Mario & Sonic (series)
Template:Series-infobox The Mario & Sonic series is a collection of crossover sports games featuring characters from Nintendo's Super Mario series and Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog series. These series marked the first time Mario and Sonic ever appeared together in a videogame.
The series began when Sega acquired the license to create videogames based on the Olympic Games, intending to create a version featuring characters from its well-known Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. Due to the atmosphere of competitive sportsmanship the Olympics had to offer, Sega received approval by Nintendo to include Super Mario characters in the game with Sonic. The series has been overall well-received praised by the media, mainly for being a crossover between Mario and Sonic, with the gameplay and multiplayer having been praised as well. However, it has been criticized for the choice of setting for both series, the controls, and having the Olympics be the only theme in the series.
Games
| Title, Original Release and System | Synopsis |
|---|---|
| Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
|
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games is the first game in the series and the first game ever to establish a crossover appearance with Mario and Sonic, in addition to including a cast of characters hailing from the same franchises respectively. The game was released for both Wii and Nintendo DS, each one featuring exclusive content. The game is based on the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics and includes 20 real-life events and the ficticious Dream Events (based on settings for both Super Mario series' environments and Sonic the Hedgehog series' environments). |
| Template:Releasedate Wii | |
| Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
|
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games is the second game in the series, but this time the setting takes place at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics which includes different events from the previous games. It also incorporates four new playable characters in the series, namely Donkey Kong, Bowser Jr., Silver, and Metal Sonic. Much like its predecessor, it was released for both Wii and Nintendo DS. In addition, the Nintendo DS version includes an exclusive Adventure Mode revolving around a plot involving Bowser and Dr. Eggman's scheme to melt all the snow by capturing the Snow Spirits in Christmas Village, prompting Mario and Sonic to stop them. |
| Template:Releasedate Wii, Nintendo DS | |
| Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games
|
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games is the third installment of the series featuring new sports and events. It was released for the Wii like past installments, and is also the first in the series to be released for the Nintendo 3DS. The game now takes place in London, home of the 2012 Summer Olympics. The Nintendo 3DS exclusive adventure mode begins with Bowser and Dr. Eggman releasing a colorful fog that ruins the Olympics. The heroes must find a way to put an end to this fog in a total of seven adventure stories. |
| Template:Releasedate Wii | |
| Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games
|
Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games is the fourth installment in the series. It is the first in the series to be released for the Wii U, and is the first that has not been released on a portable system. The game takes place in Sochi, Russia, home of the 2014 Winter Olympics. |
| Template:Releasedate Wii U | |
| Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games
|
Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games is the fifth installment in the series. So far only confirmed for Japan, the game appears to add five newcomers like the second installment: Zazz, Nabbit, Diddy Kong, Rouge, and Jet (the latter two appeared in prior installments as NPCs). Zazz has also been seen in the Table Tennis game, although he may be a boss. The game will take place in Rio de Janeiro, home of the 2016 Summer Olympics. There will once again be both console and handheld versions for the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS respectively. |
| Template:Releasedate Wii U, Nintendo 3DS |
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Characters
Playable characters
The series has spawned a total of 25 playable characters - 12 from the Mario series, 12 from the Sonic the Hedgehog series, and Mii characters. Listed in the table below are which characters appear in each individual installment.
1 - The character is only playable in the home console version of the game
Athlete types
All-Around
Characters in this classification have a equal balance of speed, acceleration, power, skill and stamina.
| Game | All-Around Characters |
|---|---|
| Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games | Mario · Luigi · Amy Rose · Blaze the Cat |
| Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games | Mario · Luigi · Bowser Jr. · Amy Rose · Blaze the Cat |
| Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games | Mario · Luigi · Bowser Jr. · Amy Rose · Blaze the Cat |
| Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games | Mario · Luigi · Bowser Jr. · Amy Rose · Blaze the Cat |
Speed
Characters in this classification have high speed and acceleration, but poor skill, power and stamina.
| Game | Speed Characters |
|---|---|
| Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games | Princess Daisy · Yoshi · Sonic the Hedgehog · Shadow the Hedgehog |
| Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games | Princess Daisy · Yoshi · Sonic the Hedgehog · Shadow the Hedgehog · Metal Sonic |
| Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games | Princess Daisy · Yoshi · Sonic the Hedgehog · Shadow the Hedgehog · Metal Sonic |
| Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games | Princess Daisy · Yoshi · Sonic the Hedgehog · Shadow the Hedgehog · Metal Sonic |
Power
Characters in this classification have high power and stamina, but have poor speed, acceleration, and skill.
| Game | Power Characters |
|---|---|
| Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games | Bowser · Wario · Knuckles the Echidna · Vector the Crocodile |
| Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games | Bowser · Wario · Donkey Kong · Knuckles the Echidna · Vector the Crocodile |
| Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games | Bowser · Wario · Donkey Kong · Knuckles the Echidna · Vector the Crocodile |
| Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games | Bowser · Wario · Donkey Kong · Knuckles the Echidna · Vector the Crocodile |
Skill
Characters in this classification have high skill, and have an average balance of speed, acceleration, power, and stamina.
| Game | Skill Characters |
|---|---|
| Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games | Princess Peach · Waluigi · Miles "Tails" Prower · Doctor Eggman |
| Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games | Princess Peach · Waluigi · Miles "Tails" Prower · Doctor Eggman · Silver the Hedgehog |
| Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games | Princess Peach · Waluigi · Miles "Tails" Prower · Doctor Eggman · Silver the Hedgehog |
| Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games | Princess Peach · Waluigi · Miles "Tails" Prower · Doctor Eggman · Silver the Hedgehog |
Trivia
- The first game was believed to be an April Fools Joke[by whom?] as the game was revealed on March 28, 2007. However, soon after, Sega stated on their official website that the game was official, and that both Sega and Nintendo were working on the game project.
- Additionally, as the announcement of the Mario & Sonic Olympics video game series was revealed (starting with Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games), the agreement was also reached that in the case of publishing and marketing duties for each Mario & Sonic Olympics installment, Sega would handle the process for all territories outside of Japan while Nintendo would handle the process inside of Japan itself. The fourth game, however, was published by Nintendo outside of Japan rather than Sega.
- Sega asked if Sonic characters could appear in Mario Kart Wii, but Nintendo said: "We'll never work with Sega!", but one year later Mario and Sonic came for Wii.
