Gaming's two biggest icons, Sonic and Mario, will co-star in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games on the Wii and DS. Nope, it's not April Fool's Day yet, this comes straight from the SEGA.

So, what should we expect from what's probably the most historic title in gaming history? As you might expect from the name, the game pits characters from both franchises against each other in... the Olympics. Players will compete in events ranging from the 100-metre sprint, to swimming, to ping pong. For that added touch of realism that's so crucial for a Mario or Sonic game, the whole thing's set in the official venues of the upcoming Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games , due out in time for Christmas, is being published by Nintendo in Japan and by SEGA in Europe and North America. The license comes courtesy of International Sports Media (ISM), the exclusive gaming licensee for the Olympic Games.

“Mario and Sonic have been respectful rivals since the early days of video games,” said Nintendo guru Shigeru Miyamoto. “In fact, for a long time they have been discussing the possibility of one day competing against each other. Now that they have been given the perfect opportunity to meet at the Olympic Games, we may finally learn who is actually faster, Mario or Sonic?”

SPOnG reckons it already knows the answer to that, but something tells us the plumber plays a mean game of ping pong.

This is certainly an historic event. It's the first time a hedgehog and a plumber have joined together in the interests of sportsmanship and goodwill. With SEGA and Nintendo's partnership on this release, dare we hope for a platformer co-starring Sonic and Mario? If nothing else, SEGA seems to need a helping hand to rescue Sonic from its appalling next-gen offering.

So, one of the biggest gaming announcements in history comes just after a PS3 launch and on the same day as a new hardware announcement? Well, it could be a coincidence...