Mario Sports Superstars Characters And Details Revealed

Nintendo revealed some new information and details on the playable characters, modes, and gameplay mechanics for the upcoming multi-sports game due for release on the Nintendo 3DS this upcoming spring in 2017.

Over on the official Nintendo website, the company rolled out all the facts for the game that players would need to know in order to get a sound understanding what it is the Big 'N' is offering next year when the title drops on their popular handheld.

We learn that many of the popular characters from the Super Mario series will make an appearance as playable characters, totaling 18 in all. Some of these playable characters in Mario Sports Superstars includes Mario, Waluigi, Princess Daisy, Princess Peach, Rosalina, Wario, Toad, Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, Boo, Birdo, Bowser, Baby Koopa, Luigi, and Yoshi.

Characters are playable across five different game modes, including Soccer, Tennis, Golf, Baseball and Horse Racing. The Horse Racing mode is new to the game this time around, allowing multiple players to take to the track with different characters and different horse and race it out around the arena.

What's interesting about the Horse Racing in Mario Sports Superstars is that it allows players to acquire different horses and train them up. It's actually possible to build a stable of horses in order to win the derby competitions. Of course, this isn't a Barbie equestrian game, so expect to grab power-ups and attempt to secure first place by blasting opponents off the track and using whatever shortcuts you can to overcome the competition.

Each of the sports modes for the Nintendo 3DS title will offer layers of depth to their mechanics and playability, from Baseball to Soccer to Tennis. Players will have to train up their skills and get good if they want to become the champion in their respective sport.

The game allows players to progress through each of the sports and overcome their respective challenges by battling through a fully fleshed out single-player tournament mode, along with learning the ropes for each of the mini-games through a training mode that allows players to understand the depth and diversity of the gameplay.

When you get done beating the AI at the game in the single-player mode, you can take your skills online in the multiplayer mode in Mario Sports Superstars. They mention that each of the modes can be played either locally via ad-hoc or via online. Strangely, though, they don't mention exactly how many players will be able to hop into a game. Closer towards release they'll reveal exactly how many people can join in on the fun. Based on the screenshots it looks as if the games will allow between two and four players, which would be the typical count for most Nintendo 3DS titles.

Given the large cast of characters, different sports games to play and the various multiplayer modes, it looks like Mario Sports Superstars is shaping up to be quite the game. It's a real shame it wasn't announced as a launch title for the Nintendo Switch, because this would have been the perfect bundle-in game to give gamers a cool collection of sports titles to play either solo or with friends either locally or online.