Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games is a crossover sports and party game developed by the Sega Sports R&D Department. It is the first installment on the Mario & Sonic series. It was published by Nintendo in Japan and by Sega in other regions, and released on the Wii in November 2007 and the Nintendo DS handheld in January 2008. The first official video game of the 2008 Summer Olympic Games, it is licensed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) through exclusive licensee International Sports Multimedia (ISM), and is the first official crossover game to feature characters from both the Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog series.

Mario & Sonic on the Wii and DS is a collection of twenty-four events based on the Olympic Games. Players assume the role of a Nintendo or Sega character, using the Wii Remote to mimic sports actions such as swinging a paddle. The DS version uses the stylus and button controls. Both games follow rules and regulations of the specific sports. Sega adopted the IOC's mission of promoting sportsmanship and interest young people in the Olympics by using its characters; following this theme, Nintendo allowed Sega to include Mario with Sonic the Hedgehog, created by Sega as a mascot to rival Mario in the early 1990s.

Critics praised the multiplayer interaction of the Wii game, and variety of events of both versions, but criticized the Wii version for its complexity and its DS counterpart for not offering the same interaction between players. The Wii game was awarded the "Best Wii game of 2007" at the Games Convention in Leipzig. Mario & Sonic sold over 10 million units and started a series of related sport video games to coincide with upcoming Olympic events.

Release Date

• Wii
  NA: November 6, 2007
  JP: November 22, 2007
  PAL: November 23, 2007
• Nintendo DS
  JP: January 17, 2008
  NA: January 22, 2008
  AU: February 7, 2008
  EU: February 8, 2008

Also See

• Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
• Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games
• Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games
• Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games
• Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020

Sound Effects Used

• Hollywoodedge, 357 Magnum Pistol Sho PE092801
• Sound Ideas, CROWD, APPLAUSE - APPLAUSE, 35.000 PEOPLE, DIGIFFECTS
• Yoshi Vocal Sounds