Mario Hoops 3-on-3

Template:Infobox Mario Hoops 3-on-3, also known as Mario Slam Basketball in Europe and Mario Basketball 3on3 in Japan, is a Mario sports game developed by Square Enix for the Nintendo DS. It features Mario and his friends participating in basketball with two competing teams of three characters. This game is the first Mario sports game to be dedicated around basketball. While the game plays with the traditional basketball rules of shooting the ball into a net, various Mario-themed mechanics are incorporated into the game to differentiate from the real sport. For example, players can dribble the ball into ? Panels to obtain coins that better their score whenever a shot is taken, and when on defense, these ? Panels provide Mario series items to use against the opposition. Players can additionally perform Special Shots to ensure that the ball gets dunked into the goal. Unlike most other Mario sports titles Mario Hoops 3-on-3 is controlled entirely by the touchscreen from the Nintendo DS. The game supports local play with multiple cartridges and download play with a single cartridge, and it supports up to four players.

Originally, the game was meant to be an original intellectual property, but Square Enix felt that it would work well if it were a part of the Mario franchise, and so Square Enix contacted Nintendo, who then allowed it to use the Mario label. Due to Square Enix being the developer of this game, this game is the first game that has Mario and Final Fantasy characters appear together as playable characters, in addition to other Final Fantasy elements present in this title.

A follow-up to this game, Mario Sports Mix, also developed by Square Enix, was released for the Wii later on, returning the basketball sport from this game, while also including other sports as other modes.

Gameplay

Almost all of the gameplay in the game is controlled by the Touch Screen. The only exceptions are moving a character, which is controlled by the , and a special form of passing, which uses the button. This can be switched around with the , , , and buttons controlling movement and the button for passing for left-handed players.

There are many moves for offense and defense. The player's team of three is identified with a red circle below them, a blue circle for the opponent team's players. The player's team's basket is always facing ahead of them, and the opponent's team in the back, even when switching court. Therefore, generally, stroking up on the touch screen is used for offense and stroking down is used for defense. For more on moves, see the Practice section.

The match starts at half court, with the center of each team preparing to jump for the ball that Lakitu will release at the start. Matches are played in at least two periods lasting two and a half minutes. At the end of each period, each team's coin count is reset to 0 and another jump-ball at half court is initiated. Whichever team has the most points overall when all periods are played, wins the match.

Scoring

The player already has 100 coins, making it (if the player scores) the highest possible score outside of Jr. Street, 140 pts.

Scoring is a bit different in Mario Hoops than in a real world basketball game. Each shot made is worth 20 points. Shots made outside of what is normally the 3-point line are worth 30 points (therefore, the basic shot is multiplied by 10 in Mario Hoops). Special shots, regardless of position are worth 40 points. To compound the points, coins also come into play. Players can collect coins by dribbling over the ? Panels scattered about the court. Regular coins add 1 point each to the score, and red coins add 10 points to the score. Every time a team makes a basket, their coins are reset to zero. Getting hit, either from items or other players, will result in some of the player's coins scattering on the field, which can be picked up by anyone, including the character who lost them. The limit to the number of coins one team can have is 100 (therefore the maximum normal score for one shot is 140, and for Jr. Street, the maximum score is 420), and the more coins one has, the more are lost on a hit. If the player make a shot with a lot a coins, the player can really go from losing to winning in a matter of seconds. If the ? Panels aren't on the field, then the shot value is divided by ten, making normal shots worth two points, three-pointers worth three, and special shots worth four.

Modes

The title screen with all four modes.

Tourney

Yoshi's team rejoices in winning the Mushroom Tourney. Trophies are spectacularly presented; it is not known on what courses the CPU vs. CPU matches are on.

