Mario Hoops 3 on 3

Overview

Developed by famed developer Square Enix, Mario Hoops is a game of 3 versus 3 basketball, infused with the Mario sports style. You win the game depending on the amount of points you have at the end of a four-period game. You do that by making baskets, and depending on the difficulty of the shot you make, and how many coins you collect before making a basket, you get more or less points. There's also a heavy emphasis on items, ranging from lightning bolts, spike shells, red shells and bananas. The game features some of the best 3D graphics of any game on the DS, with colorful levels and great texture work.

The game features a multiplayer component, allowing players with just one DS card play a series of 3 'mini-games,' while players with two copies of the game can play a full 3 versus 3 game. The game does not feature any sort of online component.

Mario Hoops,  Mario and Sonic at the Olympic games and Mario and Sonic at the Winter Olympic games are currently the only 'Mario Sports' games on the DS.

Controls

The game is mainly controlled with the stylus although you move around with the d-pad.

Unlockables

In this game you have Mario, Bowser, Boo, Shy guy, Birdo, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Peach, Daisy, Bowser Jr, Diddy Kong, Donkey Kong, Koopa Paratroopa, Dixie Kong, and characters from the Final Fantasy series. You only start off with 5 charcters, but the total amount is 21. As well as charcters, you can also unlock basket balls which have varying special appearences such as the yoshi egg. You get these for completing challenges and tournaments.

Setup

Each team consists of three players. One in left, right, and center. There are a few different types of characters to choose from, big characters such as Bowser and Donkey Kong are strong (they can make shields to block opponents quickly) but slow. Speedy characters like Diddy Kong are the fastest players. Technical charters are brilliant shooters, with a much higher percentage of making a shot shot. Tricky charters can do a trick to get past shields. You can have any range of types of characters in your team but the best is a mixture.

Modes

Tourney - A tournament mode. Playing through tournaments is an importiant method of unlocking different characters and items.

Exhibition - The game's freeplay mode, choose whatever team and whatever opponents you like.

Matchup - The multiplayer mode.

Challenges - This is the game's practice mode, you are given tasks like performing special shots or evading an opponent and then have to complete them. Finishing challenges is another way to unlock things. This also contains "Dribble Race," a short time-trial race where your goal is to collect 100 coins on a course in the fastest time posible.

Scoring

You score 20 points for scoring a basket, and 30 if your past the 3 point line. Additionally you get 1 point added on for every coin you have (red coins are worth 10) making the game a bit strategic. You can have a maximum of 100 coins when you score a basket, although they can be taken away with green shells and other items. Another way to score points is by doing a special shot, to do one you have to tap out a pattern on the touch screen, each character's special looks different but some of the patterns are the same. Scoring a special shot gets you 40 points but it takes a short while to tap out the pattern so you have to have space or you'll be tackled.

Courts

There are a total of 16 courts in the game, each tourney has 4. You'll start off with 4 courts but when you complete that you will unlock another 3 for a different tourney, the three remaining maps in each court have to be unlocked by completing certain challenges. Although the courts are the same shape each one has its own hazards, for instance the pirate ship court has cannonballs fired at you throughout the match.