Mario+Rabbids Sparks of Hope is finally here to fulfil our long-awaited hopes of being the perfect yet better sequel to the original game. Filled with endless activities at every corner the fun never stops. And the best part? You meet the best of both worlds – Mario and Rabbids, as you explore every corner of the universe in this magical yet ambitious adventure filled with adorable little ‘Sparks’.
Mario+Rabbids Sparks of Hope will land on your Nintendo Switch Consoles on 20th October 2022. Led by Ubisoft Milan and Ubisoft Paris and Co-Developed by Ubisoft Chengdu, Ubisoft Montpellier and Ubisoft Pune, this title will be a Nintendo Console Exclusive.
Are you ready to hang with Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Rabbid Mario, Rabbid Luigi, Princess Peach and some mysterious guests in this intergalactic adventure? Then fasten your seatbelts on!
It isn’t a Super Magical Story without a Super Magical Boss
On a beautiful day in the Mushroom Kingdom, Mario and his friends were living happily. But a calamity occurs as Rabbid Mario was heard crying for help. The heroes find Rabbid Mario hiding in a tree, revealing that his clothes have been stolen and task you to retrieve them back. Completing this rather simple chore, you help Rabbid Mario regain his public identity and Masculine Personality which perhaps only he thinks he has. While the heroes were celebrating this little joy, the sky blew up.
Piercing through the great heavens came a little star but with its own eyes and face. The heroes figured out this little adorable shiny star only came seeking protection. But what followed him through was a giant celestial Super-Mega Boss entity known as Cursa. While the heroes braced for a battle, Cursa teleported the heroes into another dimension. The task was clear, rescue the Spark, and escape.
But the task was not easy. The Heroes needed to defeat and escape the minions that follow the command of Cursa. Even the Goomba who were already hostile towards the heroes are not hostile while being under the command of Cursa.
Wrapping things quickly, the heroes rescue the spark and jump aboard a spaceship piloted by the loyal friend Beep-O. Doing world-class evasive manoeuvres, the heroes were able to escape the grasp of Cursa by a thread.
Aided by an onboard AI, Starburst the Spark and Beep-O the heroes soon figured out that Cursa is determined to consume and absorb the powers of all Sparks. She also spreads a curse called ‘Darkmess‘ (Smooth) that ruins the planet’s ecosystem and poses a threat to the Rabbids living there.
The heroes now knew their mission. They prepared themselves to travel far and beyond to undo everything that Cursa has done. They also promised to rescue every little Spark and keep them away from Cursa’s hands.
Shoot, Explode, Snipe, Heal or Just Throw a Giant Sword
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope offers the most ambitious and impressive combat design in video games. While being turn-based combat, it offers multiple methods to approach and make it real-time. Team Jump, Dash, Changing Covers, Using Spark abilities, and Signature Abilities all add an impressive combination to the combat if you’re able to think your moves ahead.
This approach to the combat style brings in many risk-reward factors. You may not even realise when your plan has absolutely gone sinking or how well your strategies have turned out in your favour. It will all be the game of looking at what’s ahead and the firepower you’re choosing to fight it with.
Adapting to your favourite fighting style will be key here. While some of you may prefer to go all in, choosing Rabbid Mario will be your best bet here. If you tag him alone Princess Peach or Rabbid Peach you can give Rabbid Mario Protection or Healing as required.
On the other hand, if the battlefield offers long ranged enemies, choosing Mario and Luigi will be your preferred option. Luigi’s High Range Bow allows him to pick off targets from afar. Mario’s Medium Range Bracers will allow him to defend any incoming threats with 2 back to back shots.
But this is where things get interesting. After progressing in the story, you’re able to have a spark for each character. Now since you get 2 move points per turn wave per character, you can blend it into amazing skills. If you use Starbust’s ability you can increase the damage of all characters within a range of up to 20%. Having higher damage will allow you to finish off enemies with even a single blow.
Finally, each character will have their own signature abilities. Mario and Luigi’s abilities work the same way. Mario Hero Sight and Luigi Steely Stare will prepare the characters to shoot if any enemy makes a movement, irrespective of the turn. This even means, that if an ally dashes into the enemy and plummets them in a visible direction, Mario or Luigi will shoot them down.
In short, the combat style is an open canvas for all players. Rescuing up to 30 sparks throughout the game will allow you to equip and use different abilities without any restriction on compatibility. Ethering Spark will allow you to be invulnerable for 1 move to go into danger without hesitation. While electroid will turn your basic attacks charged with the god of thunder, ALSO making you 20% resistant to shock effects. We can go on and on, but you get the idea.
