There will be no Mario & Sonic video games at the Olympic Games scheduled to overlap with the 2024 Paris Olympics, according to a novel report, as the International Olympic Committee has severed its long-standing partnership with Nintendo and Sega to focus on disciplines like NFTs and e-sports.
According to EurogamerThe IOC did not renew the licensing agreement with Nintendo and Sega and allowed it to expire in 2020, meaning this year’s Olympics are the first in 17 years that will not feature a Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games video game.
Producer Lee Cocker, who worked on the series at marketing firm ISM Ltd, told Eurogamer that the IOC “wanted to look at other partners, NFTs and esports”.
And that was it, no Mario or Sonic at the Olympics. But, as Eurogamer pointed out, there is a video game for this year’s Olympics; a free-to-play mobile game from publisher nWay called Olympics Go! Paris 2024, which has also been ported to PC via the Epic Games Store. And yes, NFTs are involved, with “an officially licensed, commemorative Paris 2024 NFT digital pin collection from nWay!”
The Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games series began in 2007 on the Wii with a Beijing 2008 edition titled Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games. Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games followed in 2011, and Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games came out in 2016. There are two Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games titles, one released in 2009 and the other in 2013. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 goes down in history as the final installment in the series.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter @wyp100. You can contact Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
