Anticipating the release of Mario Strikers: Battle League Football, Nintendo has released a demo titled “First Kick”, A fleeting first taste of the return of the football spin-off of Super Mario the next June 10 exclusively on Nintendo Switch. Although the demo is basically a “stress test” whose purpose is to test the servers and the quality of the title’s netcode Next Level Gameswe also got to test most of the mechanics of this third Mario Strikers installment.
How was it possible to imagine already from its presentation and from the various gameplay spread over the past few weeks, Mario Strikers: Battle League Football does not differ too much from the arcade formula of the previous titleswhich reinterprets five-a-side football in a version without any rules where everything is allowed, between jostling and power-upswith the sole purpose of bagging the greatest number of balls into the opponent’s net and taking home the victory.
Accompanying the mode Quick Matchor the one dedicated to testing the game online, we find two other items accessible in this demo, the one dedicated to Equipment and theWork out. The first, while not actually being able to be used in game, gave us an overview of the various elements that can be equipped on the characters available at launchwith each piece (between head, arms, body and game) going to modify the basic statistics of the players that outline the technical profile in the field.
The part dedicated to training instead allowed us to test the basic game mechanics first handon how to move on the pitch and juggle the various types of shots, passes and lobs, up to powerful and scenographic Hyperthires, special shots able to displace the opponent’s defenses, taking home 2 points in case of goals. Once you have assimilated the basics, the tutorial continues with the Advanced Skills“Simple” to master in training but more difficult to materialize in the chaotic action of the match, such as the team contrast already seen in the various trailers, where by pushing one of the teammates we can throw him at an opponent to block his advance and steal the ball.
Once you have learned the basic rules, you can throw yourself headlong into the only online activity available in First Kick from Mario Strikers: Battle League Football, a quick two-on-two game, also playable with a friend, in which you can face players from all over the world. After quite responsive matchmaking in mating, you move on to the formation of the team, which allows you to select two characters for each player (while the fifth, the goalkeeper, will be the same for both teams). The captain, chosen randomly, can then decide which shirt to wear and half of the field between one of the proposed themes, even if in this demo is totally devoid of the customizations promised in the full game.
Once the kick-off is given we will be able to implement what we have learned, collaborating with our teammate to try to take the victory home. The purpose of First Kick is to give us a taste of the qualities of online of this last chapter of Mario Strikers. After our test, in the various slots made available by Nintendo to aggregate the largest number of players, our matches went off without too many problems. As is well known, the fame of Nintendo does not shine precisely in the community of players for its skills in the field of online games, but despite this we have never come across episodes that are too suspicious. There was some disconnections by some players (where management of the entire team passes to the only player left), or some short lag activity which mostly translates into a delay in the input of commands which makes it difficult to be responsive to the gameplay.
Overall, however, we found ourselves faced with a normal performanceconsidering that in fact it is a stress test, and its task is precisely that, on the Nintendo side, to see what is wrong and try to make the right changes to the netcode ahead of launch. Even the pairing with friends is quite immediate, and while not taking advantage of the internal system of invitations, it will be enough create a room that our friends can join to then set out to conquer the world. As in the case of Nintendo Switch Sports the overall quality of this stress test is good e we can be quite satisfied with this first contact with Mario Strikers: Battle League Footballhoping that Next Level Games delivers the best possible online experience once the game is released.
Even technically Mario Strikers: Battle League Football reconfirms itself as a pleasant title to admire and play. If the camera on the other hand offers a clear view of the game, despite the utmost chaos reigning on the pitch, the masters are the numerous animations that bring the game to life, making every encounter spectacular. And the workhorse of Mario Strikers are the various cut scenes of the Hyperthyroidismwhich, focusing on the peculiar characteristic of each player in the kingdom of mushrooms, stage nice curtains in which each character unleashes all his power and breaks through the opponent’s defenseas long as complete the minigame connected to it with the right timingwhich requires the player a glance and a steady hand to block the indicator at the point of maximum power of the shot to make it happen.
In short, this demo of Mario Strikers: Battle League Football gave us a first look at one of the year’s flagship titles at home Nintendo, giving us hope for the final quality of the game once it is released. If on the gameplay front we didn’t have too many doubts knowing the DNA of the title Next Level Games, this First Kick gave us hope for the online multiplayer sectoran element on which the game seems to focus a lot and thanks to which it will be able to keep itself “alive” in the months to come.
All that remains is to wait for the release of Mario Strikers: Battle League Football set for June 10exclusively on Nintendo Switch and the verdict of the game that will arrive in the coming weeks here on the pages of Akiba Gamers.
Teamwork, contrasts, objects capable of overturning the result and spectacular hyperthires: these are the ingredients for victory in Mario Strikers: Battle League Football for Nintendo Switch! Dive into fast-paced local multiplayer matches and team up with other players online to take your club to the top of the world rankings!
The team that scores the most goals wins. It seems simple, but among the fierce team contrasts arriving from every direction and the many objects capable of making the action even more chaotic (without forgetting the electrified barriers that surround the field), going to the net will certainly not be a walk in the park! Never lose heart, though, and remember that by bagging the ball with a powerful hyper-shot you will score not one, but TWO goals!
Buy Mario Strikers: Battle League Football for Nintendo Switch following this link at the price of € 59.90. Available from June 10, 2022. Support Akiba Gamers by purchasing the game on Amazon through this box!
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