Tourneys are the equivalent of tournaments in the Mario Kart series. After picking a team of three, players go on to compete in a set of matches (2 periods of 2:30 each), each on a different course. In fact, the tourney is composed of a 8-4-2-1 basis. The other 7 teams are chosen random, and are represented by the captains (center / first character picked) on the elimination screen (shown right). When the player beats the first team, the captain breaks through a classic block while the losing CPU captain comes up with a deactivated block. The gold trophy stands at the top of this screen, with a ? Block below it. The player goes through Round 1, Round 2, and the Finals. Each time the player loses a match, he or she can try it again as many times as necessary to win and move on (i.e. there's no ranking out like in Mario Kart).

When the Final Fantasy team steals the trophy after the Rainbow Cup, the ? Block reveals a tall vine, which the captain climbs up to the Rainbow Ship, initiating the Extra match.

There are four tourneys, and they nearly follow suit with the Mario Kart series in being named Mushroom, Flower, Star and Rainbow. Once all four tourneys are won, their respective hard mode versions are unlocked. Each of the eight tourneys receives a bronze, silver, or gold trophy (separate from the automatic trophy presented upon winning, this is like a grade on how well the player did). They are determined as follows:

• Gold - Winning all matches by 200 points or more over all cpu in the tourneys
• Silver - Winning all matches by 100 points or more over all cpu in the tourneys
• Bronze - Winning the tournament

Therefore, losing even once automatically puts gold & silver out of the question. By abusing the quit feature (which saves the player's position upon winning each match) when about to lose or win by too little, "redos" are possible.

Upon winning the tournament, the player is asked whether he or she wants to move on to the next tourney. If it is the Rainbow Tourney, the credits roll.

Exhibition

Players can choose a team of three, even the opponent's players if desired (each spot left blank is chosen randomly), and jump into any course played and won in Tourney Mode. There are some settings to enhance the one match as well:

• Time per Period: 1:40, 2:00, 2:30 (default), 3:00, 3:20.
• # of Periods: 2 (default), 4.
• ? Panels: On (default), Off. If off, shots inside the outer line are worth two points, outside of the line three, and special shots worth four.
• CPU Level: 1 (Amateur), 2 (Weak, default), 3 (Normal), 4 (Tough), 5 (Brutal), 6* (Pro).

*Unlocked after winning Hard Rainbow Tourney.

After the match, the player can play with the exact same settings or quit the mode (there's no way to just change the course or one character).

Challenges

Challenges contains both practice modes and then a true extra challenge-like mode after completing the main practice mode.

Practice

Practice game skills to use during games. Choose a skill you want to practice from the menu.

As Mario, players will practice basic techniques upon starting the game, then advanced techniques after winning the first tourney (Offense 2 and Defense 2). If a defensive man is needed for practice, it is always Wario.

The following is a table of each lesson, which explains the control mechanism for each move, as well as each exercise to practice the lesson. If the requirement is just a number, the player must do the move that number of times. If it's a time limit, the player has that much time to do that objective (i.e. block a player from dunking).

