Mario Strikers Charged

"Arguably one of the best multiplayer experiences on the Wii so far, however the online is iffy..."

From the looks of it today, Mario definitely is not your average plumber-handyman. He's been on far more adventures, and lately, he's even been getting into sports. Kart racing, tennis, golf and baseball just to name a few. Finally in 2005, Mario tried his hand at soccer, or “the real football” as those chaps up in Britain like to call it. It was a gamecube title with fast-paced action like no other, with excellent multiplayer. Strikers Charged is the sequel for the Wii, and although a lot of the gameplay elements remain untouched, the game's multiplayer support is probably the best for Wii so far.

Not your average game of football
If you're looking for an accurate soccer game sticking close to the rules and play of real-life football, then Mario Strikers Charged isn't the one for you. Strikers Charged basically features five players per side – a captain, three ‘sidekicks' and a goalie. The pitch is quite short compared to regular soccer fields, and is usually surrounded by an electric barrier, shocking you if you touch it. What this means, is that there's no throw-ins, corner or goal kicks – Mario Strikers works to try and achieve the quickest action it can whilst having as little stops to play as possible – the only notable stops being when a goal is scored or saved in some cases. This also means there's no referee in the game – anything goes. This is what makes the game so different to other Mario games – that each of the characters you've known so long now has this tougher side, this fire within them which makes them want to get the ball, no matter what. Even characters like the lovable Yoshi won't care how hurt you are after they smash you off the ball into an electric fence. It's rough, but you will love it.

The main changes you'll find which make the game so different from an average game of soccer are the inclusion of skill shots and megastrikes. Each are a special form of shot performed by either your three sidekicks or captain respectively when they charge up the ball's power using the B button. After charging for a certain amount of time, they'll be able to unleash the shot on the opponent's goal.

Each of the different sidekicks has a different skill shot to use on goal. Dry Bones will charge up the ball with electricity, stunning anyone it hits, and opening up play for a second strike on goal if you manage to stun the goalkeeper in the process. The Hammer Bros throws hammers at the keeper to knock him out before taking a shot. It all adds to the fun and adds a new level of strategy to the game, as you'll want to pick out your teams based on not only the sidekick's stats, but their skillshot use as well.

Captains, on the other hand, have a different type of shot called a megastrike, which they can use when charging up the ball enough in the opposition's half. After charging, a meter will come up on screen. The power of the megastrike depends on this meter, as depending on where the pointer lands after you finish, you can shoot anywhere from three to six balls on goal. After charging, an animation featuring your captain will play, and you'll shoot up into the air to rain hell on your opposition's keeper. Your opponent will need to go through a minigame involving the wii remote pointer to stop the incoming balls. If they miss any during the minigame, these will count as goals.

Whilst the minigame is quite easy to complete when there are only three or four balls flying in, your concentration may falter when going for all six if somebody has perfected their megastrike. Computer players, on the other hand, seem to always miss at least one of the balls when you shoot against them, so pulling off megastrikes almost becomes a necessity when playing against them. Play online or against the hardest computer difficulty, and you'll find it isn't quite as easy to pull them off. Opponents will stop at nothing to tackle you into the electric wall while you're charging up.

Now, while the megastrikes are certainly a nice feature for the game, at times they do detract from the strategy used to score goals. This definitely applies to the one-player game, as nobody in their right mind would take their time setting up a nice smash into the top corner of the opposition's net, when they could instead run into a corner away from enemies and charge up a shot to get a potential six goals instead. At times it will turn the quick pace right down, so that you're running around in circles from the opposition, constantly trying to pass to your captain in order to pull off the megastrike. Fortunately there is an option to turn them off in multiplayer matches, but not in the cup modes or online.

Another nice feature in Strikers Charged is the addition of items to the game, Mario Kart style. After taking a big shot on goal, you may be rewarded with an item to your inventory. These can vary from the classic green or red shell, to bananas, or even a special item for your captain which activates a special ability. Again, it's a great addition allows players to think out strategies in order to immobilize the opponent while they set up a shot on goal.

Road to the Striker's Cup
If you're going to purchase Mario Striker's Charged, you probably won't be doing it for the one-player mode. There are three cups to test your skill at, each ramping up the difficulty and the number of games played in order to get to the top. The first cup is quite a nice start to the game, and is pretty easy to beat. Megastrikes are easy to pull off, and the computer players are very predictable in the way they play. Once you get to the third cup, the difficulty is a lot tougher, and megastrikes are much harder to pull off.

