In 2005, Nintendo released the first-ever Mario soccer game with Mario Strikers, which quickly became a fan favorite on the GameCube. A follow-up called Mario Strikers Charged was released a couple years later on the Wii, and it too was well-received. Despite both games being popular with fans, the Mario Strikers franchise has remained dormant for over a decade. However, that will change with the upcoming Mario Strikers: Battle League, which is scheduled to launch on June 10 as a Nintendo Switch exclusive release.
Mario Strikers: Battle League is the long-awaited return of Mario Strikers, giving Switch owners the chance to experience soccer mixed with the over-the-top world of the Super Mario franchise. Set to launch with robust local and online multiplayer options, Mario Strikers: Battle League is easily one of the most highly-anticipated upcoming Switch releases. The jury is still out on whether it can live up to the high bar set by its predecessors, but fans don't have to wait all that much longer to find out.
With the Mario Strikers: Battle League release date merely a month away at this point, Nintendo has released new art highlighting 10 of the characters that will be featured on the game's roster. This comprises the entire Mario Strikers: Battle League roster revealed to date, though it's possible the game will have secret characters or that more will be added down the line as DLC.
Mario Strikers: Battle League Characters List
- Bowser
- Donkey Kong
- Luigi
- Mario
- Peach
- Rosalina
- Toad
- Waluigi
- Wario
- Yoshi
The first set of images features Mario, Luigi, Bowser, and Peach decked out using some of Mario Strikers: Battle League's special armor. Mario Strikers: Battle League will have customization options, allowing players to mix and match gear to alter the stats of the playable characters. It remains to be seen how deep this system is exactly, but fans will find out when they get their hands on the game next month.
The second set of images feature Donkey Kong, Rosalina of Super Mario Galaxy fame, Toad, and Yoshi, while the last pair of images highlight the dastardly Wario and Waluigi. Some fan favorite Super Mario characters are missing from the lineup, with one of the most glaring omissions being Daisy, but again, it's possible there are more characters in the game than what's been shown or that new characters will be added as DLC.
Even if more characters aren't added, the current Mario Strikers: Battle League roster will likely please most fans of the franchise, who are probably just excited to be able to play a new Mario Strikers games after the series had been dormant for over 10 years.
Mario Strikers: Battle League launches June 10, exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.