Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games

"Nothing's cooler!"

- Tagline

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (マリオ&ソニック AT バンクーバーオリンピック) is a sports game by Sega, published by Nintendo in Japan and by Sega in North America and Europe. The game is officially licensed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) through exclusive licensee "International Sports Multimedia". The game is the third official crossover title to feature characters from both the Mario and Sonic The Hedgehog respective universes. It's been released on the Nintendo Wii and the Nintendo DS on October 13, 2009, and is the first announced video game based around the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games enables players to assume the role of a Mario or Sonic character while competing against the others in Winter Olympic events. The EU release was on 16 October 2009.

Gameplay
Some of the events in the Wii game use the Balance Board accessory. The multiplayer mode offers "co-op and competitive gameplay" whereas the DS version uses its wireless capabilities.

Mission Mode
In order to proceed in game, the player must complete missions. If the player fails or wants to try again, the player will lose life. Lifes can be found from the cities and can be won from missions.

Ski jumping

 * Land with style: Get 25.000 points from landing. Gold star from getting 30.000 points
 * Fight the wind: Pass 110m while battling strong winds. Gold star from passing 130M.
 * Hit the K point: Land between 120-130M. Gold star from landing at least to 129M.
 * Beat tails! Gold star from getting over 200 points

Cross-country

 * Finish 2nd or better: Finish 2nd or better without sprint areas. Fill the sprint cauge by staying behind your opponents. Gold star from finishing in 1st place and in under 20 minutes
 * 5-sprint challenge: Finish in 1st place without sprinting more thatn 5 times. Gold star from finishing in 1st place without using sprint once.
 * Win without crouching: Finish in 1st place without crouching. Gold star from finishing in under 15 minutes
 * Beat luigi. Gold star from finishing in under 15 minutes

Biathlon

 * Land +4 shots: Hit four or more targets within 30 seconds. Gold star from landing all shots within 10 seconds
 * Win on the hills: Finish in1st in hlly course. Gold star from finishing in 15 minutes.
 * No-acceleration run: Finish 1st by crouching and sprinting only. A button is for starts, penalties and shooting only. Gold star by finishing in 15 minutes
 * Beat knuckles! Gold star by finishing in 15 minutes

Speed skating 500m

 * Finish in 50 seconds: Get to the goal in 50 seconds. Gold star from reaching the goal in 35 seconds.
 * Final Sprint: Use final sprint when crossing the goal. Gold star from reaching the goal in 35 seconds
 * Do a curve dash: When ! Appears (Hold L button until it appears) after curving, release the L button to do a curve dash. Gold star from doing curve dash twice.
 * Beat Bowser JR! Gold star from reaching the goal in 35 seconds.

Nordic combined

 * Mash the A button to clear the penalty (the delay before starting) within 15 seconds.
 * Get a skill: Spin the wheel to get a skill. Draw any skill (Except "nothing") to clear. Gold star from getting special charge skill
 * Maintain the lead: Stay ahead of 3 rivals as they try to catch up and finish in 1st place. Gold star from reaching the goal in 15 minutes
 * Beat eggman nega! Gold star from reaching the goal in 15 minutes

Snow machine fight

 * Break the ice: Break 10 blocks in 1 minute! Gold star from breaking 20 blocks
 * Blow 'em away: Defeat everyone in 2 minutes. Gold star from without getting hit
 * Use charge shot: Beat everyone in 2 Minutes using only charge shot by Holding A button. Gold star from without getting hit
 * Beat Peach. Gold star from without getting hit

Ski shooting

 * Shoot only red targets: Shoot only red targets to win with 500+ points! Golden targets are counted as different targets. Gold star from getting 2000 points
 * Win a close victory: WIN WITH LESS THAN 500 points separting you and your rival. Gold star from 150 points separation.
 * Hit egg hammer 3 times: Hit egg hammer three times, when it's glowing. Gold star from gettin over 2000 points.
 * Beat amy: Gold star from getting 10 000 points

Rocket Ski jumping

 * Go through rings: Go through 6 floating rings. Gold star from going through over 10 rings
 * Use the ring dash: Pass through three rings, while using special dash. Gold star from passing through 10 rings during Special dash.
 * Pass 2400M: Get a record of at least 2400M. Gold star from getting a record of 2800M
 * Beat Metal Sonic. Gold star from getting a record of over 2000M.

