Mario Strikers: Battle League

never played strikers but this is like Huge
i didnt think itd actually be on switch , let alone without being watered down like other spinoffs on the switch, yet here we are! the cool artwork artstyle is even used in the game just like i wanted!!!!!
 
I personally prefer the character-oriented direction than captain + sub characters approach. That'll give my man Toad a Hyper Strike and that'll be good he'll be treated as his own character than an "inferior" sub-character. I do wonder if we WILL see the sub-characters promoted to captains like this, such as Boo, Koopa Troopa, Birdo, Dry Bones, Hammer Bro, and Monty Mole though. Also, I wonder if Bowser Jr., Diddy Kong, and Petey Piranha will also return. Bowser Jr. and Diddy do have a stronger chance than Petey but we'll see.
 
Right now I'm more curious about how the gear customization will play out. I'm certain that each character has his/her own default stats, but since all stats are ranked out of 25, we'll have to see if we're able to replicate the stat spreads from Mario Strikers Charged.
 
It's going to be hard to top this Direct. I've been asking for a new Strikers game every year though never quite expecting it, sometimes worrying that I did a theme change too prematurely in case a Strikers game drops, I've been highlighting it through my themes for years now. I thought the series was just gonna sit on backburner for decades, after a decade and a half, and even if Nintendo tried to bring it back, they'd heavily water it down and make it play too similar to Mario Sports Superstars soccer. Well, it's back, and my first impressions are really good, though of course I'm going to have to wait and see what they'll do with this game.

So far my real complaint are the recycled voice effects, I mean they do have fitting voice clips, but I'd like new lines, especially if the lines mirror the intensity we heard from the original Super Mario Strikers. New games DO tend to have placeholder clips that eventually get replaced for new ones, but I'm not sure if they'll stick with those or not, it can go either way. Oh, also I still prefer Kritter as a goalie compared to Boom Boom and wish for Kritter to be back, just crossing my fingers that you can change the goalies too, would be neat if goalies had their own stats and whatnot.

Anyhow, the game retains its flashiness and overall edge (the guitar bgm lol, and also the electric fences being usually the real star of these games) but I feel it kinda mixes between the first two games. We'll see more expressions down the line. Wonder if we'll hear theme songs too. I love the animations, the over-the-top particle effects, and whatnot. I vastly prefer the new teambuilding aspect so far, where you can now plop Mario, Luigi, Peach, Toad, Rosalina, all in the same team, which is a boon. I do like to see the mooks return though, like Koopa and Dry Bones and Hammer Bro. and Birdo, but as standalone players rather than team filler. Besides from Rosalina I wonder if they're going to introduce more new characters. A game that revolves around building a team should have a pretty sizeable roster imo.

Oh and there's the apparent increased amount of customization. I think you can choose your logos and your team colors, which is super neat. I'm not sure if logos are tied to color, but I'm soooo going for the fab pink color when I get the means to play the game. I also like to see more stadiums; so far, we got just a basic one. I also dig the costume feature, it just seems like wardrobe changes are a recurring norm for Mario and friends and Wario. It'll be so fun to try out different builds for each character, like should I go for a tanky Mario + passy Luigi and agile Toad? The visor also looks neat. I hope there's going to be a good deal of gear to play with.

I hope there won't be as jarring as a difficulty spike the second game suffered from. They made Fire Cup laughably easy but Crystal Cup can kick you pretty hard if you're not prepared. First time my sister and brother and I tried it, we did not expect goalie jumps and whatnot. Now, I can probably clear Crystal Cup again once I get out of the "rusty" phase (Boo netted most of my goals as well as Toad) but Striker Cup was too stressful for me or maybe I just severely overestimated the difficulty since I DID clear Striker Cup with no losses, even beating Petey like 0-5 and blocking Petey's orange super-fast balls and laughing at that stupid stupid eyeless limbo-playing freak as Kritter.
 
I'd be pretty concerned too if I didn't see Daisy immediately. They could pull off a Mario Kart 7, possibly, but I still wouldn't make a petition either. To be fair for Daisy fans I'm pretty sure there's been way more frivolous petitions made regarding the Smash Bros. roster.
 
Striker Mario Boogaloo said:
I'd be pretty concerned too if I didn't see Daisy immediately. They could pull off a Mario Kart 7, possibly, but I still wouldn't make a petition either. To be fair for Daisy fans I'm pretty sure there's been way more frivolous petitions made regarding the Smash Bros. roster.
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Yeah I get where they're coming from. She wasn't shown on the character select screen. But making a petition about it is a bit much. Let's wait and see a second trailer before doing something drastic.
 
I have absolutely no concern about Daisy possibly being cut. She's basically a lock for Mario spinoffs in the past decade, I can't think of one that didn't have her. I think there's no reason to panic about her, but given her passionate fanbase I'm not surprised at all.

