Mario Tennis Fever Preview

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I recently got a sneak peek at the new Nintendo Switch 2 in Manhattan. They showed off several upcoming games, and I had a chance to play a demo of Mario Tennis Fever, the newest game in the popular Mario sports series.

I’m a huge fan of this series, seriously. I have so many good memories playing Mario Tennis on the N64 and Mario Power Tennis on the GameCube. But it hasn’t always been amazing. Ultra Smash was pretty disappointing, and while I really got into Aces when I first got my Switch, I eventually stopped playing it because a few things started to bother me.

Mario Tennis Fever is here, and honestly, I didn’t expect to be playing it so soon after the Switch 2 launched! I’ve had a chance to play a lot of doubles matches, and I’m really impressed. I’m genuinely excited for its release, as it looks like it could be one of the best Mario sports games yet. Let me tell you all about it.

A Colorful, Flashy Feast

Mario Tennis Fever is a visually appealing and smoothly running game. It’s full of bright colors, and the large roster of 38 characters is both cute and well-animated. Okay, Baby Wario and Baby Waluigi are a little strange, but that’s just how they look – they’ll probably grow into themselves eventually!

During my hands-on demo of Fever, I started with a quick tutorial before playing five consecutive doubles matches against other players, each controlling three characters. The game features 14 different courts, and my group got to try out three: a clay court, an ice court, and a fun court inspired by Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

Mario Tennis Fever looks and runs great.

All three courts were visually impressive. The ice court presented a unique challenge with its slick surface, but it also looked fantastic with its hockey theme. The Wonder Court was another highlight – it felt vibrant and energetic as teams competed to gather Wonder Seeds instead of focusing on traditional scoring.

Midway through our match on the Wonder Court, things got really wild! These singing Piranha Plants popped up at the net, guarding these Wonder Seeds. It forced me to be super careful with my shots, trying to grab the seeds as fast as possible. Honestly, it was a ton of fun, and that particular match really showed off how creative and cool the Wonder Court can be.

Compared to Aces, Fever feels like a significant visual upgrade – which is understandable, considering it’s been eight years since the original game. Overall, Fever looks fantastic, and I doubt anyone will find fault with its graphics or art style.

A Change of Pace

So, what’s it actually like to play Fever? The biggest new feature – and what makes this game stand out – is the addition of Fever Rackets, but we’ll discuss those shortly. First, let’s focus on how the core gameplay works.

Okay, so I’ve been playing Mario Tennis Fever, and honestly? It’s still tennis, which is great! The big question is whether it does enough new stuff to make it worth getting if you’ve played the other Mario Tennis games. I can’t give a full comparison yet, but I’ve noticed the tennis balls seem to move just a little slower and floatier than in past games. It’s subtle, but I definitely felt it while playing.

I don’t want to say the older games were bad, but they could be really frantic. Sometimes it felt like you were just reacting and hoping to get a serve back in! But in this new version, I actually prefer that the pace is a little slower. It gives you time to think things through and plan your shots instead of just trying to hit everything as hard as possible.

This helped me focus on being more precise with my shots, making even softer, delicate shots feel more impactful. I still hit powerful shots like overhead smashes, but they feel even more satisfying because everything else is so controlled. It all just comes together perfectly.

When it comes to sports games, I think a good balance of skill and strategy is key to winning. Older Mario Tennis games felt a little too random, but it seems like Mario Tennis Aces gives the better player a real advantage. I know from experience – my partner and I went undefeated in five matches! 😎

Fever Rackets Bring Chaos, But also Balance

Fever really sets itself apart with the introduction of 30 unique Rackets. Unlike previous versions, these Rackets eliminate character-specific special moves, which often made some characters much stronger than others. If you played Aces online when it first came out, you’ll remember how Bowser Jr. quickly became the most popular choice because he had a clear advantage.

This game feels fresh and different. The 38 playable characters still fit into familiar playstyles, which is great. For example, Mario is well-rounded, Yoshi is fast, Paratroopa requires skill, and Bowser is a powerhouse. I personally tested Yoshi, Paratroopa, and Piranha Plant, and each one felt unique and played quite differently from the others – exactly as you’d expect.

Honestly, picking your character type really just comes down to what you like. But the biggest decision right now is which Fever Racket you’re going to use. For our first match, Nintendo had us spin a wheel to decide, just for kicks. My teammate and I both ended up with the Mud Racket, and the other team got stuck with the Pokey Racket.

Each of the four players is allowed to use any racket they prefer, but it turned out that the random selection process picked the same rackets for both teams in this particular game.

Okay, so the Mud racket was seriously annoying! It created this muddy area on the other side of the court that really slowed my opponents down – it was great! But the Pokey racket was the worst. It would actually spawn a Pokey on my side, and I had to carefully move around it just to hit the ball back. And if I accidentally bumped into it and lost all my health, I’d get stunned, which basically gave the other team a free point. It was a tough racket to play against, for sure!

You can beat the Fever Shots with a simple trick. Hit the shot back immediately after it’s served, before it bounces. This will cause the power-up to work against your opponent instead of benefiting them.

I also tested out the Charging Chuck racket, which made my returns unpredictable – they bounced all over the place like footballs, making it really hard for the other player to hit them. The Shadow Racket created a temporary copy of me that cleverly covered the court, returning any shots my teammate and I missed.

Each Fever Racket includes a short video demonstrating how it works, which is really helpful when you’re trying to decide between so many choices.

I’m really looking forward to testing the remaining 25 rackets I haven’t used yet. It’s great that they all seem like solid choices, each offering a noticeably different playing style. Plus, using a Fever Shot when it’s fully charged keeps the game moving at a fast pace.

Older Mario Tennis games sometimes felt too random, but it seems like this new version, Fever, rewards skillful play more often.

I’ve always found the way special moves broke up gameplay in past games to be a problem. It felt awkward when a match stopped for cutscenes or animations. Now, these ‘Fever Shots’ fit much more smoothly into the action, and they’re still just as enjoyable and thrilling. This is a great improvement.

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I’m excited that the focus is shifting from finding overpowered characters to finding the best and most enjoyable rackets. It’ll be much more fun to pick characters based on your preferred playstyle and then experiment with racket combinations to maximize your performance, both individually and with your team.

Serving it Up Soon

During a hands-on demo of Mario Tennis Fever, I only had a chance to play the tutorial and five doubles matches, so I don’t have any impressions of the single-player game. However, I can say that the multiplayer experience feels fantastic and is among the best in the entire Mario Tennis series.

Okay, so the game isn’t super fast-paced, but honestly, the characters and courts are incredible – they look and feel fantastic. And I’m really excited about the 30 Fever Rackets; I’ve been playing with them, and I think they’re a brilliant addition that’s going to shake things up in the best way. I think the developers made the right call with those!

Excited about Mario Tennis Fever? You won’t have to wait much longer! The game comes out on Nintendo Switch 2 in just nine days, on February 12, 2026.

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2026-02-03 17:20