Mario Hoops Rules A demo is shown of a game between Mario, Luigi and Peach vs. Wario, Waluigi and Paratroopa, showing what is possible once practice is complete.
Offense
#	Lesson	Move	Exercise	Requirement
01	Dribble!	Tapping the touch screen causes whoever has to ball to dribble in the direction the touch screen was tapped. Dribbling on ? Panels produces coins.	Collect coins quickly!	0:30
02	Guard the ball!	Dribbling away from an opponent player is important to avoid a simple steal.	Guard the ball for 20 seconds!	0:20
03	Shoot the ball!	Players stroke the stylus up to shoot the ball towards the hoop.	Aim for the basket!	3
04	Do a charge shot!	By holding the stylus down on a touch screen for a few seconds, the ball will "charge up". Upon shooting, there is greater accuracy.	Do a charge shot!	3
05	Pass!	Stroking sideways left or right passes to the teammate in that direction.	Pass the ball around!	5
06	Run and dribble!	By dribbling in the same direction as the character moves, the player will pick up speed. This is essential to grab as many coins as possible from ? Panels.	Chase the ? Panel!	1:00
07	Quick-dash!	By dribbling in one direction and then turning in the same direction, the player will make a quick turn, perhaps avoiding trouble.	Quick-dash!	8
08	Dunk the ball!	By stroking up while running near the basket, the player will dunk the ball.	Dunk 3 times!	3
Offense 2
#	Lesson	Move	Exercise	Requirement
09	Do a fake!	When charging, it is possible to move the stylus around to move the ball around. Thus, simple steals can be avoided and the ball can still be shot.	Fake, then do a charge shot!	3
10	Rebound-dunk!	If the ball doesn't quite go in from a normal shot and is bouncing on the rim, the player can approach it like a dunk to regain control and score.	Rebound-dunk!	3
11	Charge-dunk!	When dunking, the player can swipe up again, then start rubbing the screen to gain coins. Swiping down ends the dunk.	Charge-dunk!	3
12	Do a trick!	When moving, swiping down and then again left or right causes the character to quickly move sideways, possibly getting by defenders.	Use trick moves!	3
13	Direct-pass!	While holding down L and then stroking in any direction, it is possible to pass in any direction, instead of the character automatically moving to a position.	Make a direct-pass!	4
Defense
#	Lesson	Move	Exercise	Requirement
01	Steal the ball!	Stroking down causes a simple steal attempt. The steal must be placed where the ball is, not just at the opponent. The ball then comes loose, giving the opposing team a chance to get the ball.	Steal the ball!	3
02	Jump!	Stroking up means to jump on defense. It can be used to deflect and block both simple and charged shots, with good timing.	Jump and block!	3
03	Jump-steal!	Stroking up while jumping causes the player to do a steal motion in the air. Likewise, it can lodge loose a ball about to be dunked, if the timing's right.	Jump-steal to guard the hoop!	3
04	Items	When ? Panels are run over on defense, an item is produced and, in the example here, a Green Shell is thrown in the direction the stylus is stroked.	Hit Wario with a shell!	3
05	Swap characters!	Pressing L changes control to the player closest to the ball. Stroking sideways left or right while pressing L changes to that character regardless of proximity to the ball.	Switch players!	4
Defense 2
#	Lesson	Move	Exercise	Requirement
06	Block 'em!	Rubbing the stylus causes the character to create a small blue force field in front of him or her, and move around with it. Opponents can't get by this field.	Block Wario!	0:20
07	Charge-steal!	Eventually the force field will turn red. Stroking down then will cause a stronger steal that can knock down any player.	Charge-steal!	3
08	Drop-steal!	Jumping and then stroking down causes the character to do a ground-pound related move. The opponent can drop the ball within a wider range than a simple steal.	Make 'em drop it!	3
09	Sidestep!	Stroking left or right causes the character to quickly move sideways. He or she can sneak up on an opponent and catch them off-guard by doing a simple steal.	Sidestep and steal!	3
10	Rebound!	Catching the ball by jumping as the ball bounces around the opponents' rim is known as rebounding. It requires some timing to when the ball is at a low point.	Nab a rebound!	3
Free Practice With Mario, Luigi and Peach, any move can be practiced here. To play defense, the player can pass-direct down, but there are no real opponents to practice most defensive maneuvers.

Special Shots

Practice dribbling commands of players who've mastered their special shots!

Players can practice Special Shots with any player unlocked (the shots themselves don't have to be mastered, despite the in-game description). It acts like a lesson, with the objective to do the special shot 3 times from anywhere on the court, with two other characters supplied for alley-oops.

Dribble Race (Time Trial)

Get 100 coins from ? panels and head for the goal! Beat the best time!

This extra mode allows the player to pick any character and try to gather 100 coins from ? Panels and cross the finish time in as little time as possible. There are three of these mini-courses, to unlock the last one the preset records must be beaten in the first two.

• Peach's Castle - Green Shells come out of three pipes. Each ? Panel has 10 coins. (45 sec)
• Sunshine Road - Metal flatteners line this course. Most ? Panels have 5 coins. (55 sec)
• Rainbow Road - Blue fireballs erupt out from under the course. Colorful Bombs can here found. Most ? Panels have 5 coins. (1 min)

Matchup

This is the multiplayer mode of Mario Hoops. DS Wireless Play includes three modes, while DS Download only includes two of those three.

