For years scientists said it couldn’t be done. They said that fusing the tactical turn-based combat gameplay of XCOM with the whimsy of Super Mario Bros. and the Minions-esque wackiness of the Rabbids was a fool’s errand, that it was an affront to God himself. But today on stage at the Ubisoft press conference, two titans of industry, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot and legendary Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto to unveil our first look at Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle. A collaboration three years in the making, this game is a weird, wonderful-looking “tactical adventure” that looks like it’s going to offer a highly addictive combat system with a great sense of humor.
The game finds the Rabbids, the Minions-like critters that inhabit Rayman’s world, mysteriously transported to the Mushroom Kingdom, causing Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Yoshi to team up with their new wacky white friends to save the day from some unknown evil.
Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle comes to the Nintendo Switch on August 29, and seems tailor-made to integrate Amiibos in ways that will potentially turn the tide of battle in your favor. You can learn more about what’s in store this summer in this behind-the-scenes video in which Miyamoto explains how this unexpected collaboration came to pass in the first place.
What do you think of this weird Mario/Rabbids mash-up? Let us know in the comments below.
Image: Ubisoft/Nintendo
Dan Casey is the senior editor of Nerdist and the author of books about Star Wars and the Avengers. Follow him on Twitter (@Osteoferocious).
