We've gotten far too used to seeing iconic gaming mascots Mario and Sonic together in one place, but the forthcoming Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 may have a more visually appealing take on this crossover. The title will also include a number of sporting event games with the casts from the Mario and Sonic universes in classic 2D form. It's a clash between NES and Genesis that we never dreamed would even happen.
They'll be 10 2D events, next to the 21 standard 3D minigames included in the game. The 2D events are as follows:
- 100m
- 10m Platform (Diving)
- 400m Hurdles
- Gymnastics - Vault
- Judo
- Kayak Single (K-1) 1000m
- Long Jump
- Marathon
- Shooting - Trap
- Volleyball
Watching an 8-bit Peach perform a Judo flip on a 16-bit Knuckles is quite the unusual sight, but I suppose that's meant to be the gleeful novelty that such a mode is designed to provide. It still makes absolutely no sense that Mario could possibly outrun Sonic, no matter what character models or physics are used, but we'll continue to suspend disbelief. Spotted in the trailer are Mario, Luigi, Peach, Bowser, Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Dr. Eggman. The audience (and the roster for larger team games like volleyball) are filled out with Goombas, Shy Guys, and critters.
Even more of a throwback is in the background—these events are based on the Tokyo 1964 Games, the previous Summer Olympic Games that the city hosted. A fun reference, though a bit silly seeing how video games, let alone the NES and Genesis, weren't really a thing at this time. And as charming as it all is, the two graphical styles don't gel quite well; I understand that these are the iconic classic versions of these characters, but for aesthetics' sake, perhaps the Super Mario World style may have worked better in this case.
Regardless, I was quite impressed with my hands-on time with the game at E3 2019, something I've never said about the previous games in this sports spin-off subseries. These 2D events are taking me back to the "Dream Events" of games prior, which I thought were the strongest parts of the other games. Judging by the menu I saw during the E3 demo, those Dream Events should return alongside the regular 3D events, which are as followed:
- 100m
- 110m Hurdles
- 4 x 100m Relay
- Archery
- Badminton
- Boxing
- Canoe Double (C-2) 1000m
- Discus Throw
- Equestrian - Jumping
- Fencing
- Football (Soccer)
- Gymnastics - Floor Exercise
- Javelin Throw
- Karate - Kumite
- Rugby Sevens
- Skateboarding - Park
- Sport Climbing
- Surfing - Shortboard
- Swimming - 100m Freestyle
- Table Tennis
- Triple Jump
Check out both the trailer for the 2D events and some screenshots below. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 will release exclusively for Nintendo Switch on November 5 in the United States and November 8 in Europe.