iOS
AndroidSuper Mario Party ©Copyright by Gamdise Do not Reproduce. By JoJo
As with most entries in the Mario Party series, if you're looking for a solid, reliable party game, this will definitely do the trick. Super Mario Party is the best party of the two console generations. It eliminates some, but not all, of the slowness, and you can play tons of great minigames with a cool but imperfect Switch controller that's competitive, strategic, and most importantly, fun.
Super Mario Party has the largest roster of playable characters in the Mario Party series to date. The roster includes Mario, Louie, Yoshi, Peach, Daisy, Rosalina, Wario, Waluigi, Donkey Kong, Kuba Troopa, Hammer Brothers, Dry Bones, Shy Guy, Boo, Kuba, and Kuba Jr. All will be returning characters, and Bowser is fully playable for the first time. New playable characters in the series include Papa Kong, who has only previously appeared as a playable character in the handheld Mario Party games; Pom Pom, Goomba, and Monty Mole, none of whom were previously playable characters in Mario Party, although this is the former's debut in the series, while the latter two have appeared as NPCs throughout the series.
For the first time in over a decade, Super Mario Party returns to traditional turn-based Mario Party-style gameplay, a format that hasn't appeared in a home console entry since Mario Party 9. Super Mario Party is a series of popular virtual board games broken down by competitive mini-games - some of which are worth your time. Each player plays with a Joy-Con controller, no Pro controllers or joysticks are allowed, and other players need additional controllers for multiplayer. This allows developers to get creative without worrying about fairness between controllers.
The standard game mode "Mario Party" allows up to four players to take turns navigating the board independently. When it's a player's turn, dice are rolled to determine how much space the player can move around the board, and the items collected can be used to change how much space the player can move. A major difference from previous home console entries is the introduction of character-specific dice blocks: each character has a unique alternative dice block that has a different number selection than the standard dice block, with a slightly higher chance of rolling a 3 (Mario), rolling only an even number (Peach), and having a high chance of rolling dice but also the possibility of losing a coin (Bowser).
Another major difference is the incorporation of the ally system from the Nintendo 3DS game Mario Party: StarCraft, in which each player can recruit up to three allies from the roster. These allies can add additional rolls to the player's dice block, lend character-specific dice blocks to the player during gameplay, and can appear as an aid in some mini-games. Between rounds, players will play against each other in 80 different mini-games, which is where the fun begins, as moving around the game board can be tedious.
When it comes to minigames, there are a lot of them. Super Mario Party contains 80 different minigames, all of which are designed around the Joy-Con. This does mean that you can only play Super Mario Party with the Joy-Con, but we'll discuss that in more detail later. Each mini-game is designed to utilize motion controls, and you'll find yourself swinging it around wildly, mashing buttons, and desperately trying to show enthusiasm on stage.
After players see what the four standard boards have to offer, they can check out Super Mario Party's other game modes, which tend to be more fun. Partner Party allows players to split into two teams on a free-moving board, which is a nice change of pace from the typical Mario Party experience. Challenge Road requires players to complete mini-games under specific conditions and adds some much-needed challenge to the proceedings. Sound Stage, meanwhile, is a rhythm game mode that is one of the highlights of Super Mario Party, although it is slightly underwhelming compared to all the other content and can be fully completed in less than 30 minutes.
Finally, the game boards are great. They're unique and fun, like Whomp's Domino Ruins or King Bob-omb's Powderkeg Mine, which includes a nod to old school Mario Party games. The games themselves are very easy to navigate, even though you're limited to Joy-Cons. It's great for people who lack experience with video games, and it's great for kids, especially since Joy-Cons are so small. The games aren't hard to play, and some of them can be very fun. If you are looking for a fun, family-friendly game, then this is a great game to play.
