After years of going against each other, Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog happily co-exist in a video game. Mario & Sonic At the Olympic Games pits Nintendo's hero and his friends (and foes) against characters from the Sonic universe. It's essentially an Olympic competition not unlike Konami's Track and Field games, with over twenty events. It's enjoyable when everything works, especially against friends. Unfortunately, the clunky interface keeps it from achieving the gold.

Most of these activities require routine up-and-down motions with the Nunchuk and Wii remote, such as the hundred-meter dash, the hurdle events, the relay races and swimming. A few stand out, however. The archery event, for example, requires you to mimic the motions of holding a bow and arrow to pull off your shots. Fencing is also thoroughly entertaining, as you strategically look for weak points on your opponent while you defend yourself. On top of the realistic Olympic events, you also have four "dream" events to choose from, including a likable skydiving game and a variation of ping-pong that's not half bad.

This would be fine if Sega made the controls user-friendly, as some of the control functions don't read clearly. For instance, at the beginning of a race, you can clap your hands together to pump up the crowd, schmoozing them so they cheer you on. Unfortunately, we couldn't get this to operate efficiently, only getting one or two claps. As a result, Mario's never given off such an unenthusiastic appeal for his fans in his life. Furthermore, actual activity motions hinder your performance. Trying to get something as simple as a javelin throw or shooting an arrow requires a great deal of effort and patience.

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