Supersonic downhill

 * Go faster than 150km/H!: Go faster than 150KM/H. Gold star from going faster than 300km/H
 * Finish the race: Reach the goal without getting disqualified (Hitting the blocks on your way). Barriers protects you from disqualifying. Gold star from reaching goal in under 20 seconds.
 * Use mushroom dash: Collect mushrooms to do a mushroom dash at least 5 times. Gold star from using mushroom dash 10 times.
 * Beat Dry bowser. Gold star from finishing 1st in under 25 seconds.

Luge

 * Do a starting dash: Hold the A button and release it in a right time to do a special dash. Gold star from releasing A button riight before the cauge is full.
 * No crash run: Reach the goal without crashing. Gold star from reaching the goal without hitting the wall.
 * Keep the boost maxed: Boost while keeping the cauge full for a total of 10 seconds or more before reaching the goal. Gold star from keeping boost maxed  out while boosting for over 20 seconds.
 * Beat Yoshi! Gold star from reaching the goal in under 50 seconds

Ice hockey

 * Pass the puck: Pass the puck four times before time runs out. Gold star from passing the puck 4 times before timer reaches 5:00
 * Land a solid check: Check your opponent once or more and win the round. Gold star from checking three times
 * Score first: Be the first, who scores the goal. Don't let opponent score first or let the time run out. Gold star from scoring before 5:00
 * Beat Silver and Blaze part 1! Gold star from scoring over 10 points

Bobsleigh

 * Jump aboard: Get great or better from start run and boarding. Gold star from getting PERFECT from both jumping and boarding.
 * Don't fill the cauge: Reach the goal in 1:20 without filling the cauge (Teamwork moving increases the cauge). Fill cauge and you fail. Gold star from reaching goal in 1:00 or less
 * Reverse controls: Reach the goal in 1:05 with reversed controls. Gold star from reaching the goal in under 0:55
 * Beat Wario and Waluigi! Gold star from reaching the goal in under 0:55

Alpine skiing GS

 * Ace the gate dash: Hit the inside of the gate to do a gate dash 5 times. Gold star from doing gate dash 5 times in a row
 * Red gates mean go: Pass through only RED gates. Gold star from reaching the goal in under 1:30
 * Advanced gate dash: Hit 3 gates while crouching for an advanced gate dash. Gold star from doing advanced gate dash 3 times in a row
 * Beat King boo! Gold star from reaching the goal in under 1:00

Skeleton

 * Jump aboard: Get GREAT or better from boarding. Gold star from getting PERFECT from boarding
 * Do 3 dashes: Charge energy by holding stylus in touch screen and dash 3 times. Gold star from doing this 3 times in a row
 * Don't hit the walls: Cross the finish line without hitting the wall at least three times (2 is OK, third ends the mission). Gold star from crossing finish line without hitting the wall once.
 * Beat eggman nega! Gold star from crossing the finish line under 1:00

Ski cross racing

 * Stick the jump dash: Do two jump dashes. Gold star from doing jump dashes in a two first jump platforms
 * Grab rings: Reach the goal 1st with at least 3 rings. Gold star from reaching the goal with 10 rings
 * Don't use items: Do not use items and reach the goal first. Gold star from reaching the goal within 1:30
 * Beat shadow: Gold star from reaching the goal within 1:20

Fever Hockey

 * Hit the bonus gate: pass the puck in bonus gate, when it opens. Gold star from getting puck to bonus gate before 5:00
 * Score a super shot: score a super shot, when you have passed puck 4 times in a row (when there reads MAX with rainbow colors). Gold star from scoring a super shot in 5:00
 * 50 pts by intermission: get 50 points or more in the firs period. Gold star from getting 100 points.
 * Beat Silver and Blaze part 2: Come back from losing 30-0 at the start of the first period to beat Silver and Blaze. Gold star from scoring 100 points and winning

