Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (Nintendo DS)

This article is about the first game in the Mario & Sonic game series for the Nintendo DS. For the Wii version of the game, see Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (Wii). For the Mario & Sonic game series as a whole, see Mario & Sonic (series).

Template:Infobox Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games is a sports game for the Nintendo DS with a Wii version of the game released as well. The game places Mario, Sonic, and their various allies against each other in Olympic events. The game has the official Beijing 2008 Olympics license, and features environments based on actual Olympic venues.

Although both Nintendo and Sega worked on this collaboration, most of the development was handled by Sega. However, as the game was completed, Sega did publishing and marketing duties for all versions outside of Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. Nintendo did publishing and marketing duties for the Japanese, Korean, and Taiwanese versions of this game.

Both versions of the game utilize the new functions of these consoles completely. Mario & Sonic was compatible with Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.

Originally, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games was considered an April Fools' joke, as the game was revealed on March 28, 2007. However, soon after, Sega stated on their official website that the game is official, and that both Sega and Nintendo are working on this game project. Shigeru Miyamoto then soon confirmed that he would be supervising the project, confirming Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games to be real.

Gameplay

Circuit

In Circuit mode, the player can play through several circuits made up of various events in the game, with the aim of scoring the most points for winning events. The player earns 10 points for every event in the circuit that they win, 8 points for placing second, 6 points for placing third and 4 points for coming in fourth. The player can also use a Circuit Chance, which is a boost that can only be used once per circuit to double the points that the player receives for the event. The character with the most points at the end of all the events wins the circuit, and the player can win unique trophies for each circuit by placing in first. Completing circuits allows the player to unlock new events, circuits and circuit classes.

The circuits are split into three classes: Beginner's Class, Advanced Class and Master's Class. In the Beginner's Class, all five of the circuits have three events. Four of the circuits are unlocked at the start of the game, with the fifth being unlocked by completing the other five. In the Advanced Class, the five circuits have four events each, ad are all unlocked by completing the previous circuit or by playing a specific number of Free Match events. Master's Class' six circuits are unlocked in the same way, with each circuit containing five events.

Beginner's Class

Name	Unlocking criteria	Events			Unlocks
Mercury Circuit	-	100m	Long Jump	Hammer Throw	Mercury Trophy	Moonlight Circuit, 400m Hurdles, Dream Table Tennis, Triple Jump
Venus Circuit	-	100m Freestyle	Skeet	Singles	Venus Trophy
Jupiter Circuit	-	Pursuit	Individual epée	400m	Jupiter Trophy
Saturn Circuit	-	Trampoline	Archery	Javelin Throw	Saturn Trophy
Moonlight Circuit	Complete the Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn Circuits / Play 20 events in Single Match mode	400m Hurdles	Triple Jump	Dream Table Tennis	Moonlight Trophy, Advanced Class, Stardust Circuit

Advanced Class

Name	Unlocking criteria	Events				Unlocks
Stardust Circuit	Complete the Moonlight Circuit / Play 30 events in Single Match mode	100m	Long Jump	Hammer Throw	Vault	Stardust Trophy, Planet Circuit, Dream Basketball
Planet Circuit	Complete the Stardust Circuit / Play 40 events in Single Match mode	100m Freestyle	Skeet	Singles	Dream Basketball	Planet Trophy, Comet Circuit, Dream Race
Comet Circuit	Complete the Planet Circuit / Play 50 events in Single Match mode	Pursuit	Individual epée	400m	Dream Race	Comet Trophy, Satellite Circuit, 10m Platform
Satellite Circuit	Complete the Comet Circuit	Trampoline	Archery	Javelin Throw	10m Platform	Satellite Trophy, Sunlight Circuit, Dream Fencing
Sunlight Circuit	Complete the Satellite Circuit	400m Hurdles	Triple Jump	Dream Table Tennis	Dream Fencing	Sunlight Trophy, Master's Class, Meteorite Circuit, Dream Canoe

