Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is set to launch on October 20. Mario and the Rabbids are all set for their next big adventure, however, the roster has been changed up this time – including new characters, and excluded some from the previous game, like Yoshi. The dinosaur is quite a major character in the Mario series, and a mainstay in its crossover with the Rabbids, but producer Xavier Manzanares says he has a good reason for shaking up the lineup.
"When we started to think about the team and the heroes, we didn’t want to go for, ‘Okay, we did it before, so we have to do the same thing again’ and trying to evolve what we had in Kingdom Battle. So it’s true as well for the heroes," he said in a conversation with Nintendo Everything.
"We decided early on to go for nine heroes," he continued. "We didn’t know exactly which ones, and we didn’t want to go for ones that are in Kingdom Battle because that’s the rule. As it’s not a direct sequel, we talked and we still believe today that players would be more interested and think, ‘Okay, the choice they made for the heroes and what they put in the game are logical because of the archetypes and what they do in battle, and it’s cool, and the synergy is super cool.’"
Manzanares went on to say that this was the reason they introduced Edge, a mysterious new character who will make her debut in Sparks of Hope. Mario, Peach, Luigi, Bowser, and Rabbid Rosalina.
This all-star cast will be joined by a team of all-star music composers from the video games industry. "I am very happy to confirm the return of my dear friend, the super talented Grant Kirkhope as a composer for Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope," said creative director Davide Soliani during the Ubisoft showcase. "But he will not be alone this time, as we have assembled an exceptional crew of talent from around the world. He will be joined by Gareth Coker and Yoko Shimomura, two phenomenal composers that I am beyond proud to now have on our journey."