Between saving the world and rescuing Princess Peach, Mario has gotten himself involved in quite a number of sports. From tennis to baseball, Mario and his friends have teamed up to give gamers a fresh take on the most popular sports in the world.
With Nintendo announcing Mario Strikers Battle League for the Nintendo Switch earlier this year, fans of Mario's sports antics might be wondering what to play while they wait for the new release. There are a number of games that have released over the years that take an over-the-top approach to the classic sports genre. From other Mario games to adaptations from anime, gamers actually have a good variety to choose from to fill the void until the release of Mario's next adventure on the pitch.
10 Mario's First Touch Of The Soccer Ball
If gamers are waiting for Mario Strikers Battle League, the clear and obvious game to play in the meantime is the previous iteration of Mario soccer. Super Mario Strikers released on the Gamecube and introduced fans to a fun new outrageous version of soccer. The followup, Mario Strikers Charged, released on the Wii.
Both games featured a big roster of Mario characters and each had their own power shots called "super strikes." The games also featured items to be dropped on the field and used by players. These are both definitely worth going back to before the third game in the Mario Strikers series drops.
9 Find Your Urban Playground In FIFA Street
The FIFA franchise is the world's top-selling soccer/football video game but for those looking for a more arcade-like version of the popular sport, EA dished out several versions of street football, simply titled Fifa Street. In these smaller pitched freestyle soccer games, players strung together ball tricks and power shots to dazzle and defeat their opponents.
Each game featured a good handful of the world's best players, but gamers could also make their own characters. For some quick, fast and fun arcade soccer, Fifa Street satisfies the craving.
8 An Olympic Sized Team-up With Mario And Sonic At The Tokyo 2020 Games
Sonic the Hedgehog and Mario have gone head-to-head over several years of these Olympic Games, but the latest iteration, Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 delivered a fun new experience, adding classic 32-bit style graphics for a number of events. The game features a fun story full of interesting Tokyo and Olympics facts, but the real draw is the 24 different events players can partake in including skateboarding ,surfing and of course, soccer.
The events are quick and fun and the wide range of characters from across the Mario and Sonic games add some variety to them as well. Going back to the retro visuals for certain events adds a fun flair to the overall game.
7 Gather Your Friends For Mario Party
Quite obviously, if gamers need a fix of zany antics and mini-games along with strong competition and shouting matches with friends, the choice is the Mario Party franchise. The Mario Party games have spanned across several consoles, but the most recent release, Mario Party Superstars, came out on the Nintendo Switch and featured 100 of the series' best mini-games. Players can jump onto a board for a full game or just pick a handful of mini-games to pass the time.
6 Serve Up An Ace With Mario Tennis
Mario and his friends are quite athletic, and seem to find a lot of time for sports between their adventures. Mario Tennis has seen several iterations, the most recent being Mario Tennis Aces on the Nintendo Switch. This version offered up online play, a story mode tournament and special timed events.
With thirty characters to choose from, players have a number of different play styles to go for as each have their own special and trick shots and strengths. The game plays well on the switch and satisfies any on-the-go craving for Mario sports.
5 Dodge A Wrench In Knockout City
This free-to-play dodgeball game bounced onto the scene only a year ago, but offers up a fun online experience for players. This stylized, powered up version of dodgeball takes players across different maps like city streets and rooftops, while offering up different dodgeballs to use against their foes.
Two teams face off against each other until one or the other runs out of lives. Knockout City also has a direct Mario connection, as the team behind it, Velan Studios, developed the Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit game.
4 Anime Inspired Soccer Anyone?
Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions is based on the anime of the same name. Through the story, players take on the role of Tsubasa and his schoolmates as they take on rival teams in cell-shaded soccer action. With super stylized power up shots and saves, this game captures the anime's action beautifully. Captain Tsubasa also has RPG elements, as each player on the team can upgrade their skills based on performance and how well "friendship events" go during the visual novel style scenes.
3 Legit Legends Arrive In Street Power Soccer
Street Power Soccer dribbled onto the street in 2020 and gave players a stylized version of street football with over the top dribbles, tricks, and shots. Where the Fifa Street games brought licensed FIFA players, SPS features several real-life players from the street soccer scene including Melody Donchet and Sean Garnier.
Street Power Soccer features several game modes including a dance-like freestyle mode and trick shot mode along with the standard street soccer game mode. Pitches are located around the globe including England and vary from beaches to seaside docks.
2 Kick It Oldschool With Sega Soccer Slam
Releasing on the PS2, Gamecube and Xbox back in 2002, Sega Soccer Slam gave an alternate look at soccer by having a ton of creative characters and changing up the rules. It removed standards like throw-ins, corners, and penalties, while also allowing players to punch each other without punishment.
There are nine different teams to play as, and each has its own over-the-top theme based on where the players originate from, including a German raver, a Mexican wrestler, and an Australian 'gator wrestler.
1 Dribble Your Way To Victory With Mario Hoops 3 on 3
Mario ventured onto the basketball court in 2006 on the Nintendo DS with a roster full of familiar characters and five from the Final Fantasy series, including Cactuar and Moogle. Each character has powered up special shots that can turn the tide of the game.
The game follows standard rules of basketball, though with only three players aside, on Mario themed courts. The Mario take on the sport gives a fresh coat of paint to the basketball genre of games.