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Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle

Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle

We got to try out the delightfully cute tactical mashup of Rabbids and Mario.

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We've known for a while that Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle is on the way, combining Ubisoft's Rabbids with Nintendo's mascot in an all-new game. At E3 we were shown a little more of what this mashup will entail, with the details coming during the former's press conference. After Ubisoft's show we also got some hands-on time with the game, and we were able to see how its various elements come together, this thanks to a guided tour through its world by some passionate developers.

The demo we were shown tasked us with saving Luigi from the evil Rabbids that have entered the Mushroom Kingdom via a mysterious portal, although we should clarify that not all Rabbids are evil, as our party of three consisted of Mario, Rabbid Peach, and Rabbid Luigi. We then ventured out into the wider world to find our friend, going through various levels and battles as we did so, culminating in a bigger boss fight towards the end.

Movement in the game is controlled by Beep-O, a little disc-like thing with rabbit ears that sticks close to the ground and leads the party like a snake. In terms of level design, the environments should be very familiar to fans of Mario's adventures. There are coins to collect, including red and blue coin challenges, pipes to explore, and there's a whole load of colour thrown into the mix as well. Exploration is rewarded, with extra coins to find everywhere, although you may want to swivel the camera around to find all the nooks and crannies.

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Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle

Combat is what stood out for us, though, as we were expecting much more restricted gameplay. The fighting in Mario + Rabbids is turn-based on a grid-based battlefield, but the options given to you allow you to traverse the arena very quickly. The area in which you can move is very wide, but when you start combining this with the jumps you can perform with your allies, your range is extended even further. All you have to do is move to one of your teammates, and then they throw you even further, allowing you to really make the most of the space available to you. If you were to move your icon to an enemy, though, you'd do a dash attack into them, which you can then move away from and back into cover.

All the characters in the demo were equipped with guns (we're not sure if this is the case throughout) and the range at which you could shoot was also extensive, but importantly it wasn't ridiculous. To give a rough example, you more or less needed to be able to see your enemy on the screen to shoot them, so it's not a case of being picked off at a distance if you're defending, which makes it easier to plan around where you're vulnerable. A cover system plays into this too, as there are the classic Xcom-style half-height walls, cutting the chances of you getting hit by 50%, as well as full-size cover (although both are destructible, so shouldn't be relied upon as a crutch). When we saw that you can peek out from the sides of cover to shoot, as well as over the top of shorter walls, we were again surprised that the game offered this level of depth and choice.

The last option of the three that were given in battle, alongside moving and shooting, was abilities. Each character has their own special trick, and these could be deployed tactically to ensure that you make the most out of your actions and dispatch enemies efficiently. The three we saw all had different uses; Mario's allowed him to hit a moving enemy when they next tried scurrying out of cover (like Xcom's overwatch); Rabbid Peach could heal herself and allies; and Rabbid Luigi could deploy a shield.

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It's not just about offence, then, but also support and co-ordination, as well as thinking one step ahead of the competition, all of which culminates in a fun experience where exploring different options and tactics is often rewarded. For instance, shooting an enemy behind an explosive barrel has a chance to either send them hurtling out of the arena to their death, or setting them on fire, moving them out into the open (the burning animation makes them run randomly on the battlefield), and flanking in particular is a tactic that was encouraged, as it gives damage boosts and ensures enemies have nowhere to run. While none of this is extensively pushing the boundaries of the genre per se, there is a lot to consider, but it's done in an accessible way, something we appreciated being able to play around and, most importantly, have fun with, especially in the boss battle we tried.

Mario + Rabbids Kingdom BattleMario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle

After we took on a few battles and earned some coins, we were shown the equipment options by the developers, as our coins allowed us to invest in new guns from the store, which we could then equip. Different weapons, as you'd expect, cost different amounts, so we invested in one gun for Mario and one for Rabbid Peach, before going into our last encounter, the boss battle. What we loved about this is that, again, there was some depth we weren't expecting, as not only were there different parameters in terms of damage, but there were also special effects too (one gun we invested in pushed enemies back when you hit them).

While we've liked what we seen thus far, we should temper our assessment of the game with a disclaimer: this looks like a great start, but we'd like to see these features expanded upon as the game progresses. This means more guns, more abilities, and more gameplay options, such as objects on the battlefield and how we navigate it. For now, though, it's looking to be a fun and accessible tactical game with a lot of that classic Nintendo visual flair, and there's no reason to think the final offering won't be the same.

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