Exhibition

Mario Hoops Face-off! Game results will be recorded in the player ranking. Win matches to earn points and rank up!

The single mode that is limited to local wireless, two players can choose their team of 3 and face off against each other, subject to the same settings as normal Exhibition Mode.

Dribble Race

Dribble Race Versus Friends! Nab 100 coins from ? panels and beat everyone to the goal!

Same as Dribble Race Mode, except it's not a time trial: the first to cross the finish line with 100 coins wins, and is available with 2-4 players.

Coin Hunter

Coin Hunting with Friends! Throw items and scramble for coins! Hold on to coins until the end to win!

This is a non-basketball related mode that draws heavily on Mario Kart's battle mode. Each player (up to 4) starts with 50 coins. Players then use items to reduce the other player's coins. The single player remaining with coins wins. In a three or four-player game, players eliminated early can stick around to annoy players still in the competition (similar to Mario Kart 64). There are four courses; the last two are unlockable by winning five of these battles in a row.

• Mario Classic 1-1
• Mario Classic 8-4
• Mario Classic 2-2
• Forest Stage

Characters

File:MH3o3CharacterScreen.PNG

The game's starting characters in the Select Characters screen.

Character Types

• All-Around characters are balanced. No high stats, no low stats.
• Technical characters have a good aim but they can be slow and weak.
• Speedy characters are very weak, however, they are quick to go around.
• Powerful characters are very slow but are good at stealing and have a far shot.
• Tricky characters have one large stat, the rest are rather low but they have trick moves.

Mario Hoops 3-on-3 has twenty-one playable characters, five of them being from Square Enix's Final Fantasy franchise. Ten characters are playable from the start, with the other eleven being unlockable (See the Unlockables section for the methods of unlocking each character). There are five different character types, listed at the side, each character type having its own pros and cons, that can help or halt the players progress in a game. Additionally, all twenty-one characters have a special move called a Special Shot, with each character having their own unique Special Shot.

Starting characters

All-Around Characters

Image	Name	Special Shot	Baller Name
File:MarioHoops.png	Mario	Fire Shot	"The Jumpman"
	Luigi	Green Fire Shot	"Mushroom Dynamite"
File:YoshiHoops.png	Yoshi	Flutter Dunk	"Piranha Playa Hater"

Technical Characters

Image	Name	Special Shot	Baller Name
File:PeachHoops.png	Peach	Heart Shot	"3-point Royalty"
File:DaisyHoops.png	Daisy	Flower Shot	"Cash Money Coin Collector"
File:WaluigiHoops.png	Waluigi	Twist Dunk	"The Question"

Powerful Characters

Image	Name	Special Shot	Baller Name
File:DKHoops.png	Donkey Kong	Konga Dunk	"Dunky Monkey"
File:WarioHoops.png	Wario	Move-It Dunk	"Sir Stomp"

Speedy Characters

Image	Name	Special Shot	Baller Name
File:MH3on3 BowserJr1.png	Bowser Jr.	Graffiti Shot	"Masked Man"
File:DiddyHoops.png	Diddy Kong	Jet Shot	"Diddy? No he didn't!"

Unlockable characters

All-Around Characters

Image	Name	Special Shot	Baller Name
File:BirdoHoops.PNG	Birdo	Egg Shot	None
	Ninja	Leaf Veil	"Mr. Invincible"

Technical Characters

Image	Name	Special Shot	Baller Name
	White Mage	Holy Shot	"The Light"

Powerful Characters

Image	Name	Special Shot	Baller Name
File:MH3on3 Bowser1.png	Bowser	Bomber Dunk	"The Big Shell"

Speedy Characters

Image	Name	Special Shot	Baller Name
File:DixieKongHoops.PNG	Dixie Kong	Cannon Shot	None
	Cactuar	1000 Needles	"Stick and Sting"

Tricky Characters

Image	Name	Special Shot	Baller Name
File:ParatroopaHoops.PNG	Paratroopa	Wing Shot	None
File:BooHoops.PNG	Boo	Thriller Dunk	None
File:FlyGuyHoops.PNG	Fly Guy	Thunder Shot	None
File:MoogleHoops.PNG	Moogle	Moogle Dance	"Game & Watch Me
	Black Mage	Meteor Shot	"Abracadabra Kid"

Courts

The fourth course of each tourney (excluding Rainbow Ship) is an unlockable and can only be played in Exhibition Mode. The rest of the courts are played in Tourney Mode as well.

