Mario Party DS

"A Fun Mario Party installment that could have been Better"

I've been a fan of the Mario Party series since the original Mario Party on the N64, which I used to play with all my family. I always thought this game would work very well on the DS, and I was really excited when it was announced. The Game does offer a great multiplayer experience, but I wouldn't buy this if I was a hermit with nobody to play with - and quite frankly, I'd rather Mario Party 2 or 3 was ported to the DS instead of this new game.

Story (8/10)
I don't think anybody ever buys Mario games for a good story - it's normally just: Peach has been kidnapped, go save her - but this game has a quite interesting story compared to most Mario Games. Our heroes (Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Peach & Daisy among others) are invited to a party at Bowser's castle. Thinking that Bowser is trying to make up for all the bad things he has done, they accept, only to be shrunken down in size and blown away by Bowser!

Music (9/10)
Nintendo games always feature energetic tunes, the sort that you hum in the shower. This is no exception. The sound effects are reminiscent of previous Mario games, and the background music never gets boring.

Graphics 6/10)
Could be better - definitely could. After playing games like Animal crossing Wild World and FFCC Ring of Fates, you will realize that this game doesn't really shine when it comes to DS Graphics. It has many jagged edges almost everywhere, and everything is basically the same as the original N64 Mario Party Graphics.

Gameplay (7/10)
Mario Party games are always extremely fun when you have a bunch of people to play with, and the DS Download play takes this fun one step further. However, if you're playing alone, you're gonna get pretty bored after 1 or 2 levels. And Quite Frankly, the Courses all seem to be dull, and the minigames repetative and bland.

Replayability (7/10)
This depends completely whether your friends will play with you or not. You could play this game constantly for days with a bunch of people - but certainly not if you were on your own.

Overall (7/10)
As I stated previously, I'd rather have Mario Party 2 Ported to the DS with a few minor modifications than this game. Compared to Mario Party 2, this game has dull levels and bland minigames, and isn't really worth the money your local game store will take off you. If you're a diehard Mario Party fan, get this game - if not, I suggest you rent it first.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 11/26/07

Game Release: Mario Party DS (US, 11/19/07)