While a traditionalMariogame is nowhere in sight,Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hopeis holding down the fort. Much like its predecessorMario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle, impressions are solid, and the combination of colorfulMariocharacters and tactical gameplay is a hit with fans.Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hopeintroduces several new characters to the old cast, as well as the gameplay-modifying Sparks. The heroes need to use all their tools to fight off an intergalactic threat facing the combinedMarioandRabbidsuniverses. Their adventures won’t end at the credits, either. Across 2023,Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope’s season pass will gradually roll out in three parts, eventually bringing Rayman into the fold.
The first piece of DLC, and the only one that requires the season pass to play, is the Tower of Doooom. It will serve as endgame content for players looking to test their skills inMario + Rabbids’ dynamic and highly customizable gameplay. The two other DLC updates do not have names yet, but both will feature new worlds for players to explore. Of special note is the third DLC pack, which will finally mark the return of Rayman to a console game — but with a catch.
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Rayman’s Return Should Be Treated Like a Big Deal
There’s a fair amount of crossover betweenMarioandRaymanfans, given that both are mascot platformer series that represent excellence in 3D platforming. WhereasMario’s 3D efforts focused on expanding his surroundings,Raymanstuck to mostly linear challenges that also made use of power-ups to modify the gameplay. After a few impressive titles, Rayman was suddenly overtaken by the alien Rabbids during the Wii era. He made his return in thestellar 2DRayman OriginsandRayman Legends, but outside a few mobile games, he’s hardly been seen since.
Rayman and Mario are finally getting the chance to meet inMario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope. The fans hope that this acknowledgment willlead to more Rayman appearances and starring rolesin the future. While the Rabbids do have a couple good titles to their name, Rayman’s fans strongly prefer the limbless hero’s exploits, and a number aren’t pleased with the Rabbids stealing Rayman’s spotlight. The arrangements inMario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hopeseem like a victory for all the game’s demographics, but Rayman and Mario’s promised meeting may already be thwarted.
The Rabbids May Be Getting In Rayman’s Way Again
The season pass was detailed shortly afterSparks of Hope’s launch with an infographic. This gave short explanations of each piece of DLC, and Rayman’s portion confirmed fan fears. It explicitly states that Rayman, Rabbid Mario, and Rabbid Peach are going on an adventure together, recalling theDonkey Kong expansion fromKingdom Battlethat only featured DK, Rabbid Peach, and Rabbid Cranky Kong. There were a lot of complaints about the first game forcing parties to be made of Mario, any Rabbid, and a third character of the player’s choice, andSparks of Hopeseemed to remedy that. This Rayman DLC is a step backwards, and it’s coming at the worst time.
While the first priority of the Rayman DLC inSparks of Hopeis to simply get Rayman back in a playable role, a secondary attraction is having him finally co-star alongside Mario. This DLC groups Rayman with the other Ubisoft representatives, robbing it of some appeal. Thanks toSparks of Hopeloosening party restrictions, Rayman could be unlocked for party mixing once the DLC is finished, but that will be too little, too late. The best fans can hope for now is that Mario and friends will interact with Rayman during cutscenes, as it seems like they will not share bespoke missions. It’s unfortunate that Rayman’s return is probably coming with a caveat, but at least fans can play as him again.
Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hopeis available now on Nintendo Switch.
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