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Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle is free to play for NSO members this week

Before Sparks of Hope hits later this year, try out the first Mario and Rabbids crossover free of charge for the next week.

Ozzie Mejia

July 6, 2022 11:35 AM

Image: Ubisoft

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Nintendo and Ubisoft are getting ready to take Mario back into the cosmos with the Rabbids later this year. However, what if you're among those who missed out on the original Mario/Rabbids crossover? Nintendo is about to give Nintendo Switch Online members a chance to catch up with a special free trial period that's kicking off today.

Those who have an active Nintendo Switch Online membership can download Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle and play the full game until July 12 at 11:59 p.m. PT. Any save progress made over that one-week period can be kept, retained, and applied to the full game if the user opts to purchase it. Those who do decide to buy the game can do so right now for a discounted $9.99 USD, which is down from the regular $59.99 price. The Gold Edition, which features the Donkey Kong DLC, is currently down to $14.99.

Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle was a weird crossover of the two franchises that placed them in an XCOM-style RTS setting with fantasy-based firearms. It wound up being much better than the premise would suggest. It was received so well that fans are now eagerly anticipating the game's sequel, Sparks of Hope, which will follow up on the original title's story and feature new characters like Bowser, who brings a big honking bazooka to the battlefield.

Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is set to release on October 20 exclusively on Nintendo Switch. The Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle free trial will be available until next Tuesday, July 12.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?