Super Mario Strikers
Released: November 18, 2005
Super Mario Strikers (known as Mario Smash Football in Europe and Australia) is a soccer video game that was released exclusively for the Nintendo GameCube . The game was created in the vein of other Mario sports games such as Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour and Mario Power Tennis , and is loosely based off of Sega Soccer Slam , another soccer video game. In terms of U.S. releases, it is the last Mario game to be released for the GameCube. A sequel called Mario Strikers Charged is currently in development for the Wii.
Super Mario Strikers features five modes of play. The first is Grudge Match , an exhibition game that can be played by up to four players. Second is the Cup Battle , which has the player's team competing against computer controlled teams for the cup trophy. Third is the Super Cup Battle , which is an enhanced Cup Battle tournament that must be unlocked by winning all the regular Cup Battles. Fourth is the Custom Battle in which players customize their very own game and tournament to play in. Last is the Strikers 101 tutorial, where beginners learn the basic and advanced powers/skills of the game. The controls are simple set up, the control stick (moving), the A button (passing), the B button (shooting), the Y button for dekes(or jukes and big hits), the R button (turbo), and the X button (use items)
Characters
Teams are made up of five members. The captain leads the team. Three sidekicks that are color coded to match the captain and a Kritter (a Kremling enemy from the Donkey Kong Country series) form the rest of the team. Players cannot mix and match their sidekicks, so if they choose Toad, then they lead a team of Toads. The only exception to this rule is if the player chooses the Super Team, which will give the player control of a team with all robots. The Super Team is unlocked by winning the Bowser Cup. Each Super Team member (except the goalie) can perform a super strike.
Captains
Balanced Captains:
- Mario
- Yoshi
Playmaker Captains:
- Luigi
- Princess Peach
Aggressive Captains:
- Donkey Kong
- Wario
Offensive Captains:
- Waluigi
- Princess Daisy
Robotic Nightmare:
- Super Team
Sidekicks
- Toad
- Koopa Troopa
- Birdo
- Hammer Bros.
Goalies
- Kremling
- Robo-Kritter (Super Team goalie)
Stadiums
There are seven stadiums total. Three of these stadiums (The Palace, Pipeline Central, and The Underground) are available at start. Four more stadiums must be unlocked by:
- Finishing in the top 3 for the Mushroom Cup (unlocks Konga Coliseum).
- Finishing in the top 3 for the Flower Cup (unlocks Crater Field).
- Finishing in the top 3 for the Star Cup (unlocks The Battle Dome).
- Finishing in the top 3 for the Bowser Cup (unlocks Bowser Stadium).