After you've completed the three cups, you can go back and play any of the twelve missions to unlock some extras for the game's multiplayer modes, but aside from that, there isn't really anything else to do if you're playing it alone. It should only take you a weekend to finish everything, so it's probably best to stay away unless you have an extra remote and nunchuk spare, or wifi set up.

They may look pretty, but they play dirty…
Mario Strikers Charged features some of the prettiest graphics seen on the Wii. As soon as you boot up the game, you'll see that the animation is smooth and slick, and character models are well rounded and very tight. The same applies when you're in playing the game. Pitches are well textured and nice on the eyes, whilst characters themselves are great, showing no sharp or unshaven texturing or polygons. Look up close when the camera zooms in for a megastrike or replay, and you'll notice that the texturing is very attractive, and that the game certainly isn't a victim of over-blur syndrome, like so many of the ports on Wii from lazier developers. It's a very nice step up from the graphics on the gamecube, and it's easy to say that the visuals are very fitting for the Wii.

On the other hand, Mario Striker's sound borderlines on average, and isn't quite as memorable as the usual Mario themes we've come to love in the past. The music used in the background of games isn't bad, the problem is that it just isn't actually good either. The tunes are quite easily forgettable, even though you'll be listening to them over and over. It would've been nicer to hear a few more louder, upbeat songs rather than the quiet, quick sounds with no real memorable melodies.

Sound effects are fairly decent for shots and saves, and the crowds sound fantastic. The only real gripe I have is the sound made when passing the ball around – a loud, metallic clang of iron which sounds completely out of place, and after a few passes are strung together, extremely annoying. Soft thuds of a proper leather ball are much preferred over this sound. Thankfully you can turn down the sound effects volume if it hurts your ears like mine.

When the Single Player doesn't please, there's always…
Multiplayer on Mario Strikers Charged is arguably the best on the Wii. The game supports up to four players in multiplayer, and is an excellent experience. The level of gameplay is a level up from that of the single player, and you'll find yourself devising far more strategies and tactics against your foe in order to get that winning goal. Mega Strikes are much harder to pull off, but even if you do get one, they'll often be stopped by some good reflexes on behalf of your friend. Although it is good for a spot of trash-talking if they miss a string of them by mistake.

The game thus becomes a face off of epic proportions, where both sides need to use items, skill shots, passing, lobbing and all of the game's mechanics in order to get the ball into the opposition's net. It's an extremely enjoyable experience, and basically the number one reason you should be purchasing the game.

Wifi, on the other hand, is really a shot that didn't quite make it to the goal. Online play is hindered by Nintendo's tedious friend code system, as well as the fact that you're unable to communicate with your opponents unless you have a phone or PC with messenger at the ready. You'll have to add each others friend codes, organize a time to log on together, then challenge each other. You won't even be able to tell someone if you have to leave. If your opponent suddenly disconnects, you'll often wait several minutes for them to come back online, assuming it was a communication error from the Wii, then realize that they'd left to do something else. Better communication between players is something Nintendo really has to work on in the future.

The other gripe I have is the fact that you have to register people on your friends list to actually challenge them. What happened to the system used in Mario Kart DS or Metroid Prime Hunters, where you could basically log on and challenge anybody you wanted to who was also there? Unfortunately it's been omitted from Strikers, thus forcing you to set up each online match before you play it. No pick-up-and-play matches - you have to organize in advance.

The matches themselves are pretty smooth and features very little lag at all, providing both you and your opponent have at least semi-decent internet connections. The annoyance is with users who use cheap tactics to win their battles or who disconnect if you're winning. Although the friend code system does help with the amount of disconnects (when compared to games like Mario Kart DS), it doesn't remove them entirely. Other than that, you should be able to get some enjoyable experiences out of the online play, even if it doesn't involve as much interaction between players as the normal multiplayer. We're hoping Nintendo has plans for a headset soon for future online games.

Final comments
Overall, I think you'll Mario Strikers Charged is a great sports title and a lot of fun. The graphics are very nice and crisp for a Wii title, and the gameplay itself is very smooth and runs at a constant framerate, as well as being excellent for multiplayer bouts. Online is superb, and despite the tedious friend code system and lack of voice chat it's still a worthy experience. Mario Strikers Charged is one of the best multiplayer experiences out there for Wii right now, and is well worth the purchase. Buy it when you can.

Final Scores:
Presentation: 9
Visuals: 8
Sound: 6
Gameplay: 9
Multiplayer: 8
Overall: 9

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/30/07

Game Release: Mario Strikers Charged Football (AU, 06/07/07)