Since the 2024 Olympics kicked off, there has been much chatter about the absence of a new Mario & Sonic. Dating back to 2007, every Olympic Games has been accompanied by a new Mario & Sonic crossover pitting Mario, Sonic, and friends against each other in Olympic sports. The series has remained incredibly popular over the last two decades, partially thanks to its meme potential, but also due to childhood memories, and the genuine fun of each mini-game.
Unfortunately, it appears that fun has come to an end – as Eurogamer reports Mario & Sonic is officially dead, and the franchise’s Olympics partnership ended way back in 2020. As discussions around Mario & Sonic kicked off, reporter Tom Phillips contacted a series veteran to inquire about the lack of a new game.
He was told the decision to renew the Mario & Sonic contract rested with the International Olympics Committee (IOC), and following the Tokyo Olympics, the organisation chose not to continue the partnership. Rather, the group wanted to explore new opportunities with “other partners and NFTs and esports.”
“Basically the IOC wanted to bring [it] back to themselves internally and look at other partners so they would get more money,” developer Lee Cocker told Eurogamer.
Read: The Olympic Esports Games locked in for Saudi Arabia in 2025
The decision is fairly baffling, although it’s worth noting NFTs had a high profile in 2020, and much discourse focussed on their potential as worthy investments. After four years of the NFT market diving, we know these digital collectibles failed to catch on in the mainstream – but still, the Olympics Committee pursued this experiment.
In partnership with nWay, it released official Olympics Games Paris 2024 NFTs, but the reality is most folks won’t have heard of them – because NFTs are no longer the hot new topic, and the market has crashed. With all the planning that goes into the Olympics, it’s likely this partnership was established very early into planning this year’s events, so the collaboration simply arrives as a less-than-timely foray.
Beyond NFTs, an official Olympics mobile game is also available: Olympics Go! Paris 2024. But based on screenshots, it’s fair to say it’s not nearly as iconic as Mario & Sonic.
With the recent mainstream boosts to Mario and Sonic’s profiles (The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Sonic the Hedgehog) it feels like the IOC moved way from Mario & Sonic at precisely the wrong time. Both characters are at the height of their popularity, and an Olympic Games-themed crossover would be perfect for younger kids just becoming familiar with them.
Given the purpose of these games, a new Mario & Sonic would also have the potential to increase interest in the Olympics themselves, inviting younger kids to engage with sports – just like Mario and Sonic.
For now, it does appear the Olympics partnership for these characters is over, as the IOC has reportedly elected not to continue working alongside Nintendo and Sega for game tie-ins. With enough furore, the series could certainly return – but for now, it will seemingly remain dormant.
