Mario Strikers: Battle League

Mario Strikers: Battle League (known in European languages as Mario Strikers: Battle League Football) is an upcoming game for the Nintendo Switch. It is the third game in the Mario Strikers series and the first one since Mario Strikers Charged, over 15 years prior,, featuring new gear, items, and moves. Up to eight players can play the game in multiplayer. The game also features an online Strikers Club mode where players can host clubs with up to 20 players and compete against other clubs to earn points and increase their rankings. The game is set to release on June 10, 2022.

Gameplay
The gameplay is similar to that of previous Mario Strikers games, where two teams of five (four players and a goalie) compete for points by getting the ball into the opposing team's net. Following the rules of street soccer, there are no penalties like fouls, meaning that players are able to tackle their opponents around the field. Like previous games, items and special moves are used to the turn the tide of gameplay. Unlike in previous games, rather than having one main captain and three generic sidekicks as teammates, teams in this game (apart from the goalie) are comprised entirely of main playable characters.

A new technique introduced in this game is called the Team Tackle. If a player tackles their own teammate, they send the teammate quickly across the stage. This can be used both defensively, by using Team Tackle at an opponent and stealing the ball from them, or offensively, by getting the teammate close to the goal. Similar to the Super Strike from Super Mario Strikers and Mega Strike from Mario Strikers Charged, the new Hyper Strike acts as the game's special move, and is activated in a similar manner as the latter. Unlike those moves, however, Hyper Strikes must first be obtained by collecting a Strike Orb that occasionally appears on the field. Additionally, rather than just having aesthetic differences, each character's Hyper Strike has different gameplay-related properties, making them similar to that of the Special Shots from Mario Sports Mix. Hyper Strikes are also able to bypass goalies.

Another new concept introduced in this game is customization. In addition to aesthetic customization options, like team color, gear can be purchased from the in-game shop with Coins, which allow the player to adjust various attributes such as their movement speed, curve shots, resistance to getting the ball stolen from them, and more. When selecting characters, the player can choose whether to equip their character with gear or not.

Power-ups
Power-ups return from previous games, though this time, they are obtained from ? Blocks like other Mario spinoff games.

Characters
There are 10 playable characters available in the game. Of those characters, Rosalina is playable for the first time in the Mario Strikers series, while Toad now appears as a main playable character for the first time instead of his species appearing as sidekicks like in previous games. Boom Booms are seen as goalies, taking over the role from Kritters in previous games.

The stats in the following table are the characters' default stats, without any gear applied.

Non-playable

 * Toads
 * Yoshis
 * Shy Guys
 * Koopa Troopas

Fields
Unlike previous Mario Strikers games, the soccer fields now consist of two individual halves, each with a different theme. Like in Super Mario Strikers, the different fields are only aesthetic, rather than housing any varying gimmicks like in Mario Strikers Charged, aside from the electric fences that can shock players present around the perimeter of the field. However, a new feature in this game is the ability to visually upgrade the stage's appearance, adding more scenery around it, using a new bolt-like currency. There are four levels of upgrades the player can give the stage, with the first three costing 100,000 bolts and the fourth costing 2,500,000 bolts. In addition to the stage itself, the player can also customize the stage's turf, goal line, electric fence, and goal designs.
 * マッシュルームヒル (Mushroom Hill): Themed after a traditional Super Mario level. The turf features designs of a ? Block and Warp Pipes. The electric fence is designed after the Brick Block. The goal is made out of Warp Pipes.
 * Lava Castle: The turf features a design of a fire on a torch resembling Bowser's cuffs. The electric fence is designed after a Chain-Link. The goal is made out of metal and features two lit torches on top.
 * Spooky Mansion: Themed after a haunted mansion with a design resembling the Dark Moon from Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon (also developed by Next Level Games) on it. The turf features a design of a spooky tree viewed through a window. The electric fence is designed after spider webs. The goal is made out of wood with some older-styled decorations on top.
 * リゾートジャングル (Resort Jungle): The turf features a design of a barrel and two vines. The electric fence is designed after bananas. The goal is made out of trees and logs being held together by rope, and having some feathers on top.
 * プリンセスキャッスル (Princess Castle)

Promotion
On April 13, 2022, the Nintendo UK Twitter account announced that any pre-orders of the game made through the My Nintendo Store will receive a bonus Fan Scarf.