I Hope the Switch 2 Brings Back the Best Mario Sports Game After 17 Years

The Mario Sports games have been a consistently solid part of the Nintendo brand for decades, but one of the best entries in the sub-series is long overdue for a comeback. Sports games have been a part of the Nintendo brand since the days of the NES, with the Mario characters steadily becoming the face of the sub-series over time. They’ve even expanded at times to incorporate the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, as seen in the Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games titles.

Overall, the games have been a consistent hit for Nintendo, breaking up the standard approach to the Mario-related franchises and their focus on platforming adventures and party games. One of the best was released for the Nintendo Wii all the way back in 2008, with a massive cast of characters and multiple game modes that allowed players to jump from classic sports gameplay to bombastic Nintendo chaos. The time is ripe for the series to return, and the Nintendo Switch 2 is the ideal home for it.

How Mario Superstar Baseball Brought Mario To The Diamond

Debuting on the GameCube in 2005, Mario Superstar Baseball was an entertaining addition to the “Mario Sports Games” library of titles. Similar to Mario Golf, Mario Tennis, and Mario Strikers, Mario Superstar Baseball took the basic mechanics of a standard sports game and filtered it through the Mario universe. Rather than just being a standard form of the game with a Nintendo coat of paint like Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, Mario Superstar Baseball fused the standard rules of the game with Nintendo aesthetics like mini-games and Superstar quests to unlock other characters.

In 2008, Mario Super Sluggers took the concept even further on the Wii, resulting in one of the most memorable Nintendo sports spin-offs for the console. Unique powers were available to certain characters, with distinct animations and effects going into play with their moves. The stadiums resembled the typical baseball diamond, but with complications like rolling barrels, lava bursts, and manhole covers adding unexpected little tweaks to the formula.

Additions like the Toy Field in Mario Super Sluggers fully changed the experience, shifting the rules to embrace a more chaotic and item-filled combat mode. The real draw of bringing the game to the Wii was the incorporation of the Wii-mote and Nunchuk for the controls, forcing players to actually swing and pitch. It added an engrossing layer of engagement to the title, while making every home run feel all the more earned because of the actual motion incorporated in the gameplay.

Why Mario Baseball Is The Most Underrated Nintendo Sports Series

While there are only two entries in the Mario Baseball series, they remain two of the most effective entries in the overarching Mario Sports sub-series of spin-offs. Instead of just feeling like regular sports games with Mario characters in them, the Mario baseball titles — especially Mario Super Sluggers — felt like genuine efforts to fuse the classic Nintendo spirit with the mechanics of a rock-solid baseball arcade game. There was an easy pick-up-and-play approach to the regular match-ups, but with a surprising amount of depth for players willing to dive further into the mechanics.

The tight controls of both games ensured that each play feels like it’s specifically earned. The tight mechanics make the gameplay consistent, even as the bombastic Nintendo aspects bring some unpredictable chaos to the title. The wide selection of characters, all given unique attributes and skill benefits in Mario Super Sluggers to make them useful in their own way either on the field or at bat, gave the game a certain amount of customization and adaptability.

The one-on-one nature of the multiplayer only made the game more entertaining, as players would find themselves not just utilizing one or two Nintendo characters to try and get the edge over their opponent, but with an entire team of fan-favorite characters in unlikely combinations. It built on the legacy and scope of the Mario universe and filled it to the brim with easter eggs and references to the history of the franchise.

Mechanics like pitcher exhaustion forced players to strategize while building their team, choosing the right amount of strong fielders, solid pitchers, and powerful batters to gain the edge. The biggest knock against Mario Super Sluggers was the lack of an online multiplayer mode, which could have opened it up to the wider world. That was a flaw that many Nintendo Wii games suffered from, however, and one that modern consoles have addressed — which is exactly why it deserves another chance at bat.

Mario Baseball Would Be Great On The Switch 2

A third Mario Baseball game would be a great idea for the Nintendo Switch 2, incorporating the game’s online mode and unique controllers to great effect. The Joy-Con 2 could replicate the effect of using the Wii-mote and Nunchuck to play the game, with the more accurate controller specifics allowing the players to add a bit of extra oomph to their throws and hits.

The expanded power of the Nintendo Switch 2 over the Wii would allow for better graphics, more arenas, and a larger cast of characters. The online mode for the system has proven to be strong enough to make something like Super Mario Kart World flow easily with dozens of racers, which would be more than enough to power a game of baseball. Games could continue to be 1-on-1 contests, or more players could take part in specific positions and work together on larger teams.

The natural inclusion of the internet would also easily allow DLC to be a factor, expanding the roster or building on other game modes with ease. The recent rule changes to Major League Baseball regarding the pitch clock could also be incorporated into the gameplay, forcing players to respond to quick changes before their window to throw a killer pitch closes. That change has also helped revitalize popularity with the sport in the West, justifying another entry in the series for a broad audience. Mario Super Sluggers has been begging for a sequel for 17 years, and Nintendo already has the perfect home for it.