Super Mario Strikers Gets “Pro”-fessional Design By Next Level Games

by Louis Bedigian

“Super Mario Strikers combines the highlight reel elements of soccer/football with elements from the Mushroom Kingdom, all done with a North American flare.” 

Ever heard of Next Level Games? You should have. They designed the best Midway hockey sequel, NHL Hitz Pro, a game that even the Street series couldn’t squash. Their experience and development expertise are what brought them to the unlikely place they have arrived at today: they’re developing a new Mario game for Nintendo.

Super Mario Strikers, the newly announced, highly anticipated extreme soccer game, is already Next Level’s most talked about project yet. The game looked stunning at the Electronic Entertainment Expo, featuring all your favorite Mario characters, Mario-style power-ups, and graphics that exceed the beauty of Mario Golf and Mario Tennis. 

Is this classic gameplay in the making or what? 

You can’t help but get excited for this game. I know I couldn’t, and neither could the long lines of gamers at E3.

It took some conniving (and likely a few bribes I haven’t been informed of), but we managed to track down Mike Inglehart, Director of Super Mario Strikers. Marketing Director Grace Kim was there as well, so we pulled out our turtle shells and demanded answers!

They then shot fire through their fingers and cooled our burns with the water guns attached to their backs. They had us beat. Not only could they defeat us but they also had the power to heal us. A sneaky but highly effective strategy.

Thankfully they were kind enough to answer our questions anyway. And if not, I hid a spiked shell in my back pocket (just incase). 

NHL Hitz Pro turned out to be the best NHL Hitz game yet.  What was it like taking on that franchise?

Grace Kim: Several employees of Next Level Games were instrumental in creating the successful NHL franchise. Jason Carr, Game Director at Next Level Games was the designer for both NHL Hitz 2002 and 2003 during his career at Black Box Games and Mike Inglehart led the design for Hitz Pro at Next Level Games.

Where did Next Level come from?  What is your (and the developers and artists, etc.) background?

GK: We are the largest independent third-party developer in beautiful Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada). Founded in October 2002, we have successfully assembled some of the best talent in the industry under one roof. Although, NHL Hitz Pro is the first title under the Next Level banner our teams have previously worked together for many years at places like EA, Black Box and Radical.

Your next game is a big one: Super Mario Strikers.  It's got mushrooms, shell-helmets and Koopa players.  Please tell us more about this exciting sports adventure.

Mike Inglehart: In the beginning, Super Mario Strikers was going to look and feel more authentic. After working closely with Nintendo we felt the game was more fun with the over-the-top nature of the Nintendo franchises integrated.  It took many late night conference calls and trips between Japan, Canada, and the U.S., but in the end, all of our hard work and collaboration with Nintendo really helped make Super Mario Strikers a great game.

In its final form, Super Mario Strikers combines the highlight reel elements of soccer/football (for our friends in Europe) with elements from the Mushroom Kingdom, all done with a North American flare. It's a high-octane, aggressive often laughter-inducing experience that is intense right down to the final seconds. From electrical fences to explosions, bicycle kicks, hyper strikes and goalie blasting goals, Super Mario Strikers offers something for everyone. 

Soccer and hockey games tend to have similar gameplay mechanics – are things that you learned while developing NHL Hitz Pro being implemented here?

MI: Yes, without question we carried many of our learning experiences and best practices over to Super Mario Strikers. We learned many things through creating Hitz Pro but the biggest element that has stayed intact through the development of Strikers was keeping the game responsive. People want to feel like they are kicking, passing or heading a ball as soon as they hit the button. It's important to keep the user connected to the experience on the field by having their controller act as their foot if you will, so we took are experience of responsive gameplay and tightened up Super Mario Strikers even further.

Other elements such as our goaltending system borrows from concepts we used in Hitz Pro where there is a concept of the goalie getting tired based on the quality of the shot.  The better your shot the better the chance of scoring and how tired the goalie will be after.  We wanted to create a method and reasoning as to why you score and in Super Mario Strikers, all goals feel and result in the reward you get for playing well on the pitch.

Is the gameplay anything like NHL Hitz Pro?  Will Hitz fans be able to recognize that Next Level was the developer?
 

MI: One of Next Level Games’ trademarks is responsive, fun and balanced gameplay.  Super Mario Strikers has the Next Level Games feel and will create those signature moments on the field from shots trickling past the goalie, to big aggressive on field collisions and a responsive, balanced experience.