A Hilarious World to Behold
The exploration of the world gives a straight-up vibe from Super Mario Odyssey. The art style, assets coins movements are all too similar, minus the exploration tools. But while the game has its similarities, it absolutely unique in its own way. And a major reason includes ‘Rabbids’. Rabbids are super chaotic creatures. Their choices and actions often trigger even bigger chaos that helps the scream their iconic screaming shouts. And exploring worlds where Rabbids actually reside? What can possibly go wrong?
Unfortunately, initially every world you visit, is filled with darkness and sadness filled all over. It’s your duty to cleanse darkmess tentacles of the world and bring back the former glory and weather to the planet. Doing that will also allow you to embark on multiple side quests and areas that were once blocked before.
Doing this will allow you to check out what the Rabbid residents have been up to. You may occasionally find them balancing a Viking boat atop a mountain peak or just being absolutely beaten up by a Kraken who was initially the first and last experiment dish of long gone Rabbid Chef.
Along with those experiences, you will also be able to take on simple quests like getting rid of roaming mobs or helping a lonely rabbid build an igloo with no door (don’t ask). This will help you in return earn planetary points to spend on skins, items or even a vault key. Vault keys allow you to take on the most hardest dungeon, earning you a Spark the first you clear it, and a weapon skin on your next run.
Exploring these planets will also be worth the while. Especially if certain quests will also award you with a Spark. Better lookout for some Rabbids who might have gone crazy, and have frosted a creature that better not come to life.
For extra collectables, you get fully voiced memos of mobs, types and other interesting information about your enemy and characters you come across. This overall encourages the players to find more memos and learn more about the game.
Be Patient, Think First or Just Go Easy
Playing on easy isn’t about dropping your Ego. It sometimes just means you’re too tired for a challenge and want to enjoy the sparkling story of the game. But if you’re truly up for the challenge, then the game is already quite challenging in the regular. I can only imagine players who will take on the hard difficulty mode (My highest respect to you guys).
The combat will also be filled with different mobs as you progress and change planets. Usually, their superpower (elements) will be based on the planet. But you may encounter multiple mobs at any time as well. You can even use Bob-ombs to trigger and detonate the enemies. It’s all about the playstyle you follow. Throwing a bob-omb near your teammate will inflict damage as well. The same applies if you try to shoot a bob-omb who’s too close to you.
Winning a battle is usually done in 3 ways. Completing a certain objective – which may include blowing up a portal, killing a certain amount of enemies, destroying eyes or more. Defeating All or Some Enemies – usually, you’ll be tasked with eliminating all enemies, but sometimes you’ll even be asked to eliminate a certain number of enemies. Reaching the Safe Area – some mission objectives will only ask you to make your way through the battlefield to a certain safe area. As soon as you step into the safe area, the battle will conclude and the enemies will surrender.
However, a certain style of difficulty is added when after each turn multiple portals are spawned that will not be taken down in one attack. This portal in return may spawn multiple enemies at once. The worst part is that this happens when you already have an objective to focus on, but you may soon get overrun with enemies if you choose to ignore them. I personally found them significantly annoying after a while.
After the battle is over, you will regain a small percentage of your health. This is the best chance to swap with a reserve teammate or heal with power mushrooms. Or you can heal all your characters for a fee of 125 coins initially.
Overall, the difficulty factor already prepares for a challenging approach, hence depending on your play style it is crucial to play on a mix of settings that suits your play style the best. However, if you’re ready to hone your skills and think before your moves, go ahead with the regular hard mode. For absolute new players, the game also includes an invulnerable option, great for kids and brand-new players.
Verdict
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is an absolute Joy to play with a miraculous world to explore and a brilliant combat style to fight in. The mix of turn-based with real-time elements adds another level of thrill to the already existing strategy-based play style which is gradually improved as you progress. An exciting storyline along with iconic characters makes the journey and all the cutscenes a joy to watch. Having a fairly serious difficulty, it definitely tests the players in all aspects while allowing many difficulty settings for players who chose otherwise.
Overall Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is definitely one of the best Nintendo Switch Games Releases of 2022. And it leaves no reason to not be included in this year’s Game of The Year Nomination. Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is an essential game to have if you own a Nintendo Switch Console.
Final Verdict: Essential
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