Mushroom Tourney

Image	Description
Mario Stadium	The basic basketball stadium, with no hazards.
File:Koopa beach.PNG Koopa Beach	Pirate ships shoot cannonballs onto the beach occasionally. Also, the water on the edges slows down movement.
Peach Field	Lakitu holds the only basket on this course - he moves it depending on which team has the ball. Also, Cheep-Cheeps appear periodically to bounce over the field.
Sunset Beach	No pirate ships, but otherwise the same as Koopa Beach.

Flower Tourney

Image	Description
DK Cruiser	Taking place on a raft, sometimes the barrels come loose and roll around, flattening players in their way.
File:Mansion.PNG Luigi Mansion	Ghosts sometimes take the ball in midflight, and players must jump to retrieve it.
File:Daisy garden.PNG Daisy Garden	Two Petey Piranhas act as baskets, and reject any dunk unless they fall asleep or if the player gets a star.
Malboro Garden	Malboros spit poisonous gas if players come too close. The garden itself is the exact opposite of the Daisy Garden.

Star Tourney

Image	Description
Wario Factory	Players ride an elevator as the court and bigger Bob-ombs are sometimes dumped on the course, which anyone can use and throw - before they automatically explode.
Jr. Street	Taking place in a city, players can take a risk by collecting Slot Coins to make the slots spin to either gain or lose points.
File:Bowser Castle1.PNG Bowser's Castle	Fireballs and Bombs spring up from underneath the course. A player affected by a burn will run randomly if not directed by the D-pad and can still do defensive maneuvers, but cannot retrieve the ball for himself or herself. Bombs sometimes appear, burning a few characters and, after a few seconds, spontaneously combusting. Also, Thwomps are sometimes hidden under ? Panels.
Glare Desert	A tornado moves around the course at midfield, knocking away any character that touches it. Otherwise a standard course. Cactuar is also unlocked here.

Rainbow Tourney

Image	Description
Sherbet Land	Missed steal attempts while running causes the player to slide on the icy field. Also, a unique item to the course, Freezie, can encase a player in ice for a few seconds.
Bloocheep Sea	Taking place underwater, everything moves much slower. If the ball hits a Blooper, it will bounce off. Finally, Mimic appears here.
Pirate Ship	Cannon balls roll down the court, exploding upon being touched. Also, Gooper Blooper appears as a sideline threat, and the stage tilts slightly left to right.
Rainbow Ship	Despite being on a flying ship, it is a completely standard course. At the end of the Rainbow Tourney, there is a match against the Ninja, Black Mage, and White Mage here.

Unlockables

Two minor unlockables, the other courses in Dribble Race and Coin Hunter modes, have already been mentioned in this article. There are many more unlockables in the game, including characters and courses previously mentioned.

From Tourney Mode

Most of the unlockables come from winning trophies in Tourney Mode, including all but one character, costume changes, and most balls. By getting silver or gold on the first try, more than one unlockable can be obtained.

The following is understood: Winning the Rainbow Tourney unlocks Hard Mode, winning the Hard Rainbow Tourney unlocks Pro difficulty in Exhibition matches.

