Mario Tennis (GBC)

Mario Tennis
Developer	Camelot
Publisher	Nintendo
System	Game Boy Color, 3DS Virtual Console
Release Date	Game Boy Color JP November 1, 2000 US January 16, 2001 EU February 1, 2001 3DS Virtual Console JP June 26, 2013 US December 26, 2013 EU January 2, 2014
Rating	ESRB: E

Mario Tennis (known in Japan by the more distinctive title of Mario Tennis GB) is a Mario-based sports game that acts as a counterpart to Nintendo 64's Mario Tennis.

Story

The story mode follows a rookie tennis player at the the Royal Tennis Academy who trains under coaches and competes against ranked players in order to become skilled enough to battle the tennis champion, Mario.

Gameplay

Like Mario Golf, this game takes standard tennis gameplay and implements RPG elements. This takes form in the Mario Tour mode, where the player controls one of two characters to play as. The player character gains experience from matches, which can be used to boost statistics, and can freely explore the school between matches. There is also Exhibition Mode for casual single matches and linked games where two players can play against each other. The game also contains a set of minigames which feature the Mario characters.

It is compatible with the Transfer Pak, which can connect the game to its Nintendo 64 counterpart. This can temporarily transfer characters from the Game Boy Color game to the N64 game, and it will also unlock more characters and minigames for the handheld game.

Playable Characters

In the Mario Tour mode, the player chooses to play as Alex or Nina. Two other characters, Harry and Kate, appear as potential doubles partners. Various other original characters could also be unlocked.

The following characters are also available for Exhibition Mode:

• Mario (unlockable)
• Princess Peach (unlockable)
• Luigi
• Donkey Kong
• Baby Mario

There are also four characters (Yoshi, Wario, Waluigi and Bowser) who can only be unlocked with the Transfer Pak and the Nintendo 64 Mario Tennis.

Legacy

Ports/Remakes

• In 2013/2014, it was released for download on the Nintendo 3DS as part of the 3DS Virtual Console. This release did not retain any equivalent of the original game's Transfer Pak functionality nor the characters/minigames unlocked through it.
• In March 2024, it was added to the Nintendo Switch's digital library of Game Boy games that could be freely played by Nintendo Switch Online subscribers. This release supported both local and online multiplayer, and it also came with the Transfer Pak characters/minigames automatically unlocked.

Sequels

The next Mario Tennis game was Mario Power Tennis for the Gamecube. This particular game later received a direct sequel in the form of Mario Tennis: Power Tour in 2005.