Super Mario Strikers

Next Level Games is famous for designing the best action/arcade hockey game, NHL Hitz Pro. When it was announced that they would be the developer behind Nintendo's first soccer game, Super Mario Strikers, one thing was set in stone: this would be a game to remember. Good controls, good characters, good arenas, clever gameplay mechanics that exaggerate reality - these are all traits of NHL Hitz Pro. Given that soccer games are closer to hockey games than any other, Nintendo must've chosen Next Level to extract their talents and game design traits.

Playing the game for the first time confirms those assumptions: Super Mario Strikers is a lot like NHL Hitz Pro. Soccer leagues, get out of here! Rules, you are not welcome. Penalties – what penalties? Four-on-four gameplay, Mario-themed power-ups, and most of your favorite Mario characters make an appearance.

Coolness

Who's that blocking the net? None other than the crocs from Donkey Kong Country. The much-loved-but-rarely-seen Hammer Bros. (from the original Super Mario Bros. game) have been resurrected for team spirit. Koopa and Birdo (the weird dinosaur-like egg shooters from Super Mario 2) are also playable. There's only one Toad, but his brothers and sisters look just like him. You'll be able to control them as well.

These four character groups make up the bulk of your team, but it's the character you choose to make captain that will rock your opponent's world. Mario, Wario, Luigi, Waluigi, Yoshi, Peach, Daisy, and Donkey Kong are playable from the start, providing instant access to the tall and the small, the brainy and the brute – the crazy and the crazier. Waluigi really shouldn't have stopped taking his medication.

Standard shots take one tap and it's done. The ball is kicked, where it goes - that's up to Mother Nature. Or Bowser. He drops in from time to time to burn things up. He stomps on teammates, opponents, whoever's in his way. He'll knock the ball away from you, and leave the world lopsided! Remember when he did that in Mario 64? These are the kinds of things I look for in a Mario game; elements that move the game forward by utilizing an element from the past.

It's interesting how much bigger Bowser is as an adversary than he is as a playable character in Mario Kart, or as a supporting character in Mario & Luigi. He seemed to be of a more normal size in Paper Mario. In Super Mario Strikers he's huge!

It won't take you more a minute to realize that by holding down the B button you can charge your shot. This move is a lot like charging a slap-shot in NHL Hitz Pro. The difference is that the captain's charge shot may be turned into a Super Strike. Charge a shot until the strike meter appears and press the B button as the line scrolls over the green area. Do this twice and the strike will be unstoppable! The captain performing this move will be frozen in time; the screen will spin around, Matrix-style, and the ball will be shot at the goal so harshly that it'll knock the goalie back a few feet! Two points are earned for scoring with a Super Strike. All other goals get you one point.

One-Up

Have you ever been out playing a sport and thought, "If I had a Koopa shell I'm sure I'd win." Red shells, blue shells, spiked shells, big shells – Mario Strikers has enough for everyone. They're collected by charging your shots and by taking hits from opponents when you don't have the ball. Shells bounce and banana peels can slip up anyone (including you), so use power-ups cautiously. Bob-ombs are great, but as always, he has a really short fuse. Anything can set him off.

Luigi: "Hey Bob-omb, I'm getting hungry. You wanna go out for spaghetti?"

Bob-omb waddles forward and explodes.

It's Time

The one-timer-heavy gameplay of NHL Hitz Pro has been carried over to Mario Strikers, letting Hitz players come into the game without the need for a tutorial. A basic tutorial is available and lists all 12 of the game's mechanics, but it's unlikely that you'll need to look at it. The only move I hadn't figured out on my own was how to do a lob pass (hold L and press A). That was after about 60 minutes of play. Had I played longer before checking the tutorial I'm sure I would've figured it out on my own.

Going straight from Hitz to Strikers is a little distressing. Hitz is insanely fast, extreme sports action. Strikers, though primarily an arcade-style soccer game, is more balanced in this respect. I would have preferred that they increased the gamepaly speed, but I say that as a loyal Hitz fan. People who don't like Hitz often say it's because it's too fast or too unrealistic (crazy, aren't they?). By having Mario as one of its stars, in the title, and on the cover box, Strikers was more of a mainstream title from the start, justifying the speed reduction.