Deluxe halfpipe

 * Do a perfect spin: press all the four directional buttons during an air trick to do a perfect spin, then finish. Gold star from doing perfect spin three times
 * Grab coins: Reach the goal with at least 7 coins. Gold star from reaching the goal with 10 coins.
 * Do a special trick: Collect at least 5 coins to do a special trick, then reach the goal. Gold star from doing special trick 3 times
 * Beat Jet! Gold star from getting over 15000 points (Three special tricks)

Adventure mode
The DS version also has an adventure mode: Eggman and Bowser kidnap the winter spirits. Without them, all the snow in various areas melts and the Olympic Games are spoiled. It's up to Sonic and Mario to save them by retrieving the spirits and save the games. Along the way they will find old friends and enemies ready to help them or slow them down. Neither Sonic or Mario can talk in the game, their dialogues are spoken by Toad. Later in the game, it was revealed that the last stage in the game was the only stage that was still snowing when the other five stages had nothing but grass. In the game, Mario and Sonic find news briefs hidden in barrels, crates and pots which give brief snippets of information about both universes' characters (although the facts given are things long-time fans of both series have known for years). In addition, the heroes can pick up leaves from maple trees which give facts and trivia about the real world Olympic Games and famous athletes.

Events
All the events of the game include:

Olympic Events

 * Alpine Skiing - Downhill (Whistler Creekside)
 * Alpine Skiing - Giant Slalom (Whistler Creekside)
 * Ski Jumping - Individual Large Hill (Whistler Olympic Park)
 * Ski Jumping - Team Large Hill (Whistler Olympic Park)
 * Freestyle Skiing - Moguls (Cypress Mountain)
 * Freestyle Skiing - Ski Cross
 * Snowboard - Halfpipe
 * Snowboard - Snowboard Cross (Cypress Mountain)
 * Skating - Speed Skating 500m (Richmond Olympic Oval)
 * Skating - Short Track 1000m (Richmond Olympic Oval)
 * Skating - Short Track Relay (Richmond Olympic Oval)
 * Figure Skating (Pacific Coliseum)
 * Bobsleigh - Skeleton (The Whistler Sliding Centre)
 * Bobsleigh (The Whistler Sliding Centre)
 * Ice Hockey (Canada Hockey Place)
 * Curling (Vancouver Olympic Centre)

Dream Events

 * Dream Alpine - Individual (Seaside Hill)
 * Dream Alpine - Team (Seaside Hill)
 * Dream Ski Jumping - Individual (Good Egg Galaxy)
 * Dream Ski Jumping - Team (Good Egg Galaxy)
 * Dream Ski Cross - Individual (Mario Circuit)
 * Dream Ski Cross - Team (Mario Circuit)
 * Dream Snowboard Cross - Individual (Radical Highway)
 * Dream Snowboard Cross - Team (Radical Highway)
 * Dream Short Track (Egg Factory)
 * Dream Figure Skating (Mario World/Sonic World)
 * Dream Bobsleigh (Nocturnus Gate/Special Stage)
 * Dream Ice Hockey (Bowser's Castle)
 * Dream Curling (Sherbet Land)
 * Dream Snowball Fight (Christmas Village)
 * Dream Gliding - Individual (Sky Sanctuary Zone)
 * Dream Gliding - Team (Sky Sanctuary Zone)

DS Version
Olympic Events
 * Skiing - Alpine Skiing GS (Whistler Creekside)
 * Skiing - Ski Jumping LH (Whistler Olympic Park)
 * Skiing - Moguls (Cypress Mountain)
 * Skiing - Cross-Country (Whistler Olympic Park)
 * Skiing - Nordic Combined (Whistler Olympic Park)
 * Skating - Speed Skating 500m (Richmond Olympic Oval)
 * Skating - Short Track 500m (Richmond Olympic Oval)
 * Skating - Figure Skating (Pacific Coliseum)
 * Snowboard - Snowboard Cross (Cypress Mountain)
 * Bobsleigh (The Whistler Sliding Centre)
 * Bobsleigh - Skeleton (The Whistler Sliding Centre)
 * Ice Hockey (Canada Hockey Place)
 * Curling (Vancouver Olympic Centre)
 * Biathlon (Whistler Olympic Park)
 * Luge (The Whistler Sliding Centre)

