I was able to get a little hands-on time with Mario Sports Mix my second day of E3 and came away fairly impressed. It’s the standard Mario sports game formula where they take a certain sport (or sports in this case) and add various items and unique game modes. This time around, Mario and Co. will be competing in Volleyball, Dodgeball, Hockey, and Basketball. I was only able to play Volleyball and even Dodgeball and Hockey were locked for the E3 build. Volleyball is pretty basic. You use the Wii remote to toss the ball up, serve, set, block and slam. The nunchuk is also used for movement around the court.

The gameplay is a lot of fun and you can even use classic Mario items such as bombs, shells, and other items to your advantage. I wish golf was included in the ‘mix’, but that could change between now and the game’s Spring 2011 release.