Master's Class

Name	Unlocking criteria	Events					Unlocks
Meteorite Circuit	Complete the Sunlight Circuit	100m	Long Jump	Hammer Throw	Vault	Dream Canoe	Meteorite Trophy, Supernova Circuit, Dream Boxing
Supernova Circuit	Complete the Meteorite Circuit	100m Freestyle	Skeet	Singles	Dream Basketball	Dream Boxing	Supernova Trophy, Cosmos Circuit
Cosmos Circuit	Complete the Supernova Circuit	Pursuit	Individual epée	400m	Dream Race	Dream Shooting	Cosmos Trophy, Galaxy Circuit, Dream Long Jump
Galaxy Circuit	Complete the Cosmos Circuit	Trampoline	Archery	Javelin Throw	10m Platform	Dream Long Jump	Galaxy Trophy, Universal Circuit
Universal Circuit	Complete the Galaxy Circuit	400m Hurdles	Triple Jump	Archery	Dream Table Tennis	Dream Fencing	Universal Trophy, Big Bang Circuit
Big Bang Circuit	Complete the Universal Circuit	Dream Boxing	Dream Canoe	Dream Basketball	Dream Long Jump	Dream Race	Big Bang Trophy

Free

In Free, the player can make and play their own circuits of between three and five events using any events that they have unlocked. The player can also use the random button to generate a circuit with five random events. Once the events have been selected, the circuit is played as usual with the same point scoring system and circuit chances. Player-made circuits are not saved in the game and must be remade to be played again.

Collection

Main article: List of collectibles in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (Nintendo DS)

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games features four different types of collectibles that can be viewed in the records section. The player can view the medals that they have earned for each event with all of the characters, as well as collectibles that require the player to meet certain conditions to earn. The player can earn trophies by completing each of the game's circuits, emblems by fulfilling various conditions, such as completing missions and achieving perfect scores in events, and crowns by winning gold medals with all of the characters in an event. Similar emblems are featured in the Wii version of the game.

Gallery

The Gallery mode

In the Gallery mode, players can play minigames to unlock trivia about the Olympic Games. There are five sections of trivia to unlock, each tied to a certain type of minigame. Within each section, there are five pieces of trivia to be unlocked, each behind a door corresponding to the colors of the Olympic rings. Initially the player is only presented with a question, but unlocks the answer once the target score in the minigame is reached. For the first four doors in a section, the player also unlocks the next door once the target score is hit, though for the fifth door, the player unlocks two songs, one from the Mario franchise and one from the Sonic franchise, that can be played on the jukebox in the gallery. The songs are unlocked in a specific order based on the number of green door minigames completed, rather than specific songs being tied to specific sections. The songs unlocked in order are:

• Tetris DS Mario Puzzle Mix / SONIC THE HEDGEHOG Green Hill Zone
• Super Mario 64 DS Mini-Games Coincentration / SONIC THE HEDGEHOG Star Light Zone
• Tetris DS Bowser Battle / SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2 Emerald Hill Zone
• Super Mario 64 DS Mini-Games Bounce and Pounce / SONIC RUSH Right There, Ride On
• Mario Kart: Double Dash!! Mario Bros. Circuits / SONIC RUSH ADVENTURE New Venture

Once the minigames are unlocked, the player can replay them at any level through the doors. Each minigame level also holds a record which can be set when it is replayed after earning the initial score.

