Mario Party 8

"Mario Party completes the console transition"

Mario Party 8 Review
By: Daveman

Mario is back again in his latest sequel! The Mario Party series has gone on for many years. This series has been one of the best multiplayer experiences to date. Now, I am not a hardcore fan of Mario Party. I do like the games, but I have only played a few of them (One or two on the N64 and MP7 on the Gamecube). I usually just rent these games when people came over but this time I decided differently. I bought Mario Party 8 with the promise of a revolutionary party game. Was I disappointed? Well, let's find out.

Gameplay: 9/10
Here's where this game shines. Mario Party 8 takes everything good about the series and applies it onto Nintendo's Wii. The party boards are full of variety and fun. A notable difference from all the other Mario Parties is that there is a much bigger element of luck involved in the game. This is usually a saw as a negative but in multiplayer games it adds another layer of fun. As the boards go, they're definitely a step up from the last Mario Party games.

Alright, now let's look at the gameplay for the most important aspect of the game, the Mini-Games. This is totally the best mini-game compilation for not only the series, but for any other game in its genre. The way that the Wii Remote is integrated into this game makes a lot of the mini-games seem fresh and new. It also adds a whole new element of competition, which I always like. There are bundles of original games that you will want to play over and over. Nintendo did a splendid job with this section

Story: 6/10
Now before you think this is an unfair score to drag this game down, let me explain. Since Mario Party 8 is not bought for a promising story or adventure, this category is going to be worth VERY little on the scores overall average.

So the story of Mario Party is the same (more or less) as the other games. A very competitive carnival is in town and the gang is here to battle for a years worth of candy. The reason I am going to give this a 6 is because the story is obviously lacking, but it does make an attempt at a plot.

Graphics: 6/10
Ok here is where I think that Nintendo got a little lazy. I want to say that this looks like a Gamecube port, but Twilight Princess was a Gamecube port and it looked spectacular. I really don't see the difference here between this and MP7. Since this looked like a good game for the Gamecube, I decided to give it a below average score on the Wii.

Controls: 10/10
Another solid aspect. People say that the Wii controls are “tacked on” in this game. Now there's another term that we see thrown around a lot. “Tacked on” means that the game was developed for a standard controller and in a quick port move, companies throw in Wii Motion. That is defiantly not the case with this game. Mario Party 8 was designed for the Wii Remote controller, and I can't help but feel like the series was meant for it. I couldn't find one time where I was attempting to do a motion and it wouldn't work. They are all so smooth and interesting.

Unlockables: 8/10
I like to make this section for these types of games. The “Unlockables” section is kind of like the “Replay” section from other reviewers. Mario Party 8 has plenty of unlockables to keep your busy and the best part about them is that you can get closer to unlocking treats no matter what type of game you are playing. There are characters to enable as well as mini-games, difficulties, etc.

Multiplayer: 10/10
One word: Brilliant. Of course this was expected seeing as how the game was created for its four player competition. Mario Party 8 is a gem at any gathering and in my opinion stands out more than WarioWare. I think this is because the game somehow builds more competition which makes victory much more pleasing.

NOTE: Do not confuse this rating with Online play, this game has no Wi-Fi which is pretty disappointing. Something to hope for in Mario Party 9 I guess. :D

Overall: 9/10 If you have people to join you most of the time.
7/10 If you are going to have a mostly single player experience.
Sorry to give you guys a double rating, but it really depends. Playing it for the first week by myself I noticed that I didn't enjoy it too much. I thought it was a fine game but WarioWare still beat it in singleplayer. However, after I started playing it with friends my opinion changed drastically. Mario Party 8 beat out WarioWare in a multiplayer experience.

So here I leave you with my final verdict: Get this game if you are in need of putting those 4 Wii Remotes to a good use. The multiplayer party option creates an endless amount of fun. However, if you know that your multiplayer games will be limited, go for a better singleplayer game, or just rent it.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 06/12/07