Mario Sports Mix Review (Wii)

As the years tick on, we've seen Nintendo's ageless plumber pulled further and further away from his so-called profession through dalliances in the worlds of golf, baseball, soccer, and tennis - with multiple console releases for each sport offering full-fledged experiences with myriad play options. By contrast, Mario Sports Mix seems like a rogue's gallery of events deemed unworthy of such attention, as these cartoonish takes on basketball, hockey, dodgeball, and volleyball feel less essential, despite occasional bouts of enjoyment in the package.

Like the earlier sports titles, the four events included in Mario Sports Mix have been "Mario-ized;" that is, simplified to the point of enjoyment for nearly anyone - regardless of sporting knowledge or gaming acumen - and then slathered with a thick, rich layer of fan service. Familiar characters from the enduring franchise toss turtle shells and opponent-shrinking blue mushrooms around the courts, which themselves are directly inspired by franchise hits like Mario Kart Wii and Luigi's Mansion. Really, where else are you going to see Toad unleashing giant mushroom obstacles on opponents before dunking in a chandelier amidst floating specters? Nowhere, that's where.

Amusing moments aside, the light and superficial approach to each sport makes Mario Sports Mix feel like little more than a glorified mini-game collection - of which the Wii already has dozens of entries - meaning consistency is key to stand out, especially with the limited array of events. But that's ultimately where Mario Sports Mix fails to make much of an impact, due to a couple of lackluster sports and a generally flat single player experience across the board.

Basketball and hockey easily stand out from the pack; after all, they're the most active sports in the mix, and make for more engaging four-player couch battles. Developer Square Enix spawned the handheld Mario Hoops 3-on-3 for Nintendo DS back in 2006, and the template carries over well to the Wii, where the varying courts alter the experience in meaningful ways, such as spotlights displaying brief score multipliers. And despite being a very different sport, hockey plays quite similarly to basketball, with two- or three-man teams duking it out on the ice or on field and street courses. As with hoops, the backdrop can change the gameplay approach, with an automated goaltender in some spots, or giant cones blocking the net in another.

But the less active sports prove less engaging in execution here. Dodgeball fails to rile up much enthusiasm, and volleyball is by-the-numbers boring - especially in the wake of the excellent version of the game in Kinect Sports on Xbox 360. Dodgeball occasionally benefits from the addition of weapons and special attacks, such as in the beach course (where turtle shells wash up on the sand), but Mario Sports Mix's take on volleyball is insufferably bland. During an impromptu post-Super Bowl play session, my otherwise amenable friends refused to play through a second round - it's that tedious.

Still, Mario Sports Mix hits its peak when you're encircled by real-life competition, as the four-player renditions of basketball and hockey easily generate whoops, hollers, fist pumps, and aggressive taunting. And everyone can use their own Mii avatars alongside the Mario cast, as well as unlockable Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest creatures courtesy of Square Enix. Plus, you don't need to dedicate the better part of a living room to the experience, as Mario Sports Mix lacks the lifelike motion controls of the Wii Sports franchise. The Wii Remote can be held sideways for a button-based experience, or players can attach a Nunchuk to use quick movements of the remote for primary actions.

Online multiplayer via the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection offers a decent substitute for local play, letting a local two-man team face off against worldwide competition, but it comes with the same friend code baggage as most other online Wii games. Still, it's a better alternative than attempting to play Mario Sports Mix alone, as the occasional thrills of multiplayer competition are thoroughly muted by questionable A.I. and underwhelming play modes. The cookie-cutter tournament mode hardly makes up for any sort of dedicated campaign, and while the computer-controlled competition is easily dominated on the normal difficulty setting, their cheap tactics derail the experience on the higher levels.

Mario Sports Mix remains a slight notch above the average sports compilation due to its colorful aesthetic and occasionally taut multiplayer moments, but feels insubstantial and lacking compared to more robust competitors like Kinect Sports and Sports Champions, or even Nintendo's own Wii Sports Resort. And with the game’s two best events better represented in the recent NBA Jam and NHL Slapshot, it's hard to believe all but the most ardent Mario obsessives would choose to stay mixed up in this simplified sporting set for very long.

Mario Sports Mix was developed by Square Enix and published by Nintendo. It is available exclusively for the Wii.

Andrew Hayward is a Chicago-based freelancer who writes about video games for several publications, including EGM, Official Xbox Magazine, GamePro, and Mac|Life. Feel free to follow his every move on Twitter at @ahaywa.

Watch the trailer for Mario Sports Mix: