REVIEW OF MARIO PARTY SUPERSTARS: CLASSICS WITH SPARKLES
Many people who have been following the Mario Party franchise know that it has been in a bit a rut lately. Although the Super Mario Party provided passable entertainment for players (and was pretty well), it didn’t bring about the triumphant return that many fans had hoped for. What was Nintendo’s plan for the future? They chose to go backwards.
Mario Party Superstars brings back the glory days of the series, but with modern visuals. There was plenty to love about this franchise’s first online game, which featured a range of modes and online play. For those who grew up with the original games in the late 1990s and early 2000s, these feelings are doubly painful. With such a strong commitment to the past, there will be questions about what additional features would be necessary to make the experience more enjoyable. Like many other things, this will depend on how much you are comfortable with classic formulas being reinterpreted with a modern outlook.
STORY – THIS Is MARIO PARTY
Many people know that party-oriented titles like this one don’t allow for story to play an important role. Many people are aware that Nintendo games featuring Mario, his friends and other characters won’t have a complex narrative. These two elements combine to create a relatively shallow franchise in Nintendo’s archive. Mario Party Superstars continues to provide vague context for the games, and let players fill in the gaps from there.
This being said, the most important thing to say about any story is continuity. Different characters have made comments that suggest one is “going back to” levels from the past. There are levels that have been played in this, er ” Mario Party universe.”
GAMEPLAY – MIXING up TIMEFRAMES
Mario Party is now the blueprint of how party games should look. There are boards to travel on, currency you can collect, and mini-games that you can play. Superstars aims to keep it simple and not introduce anything new. The final product is a solid mixture of current and old qualities of life.
This latest iteration includes five boards and 100 mini games from past Mario Party game titles to create a “Best Hits” collection. It’s like Top 100 except with boards. Completely updated with modern visuals, it builds on the N64-era foundation and brings it up to the present. You can play standard party games and shop with currency earned by playing. Then, you can head to a mini-game-oriented mode where you can challenge yourself or others. The Mario Party can basically do most of the same things as in the first.
OFFLINE PLAY
Mt. Minigames is the mini-game-oriented mode. You can take part in various mini-game-based challenges. Some of these challenges are only available online. All can be played online. Do you feel like playing only coin-collecting minigames? There is a mode for that. What about sports games or solo puzzles? You can also choose a mode to do that. It’s much more satisfying than the “Mini-game Mode”, which allows you to select mini-games at your own pace and maybe a tournament or practice board. Mt. Minigames allow you to choose from a variety of mini-games.
It’s an Mario Party affair. Your Party Mode is complete. The Data House allows you to view records and organize your profile. Option House lets you adjust in-game settings. Finally, the Toad Shop lets you spend coins you have earned from Party Mode and Mt. You can use minigames for stickers, music and encyclopedia pages. There are two modes for actual gameplay content. Mt. Although Minigames offers many options, some might find the total content a bit lacking.
Party Mode is the best option when it comes to the “prime content” of the game. You’re sure to enjoy the five original boards if you have played them in the past. They have not been changed much but some new features have been added to make them more exciting. All across the boards are scattered lucky spaces that provide positive things for the player. Duel mini-games, VS spaces, and random bonuses can all ensure that one person is not in control. This is one of the most volatile games in the franchise.
This game features 100 mini-games, which are mostly very popular. Although some duds are back, the developers have the advantage of hindsight to choose fun classics. Superstars has the most number of mini-games out of any Mario Party title to date. The best thing about this game is the fact that you don’t need to unlock any mini-games. All are available from the beginning. This ensures that everyone can have fun.
Unlocking any real value is something I miss a lot. Although having all the mini-games and boards at the beginning is great, I like the feeling that I am being rewarded for my efforts. The Toad Shop has a lot of unnecessary items. You can only buy stickers that you can use to make in-game taunts or information about characters and boards you already know. There are no boards, characters, minigames or other items that can be used to add pizzazz to your gameplay. All content is available from the beginning. I think some secrets would be a good idea if you want to recreate the feel of older games.
