A nice Mario sports game
Super Mario Strikers isn't your regular adventure game with Mario. Normally, when you think of a Mario game, you think of him having to go out and rescue Princess Peach from Bowser's evil clutches. However, this game is different. It's one of Mario's sports games! In this game, Mario is actually relaxing from his work and is playing soccer. There isn't any main storyline but that's because it's a sports game. In the game, there are 5 different modes that you can play in. They are: "Grudge Match," "Cup Battles," "Super Cup Battles," "Custom Battles," and "Strikers 101."
In Grudge Match, you can play a regular – or not so regular game with your friends or the computer. I say not so regular because you have the option to turn on Bowser attacks, items, and super strikes. If Bowser attacks are on, Bowser might pop into your game a few times. When he comes, he causes much havoc, and breathes fire. He also weighs down one side of the field so the ground is unlevel. With items turned on, you can obtain items and use them against your own opponent. For example, if you have a green shell, you can fire it at another player to make them lose the ball. If you have a bomb, you can blow them up and they'll lose the ball. These are just some minor items. Beware of the very rare chain chomp! It comes after and attacks all of your players so that they are all stunned at the same time. Use items strategically so that they help you best. The last thing that you can turn on are super strikes. This is how the game got the name! If you are using your team captain, you can hold down the B button until a meter comes up. If you have enough skill, you might be able to use this meter to get a super strike! Super strikes count as 2 points so they can easily get you back in the lead.
The next mode is Cup Battles. This mode is a bit like a tournament. You go through a sequence of matches against assigned opponents. You get more opponents depending on the cup. Some cups have more matches in them and some have less. There are four cups in total: The Mushroom Cup, the Flower Cup, the Star Cup, and the Bowser Cup. You are scored in this way: 3 points for a win, 1 point for a Sudden Death, and 0 points for a loss. In the end, after all of the matches are completed, the person with the most points will win the tournament. Aside from getting trophies for winning tournaments, you can also get trophies by setting records. Can you get them all?
The next mode is Super Cup Battles and is the exact same as Cup Battles but much, much harder. This mode is for the advanced. Can you beat it?
The next mode is Custom Battles. In this mode, you can select your own settings, and your own type of tournaments. You can't unlock anything, but it's still fun.
The final mode is Strikers 101. While you're here, you can play tutorials to help you learn and you can just practice your skills against a computer. It's good for first timers and other beginners.
Gameplay: 8
The graphics were nice and appropriate. The game runs smoothly and the colors are nice. Everything has appropriate coloring and if you get a super strike, a small "explosion" will happen and everything will be fine. There's not much to complain about here.
Graphics: 9
The sound is great too. When the ball is kicked, you can hear it get kicked and when a player is taking a shot, you might hear a grunt or something appropriate. All of the items made sound too. For example, if you got a chain chomp, you would hear it stomping around and the players yelling. If Bowser came, he would roar. The sound was nice.
Sound: 9
Overall, I found this game enjoyable. There are challenging games, and very easy games. Playing by yourself sometimes gets boring but it's fun if you have friends over often or a sibling to play with. I think that this game was worth the money.
Playtime/Replayablilty: 7