Name: Mario Strikers Charged Football
Platform: Nintendo Wii

Mario Strikers Charged Football is the sequel the the Gamecube title, Mario Smash Football (Super Mario Strikers). So what must you be thinking, "Ahh it's another Mario sports game, why must we care this time?" Besides it being Mario's first sport game on Wii, it's also the Wii's first online game for Europe and Australia, and let me tell you, it's a HEAP of fun.


Gameplay

Mario Strikers Charged Football is played by using the Nunchuck and Wii Remote combination like in other traditional Wii games. You use the Control Stick to move your character, simply pressing the A Button will execute a pass and the B Trigger will have your character shoot for goal. But thats not all, when your on defensive if you walk up to a rival player and shake the Wii Remote you can smash into them, causing them to lose the ball and fall to the ground in a daze. As with all Mario sport games, every character has a special ability and by no means is this one an exception. By holding down the B trigger when shooting for goal with one of the main captains, you can perform a Mega Strike which causes the ball to separate into many which the goalie must stop from reaching the goal. How does the goalie do this you ask? Well after the shot has been taken a mini game will start were the player controlling the goalie must point the Wii remote at the screen to control the goalies hands and destroy the incoming Mega Strike balls. There is a little bit of a learning curve at first but when you get the hang of it it's actually a very fun addition to the gameplay.




Graphics

Believe it or not, this was an issue with the GC version. Although much of the visuals were nice slow down was very evident in many areas of the game. However, despite the fact this game looks MUCH BETTER than the GC version, slow down is all but noticeable. Seeing most of the crap 3rd parties are porting for the Wii from the PS2 people were starting to believe that the Wii was actually "less powerful" than the GC... well if you are looking for a game to prove those people wrong this is the one. Don't let these still images fool you, the visuals look much better when you are playing the game. There rests no doubt in my mind that this is the best looking Wii game to date, the crowds are in full 3D, the stages are beautiful and colourful, the lava and explosion effects are amazing and the mega strikes look fantastic and of course, compared to the GC version the characters look noticeably smoother and touched up, some even have lip syncing effects. Believe me people, the Wii is more powerful than what those PS2 ports are giving credit.






Game Modes

This game features plenty of modes to keep you entertained. You have the Domination Mode which is the standard unranked game mode where you pick a team and play. Road to the Striker Cup is the "Career" mode on this game where you compete in a tournament to unlock characters and new fields. Striker ABC is where you can find all the tutorials if you lack skill at this game and a new mode, Challenge Mode where you must complete missions (similar to Super Smash Bros Melee) such as (Score 3 goals before DK etc).


Sound

The thing that separates this Mario game from others is the fact that most of the sound effects are non Mario related. The game boasts a huge range of entertaining cartoon sound effects, for example when you use a mushroom a sound like a car driving away will play as your character speeds up, and Chain Chomp sounds like an actual barking dog now! The voice acting is pretty flawless to, many of the phrases are carried on from the original strikers but you notice that characters such as Yoshi and Diddy Kong have had brand new voice recordings for this title which fit in perfectly. Music wise just like the sound effects none of the music is a remixed Mario theme, many of the tracks are very catchy and enjoyable to listen too, which is another advance from the GC version!


Multiplayer

One of this games biggest areas of shine is the multiplayer because it is the first PAL online Wii game. The online service is the best I've seen in a Nintendo game. Before you log on for the first time, you are asked to pick a Mii to use as an avatar when matching up. When you are on, you will be able to choose from 4 options, Friends, Friend Roster, Ranked and Leader Board, as well as your record, the season and Striker of the Day. Friends is self explanatory, people you add to your Friend Roster you play here for fun. Games you play against Friends are unranked so there is no need to worry about it effecting your record. Friend Roster is just all the friends you have added obviously. Ranked is where you earn points, you will be matched up against a random player from your region, seeing as how the game is region coded. Leader Board is your rank position judging by points. You can earn points by scoring goals and winning games. Disconnectors beware this title, for this game actually deducts points from you if you turn the console off during a match. (I might also add that you cant lose points by losing, this will defiantly help rid the world of D/Cers!) Striker of the Day is the Striker with the highest amount of points, all that is shown is your Mii and username. The Wi-Fi play as far as I have seen so far can be laggy at time depending on your connection speed, but I have finished a few games online and it is very fun and responsive.



Sequal Updates

*Super Team was removed and replaced by Petey.
*Bowser is now a playable character, on the original he would randomly appear on the field and cause hell for the teams.
*New Challenge Mode similar to the Event Battles found in Super Smash Bros Melee give this game more of a challenge.
*Sidekicks now have special abilities as apposed to every sidekick being identical in almost every way in the original.
*Characters all have unique stats now, on the GC game every character had the exact same speed/shooting etc.
*Super Strikes have been replaced by Mega Strikes, Super Strikes would guarantee you 2 Goals if done correctly but Mega Strikes can get you up to 6.
*Each of the stages are unique in some way, each stage on the GC version were pretty much clones.
*Online Play has been added.

Overall

If you own a Wii and you can't find anything to buy for it, buy this game! If you loved the original, BUY THIS GAME! It is loaded with features, eye candy, great gameplay using the Wii Remote and Online play to boot. I'd recommend you buy this just to restore your faith that the Wii is substantially more powerful than the GC with this game having much better visuals than the original and an improved frame rate with minimal slowdown! If you are unsure about it defiantly rent it to see for yourself.


Gameplay: 4/5- Easy to learn and very natural feel to it.
Graphics: 5/5- Best on the Wii to date hands down.
Game Modes: 4/5- Plenty to keep you entertained for a LONG LONG time.
Sound: 5/5- Entertaining Sound Effects and Music fresh change for a Mario game!
Multiplayer: 4/5- Online play is laggy sometimes, but so long as you have a stable connection its great competitive fun.

Overall Score: 22/25