Mario Sports Mix (Nintendo Wii) (From Daily Echo)
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Mario Sports Mix (Nintendo Wii)
By Ian Crump
Genre: Sports
Platform: Nintendo Wii
Publisher: Nintendo
Classification: 7 (PEGI)
Sports Mix is certainly an appropriate name – things are mixed up like crazy. Never would anybody have expected to see Nintendo’s trademarked characters playing ice hockey on Princess Peach’s lawn with a bunch of Final Fantasy characters. It’s a most surreal experience.
And that’s the vibe that Sports Mix has in general, instead of going for the simulation approach that Mario Golf and Mario Tennis donned, everything feels lighter and infinitely more casual. But after the huge success of casual sporting games for the Wii, it was only ever a matter of time before Mario showcased his own set of sporting treats.
Split into four games, Mario Sports Mix gives players the option of hockey, basketball, dodgeball and volleyball. Although it’s great to have a wide selection of games, two of them are A-team games whilst the other two are purely reserves.
Basketball and hockey are the all-star games from the bunch, packing with them some lightweight, party-game style sports that anybody can easily pick up and play. Both games play similarly with players waggling the remote to take shots and building up combos all the while. Both fun in their own way, neither sports have much depth or lasting appeal.
With volleyball requiring far too much remote waving and dodgeball players having energy bars instead of being hit out instantly, both of the sports are played out far too slowly. It’s often like the game is being played in space.
Multiplayer is where Mario Sports Mix comes to life, because although the single player has plenty of play available through the usual Mario star collecting, the AI of both teammates and opposition is dreadful.
Thankfully there is functionality for players to take their game online and battle it out with other gamers, a function that’s more than welcome in this strange hodgepodge of weird and wonderful ideas.
SCORE: 5 / 10
