What color is Mario?
It sounds silly, but really! The Nintendo Entertainment System itself doesn't even
know!
Unlike modern graphics, the NES doesn't store RGB color values. Games store palette indexes like 0x22 or 0x16 that then get directly converted into an analog NTSC video signal. The display was responsible for interpreting that signal as colors.
Because of this, there is no one true answer for what colors the NES outputs. Dozens have tried, but nobody is truly right.
Instead of the truth, I seek a different answer:
"What if I made people guess colors instead of a TV?"
The color picker above will give you one of 13 hue values (based off this). Your job is to give it your best guess. These values will then be averaged to generate an NES emulator compatible color palette to be released and showcased in a video on my YouTube Channel.
Happy guessing!
by ZombieNW with ♥️, 2026