

The original Mario + Rabbids (Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle) was initially released in August 2017, and was one of the best reviewed games for the Switch during it's early days. It shows off some of the new locations, abilities, and characters that will appear in the sequel. You can get a closer look at Sparks of Hope through the cinematic trailer below, while a gameplay sneak peek has also been published. There are "dozens" of Sparks to collect, and each has a unique ability and power. "You can move freely in a designated area and take cover, team jump on your allies, or dash at your enemies, all in real time within the Hero's turn," Ubisoft said. Battles take place through real-time action and turn-based tactics, which is a change from Kingdom Battle. There is a new combat system in Sparks of Hope, too. Players will be tasked with rescuing "adorable Sparks" who live in the galaxy, and who give you "distinct powers" to use in battle. Check out the full interview and gameplay video below and let us know your thoughts on the game in the comments.There will be nine characters in all (at launch, at least), along with new bosses and "some familiar enemies" to battle. In the gameplay video we see Mario, Princess Peach, and both of their Rabbid counterparts in action as they dash and bounce over foes on the Sherbet Desert - Revenge of Tutanbwaaahmon level. "The second thing we really wanted to explore was the communication between two players friends, brothers, sisters, father and child, anything that could promote their fun in the living room or on the go." "I don't want to spoil things in the story mode but at least in the co-op mode you have four characters and this is really allowing you to come up with new chain possibilities, combos, but also tactics.

"In the co-op mode it will be nice to break apart this type of gaming and really try to explode it using four characters," Soliani told Gamereactor. One of the first things Soliani explains to us is that while the single player campaign is limited to three players, in a triangle layout that they refer to as the "triforce" in-house, co-op extends that to four characters. Lots of details have been announced, but we got the chance at a recent hands-on event in Paris to chat with game director Davide Soliani and team up in the co-op mode coming to the title.


Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle, the unexpected Nintendo-Ubisoft mascot crossover announced at this year's E3, lands on Nintendo Switch at the end of the month.
