Ring Shot
Ring Shot is a type of minigame played in the Mario Tennis series. The overall objective of Ring Shot is to hit balls into rings with the assistance of another character on the other side of the court. Specific rules, such as how score is determined and when a match is over, vary per game.
History[edit ]
Mario Tennis series[edit ]
Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64)[edit ]
Ring Shot debuts as one of the Play Modes in Mario Tennis . In this mode, players are able to compete in several contests to see how many rings they can collect in various challenges. In all challenges except the Game mode, the characters alternate serving every two turns. Three rings appear on the court at a time. Each time the player collects one, a new one will appear. There are four different types of challenges in Ring Shot:
- Game: The player must collect rings by playing against an opponent. Rings hit are accumulated during a point, and are then awarded to player if they win the point. The match ends if the player wins the required amount of rings. If the player wins or loses the set without reaching the required amount, they still lose.
- Time: The player must collect rings within the time limit. Even if the player misses a ball, they'll get to serve, or be served to, again.
- Ball: The player must collect rings with a total of five balls, losing one with every miss. Fault serves do not count as a missed ball.
- Points: The player must collect enough points by hitting rings before the time expires. In this mode, rings grow in size over time. The value of each ring decreases over time, with the smallest ones starting at five points, while the largest ones are worth one point. This version of Ring Shot in this game later returned in the Ring Shot mode in Mario Tennis Open .
Each Ring Shot mode is further divided into six flags, with the first five flags representing the amount of rings or points required to beat it. Beating all five flags unlocks a sixth flag consisting of a Ring Challenge, where the goal is to score the most amount of points within the restrictions of the challenge type (e.g.: within a time limit or five total balls). The opponents faced in each flag are the same for every type of challenge, but vary per character.
| Flag | Ring amount Game, Time and Ball modes only |
Time limit Time mode only |
Point amount Time and Points mode only |
Opponent 1 [a] | Opponent 2 [b] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First | 30 | 1:00.00 | 100 | A character icon from Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) Boo | A character icon from Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) Toad |
| Second | 50 | 1:20.00 | 150 | A character icon from Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) Birdo | A character icon from Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) Yoshi |
| Third | 70 | 1:40.00 | 200 | A character icon from Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) Paratroopa | A character icon from Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) Peach |
| Fourth | 90 | 2:00.00 | 250 | A character icon from Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) Wario | A character icon from Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) DK |
| Fifth | 100 | 3:00.00 | 300 | A character icon from Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) Waluigi | A character icon from Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) Luigi |
| Sixth | - | 3:00.00 | - | A character icon from Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) Bowser | A character icon from Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) Mario |
In multiplayer modes, players and/or teams compete who can get 50, 100, or 200 rings. In Doubles Match, the music is different than usual, and players can score rings either in Teams (two players on the same team) or in Battle Royale (individual players per team).
Mario Power Tennis[edit ]
Ring Shot returns as a Play Mode within the Exhibition mode in Mario Power Tennis , using only a single ruleset similar to the Game and Points modes from Mario Tennis. Players can now choose the opponent and court the match takes place, although no court gimmicks will be present. During a point of Ring Shot, each side of the court can collect Charge by hitting balls through rings. When a side wins a point, their Charge is added to their total Ring Points. The losing side's Charge is split in two, with half going towards their own total points, and the other half going toward's the winner's Charge. The match then resumes as normal. The first side to reach the target Ring Points (which can be 100, 200 or 500 points) wins. There are always five rings in play, with a new one spawning whenever one is collected. The rings start small, growing in size and decreasing in points value.
Mario Tennis Open[edit ]
Ring Shot is one of the four special games in Mario Tennis Open . In the game, the player must attempt to hit the ball into rings, which increase in size. This awards Ring Points. When rings are at their smallest, they are worth five points. Their point values decrease by one as the rings grow, until they get their largest and are worth one point. Hitting the ball into multiple rings in one stroke earns the player combo points. The level is completed if the player acquires a certain amount of points in a certain amount of time (this depends on the difficulty level). This is the only special game that can be done in any court, except Galaxy Arena, for all levels.