	Normal Mushroom Tourney	Normal Flower Tourney	Normal Star Tourney	Normal Rainbow Tourney
Bronze	Paratroopa	Dixie Kong	Bowser	Ninja
Silver	Costume Change: Peach	Costume Change: Daisy	Moogle	White Mage
Gold	Watermelon Ball	Yoshi Egg Ball	Spiked Ball	Black Mage
	Hard Mushroom Tourney	Hard Flower Tourney	Hard Star Tourney	Hard Rainbow Tourney
Bronze	Birdo	Boo	Fly Guy	Costume Change: Ninja
Silver	Soccer Ball	Costume Change: Yoshi	Costume Change: Fly Guy	Costume Change: White Mage
Gold	Cheep-Cheep Ball	Dice Ball	Goomba Ball	Costume Change: Black Mage

When selecting characters by placing them in the hoop, holding the D-pad in a direction or a button at the same time causes a cosmetic change if unlocked, not affecting gameplay abilities. Yoshi and Fly Guy each have three different changes, while the others have one.

Courses

• Sunset Beach - Playing an exhibition match on Koopa Beach during the sunset; that is, 4:00-6:00 PM (or in military time, 16:00-18:00 hours, according to the DS's internal clock).
• Malboro Garden - In the Flower Tourney, dunking the ball three times in Daisy Garden, then finding a blue seed in a ? Panel.
• Glare Desert - Getting 800 points or more on Jr. Street in the Star Tourney.

Last Character

• Cactuar - Its head moves across the sand in Glare Desert. Dribbling on it a few times will cause it to run off the course. Winning the exhibition match unlocks it.

Unlockable balls

Image	Ball	How to unlock
	Basketball	Available from the start.
	Blue/White/Red	Win one match in tourney mode using only three-point charged shots.
	Yellow/Green	Play an exhibition match at Daisy Garden.
	Purple/Orange	Play an exhibition match at Bowser's Castle.
	Black/Red	Win an exhibition on Rainbow Ship without ? Panels.
	Blue/Silver	Finish Practice Mode.
	Spiked	Obtain a gold trophy in the Star Cup tourney.
	Watermelon	Obtain a gold trophy in the Flower Cup tourney.
	Pumpkin	Lose 5 games in a row in wireless exhibition.
	Dice	Obtain a gold trophy in the Hard Flower Cup tourney.
	Soccer	Obtain a silver trophy or better in the Hard Mushroom Cup tourney.
	Star	Win one match in tourney mode using only Special Shots.
	Yoshi Egg	Obtain a gold trophy in the Mushroom Cup tourney.
	Cheep Cheep	Obtain a gold trophy in the Hard Mushroom Cup tourney.
	Goomba	Obtain a gold trophy in the Hard Star Cup tourney.
	Rainbow	Win 7 games in wireless exhibition.
	Silver	Have 2000 points in profile.
	Gold	Have 5000 points in profile.

Items

During play, ? Panels always produce items very similar to the Mario Kart series. To use most items, players stroke with the stylus in the direction the item is to be thrown, or simply use the button.

Items for All Courts

Offensive and Defensive Items

The following items can be used by any player, regardless if he or she is on offense or defense.

Image	Item	Description
	Lightning	Once activated, everyone except the user is struck down for a couple of seconds, even their teammates. Initially, the player must jump at the bolt to use it, as it is up high, giving the defensive player the edge. However, it eventually hovers down, allowing an offensive player to run into it.
	Mushroom	The Mushroom boosts the user's speed for awhile. It is especially advantageous for the ball handler to pick up, as it allows him or her to speed past defenders and, thus, get an easier opportunity to score.
	Poison Mushroom	Contrary to the Mushroom, the Poison Mushroom slows the character for awhile. This is the status ailment the Malboro on the court Malboro Garden inflicts.
	Star	The Star is an upgrade from the Mushroom, as it boosts the users speed while also giving them invincibility for awhile. Any contact with the player who is using the star results in him or her being struck down.

Defensive Only Items

The following items are exclusively given to a defensive player who runs over the ? Panel.

