By Sim Cheng Kai, a freelance writer

THE release of a new Mario sports videogame used to be something worth celebrating.

Mario sports titles used to be - like his platforming ones (think New Super Mario Brothers) - easily the most innovative and imaginative entries in their respective sporting arenas, from tennis to basketball to golf.

In stark contrast, Mario Super Sluggers' uninspired gameplay represents a new low point in the mustachioed plumber's sporting career.

To its credit, the game still retains the Mario franchise's trademark - easy, breezy play.

Pitching and batting the ball is as simple as swinging the Wiimote gently in any direction twice - first to wind up and then to follow through.

This is certainly better than the baseball game in Wii Sports, which suffers from frustratingly inaccurate motion-sensing controls.

Back to Mario Super Sluggers: The strength of your pitch changes depending on the timing of your Wiimote swings. Similarly, twisting the Wiimote or not will determine if it's going to be a curved or a straight hit.

At the batter's end, time your strike slightly earlier or later to send it flying right or left respectively. Hit it dead centre for a homerun.

Once the ball has been hit, the batter begins sprinting for the bases and it's a race against the fielders who are supposed to catch and throw the ball back. Shake the Wiimote to run faster.

Besides the excellent implementation of motion controls, there's nothing spectacular about Super Sluggers. Certainly not with the game's super moves: Mario simply pitches or bats the ball so hard it turns into a fireball. How exciting is that?

There are also special buddy moves that are available if you string together characters that share an affinity. For instance, as fielders, Mario and Peach - but not Wario and Peach - can help each other perform a boost-jump to catch a homerun ball.

Too bad these buddy moves are not character-specific. Homerun-blocking catches are not the breathtaking spectacles they should be when even generic characters like Toad and Dry Bones can pull it off.

Factor in a cheesy story mode that recycles pitching, batting and fielding exercises - plus the conspicuously missing online play - and you'll see why MSS didn't score a home-run with me, although it's still a notch above Wii Sports baseball.

This article was first published in Digital Life, The Straits Times on Oct 1, 2008.