There are four difficulty modes. The rings are initially vertical and close to the net, but in the third and challenge levels, the rings are higher up and sometimes placed horizontally or slanted towards the player. Baby Peach can be unlocked by completing the third level in this game. Additionally, a Peach costume can be unlocked by obtaining 800 points in Ring Shot Challenge, and a Daisy one can be unlocked by collecting 700 points in the same level.
| Difficulty | Score goal | Time limit | Opponent | Alternate opponent[a] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Novice Rings | 200 | 03:00.00 | Yoshi | Diddy Kong |
| Amateur Rings | 350 | 2:00.00 | Peach | Daisy |
| Pro Rings | 500 | 3:00.00 | Luigi | Mario |
| Ring Shot Challenge | As many as possible | 3:00.00 | Donkey Kong | Bowser |
- ^ Used if the player selects the character normally assigned as the opponent
Mario Tennis Aces[edit ]
Upon release, Mario Tennis Aces did not contain a Ring Shot game mode, although various post-launch updates saw the inclusion of Ring Shot challenges. In update 2.0.0, the Ruins of Trials world was added to the game's Adventure mode, featuring the mission Ancient Trial Ring Shot Challenge. The mission functioned similarly to previous Ring Shot modes, with the player working alongside a transparent clone in order to score points by hitting balls through rings. Rings are again worth one to five points based on their size, with additional red rings being worth double.
Update 2.1.0 added Yoshi's Ring Shot, a Co-op Challenge for four players that was active from December 1, 2018 to January 10, 2019. In this challenge, players play as one of four colored Yoshis: Green, Blue, Red or Yellow. The game mode works in the same way as previous Ring Shot modes, with a few changes. Five rings appear in the court at once and they can be colored red, yellow and blue, or orange, pink and light blue, depending on the event. If a Yoshi passes a ball through a ring of the same color, they receive twice as many points. And a new Frenzy bar is added.
To increase the Frenzy bar, players must keep a rally to increase points and activate Frenzy Time once it is full. During Frenzy Time, all the rings turn into a rainbow color, which are worth more points. In the last 30 seconds of the clock, a special flower-shaped ring appears, which is also worth more points than regular-colored rings. Hitting the flower-shaped ring causes the ring to move to a different location each time, and by increasing combos, players can earn more points and fill up Frenzy bar faster.
Update 3.0.0 introduced an offline Ring Shot mode, featuring three types of games: Ring Shot Singles, Ring Shot Doubles, and Yoshi's Ring Shot, an offline version of the previous Co-op Challenge. in Ring Shot Singles and Doubles, players are able to compete or cooperate with another player or pair in order to score points in the same rules as the Adventure mode mission "Ancient Trial Ring Shot Challenge". Similarly, the offline version of Yoshi's Ring Shot works identically to its Co-op Challenge iteration, with the exception that the only Yoshi costume awarded is the Purple Yoshi costume, given by completing the Advanced VS Challenge. The 3.0.0 update also included a re-run of the Yoshi's Ring Shot Co-op Challenge, from April 14, 2019 to June 1, 2019. Instead of Blue, Red and Yellow Yoshis, the costumes awarded during this challenge were the Orange, Pink and Light-Blue Yoshis.
Lastly, with update 3.1.0, the Co-op Challenges, which include Yoshi's Ring Shot, began rotating monthly.
Yoshi alternate colors can be won by achieving certain scores in the online Co-op Challenge mode. The player's initial title in this Co-op Challenge is "Hungry Yoshi".
