Super Mario Strikers

"Out of all of Mario’s sports games, this has to be the worst."

Out of all of Mario's sports games, this has to be the worst.

At first, this game seems like tons of fun, but after playing it for about a day, you'll see this game is the blandest Mario sports game of them all.

Game play: Ok first off, there's no story whatsoever. Just mindless tournaments, where the only prizes are minor cheats, pointless trophies, and one team. Those have to be the worst, and the least, unlockables in a Mario sports game to date. Oh and lets not forget all the unlockable stages, and how each and every one of them is nothing more than the exact same field with different colors and patterns. No gimmicks, no nothing. Now you may be thinking, “But look at all the different cups! That must be a ton of fun!” No, it's not. It's boring and monotonous. Even with all the cups, that doesn't take more than a few hours to complete. Powerups are also not as good as in other Mario sports. You get them when you are unfairly attacked, or under other various circumstances, instead of being able to pick them up on the field. Most of the powerups are just variations of each other. They're either one of the powerup, three of the powerup, or one huge powerup. There are good parts of the game though. The Super Strike system is interesting and new, but I would have to say the best part of the game is slamming your opponent into the electric fences. 5/10

Replay Value: This game has some good replay value. With the multiplayer, there are always some new challenges when you're playing with your friends. Unfortunately, that's the only good replay value, as the AI is not very smart, and is very easy to learn they're patterns. But multiplayer is always a good thing about any game. 6/10

Sound and Graphics: OK throughout the game, there is almost no music at all. The most noticeable sounds are the ones made by your characters, every single time they kick the ball or get smashed into the electric fence. These sounds are cool and funny at first, but after a while, they will start to get on your nerves. The graphics on the other hand were fairly good. It had some good figures and not many graphical glitches (although I've heard Daisy has no hips). The 2-dimensional audience is humorous, and the sparks when objects hit the electrical fence were a nice touch. 7/10

Bottom Line: Overall, I'd say this game is somewhere in between awful and mediocre, and can be completed in a few hours or days. Buy it only if you have friends whom will be able to play it with you often. Otherwise I suggest renting it, or else it'll sit up on your shelf gathering dust. 5/10

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 10/23/06