Why This Unexpectedly Awesome Mario Spin-Off Still Holds Up 20 Years Later

The Mario sports series is one of the better examples of Nintendo expanding its flagship franchise into different directions. While the Mario Kart sub-series is the prime example of Mario moving into a more sports-heavy space, other titles in the larger line have put the plumber, his friends, and his enemies into an athletic space. Golf, basketball, baseball, soccer, and an entire host of Olympic sports are all available to play as Mario, Luigi, and the rest of the Mushroom Kingdom.

The best ones are the games that find the right balance between Nintendo’s classically tight gameplay mechanics and the competitive spirit of the sport. A key example of this is Super Mario Strikers, which fused the Nintendo brand with soccer. Released on December 5, 2005, Super Mario Strikers worked because it threw out all the rules and embraced the sheer kinetic fun inherent in both the actual sport and the spirit of Mario games.

How Super Mario Strikers Stands Out

The final Mario game released for the GameCube before that console was discontinued, Super Mario Strikers was Nintendo’s wacky and over-the-top answer to the FIFA series. Developed by Next Level Games, the producers of the title took inspiration from their work on NHL Hitz Pro to deliver a soccer game that embraced the more physical nature of the sport. Regular gameplay sees two teams engage in a match of five-a-side football, with each team consisting of a captain, three secondary Mario franchise characters, and Kritter as the goalkeeper. Similar to other Mario sports games like Mario Power Tennis or Mario Super Sluggers, Super Mario Strikers adds a layer of chaos to the game through the inclusion of items like blue shells and fire flowers.

There are also the random appearances by Bowser, who can throw off the game at random intervals. Each character also comes with a specific skill set that informs how well they perform on the field. Super Mario Strikers made that distinction feel especially important, as actually maintaining momentum of the pitch could be a tricky proposition if the other team was overwhelming in any specific aspect of play. What makes Super Mario Strikers stand out from other Mario sports games is the unabashed arcade-style approach to gameplay. The realistic rules are forgotten, replaced with super moves that can decimate other teams and items that can completely turn a game on its head. Even compared to other big swings from the Mario Sports family of titles, Super Mario Strikers was a wild game.

The Arcade Approach

According to game director Mike Inglehart and marketing director Grace Kim, the initial intention was to produce a more realistic Mario sports game, in the vein of something like the no-frills sports gameplay of Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour. However, as development went on, the team worked with Nintendo and eventually gravitated towards a purposefully over-the-top style that fit the franchise’s more colorful and bombastic elements. There was a deliberate focus on finding the right balance between aggressive gameplay and the classic family-friendly Nintendo ethos, which eventually resulted in a roster of playable characters that felt like themselves even as they were delivering high-flying shots on goal.

This focus on action is even reflected in the game’s lack of a formal referee, as no penalty cards are given for too forceful play. Instead, teams that are hit with too many shoves will receive power-ups, giving them a chance to return the favor with added firepower. Super Mario Strikers was met with fairly solid reviews from critics, who embraced the arcade-style gameplay and visual presentation but criticized the game’s lack of depth and single-player options. What made Super Mario Strikers shine was the multiplayer modes, with the game’s focus on bombastic moves and hard-hitting tackles making it an ideal game to play with friends.

Why Super Mario Strikers Still Endures

The success of Super Mario Strikers, which sold over a million copies by 2007, led to a sequel — Mario Strikers Charged — for the Nintendo Wii and eventually a follow-up for the Nintendo Switch in the form of Super Mario Strikers: Battle League. It’s also clearly remained a personal favorite for Nintendo itself, as the game was included as one of the earliest GameCube games to be brought into the Nintendo Classics service for the Nintendo Switch 2. It’s remained a surprisingly timeless entry in the franchise thanks to the tight gameplay design and fast-paced nature of the matches, with an ability to pick up a match and quickly learn the mechanics.

Unlike other Mario sports games, Super Mario Strikers truly felt like a game you could give to a complete newbie, and they’d be able to quickly figure out what to do and how to do it. It was reminiscent of a style of sports game that has been more or less replaced in the modern market, an arcade-style match-up that ignored realistic rules in lieu of being fun. It was goofy, unapologetically over-the-top, and purely fun. The result is one of the best multiplayer Nintendo games ever, and one that’s still making fans happy two decades after it debuted.