Section	Door	Minigame	Question	Answer
Olympic Trivia	Blue Door	Replay LV1	Which colors are used for the five rings of the Olympic symbol?	In order, they are blue, yellow, black, red, and green. At least one of these five colors is used in every national flag.
	Black Door	Replay LV2	How do they determine countries and locations where the Olympic Games will be held?	The Host City for each Olympic Games is chosen from among the candidate cities by a vote of the International Olympic Committee.
	Red Door	Replay LV3	Which continent hasn't been host to the modern Olympic Games?	The modern Olympic Games haven't been held in Africa.
	Yellow Door	Replay LV4	How is the Olympic Flame lit?	The Olympic flame is lit by the sun's rays in Olympia, Greece.
	Green Door	Replay LV5	Which team marches last in the Opening Ceremony?	The team representing the host country marches last.
Modern Olympic Games	Blue Door	Shoot! LV1	Where were the Olympic Games of the first Olympiad held?	They were held in Athens, Greece.
	Black Door	Shoot! LV2	When was the first Olympic torch relay?	The torch relay was introduced in the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games.
	Red Door	Shoot! LV3	Which Olympic Games were the first to be broadcast on TV?	The 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin.
	Yellow Door	Shoot! LV4	Were there ever non-sports events in the modern Olympic Games?	Yes. From the 1912 to 1948 Games of the Olympiad, there were art competitions in architecture, literature, painting, sculpture and music.
	Green Door	Shoot! LV5	Was the ocean ever used for swimming events at the Olympic Games?	Yes. The first Olympic swimming contests, at the 1896 Athens Games, were held in the Bay of Zea.
Beijing 2008	Blue Door	Matching LV1	What is the nickname of the official mascots of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games?	"Fuwa," which translates to "good luck dolls." They carry a message of friendship and peace and their colors are the same as those used in the Olympic Rings.
	Black Door	Concentration LV1	What is the meaning of the combined names of the five mascots?	If you put together the names of the five mascots, Beibei, Jingjing, Huanhuan, Yingying, and Nini, you will get: "Beijing huanying ni." This means "Welcome to Beijing" in Chinese.
	Red Door	Shuffle	What are the missing words in the Beijing 2008 slogan below? "One ???, One ???"	The slogan is: "One World, One Dream."
	Yellow Door	Matching LV2	What time and date will the Opening Ceremony for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games begin?	It will begin at 8:08:08 pm, August 8, 2008. (Eight is a lucky number in China, symbolizing growth and development.)
	Green Door	Concentration LV2	How much distance will the Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Relay cover?	The torch relay will last 130 days and travel 85,128 miles (137,000km) from Olympia to Beijing. It will travel the longest distance and include the largest number of people of any torch relay so far.
Ancient Olympic Games	Blue Door	Airship LV1	Why are the Olympic Games held every four years?	Because the ancient Olympic Games that took place in Olympia, Greece were held every four years.
	Black Door	Airship LV2	Was there only one event in the ancient Olympic Games in 776 B.C.?	Yes. It was a running event, called the stadion or stade. Athletes ran the length of the stadium, a distance of about 219 yards (200 meters).
	Red Door	Airship LV3	Were there any team sports in the ancient Olympic Games?	Team sports were not included in the ancient Olympic Games.
	Yellow Door	Airship LV4	Is it true that the ancient Olympic Games included chariot races?	Yes. A competition for a four-horse chariot race, a tethrippon, was introduced in 680 B.C. Two more chariot races were added later on.
	Green Door	Airship LV5	What was the "pankration" event?	An event in the ancient Olympic Games, the "pankration" event was a combination of wrestling and boxing. The match continued until one of the athletes surrendered.
About Athletes	Blue Door	Conveyor Belt LV1	What is the Athletes' Village like?	The athletes live in the Athletes' Village during the Games, and it has training fields and cafeterias. There are even banks, post offices, cleaners, and souvenir shops.
	Black Door	Conveyor Belt LV2	When did female athletes first participate in the Olympic Games?	Their participation started from the second Olympic Games held in Paris in 1900.
	Red Door	Conveyor Belt LV3	Who recites the Olympic Oath in the opening ceremony?	An athlete from the nation that hosts the Olympic Games gives the oath, on behalf of the participating athletes from every country.
	Yellow Door	Conveyor Belt LV4	A perfect performance only got a 1.00 score!?	In the Montreal 1976 Olympic Games, Nadia Comaneci, a Romanian gymnast, performed a perfect routine on for the first time on the uneven bars. The scoreboards were not equipped to display scores of 10.0, so the routine was reported on the boards as 1.00 instead.
	Green Door	Conveyor Belt LV5	How old was the youngest person to place in the top 3 at the Olympic Games?	Greek athlete Dimitrios Loundras was 10 years and 218 days old when he came in 3rd in the parallel bars gymnastics team event at the 1896 Olympic Games.

Characters

Playable characters

All the main participants.

The game features sixteen playable characters; eight from the Mario franchise and eight from the Sonic the Hedgehog series. These sixteen characters are broken up into four groups of four characters. All-Around, which consists of characters who neither excel or descend in any type of abilities. Speed, which consists of characters who are best at agility and stamina based events. Skill, which consists of characters who are above average skill and stamina, but have low power and top speeds. Power, which consists of characters who are best at strength and endurance based events.

In Dream Fencing and Dream Table Tennis, players can use special attacks, which are powerful moves that inflict more damage or knock the opponent out of the ring (Dream Fencing), or hit the ball with more power (Dream Table Tennis).

