Mario Strikers
Logo for the Mario Strikers series
First installment Super Mario Strikers (2005)
Latest installment Mario Strikers: Battle League (2022)
Number of installments 3 (3 direct, 1 promotional)
Franchise Super Mario

The Mario Strikers series, also known as the Mario Football series in Europe and Australia and the Mario Soccer series in South Korea, is a series of Super Mario games that began in 2005 in which Mario and his friends play "Strike",[1] a more extreme variant of association football (commonly known as "football" or "soccer"). The series consists of three games: Super Mario Strikers, Mario Strikers Charged, and Mario Strikers: Battle League.

Games

Title
Cover, original release, and system Description
Super Mario Strikers
 
  November 18, 2005
Nintendo GameCube
Super Mario Strikers (Mario Smash Football in the PAL version), the first game in the series, was released on the Nintendo GameCube. It features basic rules of football, although having its own playing style as implied in several sport Super Mario games. One specialized rule is Super Strikes. Only the team captain can execute a Special Strike, and if done so perfectly, the shot will always make the goal, and be worth two points. There are a total of nine different playable team captains (including one unlockable, Super Team), four different sidekick players, and two different goalies. It was the last Super Mario game to be released for the GameCube in Japan and North America.
Mario Strikers Charged
 
  May 25, 2007
Wii
Mario Strikers Charged (Mario Strikers Charged Football in the PAL version and Mario Power Soccer for South Korea), the second installment in the series, was released on the Wii in 2007. Wi-Fi capability was a new addition to the game, allowing players to compete across the world over the internet. The game features four new team captains: Bowser, Bowser Jr., Diddy Kong, and Petey Piranha, as well as four new types of sidekicks (Boos, Dry Bones, Monty Moles, and Shy Guys). The game includes ten new fields to compete, many of them containing certain gimmicks that would modify the situation of every match. For this second mainstream, the characters would have special kicks to score, like sidekicks' skillshots or the powerful Mega Strikes of the captains, which Kritter proves his potential to stop the soccer balls, under the control of the player. If successful, then they will receive up to six points for each ball in the goal. Also, new power-ups had been added for each team captain, known as Super Abilities. The game was rereleased for the Wii U eShop in 2016.
Mario Strikers: Battle League
 
June 10, 2022
Nintendo Switch
Mario Strikers: Battle League (Mario Strikers: Battle League Football in the European and Australian version) is the third installment in the series and the first in 15 years, released on the Nintendo Switch. It features new gear and items, and also introduced Rosalina and Pauline as playable characters. Toad, Shy Guy, and Birdo are now selectable as captains for the first time after having been sidekicks for the past two games, while Boom Boom replaces Kritter as a goalie that cannot be controlled by the player. While sidekicks are not present in this game, the player has the option to select multiple Toads, Yoshis, and Shy Guys in a team in Quick Battles and Cup Battles.

Playable characters

Not counting goalies, a total of 23 playable characters have appeared in the series.

Character Super Mario Strikers Mario Strikers Charged Mario Strikers: Battle League
Birdo  1  1  3
Boo    1  
Bowser      
Bowser Jr.      3
Daisy      3
Diddy Kong      3
Donkey Kong      
Dry Bones    1  
Hammer Bro    1  
Koopa Troopa    1  
Luigi      
Mario      
Monty Mole    1  
Pauline      3
Peach      
Petey Piranha      
Rosalina      
Shy Guy    1  2 3
Super Team      
Toad  1  1  2
Waluigi      
Wario      
Yoshi      2

1 - This character is a sidekick character.
2 - In Quick Play and Cup Battles, this character can be selected more than once for a team.
3 - To use this character, a software update is required.

Goalies

Character Super Mario Strikers Mario Strikers Charged Mario Strikers: Battle League
Kritter      
Robo-Kritter      
Boom Boom      

Fields

Field Super Mario Strikers Mario Strikers Charged Mario Strikers: Battle League
Bowser Stadium      
Crater Field      
Crystal Canyon      
Desert Ruin      
Galactic Stadium      
Jungle Retreat      
Konga Coliseum      
Lava Castle      
Mushroom Hill      
Pipeline Central      
Planetoid      
Royal Castle      
Spooky Mansion      
Stormship Stadium      
The Battle Dome      
The Classroom      
The Dump      
The Lava Pit      
The Palace      
The Sand Tomb      
The Underground      
The Vice      
The Wastelands      
Thunder Island      
Urban Rooftop      

Logos

North American logos European logos

Trivia

References

  1. ^ "The GSF has asked me to instruct you on the basics of Strike." - Fútbot in Training mode, Mario Strikers: Battle League