Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games

Players can assume the role of a Mario or Sonic character while competing against the others in these events. The game features all of the playable characters that were present in its predecessor, as well as four new characters. The game was a critical and commercial success, selling 6.53 million copies in Europe and the United States while receiving positive reviews from critics. A third installment, named Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games, was released for the Wii in November 2011 and on the 3DS in February 2012.

Publication is recorded by Nintendo. The recorded date of publication is 2009. It belongs to the series Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games. It is associated with Japan. Recorded genres are sports video game and crossover fiction. The recorded subject matter is 2010 Winter Olympics.

• Title — Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games • Developer — Sega • Director — Takashi Iizuka (Wii) Eigo Kasahara (DS) • Producer — Osamu Ohashi Hiroshi Sato • Designer — Shun Nakamura (Wii) Koji Shindo (DS) • Programmer — Takeshi Sakakibara (Wii) Hideaki Sekiya (DS) • Artist — Kazuyuki Hoshino (Wii) Hitoshi Furukubo (DS) • Composer — 1=Wii: Fumie Kumatani Naofumi Hataya Hideaki Kobayashi Jun Senoue Tadashi Kinukawa Teruhiko Nakagawa Tomonori Sawada Nintendo DS: Naofumi Hataya Tatsuya Kozaki Tomoya Ohtani Hideaki Kobayashi Tadashi Kinukawa Kenichi Tokoi Mariko Nanba Yusuke Takahama Fumie Kumatani • Series — Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games • Genre — Sports, party • Modes — Single-player, multiplayer • Platforms — Wii, Nintendo DS

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games retains the gameplay mechanics of its predecessor, controlling an on-screen character through authentic Olympic events with the specific tailored controls for the Wii and DS. However, this sequel's transition from Summer to Winter Games introduces some changes across both versions in controls and mechanics. As many of the events of the Wii version heavily involve downhill racing, such version's motion controls rely more on tilting and turning rather than rapid, vigorous gestures like shaking and waggling. Consequently, some of these events can be controlled with the Balance Board accessory as an optional, alternate method of steering, and the stamina mechanic is also removed from such version and replaced with an acceleration statistic. Nearly half of the DS version's events are controlled with buttons, while other events are played with a stylus and touchscreen as usual like the previous installment. All of the playable characters from the previous game return in addition to four new characters: Donkey Kong, Silver the Hedgehog, Bowser Jr. and Metal Sonic. It has been announced via the Nintendo Channel, that this game will have WiiConnect24 capability and, like its predecessor, the player can use their Miis in the Wii version in the game. A new feature added to the player's Mii is the ability to customize the Mii's clothes, which make small adjustments to a Mii's otherwise balanced stats. The sequel introduces a Festival mode in the Wii version that allows the player to make their way through the entire Olympic Games, from opening ceremony to closure. The multiplayer mode offers "co-op and competitive gameplay" whereas the DS version will use its wireless capabilities. The DS counterpart has "Adventure Tours" where players can accept quests and challenge bosses and to stop Bowser and Dr. Eggman before they can stop the Olympics by kidnapping the Snow Spirits. DS Download Play is possible for those without an individual copy of the game.

In January 2009, a rumor from Spanish Nintendo magazine Nintendo Acción mentioned a sequel to Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games would be created for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Both IGN and Eurogamer received confirmation on the games' existence, with IGN stating the game will be announced within the following month. Dennis Kim, licensing and merchandising director for the event, stated in February that a Mario & Sonic title "[is] being discussed and planned for Vancouver". Kim also stated "Vancouver 2010" and the IOC will share royalties from this game. In the same month, the sequel titled "Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games" was officially announced via a joint press release by Sega and Nintendo on February 12, 2009. The game was announced as being developed by Sega Japan under the supervision of Shigeru Miyamoto. This title is the third video game collaboration between Nintendo and Sega. According to gaming site IGN, development began immediately after the initial Olympic game was released in November 2007. In the months leading to the game's release, in which Nintendo unveiled and released the Wii MotionPlus accessory, Sega contemplated adding support for the accessory in the Wii version, but ultimately nixed it because the developers were not sure whether the Wii MotionPlus would be widely used. It was later incorporated into Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games for the Wii U. An iPhone OS app version was released in January 2010 by Sega. Due to only containing Sonic characters, the game is simply titled Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games.

• Title — Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games • Collapsible — yes • Developer — Venan Entertainment • Publisher — Sega • Series — Sonic the Hedgehog • Released — January 30, 2010 • Genre — Sports • Modes — Single-player • Platforms — iOS Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games is a sports game developed by Venan Entertainment and published by Sega for iOS. It was released on January 30, 2010, but has since been unexpectedly removed from the App Store with no comment by Sega or Apple. The game is officially licensed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) through exclusive license International Sports Multimedia, and takes place at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games follows the release of the similarly titled Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games with similar gameplay and setting, but with the absence of Nintendo-owned characters. In comparison, the game also features fewer events, fewer characters, and fewer modes. It received moderate reviews, exemplified by a five out of ten rating from IGN.