- Initial wave
| Start and end dates | Rewards | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20,000 points Om-Nom-Nom Yoshi |
50,000 points Satisfied Yoshi |
80,000 points Full Yoshi | ||||
| December 1, 2018 - January 10, 2019 | Blue Yoshi's entrance pose Blue Yoshi |
Red Yoshi's entrance pose Red Yoshi |
Yellow Yoshi's entrance pose Yellow Yoshi | |||
| April 14, 2019 - June 1, 2019 | Orange Yoshi's entrance pose Orange Yoshi |
Pink Yoshi's entrance pose Pink Yoshi |
Light-blue Yoshi's entrance pose Light-blue Yoshi | |||
- Current monthly rotation
| Months | Rewards | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10,000 points Om-Nom-Nom Yoshi |
25,000 points Satisfied Yoshi |
40,000 points Full Yoshi | ||||
| February and August of each year | Blue Yoshi's entrance pose Blue Yoshi |
Red Yoshi's entrance pose Red Yoshi |
Yellow Yoshi's entrance pose Yellow Yoshi | |||
| May and November of each year | Orange Yoshi's entrance pose Orange Yoshi |
Pink Yoshi's entrance pose Pink Yoshi |
Light-blue Yoshi's entrance pose Light-blue Yoshi | |||
Mario Tennis Fever[edit ]
Ring Shot returns in Mario Tennis Fever as a type of Special Match and two Score Challenges, both in the Mix It Up mode of the game. Hitting multiple rings at once grants a multiplier bonus, and now rallying a Fever Shot through rings without letting it touch the ground provides a larger multiplier (up to 5x). Red rings worth double points can also appear. There are two timed rounds of 30 seconds each, and after each round, a special, flower-shaped rainbow ring appears that triggers Bonus Time when the ball touches it. During Bonus Time, rings rapidly spawn on the court while balls are continuously thrown into play by Lakitu. Additionally, players can lose HP when hit by the ball or by Fever Shots, following the same rules as in normal gameplay (when HP is depleted, players are removed from play for ten seconds in doubles, or have decreased movement speed in singles).
The Special Match mode is simply called Ring Shot and can be played from one to four players. Its rules are similar to the Ring Shot modes in Mario Tennis Aces: players compete in singles or doubles matches, passing the ball through various rings to score points within a time limit. Players must collect the most points in order to win.
The two Score Challenge Ring Shot modes are called 2P Co-op Ring Shot and 4P Co-op Ring Shot. In these modes, which can be played from one to two or four players respectively, both sides of the court work together to achieve a score within the time limit. There are four difficulties in the Score Challenge modes. The last difficulty is called Score Attack and features no goal, with the objective being to score as many points as possible within the time limit. The duration of Bonus Time varies per difficulty.
| Difficulty | Court | Score goal (2P) | Score goal (4P) | Bonus Time duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beginner | Stadium Court (Grass) | 500 points | 700 points | 10 seconds |
| Intermediate | Stadium Court (Clay) | 1000 points | 1200 points | 20 seconds |
| Advanced | Stadium Court (Hard) | 1500 points | 1800 points | 30 seconds |
| Score Attack | Stadium Court (Hard) | As many as possible | As many as possible | 30 seconds |
Ring Shot trials also appear in each of the Trial Towers: The Tower of Growth has the Chilly Co-op Ring Shot on the 3rd floor, the Tower of Resolve has the Disappearing Co-op Ring Shot on its 5th floor, and the Tower of Trickery features the Versus Ring Shot Galaxy-Style challenge on its 2nd floor.
Two playable characters and four alternate colors can be unlocked through Ring Shot: The pink and yellow Shy Guy alternate colors can be unlocked by playing a singles and a doubles Ring Shot Match, respectively. Wiggler and Blooper can each be unlocked by beating the 2P and 4P Co-op Ring Shot in the Advanced difficulty. Finally, the pink and purple Yoshi alternate colors can be unlocked by earning S Rank in the Score Attack difficulty of 2P and 4P Co-op Ring Shot.