Team Mario

Icon	Name	Type	Statistics	Emblem
	Mario	All-Around	Template:M&Sstat
	Luigi	All-Around	Template:M&Sstat
	Princess Peach	Skill	Template:M&Sstat
	Princess Daisy	Speed	Template:M&Sstat
	Yoshi	Speed	Template:M&Sstat
	Wario	Power	Template:M&Sstat
	Waluigi	Skill	Template:M&Sstat
	Bowser	Power	Template:M&Sstat

Team Sonic

Icon	Name	Type	Statistics	Emblem
	Sonic the Hedgehog	Speed	Template:M&Sstat
	Miles "Tails" Prower	Skill	Template:M&Sstat
	Knuckles the Echidna	Power	Template:M&Sstat
	Amy Rose	All-Around	Template:M&Sstat
	Blaze the Cat	All-Around	Template:M&Sstat
	Shadow the Hedgehog	Speed	Template:M&Sstat
	Vector the Crocodile	Power	Template:M&Sstat
	Dr. Eggman	Skill	Template:M&Sstat

Supporting characters

Referees

• Espio
• Charmy Bee
• Cream
• Toad
• Lakitu
• Shy Guy

Species

• Egg Pawn
• Goomba
• Kiki
• Boo
• Flapper
• Bullet Bill
• Bob-omb
• Toad
• Koopa Troopa

Events

Olympic Events

Event	Image	Class	Unlocking Criteria	Description
100m		Athletics (Track)	-	A short event in which characters run for the fastest time by sliding left and right on the Touch Screen.
400m		Athletics (Track)	-	A longer event in which characters compete to complete the 400m in the fastest time by sliding on the Touch Screen to run and monitoring the character's stamina.
400m Hurdles		Athletics (Track)	Complete the Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn Circuits	An event in which characters run by sliding on the Touch Screen while jumping hurdles and controlling stamina.
Long Jump		Athletics (Field)	-	An event in which characters run to build up seed by sliding on the Touch Screen and take off by sliding at specific angles.
Triple Jump		Athletics (Field)	Complete the Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn Circuits	An event in which characters perform three jumps by sliding at specific angles after sliding to run to build up speed.
Javelin Throw		Athletics (Field)	-	An event in which the player slides left and right on the Touch Screen to build up speed, and slides at a specific angle to throw the javelin as far as possible.
Hammer Throw		Athletics (Field)	-	An event in which the player builds up power by sliding in circles on the Touch Screen and releases the hammer by lifting the stylus to throw it the furthest.
100m Freestyle		Aquatics	-	An event in which the player aims to swim 100m in the fastest time by repeatedly drawing a character-specific stroke shape on the Touch Screen.
10m Platform		Aquatics	Complete the Comet Circuit	An event in which the player inputs button combinations to perform moves and earn a high score while diving.
Trampoline		Gymnastics	-	An event in which the player aims for a high score by drawing shapes on the Touch Screen to perform various trampolining moves.
Vault		Gymnastics	-	An event in which the player scores points for their routine after sliding on the Touch Screen to run up and touching a sequence of points to perform moves.
Archery		Archery	-	An event in which the player aims to score the highest numbers of points by touching and holding on the Touch Screen to aim and release arrows.
Singles		Table Tennis	-	An event in which the player uses the Control Pad and A, B, X and Y buttons to make shots and score more points than the opponent.
Individual epée		Fencing	-	An event in which the player uses the Control Pad to move and performs various moves by drawing shapes on the Touch Screen, aiming to score more touches thatn the opponent.
Skeet		Shooting	-	An event in which the player aims to score points by shooting targets using the L and R Buttons and aiming using the Touch Screen.
Pursuit		Cycling	-	An event in which the player aims to complete three laps of the course by using stamina through pedalling with the L and R Buttons and moving using the Control Pad.

Dream Events

Dream Event	Image	Unlocking Criteria	Description
Dream Race		Complete the Planet Circuit	An event in which the player races through a course with obstacles for the fastest time making use of items. The player can use both Touch Screen- and Button-based controls to run and use items in the race.
Dream Basketball		Complete the Stardust Circuit	An event in which the player throws basketballs using the Touch Screen to score points and use items.
Dream Canoe		Complete the Sunlight Circuit	An event in which the player aims to collect coins by paddling on the Touch Screen and using buttons to steer, making use of items.
Dream Boxing		Complete the Meteorite Circuit	An event in which the player uses various button combinations to perform punches and deplete the opponent's health bar fastest.
Dream Table Tennis		Complete the Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn Circuits	An event in which the player scores points by making various types of shot using different button commands.
Dream Fencing		Complete the Satellite Circuit	An event in which the player moves using buttons and performs various moves by drawing shapes on the Touch Screen, aiming to deplete the opponent's health bar.
Dream Shooting		Complete the Cosmos Circuit	An event in which the player touches the Touch Screen to use items and shoot targets to score points.
Dream Long Jump		-	An event in which the player aims to jump the furthest distance by running up using the stylus and moving and using items in the air with various button commands.

