Chainlink Charge (theme)
- "Athletic Theme (Super Mario 3D World)" redirects here. It is not to be confused with Athletic Theme (Super Mario World).
| "Chainlink Charge" | |
|---|---|
| "Chainlink Charge" in Super Mario 3D World | |
| Composed by: Koji Kondo[1] | |
| Key | E-flat major |
| BPM | 240 |
| Time signature(s) | 2 2 |
| First appearance | Super Mario 3D World (2013) |
| Latest appearance | Mario Kart World (2025) |
- “This is a tough stage, so it's important that you want to keep on trying, even if you slip up. To achieve this, we came up with an upbeat, infectious theme. You can't help but be carried along by the rhythm. The drummer plays with brushes, which gives the performance a lot of expressive power. We used this effect to create a theme that makes it fun to keep playing.”
- —Liner notes in the Super Mario 3D World Original Soundtrack
"Chainlink Charge",[1] also known as the "Athletic Theme",[2] is a musical theme composed by Koji Kondo for Super Mario 3D World, where it plays in the following levels:
History[edit]
Super Mario series[edit]
Super Mario 3D World / Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury[edit]
Super Mario 3D World marks the first appearance of "Chainlink Charge".
A tropical arrangement of "Chainlink Charge" plays in Pipeline Lagoon, Sunshine Seaside, and Pipeline Boom Lagoon. The unlooped version of the arrangement is in C major and modulates to D-flat major. When the player is underwater, a more relaxed arrangement plays instead. In the game's official soundtrack, both versions are played in sequence on the same track, titled "Sunshine Seaside".
Both "Chainlink Charge" and "Sunshine Seaside" return in the Nintendo Switch port, Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury, for the same purposes.
| File info 0:30 |
| File info 0:30 |
Super Mario Maker 2[edit]
In Super Mario Maker 2, the original version of "Chainlink Charge" and the underwater version of "Sunshine Seaside" play in Super Mario 3D World-style sky and underwater-themed courses respectively. Moreover, two separate ambient arrangements of "Chainlink Charge" and "Sunshine Seaside" using eight tracks that fade in and out randomly to create a dynamic mix play while editing Super Mario 3D World-style sky and underwater-themed courses respectively in the Course Maker.
| File info 0:30 |
| File info 0:30 |
Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition[edit]
In Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition, the original version of "Chainlink Charge" and the above-ground version of "Sunshine Seaside" play in athletic and underwater levels respectively.
Mario Kart World[edit]
| It has been requested that at least one audio and/or video file related to this section be uploaded. Specifics: Both arrangements Please upload music, sound effects, voice clips, or any videos for this section. See the help page for help getting started. |
Mario Kart World features two different arrangements of "Chainlink Charge": a jazz arrangement titled "Athletic Theme (Jazz Ver.)" and a soul arrangement titled "Athletic Theme (Soul Ver.)". The soul version also takes elements from "Sunshine Seaside". Both can play in Free Roam, with the soul version being exclusive to that mode. The jazz version can also play during routes in VS Race.
List of Super Mario appearances[edit]
Games[edit]
| Work | System | Year | Type | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Super Mario 3D World | Wii U | 2013 | Original | "Chainlink Charge"[1] | Koji Kondo |
| Arrangement | "Sunshine Seaside"[1] | ||||
| Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition | Nintendo 3DS | 2015 | Original | Koji Kondo | |
| Past arrangement (Super Mario 3D World) | |||||
| Puzzle & Dragons Z + Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition | Nintendo 3DS | 2015 | Original | Koji Kondo | |
| Past arrangement (Super Mario 3D World) | |||||
| Super Mario Maker 2 | Nintendo Switch | 2019 | Original | Koji Kondo | |
| Past arrangement (Super Mario 3D World) | |||||
| Arrangement | |||||
| Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury | Nintendo Switch | 2021 | Original | "Chainlink Charge"[1] | Koji Kondo |
| Past arrangement (Super Mario 3D World) | "Sunshine Seaside"[1] | ||||
| Mario Kart World | Nintendo Switch 2 | 2025 | Arrangement | "Athletic Theme (Jazz Ver.)"[2] | |
| "Athletic Theme (Soul Ver.)"[2] |
Albums[edit]
| Work | Year | Type | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Super Mario 3D World Original Soundtrack | 2013 | Original | "Chainlink Charge" | Koji Kondo |
| Past arrangement (Super Mario 3D World) | "Sunshine Seaside" | |||
| The 30th Anniversary Super Mario Bros. Music | 2015 | Original | 「アスレチック」 (Asurechikku) | Koji Kondo |
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | アスレチック[1] Asurechikku |
Athletic |