Nintendo has been Mario-izing sports games for some time…who can forget Mario Kart, Mario Tennis, Mario Golf or of course Mario Baseball. Most of the games stay true to the sport but add features that put Nintendo’s on little touch on the game. Sometimes, the touches add to the fun factor of the game…other times, these touches become rather annoying.

Mario Hoops 3 On 3 is about half and half – some things are really intriguing and others really bother me. Although I am bothered somewhat, I still enjoy playing the game and keep getting drawn to it. That’s the beauty of Nintendo, I guess.

Anyway, getting back to the game, Mario Hoops 3 On 3 is a game of basketball. Can you guess how many characters are on the court at once? I knew you could! In the Mario World however, it’s not just bouncing a ball and taking shots at the hoop; instead you’ll be trying to dribble on a square that has a question mark on it (hey, just like in Super Mario. Get it?). The dribbling on a question mark will earn you coins and when you successfully make a basket those coins will convert to points. You’ll be able to get 100 point baskets in no time!

The question mark can give you coins, power ups or power downs. You can find a mushroom which accelerates your player or a poison mushroom which slows your player down. You can also find a star which makes you impervious to attacks or lightning which causes the other players to fall down. While on defense, you can find bananas, bombs, and of course turtle shells which you can then throw at your opponents, causing them to cough up the ball. There are also course specific obstacles such as pirate ships shooting their cannons on the beach. It’s cute, but not annoying.

Getting back to the game, you are given the following options when you start up: challenges, which are basically mini games where you can practice and learn the game, including your characters special shots, how do to all the other special moves like a charge/steal and so forth. You can also try a dribble race once you’ve cleared a practice. In the race you’ll have to get coins as fast as you can. Sounds dumb, but you’ll be addicted to beating your time.

The other options available are a tournament, exhibition and wireless play. Unfortunately there is no internet play in the game, and the only thing you can do with one game pak is play the dribble race or coin hunter mini game, which is a big disappointment.

If you’re playing alone, you’ll spend most of your time in tournament mode. Mario tournaments all seem to be the same – start off mind numbingly easy for the kids and then get harder. It’s not a bad way to get everyone able to play the game; however experienced game players will find the early rounds almost too easy. The defenders at the beginning don’t even seem to try to take the ball away from you or use power ups to bring you down. This results in getting 80 or 90 point baskets pretty easily. Coins are very Sonic-esque in that if you get hit by your opponent you’ll spill coins all over the court and it’s a free for all to pick them up. As an example of how easy the game stars out, in the second tournament challenge game, I won the contest 850-0. Although it was obviously a terribly lopsided game, the funny thing is that I did enjoy it and wanted to continue playing.

The game looks great on the DS. The top screen is used for actual gameplay and the bottom screen is used for a top-down view of the court, showing you where the question mark boxes are as well as“radar” to see the whole court and where the players are. The audio is just as good – you’ll hear some of the Mario songs you know and love and hear Mario say “fantastico” quite a bit as you progress through the game.

It all sounds good so far, doesn’t it? You’re probably asking, what is the problem with this game, aren’t you? Well, in a word: control. Nintendo is going to do everything in their power to get you to use that stylus, even if it means you have to hold the system with one hand to do so. For the record, I’m playing this on and old school, full size Nintendo DS, and not a lite. You must use your right hand and the stylus at all times as you are “dribbling” the ball by tapping using the stylus. You must move your player using the d-pad – so you’ve got one thumb on the d-pad and your right had beating up that stylus. A long game session quickly becomes very uncomfortable as you’re never taking a break with the stylus. Now, to be fair, you can use traditional ‘button’ play as well and you have the option of selecting if you’re right or left handed, which is helpful – however you’ll miss out on the special shot unless you use the stylus so it’s a necessity. I appreciate the novelty of using the stylus but I’m not so sure it’s that great of an idea.

Overall I find the game pretty easy but a fun diversion. Adding the power ups to the game of basketball is a fun idea in the Mario World. You’ll enjoy making those special power shots and the replay factor is there. It’s at a $30 price point and for the price you get a good value. It’s a shame there’s no internet play, and you’ll need to take frequent breaks to avoid hand injuries, but the game definitely passes the time and is enjoyable.