Dream Events

 * Dream Skiing - Ski Cross Racing (Snow Island)
 * Dream Skiing - Rocket Ski Jumping (Cape Aurora)
 * Dream Skiing - Super Sonic Downhill (Trial Mountain)
 * Dream Skating - Intense Short Track (Frozen Cruiser)
 * Dream Skating - Ultimate Figure Skating (Ice on Lake Arena)
 * Dream Snowboard - Deluxe Halfpipe (Half Maple Tree)
 * Dream Snowboard - Extreme Snowboarding (Twinkle Village)
 * Dream Bobsleigh - Blazing Bobsleigh (Drivers' Highway)
 * Dream Ice Hockey - Fever Hockey (Skyscraper Rink)
 * Dream Curling - Curling Bowling (Perfect Bowl)
 * Dream Biathlon - Ski Shooting (Hunters Athletic)
 * Dream Snow Machine - Snow Machine Fight (Block Ruins)

Characters
The cast consists of the full roster from the previous game, as well as some new characters.

Sonic the Hedgehog series
Playable Characters

Rival Characters

Additional Sonic Characters

Mario Series
Playable Characters

Rival Characters

Additional Mario Characters

Other
* = not in the previous game
 * Mii (Wii version only)
 * Santa Claus (only during December as a VIP)

Sonic Stages

 * Radical Highway from Sonic Adventure 2
 * Egg Factory from Sonic Riders
 * Sky Sanctuary Zone from Sonic & Knuckles
 * Seaside Hill from Sonic Heroes
 * Nocturne from Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood
 * Dream Figure Skating features 3 Sonic backgrounds: Green Hill Zone, Death Egg, and destroyed Station Square.

Mario Stages

 * Mario Circuit from Mario Kart Wii
 * Good Egg Galaxy from Super Mario Galaxy
 * Bowser's Castle from Mario Kart: Super Circuit
 * Sherbet Land from Mario Kart 64
 * Cool, Cool Mountain from Super Mario 64
 * Dream Figure Skating features 3 Mario backgrounds: World 1, Bowser's Castle, and Peach's Castle.

Development
In January 2009, an article in the Spanish Nintendo magazine Nintendo Acción mentioned a sequel to Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, to be created for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Both IGN and Eurogamer received confirmation on the games' existence, with IGN stating that game would be officially announced within the following month. Dennis Kim, licensing and merchandising director for the event, stated in February that a Mario & Sonic title "[is] being discussed and planned for Vancouver". Kim also stated that Vancouver 2010 and the IOC will share royalties from this game.

The official announcement did arrive within the month as predicted, the game's title being given as Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games at a joint press release by Sega and Nintendo on 12 February 2009.

Reception
The game was well accepted. Most of the reviews define it as "much better than the first title". All the events are unlocked from the start which is great news in terms of accessibility. The controls are also tighter and seem less random but this does mean that sometimes gameplay can be a bit too simplistic: these were the things most noticed. An average of the votes it received is 7/10.

Trivia

 * This game marks Omega's first non-cameo appearance on the Wii, as well as Eggman Nega's debut on a home console.
 * Though Super Sonic isn't an unlockable character, you can get a Super Sonic costume for your Mii, giving your Mii the same stats as Sonic the Hedgehog, although a pseudo-Super State for each character appears in the Dream Figure Skating event for Sonic's World.
 * Blaze's outfit for this game looks similar to her regular outfit, but slightly altered. The same applies for Amy as well, but her outfit has a few more minor changes.
 * This is the second 2009 sequel of a 2007 game (Sonic and the Black Knight is the sequel of Sonic and the Secret Rings and this game is the sequel of Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games).
 * In the DS version, Metal Sonic's eyes are red, but when he's in first place, his eyes are green.
 * Characters such as Diddy Kong do not appear, but costumes of them are available for your Mii.
 * On the Wii boxart, Sonic has a snowboard and Mario has skis, but on the DS boxart, it's the other way around.
 * This is the only installment in the Mario and Sonic series where the handheld counterpart was released in the same year as the console (Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games: Wii-2007, DS-2008; Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games: Wii-2011, 3DS-2012).
 * In the DS version, if you listen closely when trying to open the gate in Adventure Tours, it almost sounds like Amy's theme song.
 * The females have new winter outfits for the game, while the males do not.