is a 2011 crossover sports and party game developed by Sega Japan. It was published by Nintendo in Japan and Korea and by Sega elsewhere. As the third instalment in the Mario & Sonic series, it was released on the Wii on 15 November 2011 in North America, 18 November 2011 in Europe, and 26 December 2011 in Japan. It was also released for the Nintendo 3DS in February 2012. Mario & Sonic is the official video game of the 2012 Summer Olympics and is licensed by the International Olympic Committee through exclusive licensee International Sports Multimedia. The game is the only Wii title to come in a yellow keep case.
The game on the Wii and 3DS comprises a collection of numerous events based on the Olympic Games. Players assume the role of a Mario or Sonic character while competing against the others in Olympic events. Mario & Sonic received mostly mixed reviews from critics upon release, with many criticising its gameplay as underwhelming. It proved to be commercially successful and was followed by a fourth game in the series, Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games, which was released in November 2013 for the Wii U.
Gameplay
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games comprises a collection of numerous events based on the modern Olympic Games. The game brings together the two titular characters and 18 more from both franchises to participate in environments based on the official venues of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Each character has unique attributes which can serve as an advantage or disadvantage depending on the event. As with the game's predecessor, all player-characters are divided into four categories: all-around, speed, power, and skill.
The Wii version features a total of 30 Olympic events, including football, badminton, horse riding, canoeing, and volleyball. Re-imagined versions of previously existing events such as athletics, aquatics, and table tennis also appear. The game introduces new cooperative mechanics including "Dream Events", alternate versions of Olympic events that take place in locations from previous games of the Mario and Sonic series, and a challenge mode, which enables players to repeat complete challenges in various events. "London Party" mode takes place on a board game-like depiction of London in which four players may compete in various sporting events and minigames. The ultimate objective is to collect enough stickers to fill up a "tourist book" – the player who completes the book first wins. Upon the completion of any event, players earn scratch cards which can be redeemed in the game's "Bonus Mode" for rewards such as Mii costumes and additional music. Unlike Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, the Wii version of Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games does not support the Balance Board.
The 3DS version has over 50 Olympic-based events in single-player and multiplayer. Among these events which are not included in the Wii version include BMX racing and weight-lifting, with the latter involving the use of the 3DS's microphone. Like the Nintendo DS counterpart of Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, it also contains an exclusive "Story Mode" which entails the characters from Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog's worlds working against their respective antagonists, Bowser and Doctor Eggman, who are trying to use fog machines to prevent the games from being held.
Development and release
The first game in the series, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, was the first official crossover title to feature characters from both the Super Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog franchises. The Olympic Games were chosen as a setting since Sega and Nintendo felt its competitive sportsmanship was ideal for the once-rival mascots Sonic the Hedgehog and Mario. Sonic the Hedgehog is the protagonist of the video game series released by Sega in order to provide the company with a mascot to rival Nintendo's flagship character Mario in the early 1990s. The game proved to be a commercial success and encouraged Sega and Nintendo to develop a sequel, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games. Shortly after its release, the vice president of marketing at Sega of America, Sean Ratcliffe, commented that the company would likely commission a sequel for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London if the franchise continued to capture interest among consumers.