Image	Item	Description
	Banana	The simple yellow peel still trips up anyone who slips on it. The banana item also is periodically thrown at random from the neighboring jungles on the court DK Cruiser.
	Bomb	When thrown, Bombs explode within 3 seconds, knocking anyone in the vicinity down, including players from the same team as the thrower. Their explosions are comparable, but cover less area, than those of Bob-ombs in the court Wario Factory
	Fake ? Panel	When thrown, it disguises itself as a ? Panel, except for its display of a backward question mark. A character trying to use this panel will be knocked down when he or she steps on it, as well as lose the ball if he or she is on offense.
	Green Shell	Bouncing freely, Green Shells are more powerful than Bananas when they make contact. They are discarded from the field when they have bounced twice off the boundaries without coming into contact with any player.
	Red Shell	Once thrown, Red Shells will go for the player who is dribbling the ball. They do, however, have less accuracy than in the Mario Kart series, and miss often if the player makes a sudden turn (quick-dash). The Red Shell will then act like a Green Shell and simply bounce off the boundaries of the court.
	Spiny Shell	The Spiny Shell in this game does not possess its trademark wings. It acts as a more powerful item than the Red Shell, as it follows the ball even through the airl, creating a familiar blue explosion. Once thrown, it does not miss its target.

Items for Specific Courts

Image	Item	Description	Court Appearance
File:MH3on3 SlotCoin.jpg	Slot Coin	Slot Coins are only found on Jr. Street and are only picked up through the purple ? Panels. They power the slot machine on the court, and the more Slot Coins obtain powers up different rows on the panel, giving more chances for better rewards after the next basket is made. Only three can be carried by one team at once.	Jr. Street
	Freezy	Freezies are only available on Sherbet Land, where they act is Green Shells when thrown. If a Freezy comes into contact with any player, that player will be temporarily frozen in an icicle and unable to participate in play.	Sherbet Land
	Mimic	These treasure chest items make their debut in any Mario game, and are only encountered on the court Bloocheep Sea. Once thrown, the Mimic will chomp its way towards the ball handler in an attempt to strip the ball from him or her. Mimics also sometimes cough up coins that can be picked up by either team.	Bloocheep Sea

Official soundtrack

Main article: Mario Basketball 3on3 Original Soundtrack

An original soundtrack that is based on the game is released only in Japan and is published by Square Enix, the same company for the game. It has thirty-one songs from the game.

Gallery

For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Mario Hoops 3-on-3.

• 

  Logo (North America)

• 

  Mario

• 

  Luigi

• 

  Peach

• BowserHoops.png

  Bowser

Media

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Help:Media • Having trouble playing?

Staff

Main article: List of Mario Hoops 3-on-3 staff

References to other games

• Game & Watch: Moogle's baller name is "Game & Watch Me".
• Donkey Kong: Mario's baller name is "The Jumpman", referencing the fact that Mario was named in this game.
• Super Mario Bros.: There are many references to this game. An 8-bit Small Mario chasing two Goombas is seen on Mario Stadium. Also, Bowser's Castle and Bloocheep Sea's music are remixes of the Castle and Underwater themes, respectively. The ground in Tourney Mode is the same as the one of overworld levels of this game. Finally, the Classic 1-1, 8-4 and 2-2 courts of Coin Hunter are references to the respective levels of this game.
• Super Mario Bros. 2: The final victory theme is a cover of the ending theme of this game.
• Mario Kart: Double Dash!!: Luigi's special shot is Green Fire Shot, a reference to his Green Fireballs acting like Mario's. Also, some of the playable characters' voice clips were reused from this game.

References to later games

• Mario Sports Mix: This is the second project developed by Square Enix using the Mario Hoops 3-on-3 formula. Basketball is one of the featured sports there. Additionally, the Final Fantasy characters return in that installment.

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	マリオバスケ３ｏｎ３ Mario Basuke Surī-on-surī	Mario Basket 3-on-3
Dutch	Mario Slam Basketball
German	Mario Slam Basketball
Italian	Mario Slam Basketball
Portuguese	Mario Slam Basketball
Spanish (NOE)	Mario Slam Basketball

Trivia

• Although this is the first dedicated Mario spinoff installment in the sports category entirely focused on basketball, this is the second time Mario has starred in a basketball game (with the first being the GameCube version of NBA Street V3 along with Luigi and Peach).
• This is the first and (so far) only game where Bowser Jr. is a default character, while Bowser is an unlockable character.