With the game due out on February 12th 2026, it’s not long until we get to play Mario Tennis Fever on Switch 2. However, until now, we didn’t have much beyond the original trailer to go on. We knew there were some neat modes from the reveal, and the identity a few newcomers to the game here and there…
But overall, we only had a few scant minutes of footage to go on. It certainly looked better than Ultra Smash or Aces, but it seemed too early to really be sure.
Now though, we have a much better look at the game thanks to a new trailer. Here’s the video if you haven’t seen it already:
As you can tell, there’s a lot here. You’ve got the identities of all 38 of the characters appearing in-game, footage showing numerous extra bits of the story mode and its boss battles, and a rundown of all kinds of crazy new mechanics.
With the most heavily advertised being the special ‘Fever’ rackets. These can be equipped from a selection in game, and all have extra features that come into play once your Fever gauge (charged by continuing rallies) is maxed out. For example, the Pokey Racket has a Pokey appear to block your opponent, the Ice Racket creates a sheet of ice when the ball lands, and the Shadow one gives you a Cosmic Mario style shadow clone that mirrors your moves and helps you in battle.
They’re a neat addition to the game, and one that promises to really shake up the core mechanics when used.
And they’re also surprisingly good for references to other Mario games too. You’ve got one based on the Shovas from Super Mario Bros Wonder, based on the gloves they wore in that game. The Ice Racket has Baron Brr as the icon, in his first reappearance since the original Super Mario Galaxy. Plus, there are even callbacks to characters from Super Mario Sunshine and Super Mario 64 that you’d never expect to see in a tennis game.
Speaking of characters, there’s also that vaunted 38 character roster too. Which we now know consists of the following characters:
- Mario
- Luigi
- Peach
- Daisy
- Rosalina
- Pauline
- Wario
- Waluigi
- Toad
- Toadette
- Luma
- Yoshi
- Birdo
- Bowser
- Bowser Jr
- Donkey Kong
- Diddy Kong
- Boo
- Shy Guy
- Koopa Troopa
- Kamek (or Magikoopa)
- Spike
- Chain Chomp
- Paratroopa
- Petey Piranha
- Piranha Plant
- Boom Boom
- Blooper
- Dry Bowser
- Dry Bones
- Baby Mario
- Baby Luigi
- Baby Peach
- Baby Wario
- Baby Waluigi
- Wiggler
- Goomba
- Nabbit
With the likes of Lumalee (from Super Mario Galaxy and the Super Mario Bros Movie) and various Yoshi colours as alternate costumes. Indeed, given how alternate costumes worked in past sports games, we wouldn’t be surprised to see the same being true of Shy Guy, Birdo and a few others too. It’s just not technically confirmed yet.
Overall, it’s a decent enough roster. The usual filler choices are out (like Baby Daisy, Baby Rosalina, Pink Gold Peach, Metal Mario, etc), some interesting newcomers are in (like Spike and Goomba), and just about everyone added to Aces via those free updates is there from the start instead.
So, it’s clear they’re aiming for a much richer experience this time around. A title packed to the rafters with a wealth of single player content and side modes rather than one released unfinished and ‘fixed’ later down the line.
The court selection isn’t too shabby either. You’ve got the usual standard courts as per normal, and various returning themes like a Mushroom themed court, a desert themed court and an airship based one…
But there are also courts set in a racket factory, Waluigi Pinball and the Flower Kingdom too, with the latter featuring the Wonder Flower from Super Mario Bros Wonder as its main mechanic.
There’s a Wonder themed court complete with Prince Florian as the umpire
Again, it’s a decent enough selection, and the kind that makes us think they took the ‘finished’ version of Mario Tennis Aces and used that as a base this time around.
Mode wise we see a bit more of the trial tower and adventure modes too. The former doesn’t have much more to show here, but the latter reveals a few more bosses and obstacles that players will have to deal with along the way. These include an electric Cheep Cheep boss, Petey Piranha as a boss, and most interesting, the return of King Hisstocrat from Super Mario 3D World as a boss too.
Who expected this guy to return in a tennis game?
Yeah, talk about a deep cut here. After approximately 5 years of being absent from the series (13 if you ignore the 3D World port on Switch), 3D World’s iconic snake boss is now back in a tennis game of all places. No, we didn’t expect that one either.
Regardless, with the usual online features ready and accounted for and a few nifty new mechanics added for making tennis that bit more player friendly, Mario Tennis Fever is looking like an excellent instalment in the series, and the first sign that the much maligned ‘live service’ formula is finally dead for Mario sports spinoffs.
Still, what are your thoughts on it all? Are you excited for the game based on what you’ve seen so far? What new characters and features look most interesting in the trailer? Will the game actually be worth its $70 price tag when it launches next month?
Leave your thoughts in the comments below, on social media, or on our Discord server today!
Source:
Mario Tennis Fever – Overview Trailer – Nintendo Switch 2 (YouTube)