I don't like how they seem to have cut the Kritters in favor of Boom Boom. I don't mind Boom Boom's inclusion, but I also love it when side series like Donkey Kong are incorporated into these games to emphasize the connected universe. But sadly, I think Nintendo has guidelines in place that restrict inclusions like that, which didn't exist in the 2000s. Boy, characters like Waluigi got incredibly lucky being so established by the time they tightened up that they survived it. I don't think a character like Waluigi would be created today, and if they did, they'd probably remain a one-off. But I'll continue to hope I'm proven wrong and they do have less predictable inclusions in the roster.
 
I don't think this has anything to do with the restrictions. Back when Super Mario Strikers was first introduced, Boom Boom was dormant and hasn't seen any appearances. Until 3D Land is when he became prominent, received his own 3D model, and Mario Sports Superstars likely used him because he makes perfect sense as a goalie: he's big, bulky, and he has large hands, which emphasize his ability to block shots and even grab the ball, and he has the added bonus of already being a main Mario universe rep. That being said, I do want the option at least to use Kritters as a legacy option for older fans of the first two games.
 
I don't think they put DK in these games to emphasize any kind of shared universe, they put DK in these games because they wanted to put DK in these games.
 
Fawfulthegreat64 said:
Boy, characters like Waluigi got incredibly lucky being so established by the time they tightened up that they survived it. I don't think a character like Waluigi would be created today, and if they did, they'd probably remain a one-off. But I'll continue to hope I'm proven wrong and they do have less predictable inclusions in the roster.
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I'm surprised that they continued to use him after his debut. But I'm happy they did.
 
Fawfulthegreat64 said:
I have absolutely no concern about Daisy possibly being cut. She's basically a lock for Mario spinoffs in the past decade, I can't think of one that didn't have her. I think there's no reason to panic about her, but given her passionate fanbase I'm not surprised at all.

I don't like how they seem to have cut the Kritters in favor of Boom Boom. I don't mind Boom Boom's inclusion, but I also love it when side series like Donkey Kong are incorporated into these games to emphasize the connected universe. But sadly, I think Nintendo has guidelines in place that restrict inclusions like that, which didn't exist in the 2000s. Boy, characters like Waluigi got incredibly lucky being so established by the time they tightened up that they survived it. I don't think a character like Waluigi would be created today, and if they did, they'd probably remain a one-off. But I'll continue to hope I'm proven wrong and they do have less predictable inclusions in the roster.
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For starters, Daisy wasn't in any installments for Mario Kart Arcade GP until an update for Mario Kart Arcade GP DX. Additionally, there's always a first time; Nintendo did pull off a stunt on omitting Waluigi as a playable character for Mario Kart 7 when everyone thought he was a shoo-in for the game. I'm still expecting Daisy to be revealed later on, similar to how Yoshi was weirdly absent during Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's reveal and wasn't playable during the E3 Demo AND didn't show up before Ultimate's title drop, despite everyone from the default playable roster from the first Super Smash Bros. game being clearly present.

I also don't think Nintendo just decided to restrict use of Kritter as much as Next Level Games used Boom-Boom especially after the character seeing use for goalie positions in more recent games like Mario & Sonic and Mario Sports Superstars. Again, I prefer Kritter over Boom Boom and agree with my sister that they should provide Kritter as an option (again, why not customize goalies if it seems like you can be a little more flexible with your teams regarding captain choices and logo/uniform color), but I understand the choice for Boom-Boom.

It's worth pointing out that Waluigi's a bit of an anomaly but he did get benefit of appearing in a console Mario sports game, with Daisy, (y'know, the installments that are absent of all the human characters and the elusive RPG mode, so he actually stands out rather than get drowned by those guys), and in a Mario Tennis game to help give Wario a double partner. Restrictions were definitely still in place at the time however, as tons of other human characters were created, several even before Waluigi, and those never saw the light of the day outside their debut and minor cameos. I suppose they continued using him because Wario/Luigi really did need an answer and I guess Nintendo and Camelot both liked the result a lot.

We'll see what's in store for us in the roster, but I'm still pleasantly surprised at the existence of this game AND I'm happy about the new gear Mario and friends can try in, which is a new surprise too though I'm pretty sure they're riding off the popularity of the alt costumes we've seen in Mario Tennis Aces, Mario & Sonic Tokyo, and Mario Golf: Super Rush... maybe even earlier in Super Mario Odyssey. Now for Mario Party to get costumes...
 
I don't know if the game would feature all-new voice lines, especially Rosalina. All I hear are reused clips. I bet the VAs are still in their voice recording sessions.
It would be disappointing if the game uses voice clips from 2014.
 
I don't expect the 10 to be like the final, terminal version of the roster, but it's disappointing we're not seeing new reveals after the initial reveal? And only a month away? It's not going to be fun seeing practically the same people in a match since there's only so many combinations you can make with 10 people for 4v4. I suppose the costumes are supposed to spruce it up, but they're in no way a substitute for characters.

