"Highly recommended."

This is a review for yet another Mario sports game. The game is based on Soccer but it's okay if you don't know the rules for Soccer, because Super Mario Strikers takes all the normal rules of the game and replaces them with one rule: anything goes.

Graphics- 9/10

The graphics are great. The characters all look great and all the animations are smooth. In the menues and instruction manual, the characters are drawn in a very different art style than usual and it looks awesome. My only gripe with the graphics is the crowd. The spectators are just a bunch of 2d sprites. It looks a little odd.

Sound- 5/10

There really isn't much sound in the game. There are lots of sound effects and they are done well and sound good. But there isnt much actual music and when there is, it isn't great. During the match you'll just hear the sounds of the crowd and the ball being passed around. It takes away some of the excitement of the game to be honest.

Gameplay- 9/10

The gameplay is really smooth. Its one of those games you can just pick up and play because its easy to learn, but hard to master. The controls are basic but work well. You have two types of tackles; the slide tackle and the big hit. Both have their own advantages and disadvantages so you'll have to learn when to use each one. The big hit is an aggressive tackle. Your player basically charges into the opponent and knocks them down. The disadvantages of this tackle are that its slow and that you have to run to the ball after you knock them down. The slide tackle is just when your player slides along the ground towards your opponent. If you do this from the front of your opponent you get the ball straight from your opponent which is great. But if you slide tackle them from behind, both you and your opponent will fall down but they wont have control of the ball. Also, you can intercept passes with the slide tackle. If you tackle someone who does not have the ball, your opponent will gain an item. These range from blue shells which freeze you opponent to a chain chomp which will charge around the pitch destroying anyone in its path. Next, the super strike. The super strike is a fairly cheap move which will net you two points. To perform it you must hold B and a meter will pop up. You have to stop it in the right places for it to go in. Fortunately, you can tackle your opponent while he is trying to pull this off. It can be a pain though but fortunately, you have the option to disable the super strike. There are a total of 8 captains to choose from as well as 1 unlockable captain. There are also 4 sidekicks who are the other players in your team. You unlock new stadiums by winning cups. There isn't really much difference between the stadiums apart from net size and appearance. The only other unlockables apart from these are milestone trophies. You get these by doing things certain amount of times. Such as scoring goals, playing matches etc. The multiplayer in the game is awesome. I highly recommend this game if you have friends to play with. But playing against the computer is still pretty damn fun.

To sum it up, Super Mario Strikers is a great game thats easy to pick up and play and it's awesome with friends.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 03/16/07