Reception

Reviews
Release	Reviewer, Publication	Score	Verdict
Nintendo DS	Ellie Gibson, Eurogamer	5/10	"Even if there were no Wii version to compare, Mario & Sonic DS wouldn't be worth a recommendation. The game isn't terrible; it's visually slick, there's a decent variety of events and they're entertaining to play through the first few times. But there's nothing special about it and no long-term value. Going for Gold fans will recall that despite their disadvantage, the non-English-speaking contestants always beat the British ones. Up against the Wii version, however, M&S DS will forever be playing catch-up."
Nintendo DS	Craig Harris, IGN	7.8/10	"Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games is a really good competitive game that's a better multiplayer outing than a solo one. Even though it looks and sounds great, the DS version of the title loses a bit of its impact due to its "me too" design against a slightly superior one that launched almost three months prior. Cheers to the designers to keep the game interesting with tons of modes and events, but jeers in their sloppy implementation of Worldwide features and repeating some events (like Fencing) that didn't really work on the Wii edition."
Aggregators
Compiler		Platform / Score
Metacritic		70
GameRankings		68.01%

Staff

Main article: List of Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (Nintendo DS) staff

Gallery

For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games.

• 

  The game's logo

• 

  Blaze

• 

  Bowser throwing a hammer

• 

  Screenshot of the main menu

• 

  Goomba sprite

• 

  North American print advertisement

Pre-release and unused content

Peach and Daisy were originally going to have swimsuits for the aquatic events rather than using their athletic wear as they do in the final game. However, the idea was rejected by Nintendo. Eventually, Peach, Daisy, Amy, and Blaze were given swimsuits in Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games, with more of the game's cast receiving swimwear in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.

References to other games

• Mario Kart: Double Dash!!: The Mario Bros. Circuits music that appears in the Gallery is used in Mario Circuit, Luigi Circuit and Yoshi Circuit in this game.
• Super Mario 64 DS: The Mini-Games Coincentration and Mini-Games Bounce and Pounce songs that appear in the Gallery originate from this game.
• Tetris DS: The Mario Puzzle Mix and Bowser Battle songs that can be selected in the Gallery originate from this game.

Quotes

Main article: List of Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games quotes

Mario

• "Oh, Mario get you next time!"
• "Wahoo! I'm the winner!"
• "Ah, mamma mia!"
• "I did it, so nice!"

Luigi

• "Ohhh! Luigi lost!"
• "Oh yeah! Who's number one now? Luigi!"
• "Oh, it's not that bad!"
• "Awww. Oh well, next time."

Sonic

• "Phew. Just made it!"
• "It's all about speed!"
• "Yeah! That was sweet!"
• "Aw, messed up!"

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	マリオ＆ソニック ＡＴ 北京オリンピック Mario ando Sonikku atto Pekin Orinpikku	Mario & Sonic at the Beijing Olympics
Dutch	Mario & Sonic op de Olympische Spelen	Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
German	Mario & Sonic bei den Olympischen Spielen	Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
Italian	Mario & Sonic ai Giochi Olimpici	Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
Korean	마리오와 소닉 베이징 올림픽 Mario-wa Sonik Beijing Olimpik	Mario & Sonic at the Beijing Olympics
Portuguese	Mario e Sonic nos Jogos Olímpicos	Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
Spanish	Mario & Sonic en los Juegos Olímpicos	Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games

Media

It has been suggested that audio and/or video file(s) related to this section be uploaded. Please upload all related music, sound effects, voice clips, or any videos for this section. See the help page for information on how to get started.

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games - The game's main theme.

File infoMedia:MASATOG Theme.oga 1:58

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Trivia

• The DVD set of The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 was re-released in a double pack with The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog Volume 1 to tie in with the release of this game.
• A version of this game was also released on mobile phones in June 2008, but lacked Mario characters and only included Sonic characters. Because of this it was simply titled Sonic at the Olympic Games.

External links

• Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games on Sonic Retro
• Japanese site
• North American site
• Nintendo UK site