The game features eight playable Mario characters in all, four of which have to be unlocked. There are also even more exclusive human characters that Camelot made for the game. The two main characters (Neil and Ella) in Mario Golf: Advance Tour provide the basic characters for the RPG leveling system. The player can collect experience points by playing the game. These experience points are then transferred into levels which can then be used to upgrade and tweak the attributes of either Neil or Ella, depending on the players choice at the beginning of the game. Attributes include Drive, height, shot, impact, control and spin. A maximum level Neil or Ella character at level 99, will produce attributes that far surpass the other characters in the game.