arrow and the 300 SL Roadster, according to Kotaku's Luke Plunkett.
YouTube / Nintendo
According to Nintendo, the cars' colors will change depending on the characters you use. For example, Peach would drive a red GLA, whereas Toad would drive a dark blue model.
Compared with the candy-colored karts of Mario Kart past, the Mercedes-Benz cars don't look cartoonish at all, and seem a bit out of place. Hopefully this isn't the start of a new trend for Mario Kart, where automakers can pay money to get their latest cars in Nintendo's beloved racing franchise.
Though the DLC is free, this injection of realistic-looking cars is a bit jarring. But you be the judge: Check out Nintendo's promotional video of the Mercedes karts and let us know your thoughts in the comments section.