In Smash Bros. every character played as differently as they looked. Mario Kart is more lenient, but when you choose Mario you know it's him. He's well-rounded. Toad is great at cornering. Donkey Kong is strong but heavy and not as good at cornering.

Character individuality is where Mario Strikers comes up short. It didn't matter if I picked Wario or Daisy. Peach or Luigi. Toad or Donkey Kong. They had slight differences, but that's not enough. The same could be said for NHL Hitz Pro – aside from a few statistical differences, what does it mean to go from the Detroit Red Wings to the St. Louis Blues?

Mario Strikers, however, does not have a list of statistics that note the individual differences. Having one wouldn't have changed the outcome unless those numbers actually meant something.

What we have then is a great sports game that's short and not as varied as Mario's other outings. There's a significant amount of repetition here – that's something I'm rarely able to say about a Mario title. I like it a lot and will still play it, but it's not what I was hoping for: an NHL Hitz Pro-killer that starred the cast of Super Mario Bros. Instead, Mario Strikers is a variation of NHL Hitz Pro with less game modes and fewer unlockables.

Gameplay: 8.0
As if there was doubt in anyone's mind, Super Mario Strikers' controls are smooth, responsive, and are fun to take advantage of. The "Striker" in the title refers to the game's exclusive, never-saw-it-coming move: the Super Strike. In its weakest state this move is a powerful, goalie-stunning shot that'll strike whatever it hits with great force. At full capacity this move is unstoppable. The game says it's "nearly" unstoppable, but I have yet to block a perfect Super Strike, nor have my opponents, real or computer-controlled, been able to.

Repetition and a lack of variety among characters prevent Mario Strikers from reaching the level of Mario Kart, Mario Golf or Smash Bros. Melee. This is a great game but don’t think of Mario Kart (or NHL Hitz Pro) before playing it.

Graphics: 7.9
Believable backgrounds, Mario-style effects, cool characters, etc. It’s all good, but very dated when compared to what other Mario games have achieved.

Sound: 6.0
Retro sounds from various Mario titles are played repeatedly as each teammate rushes to get the ball. They’re cool the first time you hear them. After that it’s like, “Would you PLEASE stop making noise!?”

Difficulty: Easy/Medium
Twelve mechanics, a few of which are determined by chance or by what’s going on in the match. Twelve isn’t a bad number, but this is the end of the current generation – isn’t it about time we get something more advanced? Ah that’s right, this is supposed to be a mainstream title.

Concept: 7.0
Good characters (duh) and cool power-ups (also duh, but the developers were clever in their implementation). Seeing Bowser drop in during a match is a real treat. I have to wonder why the arenas weren’t influenced by Mario’s other adventures. You’ll notice little things that relate them to the Mushroom Kingdom, but it would’ve been better if they had taken the game out of the arena and into actual worlds that we had previously explored.

There I am again fantasizing about what could’ve been. I only find myself doing that when a game doesn’t meet expectations. Repetition is not something that typically accommodates a new Mario game, but you’ll find plenty of it in this sports game. After a great run of Mario games this year, we can’t be expected to expect anything but the best.

Multiplayer: 8.4
Multiplayer is where Super Mario Strikers lives on. The single-player cups can be shortened to two minutes per match, letting you beat them and gain access to an all-new character (a robot that resembles the Next Level mascot) in a couple of hours. When that’s over with you’ll stay occupied with four-player matches where you can split the team up any way you want (two-on-two, one-on-three, etc.) or play together against computer-controlled opponents.

Overall: 8.2
I wouldn’t take another game off your Christmas wish list to get Super Mario Strikers, but if you have the cash, love Mario, love soccer, and do not have expectations of an NHL Hitz Pro or Mario Kart-caliber game, this is a must-buy. You’ll enjoy this one no matter what, but high expectations kill a game for most players, especially those who buy games on a regular basis. Play it, beat it, and get away from it for a while. Then come back with a few friends to see what the multiplayer mode is made of.