4x100m Relay London 3DS

4x100m Relay
Category	Athletics
Characters	Heroes
Info	Pass the Baton! Get the receiver running, then... Hand off when the gauge fills!
Controls	Running start: Slide ⇔ on the Touch Screen. Baton pass: Touch the Touch Screen.
Difficulty	★ ★

4x100m Relay is an athletics event in Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games (Nintendo 3DS). You play the event with all four characters from the Heroes character set. The starting World Record for this event is 37.04, and the starting Olympic Record is 37.10.

Players are able to choose the order of the characters by pressing "B" multiple times to undo the character picking before you go to the event screen.

Gameplay

After the start, gameplay begins at the first baton exchange rather than during the opening sprint. To prepare for the handover, the player must slide left and right on the touchscreen, allowing the current runner to extend their run and increase the available time to pass the baton. Alternately the player can also make circles which improves the speed when running.

Once the handover phase begins, a timing meter appears with the baton moving toward the receiving runner’s hand. The player must tap the touchscreen at the correct moment to complete the exchange. The accuracy of this input determines how much speed the receiving runner gains. A perfectly timed pass provides the strongest speed boost, while weaker timing (great, good or bad) results in reduced or no speed gain. Missing the timing window will slow the team down. The player can try to get a perfect as early as possible so the baton moves from hand sooner. This process is repeated for the remaining baton exchanges.

After the final handover, the race enters the last sprint. During this section, the player rapidly slides back and forth or makes circles on the touchscreen to build speed and push the final runner toward the finish line.

Multiplayer

In multiplayer mode, all players compete cooperatively as one team. Players can choose their characters, and the running order depends on the number of participants. With four players, each controls one runner. With fewer players, individuals may control multiple runners. During baton exchanges, one player prepares the receiving runner while another times the baton pass. In the final sprint, all players slide together to charge a powerful finishing dash for the last runner.

Srategy development

Over the years some improvements to how 4x100m Relay is played have been made.

Improvement	Date	Description
Making circles instead of sliding	Sep. 9 2022	It was discovered that making (wide) circles boosts your speed at the running parts.
Multiplayer strategies	Aug. 5 2025	It was discovered that playing in multiplayer mode can give you faster times, as the time it takes to get your final boost is significantly reduced when playing on multiple 3DS consoles.