Play Touhou Mario - Imperishable Night Online

Game Overview

Okay, picture this: Mario, but instead of dodging Koopas, he's weaving through a hurricane of glowing bullets straight out of a Touhou game. That’s Touhou Mario - Imperishable Night in a nutshell—somehow, this weird little SNES romhack makes the crossover feel totally natural. One second you’re stomping on a Piranha Plant, the next you’re frantically sidestepping a spiral of danmaku while the chiptune remix of Bad Apple!! blares in the background.

The first time I played, I got wrecked by a spell card before I even reached the first warp pipe. It’s tough, but in that satisfying way where every death feels like your fault—like you almost had the pattern memorized. The pixel art’s gorgeous, too, with Mario’s sprites somehow fitting right in alongside Touhou’s cast. Not gonna lie, watching Yoshi eat a fairy and spit it back as a fireball never gets old.

It’s janky in places (of course it is—it’s a fan game), but that just adds to the charm. If you love either series, or just want to see what happens when someone smashes them together with reckless abandon, give it a shot. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you about the difficulty.