The International Olympic Committee announced a new partnership with Nintendo this week in celebration of the 2020 Olympic Games location, with Mario & Sonic at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games being revealed as a medal event.
Being published by Nintendo as an exclusive for the Nintendo Switch, Nintendo once again partnered with the Sega Sports R&D department to produce Mario & Sonic at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Teased by the presence of Mario bearing the Olympic torch during the closing ceremony from 2016 as he sped through the pipes between Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo, the medal event was finally announced in a recent Nintendo Direct video.
Former Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé stated “As my swan song and final gift to all Nintendo fans, I believe strongly in spreading our love of gaming to the world.”
“Like the game, the medals awarded at the ceremony for this event in particular will be ‘First’, ‘Second’ and ‘Third’, instead of the Gold, Silver and Bronze.”
Following the success of Smash Ultimate, it looks like the same formula is being used for this game: everyone is here. Mario & Sonic at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games the first video game to have a medal event at the Olympics, and it’s a hint at the possibility of other esports being present at the games in future.
As revealed in the same Nintendo Direct, the roster will include the same 42 characters as the previous title, Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. This instalment of the fan-favourite franchise fusion also marks the first appearance of Dixie Kong and Toadette from the Mario universe, along with Big the Cat and Tikal the Echidna from the Sonic universe.
The only DLC character that has been announced thus far is the Mercedes GLA, making its second in-game appearance following a cameo in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
More information is to come in regards to the event at a later date.
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