Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games

"SEGA and Nintendo join together to design one great party game!"

Ever since the Wii got launched, the console has seen a deluge of minigame collections. They even packaged one free with the console. Some are great (e.g. Rayman Raving Rabbids), some are alright (e.g. Wii Play) and some are downright terrible (e.g. Carnival Games). This game is yet another one of those minigame fests, but this time there's a twist: two of the most famous video game mascots ever, Mario and Sonic, have been put together to compete against each other in the Olympic Games. But is this game any fun?

Graphics: 8/10
Well, I can't fault the graphics; they look very good. The character models are crisp and clear, and the animation is done well, with a good framerate. All of the objects in the game look nice as well, with a good amount of detail and very few edges in sight. Throughout the game, you see many nice features such as paper lanterns with pandas on, which gives the game a lot of aesthetic appeal. Unfortunately, the textures in the game don't look very good, but otherwise the graphics in this game are well done.

Sound: 7/10
The music in this game is a mixed bag. Some tunes are very cool and fits the theme of the Olympics perfectly, whereas others are generic and boring. The sound effects, however, are quite nice. They sound very realistic for the most part, and are very pleasant to hear. The voices are OK. The characters will say a line or two at certain points in the game, but it isn't anything particularly groundbreaking.

Gameplay: 8/10
As has been previously stated, this is another set of minigames. But this time they have an actual basis. All of the games are based on an existing Olympic event, with the exception of the Dream events (more on them later). There are twenty-four events you can take part in, including 100 metre sprint, swimming, javelin throw and many others. There are a couple of cool ones missing (Tae Kwon Do, anybody?), but overall there is a great variety of events.

Unsurprisingly, there is a selection of characters from both of the franchises present who you can play as. Obvious characters are there, such as Mario, Luigi, Sonic and Tails, but there are also some less famous characters, such as Amy and Waluigi. Each character has different stats which determine which events they are better at. There are a total of twenty characters. You can also play as your Mii if you wish. Although I was mostly satisfied with the character selection, there were a couple of cool characters that got left out, Donkey Kong being the first one that springs to mind. It isn't a big deal, but it still makes the game feel that bit less great.

The events that you play are mostly fun. Events that I particularly liked are archery, table tennis and triple jump. I won't go into a detailed description of all the events, because that would be really boring. But I can tell you that most of them use the Wii Remote and Nunchuck in inventive ways. Notice that I said most, not all. There are a few games that aren't that fun. For example, running never amounts of more than who can swing their arms the fastest.

You can either play the events on their own, or play in a set tournament. The beginner ones are composed of only three events, but when you beat them, you unlock intermediate tournaments (four events) and advanced ones (five events). If you wish, you can also choose your own events for your own circuit. The circuits are good fun, especially in multiplayer mode, and once the preset ones get boring you can make your own.

To make sure the game lasts longer, they also included a mission mode. Each character has seven missions to complete, and the seventh only becomes available when you have completed the six previous ones. Some of the missions can be very difficult, but it does a good job of extending the game's length.

What particularly stands out from the rest of the game are the dream events. Whereas the others are all realistic versions of what one would find in the actual Olympics, the dream events contain much more fantasy. A dream event may be one of the other events with a cool twist, or it might be a completely different game, such as a race similar to Mario Kart except that it's on foot. Overall, I think that the dream events bring more variety into the package.

There are a couple of flaws in this game, though. For a start, while the multiplayer is excellent, like with many party games the single player leaves a bit to be desired. It isn't horrible, but it starts to get stale quite quickly, although not quite to the degree of other party games (Mario Party 8 springs to mind). The only other main flaw is that the unlockable items in this game aren't very good. When you've played through many times, it would've been nice to unlock some new characters or something, rather than just a trophy to look at. It just makes the game feel a bit shallow.

However, when all is said and done, this is a brilliant party game, which is better than many other similar games for the Wii, even if the single player could have been better. It makes a really fun game to play for hardcore and casual gamers alike.

Replay Value: 7/10
It'll take a while to complete all of the missions and complete every tournament in the game if you're playing single player, but the true lasting appeal lies in the multiplayer of the game. All you have to do to liven up any party is to pop in this disc, and it doesn't get old for a very long time.

Pros:
Mostly good graphics.
Great sound effects.
Large variety of events.
Dream events are cool.
Mission mode is a nice touch.
Mario and Sonic in one game? Great!
Cool selection of characters.
Brilliant at parties or with friends!
A lot of fun events.

Cons:
A few poor events.
Some popular characters missing.
Lame textures.
Single player feels a bit thin.
Needs better unlockable items.

Buy, rent or avoid: If you are on your own, rent it. It's quite fun for a bit, but it loses its appeal quite quickly (like many party games do in single player). If, however, you intend to play this multiplayer a fair amount, buy it quickly! This game is great at parties and is brilliant fun whenever more than one person is involved.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/04/08

Game Release: Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (EU, 11/23/07)