I do expect drip feed of content over the following months though, like in Mario Tennis Aces or Mario Golf Super Rush, but this like best case scenario now, given hidden unlocks are just phased out these days. So this means I have to hold off buying the game. They might as well just delay it so they can actually release a full product, that's what I think is more profitable.

also those reused clips ain't really doing it. mario kart 8 had a bad voice direction but maybe not enough people think like I do
 
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this roster is astonishingly underwhelming. this is the what spinoff in a row where the roster is that boring why does this keep happening

edit: at least the artwork still kicks ass but. how come we dont have even bowser jr let alone daisy and diddy. diddy hasnt appaered since mario and sonic 2020 god what
 
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How is it unfinished just because one or two fan-favourite characters didn't get in? It's disingenuous to state that when live service/DLC hasn't even been confirmed for the game yet.
 
When you're playing 4 versus 4 that roster limitation will probably get in your way pretty quick
 
I mean, it's not like you didn't spend most of the last 2 games facing about a gajillion toads, birdos, boos etc etc

No matter what variety was going to be limited visually.

Anyway I'd say I'm disappointed by the lack of characters but I'd be lying, I rarely use more than a couple so features matter to me more...which I could barely understand what features were on show since I can't understand Japanese.
 
Character roster stinks steaming hot chunks, it's a regression from even the first Mario Strikers (we still had Hammer Bro, Birdo, Koopa Troopa, and the Super Team...we lost those characters and Daisy for practically Rosalina). How did they manage to outdo even Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash must be an accomplishment in of itself. The only reason this roster is even better than Mario Party Superstars is because at least Toad is playable in it, but he's honestly a bare minimum decision to have.

But hey, you can customize Mario for the 500th time. Yippee!! :rolleyes:

I'm not even saying this because I can't play as my favorites. I like having varied opponents in those games, I often play against many characters in the Strikers games, and 10 is such a paltry amount for a 4-v-4 game.

Also recycled voice clips that don't even come close to giving that same punch the first two games did because why not at this point! Better churn out these games in the fastest, cheapest way possible.

At least the animations look good but which game doesn't have good animations?

It's funny that Nintendo is afraid of others damaging their Mario brand, probably because they want to do it themselves.
 
To be honest, having a small roster doesn't really matter. I get that people want to see fan favorite characters like Diddy and Bowser Jr. in the game, but does the character roster really matter when you're in gameplay?

Sure, free DLC down the line is basically guaranteed, but I'm not concerned about the base roster being small. It has *almost* all of the main Mario cast (e.g. Waluigi, Rosalina, Toad), so at least their inclusion feels justified.

Were you guys expecting a huge roster? When it comes down to it, do we really need Boom Boom, Luma, or whatever metal character they come up with this week to pad it out? I'm just curious and would like to hear your thoughts.

(Not saying I would like more characters added, because I did like having the MTA roster being added to every month. I also do like the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe roster and the Smash Ultimate roster.)
 
Mcmadness said:
I mean, it's not like you didn't spend most of the last 2 games facing about a gajillion toads, birdos, boos etc etc

No matter what variety was going to be limited visually.

Anyway I'd say I'm disappointed by the lack of characters but I'd be lying, I rarely use more than a couple so features matter to me more...which I could barely understand what features were on show since I can't understand Japanese.
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True. Despite the limitations we have, this game is still a step up from the original Mario Strikers, which had nearly zero gameplay differences, the stages had no hazards, Bowser wasn't even playable hilariously, and you're limited between two people: a team captain and a generic schmook.

I don't know what the game will offer as it is in Japanese (why couldn't it have been Canadian so these resident hockey freaks can translate from Maple Syrup gibberish to English). But I do love the clothes and I feel a ton of effort was put into individuals in terms of animations and their clothes so compared to Super Mario Strikers, it's a clear quality over quantity.

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You see this? This is speedo. I like speedo.

And look at this dude loving whatever you give him
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Mario also lip syncs in the first few seconds of the trailer. So golden.

And also I'm gonna use pink jerseys.

I'm sorry but whoever said this game is "soulless" have no clue what they're talking about. Sure the roster is lacking. But lacking soul? Get out of here.

Plankton said:
Were you guys expecting a huge roster? When it comes down to it, do we really need Boom Boom, Luma, or whatever metal character they come up with this week to pad it out? I'm just curious and would like to hear your thoughts.
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I know you jest but Metal Mario and Rusty Copper Luigi would be amazing. A small gray guy just clanking to you and then he rams into you and you get knocked into an electric fence 30 feet away.

I didn't expect a huge roster but 10 is pretty small for a 4v4 game. I think 13-14 would've been more reasonable.
 
I do agree with the point that a couple more characters could have been apart of the initial roster, but I feel that the characters wouldn't matter as much compared to the gameplay.
 
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