Mario Sports Superstars[edit ]
Ring Challenge is a Training mode for Tennis in Mario Sports Superstars . It plays similarly to the Ring Shot game mode in Mario Tennis Open, with rings varying from five to one point depending on their size. Hitting multiple rings at once grants the player extra points, and red rings are worth twice as much as their regular counterparts. There are four skill levels for the Tennis Ring Challenge mode, all of which are played on the Grass Court and have a time limit of two minutes. Rings only reached by lobs or drop shots begin appearing in the Hard difficulty. The last difficuly, "Pro", has no goal, with the objective being to score as many points as possible within the time limit. Playable character Pink Gold Peach can be unlocked (in the Tennis mode only) by beating the Hard difficulty.
| Difficulty | Score goal | Opponent | Alternate opponent[a] |
|---|---|---|---|
| Easy | 500 | Yoshi | Diddy Kong |
| Normal | 450 | Peach | Daisy |
| Hard | 400 | Luigi | Mario |
| Pro | As many as possible | Donkey Kong | Bowser |
- ^ Used if the player selects the character normally assigned as the opponent
Gallery[edit ]
Ring Shot in Mario Power Tennis (during sunset)
Ring Shot in Mario Tennis Open
The Tennis Ring Challenge in Mario Sports Superstars
The second Yoshi's Ring Shot event in Mario Tennis Aces , held April-May 2019
Frenzy Time in Yoshi's Ring Shot in Mario Tennis Aces
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Names in other languages[edit ]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Note(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | リングショット Ringu shotto |
Ring Shot | [1] | |
| French | Défi anneaux | Ring Challenge | [?] | |
| French (European) | Ring Shot | - | Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64) | [2] |
| Tir aux Anneaux | Ring Shooting | [2] | ||
| German | Ringeschießen | Ring Shooting | [3] | |
| Italian | Tiro all'Anello | Ring Shot | [?] | |
| Portuguese | Tiro ao Aro | Ring Shot | [?] | |
| Spanish | Tiro al anillo | Ring Shot | [?] |
Yoshi's Ring Shot[edit ]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Note(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ヨッシーのカラフルリング Yosshī no karafuru ringu |
Yoshi's colorful ring | [4] |
References[edit ]
- ^ Mario Tennis instruction manual. Nintendo (Japanese). Page 23. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
- ^ a b Mario Tennis instruction manual. Nintendo (French). Page 64. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
- ^ In-game text.
- ^ 『マリオテニス エース』Ver.3アップデート! 新モード「リングショット」登場!. Nintendo (Japanese). Retrieved July 4, 2025.
[Edit] Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64)
| ||
|---|---|---|
| Playable characters | Default | Mario • Luigi • Princess Peach • Princess Daisy • Toad • Wario • Waluigi • Bowser • Donkey Kong • Yoshi • Birdo • Baby Mario • Koopa Paratroopa • Boo |
| Unlockable | Shy Guy • Donkey Kong Jr. | |
| Transfer | Alex • Nina • Harry • Kate | |
| Non-playable characters | Lakitu • Koopa Troopa • Bob-omb • Bob-omb Buddy • Piranha Plant | |
| Courts | Open Court • Hard Court • Clay Court • Grass Court • Composition Court • Mario Bros. Court • Baby Mario & Yoshi Court • Wario & Waluigi Court • Donkey Kong Court • Mario & Luigi Court • Birdo & Yoshi Court • Super Mario Court • Peach Court • Yoshi Court • Wario Court • Waluigi Court • Bowser Court • Piranha Court | |
| Cups | Mushroom Cup • Flower Cup • Star Cup • Rainbow Cup • Moonlight Cup • Planet Cup | |
| Music | "Donkey Kong Court" | |
| Miscellaneous | Gallery • January NP E-mail Newsletter Sweepstakes • Multimedia • Piranha Challenge • Ring Shot • September NP E-mail Newsletter Contest • Staff • Waluigi's Foot Fault | |