Next Level Games has grown since Hitz Pro and people will be extremely pleased with how Super Mario Strikers plays and know what to expect from those of us at Next Level Games.

Who's playable in Super Mario Strikers?  How many of Mario's friends, adversaries, etc., will we see?

MI: Super Mario Strikers is comprised of eight captains that can be led on to the field as they chase the various Battle Cups that are up for grabs. You will see the likes of Mario, Luigi, Donkey Kong, Peach, Daisy, Wario, Waluigi and Yoshi captain team on the field.  Needless to say there are rivalries amongst these characters and scores will be settled on the field.

Are the different characters broken into different teams?  Also, how many characters can you have on a team at one time?

MI: Teams are made up of 4 players and a goalie.  Of your four players, your captain will be the Striker and he or she will be supported by three sidekicks.  Before each game, after you choose your captain, you then select one of four types of sidekicks to hit the field with you.  Available in the locker room will be the likes of Birdo, Toad, Koopa and Hammer Bros.  Each team is decked out in uniforms and colours to match the captain.  And minding the net will be the aggressive and athletic Critter as seen in Donkey Kong's neck of the world.

One of my favorite things about Mario games is the environments.  Please give us an overview of the different worlds/arenas that Super Mario Strikers features.

MI: Unique to Strikers, we have a selection of actual stadiums that have been created to support the amazing fan base of this sport. Stadiums range from outdoor wood floored coliseums, underground concrete stadiums, to even one being set in the orbits of space. Very different, very unique and each one has its' own flavour.  But without a doubt, the fans are all as passionate about this game no matter where the match takes place.

In Mario Kart and Mario Tennis the characters' height and weight seriously affected the gameplay.  Heavier characters were slower but stronger; lighter characters were faster but weaker.  Is anything like that being applied here?

MI: We spent a lot of time discussing the characters with Nintendo and their team had the ultimate say when it came to the look of the characters and their uniforms. Overall, they wanted to ensure that each of the characters had a strong, aggressive personality that suited the game play but didn't stray too far from the personalities exhibited in other Nintendo games. 

That said, characters have inherent differences which do affect the gameplay. For example, DK is the largest player so he is easier to hit on the field of play but also is the easiest to knock you over. Our goal was to ensure that the game was balanced and fun no matter who you chose as your captain and we have accomplished this goal.

Each player has a selection of different kicks and attacks which creates a true sense of how you expect that character to kick or pass the ball. There are also power up differences between the characters which does create a tactical level of strategy on the field. For example Wario gets a few extra bobombs while DK will favor tossing a banana your way. So find the captain that works best for you and chase the dream of winning the Super Bowser Cup. 

What can you tell us about the classic sound and graphic effects?  All Mario games have familiar sights and sounds that remind us of the plumber's vast history.

MI: [You] have to wait.

Who's doing the soundtrack?  Will Super Mario Strikers feature remixes of classic Mario tunes?

Same answer.

Aw man, really? I'm almost positive I saw a spiked shell flying around the screen at E3.  Was I hallucinating?  Are there other shells, and how are they used in this game?

MI: We have a collection of shells and power-ups that can be used at will by the teams on the field of play. Yes, you saw right, we have spiny shells, red shells, green shells the freeze shells and sometimes a shell may even decide to explode...so keep your head up.  From big to small, each shell packs a punch.

Tell us about the single-player modes and game options.  What can solo players do?  Is there anything to unlock?

MI: Single-player mode challenges the player to overcome the competition and get their hands on the coveted Battle Cups.  There are multiple Battle Cups and Super Battle Cups to bring home.  The user will compete against up to seven teams in various formats of league and knockout table play. 

Along the way, you will also have the opportunity to win milestone trophies for your performance on the field.  Win the gold level of each trophy and unlock custom power up sets and other rewards which can really fuel your multi-player experiences.  So as you can see, lots to do and lots to unlock.

We'd also like to hear about the multiplayer features/options.

GK: … Sorry, but you’ll have to wait for Nintendo to release more information.

What's next for Next Level once Super Mario Strikers is complete?  Next-gen development?

GK: Our second production team is currently signed with a major U.S. publisher and the title should be announced later this year. Continue to expect from us: responsive, fun and balanced gameplay.

In terms of next-gen development, you’ll see more quality games from Next Level Games on the next platform (no wisecrack or pun on the word ‘next’ intended) in the future. Keep an eye on us and stay tuned…

I definitely will.

Thanks guys for an awesome interview!