Mario Party

"The game that started the Mario Party series!"

Introduction: Mario Party was released in 1999 and the first game in the main line series. A total of nine games have spawned off of this game. Mario Party is a pretty awkward game if you started playing the later games in the series. Nevertheless, Mario Party is still a strong game.

Graphics: 10/10

The graphics for Mario Party were solid during its time. The main characters in this game are Mario, Luigi, Peach, Wario, Yoshi, and Donkey Kong. Nintendo also introduced many of the common Mario series characters and enemies and incorporated them in the boards and mini-games. The bulk of the characters are from the game Super Mario 64 which was a nice addition. The board maps have different themes with scenery that matches it. For example, Wario's Battle Canyon is dark, smoky, and shows the Bob-ombs battling.

Sound: 9/10

The music featured in Mario Party is pretty good for the most part. The music on the board maps fits the mood for that particular map. The score for the sound however is brought down by the character's voices. Each of the character's in this game seem to have the three different lines -- one line for winning, one for losing, and one for getting harmed. The characters could've of at least had more lines instead of the "Yeah!!!" for winning or "Oh no!" for losing.

Controls: 6/10

This controls in Mario Party is where the game lacks. First off, the controls on the boards are pretty simple. You primarily use the A button on the board maps to travel and navigate. However, the controls are displayed at the bottom of the screen if you need any help in remembering them. The controls in the mini-games however are the opposite. Some of the mini-games have basic controls where you just move around with the joystick or just use the A button to do a simple task.

However, some of the mini-games have horrible controls. The button-mashing mini-games are one of the more annoying type where you have to constantly push the same button in order to complete the mini-game. The problem with these type of mini-games is that they expect you to push the tiny A and B button on the controller. At times your hand seems to slip off of the buttons because it gets sweaty from constantly pushing the same button. You think the button-mashing mini-games could be enough? Well, the rotate-the-control-stick mini-games are far worser. In these types of mini-games, you are expected to rotate the joy stick on the controller in a clockwise motion constantly. The joystick is definitely not a pleasant thing to rotate. Most likely you will use the palm of your hand to rotate the joy stick. As a result, your hands will most likely get blisters. The use of gloves or cloth should be used in these type of mini-games. Luckily, there are only three-four types of these mini-games.

Gameplay: 8/10

If you are unfamiliar with the gameplay for Mario Party, then I will explain it. Before the game begins, you have the option of picking four players -- in which they can either be human or computer players -- and pick the number of turns and which board you want to play. After the rules are explained then all the characters hit the dice block to determine which order of turns they will go in. At the start of a characters turn, they must hit a dice block that contains. The number that the character receives is the number of spaces they move on the board. The space that they land varies. After all four characters have moved, a mini-game begins in which is determined by the space color the characters landed on. The point of the mini-games is for the characters to win coins in which they can use to collect stars. The game ends after all the turns are completed. The number of stars and coins are added up to determine the winner.

The board maps featured in Mario Party contain their own theme as mentioned earlier. Each of the board maps contains a special way to obtain a star. One board map requires you to travel around the board and pay twenty coins to buy a star while another board map makes you travel to a certain spot on the board. Each of the board maps contain different events that will affect gameplay. The events vary on each board map. Each of the board maps also contains Bowser who will cause havoc if a player comes in contact with him.

The mini-games are games that are mostly played after each turn. There are many different types of mini-games -- ranging from every man for themselves and team mini-games. The mini-games in Mario Party are more unique than any other mini-game in the Mario Party series. A character actually has the possibility of losing coins in a mini-game! For example, in Hot Rope Jump, the losing character lose fifteen coins while the other three characters get five coins each. Adding to the bad bunch of mini-games are the rotate-the-control-stick mini-games that include Tug-O-War, Paddle Battle, and Pedal Power. Those are the types of mini-games that you will most likely loathe.

Mario Party also has some unique type of mini-games that are good. Mario Party features team mini-games which do not appear in the later games. These games require the characters to work together and complete a certain type of task. If the whole team fails, then they will be penalized. If you look pass the penalties of the team mini-games, then you will actually enjoy these types of mini-games. Mario Party also contains single player mini-games which are pretty good for the most part.

Mario Party contains the coin bank in which is used to unlock secrets, items, and unlockables in the game. At the end of each game, the coins that you collected are added up and put in the coin bank. You then can purchase things from the Souvenir Shop that include new boards and items. There are tons of things to unlock in the shop that will keep you playing and collecting coins.

Mini-game Island is one of the best additions in this game. In mini-game island, you play all the mini-games that you unlocked in Party Mode. You must complete one mini-game in order to advance to the next mini-game. If you lose a mini-game then you lose a life. Mini-game Island can be played more than one time to unlock even more mini-games!

Final Recommendation:

If you are a big fan of the Mario Party series then you must buy this game if you can find it. If you played the later Mario Party games then this game will feel pretty awkward. However, that should not stop you from making a purchase of this game!

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 05/29/07