Forget trying to get it in the goal, this needs to be in your collection!
Dont be put off by this because you couldnt have hoped for a better game to start of the wii's wifi connection!
Firstly the games a sequel to the gamecube version, mario strikers. This one has some new captains and alot more sidekicks. Also you can customize your team, which makes a huge difference as you have to balance your team, for example you need a fast player, a defensive player, a good shooter etc.
You have to focus on the stats of players before you start. This gives the game alot more strategy as you need the right players for the right strategy. For example if your going for strength and strong goals you should go for players like bowser and monty mole (i think thats what hes called). But if you need speed you should have either mario/luigi, or a speedy captain and players like toad and dry bones. This changes the game immensely.
At first glance the game looks very similar to the previous game. But if you actually focus you can see the detail next level games have put into it. For example if you get burnt by fire there will be soot marks on you while you play. Even though this should be normal, even when you score and theres a celebration, the soot marks are still there, which is alot more realistic as in real life it wouldnt have come off either. This also happens with ice. Also the details in pitches and character models have improved alot as the pitches look great as there are so many different elements in the stadiums. The characters look very detailed aswell.
The game runs and plays extremely smoothly. You shake the wii remote for a barge, B to shoot, A to pass, C to use specials, z to chip and so on. It sounds hard but when you play it the controls are very easy and easy to use, That doesnt mean the game is easy because its extremely difficult. Although it looks like its easy to use mega strikes, it takes alot of time to do one so its easy to get knocked down. This is an advantage and a disadvantage as it is sometimes extremely difficult to pull one off. The megastrikes look great as the character animations here have great lighting effects. Although it looks hard to stop with a bit of practise it is quite easy to block them but this also depends on how powerful the shot is.
The stadiums in the game change the gameplay immensely. The crowd change from cheering you on with chants like "Luigi! Luigi!" which is quite amusing. The music in the game is very fast and fun so it really helps you flow in the match so i love the music here. There are the old stadiums (which will say Classic:) and there are new stadiums. The new stadiums are the ones that help alot. They change the game completely. For example, one stadium is extremely windy so cows and cars are blown across the pitch which knock players out of the ring which brings people down to like 2v1 until someone scores. In another meteorites fall which create crators that are filled with lava and all these changes in new stadiums changes the gameplay completely in strikers charged. In some stadiums the pitch is filled with mud which slows you down. Things like this make the game unique.
Not only will the main mode last you long as it has 9 cups, and is immensely difficult there are other modes which will keep you going. Of course there is the unlimited online play which you will probably never get bored of as there is always harder challengers to face, and there is the challenge mode. The challenges start of easy but get really hard as i couldnt even beat the 3rd one. Even though challenges might seem pointless, its not because not only does it make the game last longer, it unlocks you new moves that are useful.
Finally the online play. The online play has been constructed beautifully in this game and wii owners couldnt have hoped for a better start. You have two types of online. One is called series, where you play random players and you get put on a ranking leaderboard. This is your standard online as you just play random people around your region and you go up or down the leaderboard depending on how many matches you win. Trust me, get some practise before you do this as it is EXTREMELY difficult as people are experts at this game and are very difficult to defeat. There is extremely little lag in the online play which helps alot.
There is another type of match which is a friendly match. This is to play specific people by getting there codes. This is quite fun as you know who you are playing and you can laugh at them the next time you see them. This is also good as you can play who you want and even if you lose it doesnt go on the ranking system.
Overall this is an essential wii game, even if you dont like football, this is a deep football game with alot of fun elements splashed onto it which will last for a while thanks to the long and difficult story mod, challenges and the excellent online play.
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