What do you need to know before starting Mario Party Superstars? We tell you about it in this special on the party exploits of the Mushroom Kingdom
There are years in which Nintendo “wins” E3, and the Direct of June 2021 saw the Big N share the gold medal with Microsoft: one of the merits of the Kyoto giant was Mario Party Superstarsbut if you are unfamiliar with the series is the best time to summarize what you need to know before playing. To better appreciate what the title intends to put on the game table, in fact, it is good to understand what ups and downs have permeated the previous chapters of the saga. On the other hand, what better time to look back in view of such a celebratory episode?
What is it?
The first thing you’ll want to know, just in case, is what Mario Party is, before we get into Superstars specifically. In practice, up to four players roll dice to move around a board, not unlike game of the goose. At the end of each round, players are separated into teams (free-for-all, two-against-two or three-against-one) to compete in various minigames. It’s not the WarioWare delusion, but it comes close. The winner of each minigame earns coins to spend to earn Stars or to get items around the board.
The player with the most Stars (who can be stolen from each other; the tools allow this and more, giving space to the strategy) after a certain number of turns vince the match. However, this is not an entirely new chapter, actually. The basic idea, similar to The Top 100 on Nintendo 3DS, is to bring back minigames from past chapters. There are five of the franchise’s most beloved early-era scoreboards (Nintendo 64), along with a hundred of the most beloved minigames. At the end of each turn the game is saved, avoiding the usual “steel bladder” scenarios in single player.
What’s new – What to know about Mario Party Superstars
Although Mario Party Superstars consists of a collection of boards and minigames you’ve seen in the past, you’ll want to know what’s new. The series, as we have already mentioned, was born on Nintendo 64. After the development team, Hudson (Bomberman), was absorbed by Konami, the saga changed management passing into the hands of Nd Cube (Wii Play). Among the various innovations that the latter has brought, we have native online support. To meet this, the communication of impromptu reactions will take place through convenient stamps to be used even during the shifts of others.
In addition toautosalvataggio, with which we will be able to interrupt our games, we will have a new coat of paint with which the classic minigames and their scoreboards will jump out much more to the eye. Peach’s confectionery scenario already promises to be very appetizing. Furthermore, we will know in advance how much separates us from the next Star: a very useful addition in view of the various crossroads of the case. Finally we will have new characters to play with: many of them already know them, but some like Rosalinda were not yet born at the time. For the latter, the doors of some boards will open for the first time!
The characters – What to know about Mario Party Superstars
So let’s talk about it, since we brought up the cast. Based on the characters already seen in the promotional material (screenshots and videos), we have been able to draw up a preliminary list. There is a reason, however, if we talk about something temporary. As happened in Super Mario Party, even in the case of Superstars it is plausible that part of the roster is unlockable. For the moment, we can already focus on the usual suspects: Mario, Luigi, Peach, Yoshi, Donkey Kong, Wario, Waluigi, Rosalinda and Birdo. We will briefly describe them in a quick list, so that you can get to know them.
- Mario: Humble hero of the Mushroom Kingdom, who faces all kinds of challenges with the same attitude. Whether it’s his usual adventures or a delusional party, Mario is always ready to come forward with the cry of “Let’s-a-go”.
- Luigi: Minor twin of Mario, so named by the developers for the fortunate assonance with the Japanese word ruiji (“similar”). His continuous role as “player 2” has made him a bit of a coward, but good blood does not lie: he is moved by the same goodness of mind as his brother.
- Peach: Benevolent ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom, and unfortunately endowed with the least performing bodyguards in the gaming world. The constant kidnappings by Bowser for unspecified reasons (coup, or to the heart?) Are a constant source of adventures for Mario.
- Yoshi: After its debut as a mount, this voracious and cuddly dinosaur has become one of Mario’s most trusted allies. The plumber does not know that the whole Yoshis lineage has been taking care of him and his brother since they were infants.
- Donkey Kong: Grandson of Cranky Kong, the original ape who clashed with Mario in 1981. Since then, the Kong clan has abandoned the rivalry with the plumber in favor of a new nemesis, the Kremling people.
- Wario: Its role in Mario’s family tree is not specified, but suffice it to say that it is the exact opposite of the mustache in red. Naughty, greedy and rude: Wario is all this and much more, “but he also has flaws.”
- Waluigi: A mystery wrapped in an enigma, Waluigi first appeared in the first Mario Tennis just to give Wario someone to play with… well, doubles tennis. It will also be for this reason that it appears mostly in spinoffs, except the one in which everyone seems to want it.
- Beautiful rose: Once an orphan of her mother, Rosalinda has spent many years in the cosmos. Throughout this time she has risen to a higher level, so to speak, and Super Mario Galaxy has implied that she may also have become something of a goddess.
- Strutzi: Note how Bird in English, Birdo is often joined by Yoshi in spinoffs for the simple fact of spitting eggs as a hobby. In fact, her debut in Doki Doki Panic (from us Super Mario Bros. 2) saw her in the role of Mario’s dream enemy. Captain Rainbow, a Japanese exclusive for Wii, made a lot of jokes about its gender ambiguity.
The scoreboards – What to know about Mario Party Superstars
We will be dealing with five scoreboards from the Nintendo 64 era (aka the first three). We will also list their English names, so as not to cause confusion for those who have played the classic episodes. It’s a matter of Space Station (Space Land, MP2), Peach birthday cake (Peach’s Birthday Cake, MP1), Wooded Forest (Woody Woods, MP3), Tropical island of Yoshi (Yoshi’s Tropical Island, MP1) e Land of Terror (Horror Land, MP2). Each of them provides not only different advantages, but also challenges that players will have to face by adapting their strategies.
As much as chance wants its part (it’s Mario Party, on the other hand), playing without planning is (almost) useless. The Space Station board, for one thing, has a countdown timer in the center. Whenever zero is reached, Bowser’s mechanism is activated: the resulting beam will steal the coins from any player who is hit. About Bowser, you may have noticed that we have not listed it among the playable characters. Unlike recent episodes such as Super Mario Party, in the classic ones the king of the Koopas took on the role of a member of the boards themselves. We don’t know if it will be unlockable in any way.
List of minigames – What to know about Mario Party Superstars
We won’t go too far in this case, as this isn’t exactly the shortest list possible. We have a list of the minigames that you will find in this title, and unlike what we have done with the boards we will list them only with their original name in English. Of course, at the almost imminent release of the game we will find them with official names in our language.
Mario Party – N64
- Mushroom Mix-Up
- Cast Aways
- Hammer Drop
- Face Lift
- Piranha’s Pursuit
- Bobsled Run
- Tug o ‘War
- Handcar Havoc
- Tipsy Tourney
- Shy Guy Says
- Crazy Cutters
- Bombs Away
Mario Party 2 – N64
- Look Away
- Quicksand Cache
- Sneak ‘n’ Snore
- Roll Call
- Bowser’s Big Blast
- Cake Factory
- Speed Hockey
- Slot-Car Derby
- Mecha Marathon
- Balloon Burst
- Shell Shocked
- Hot Rope Jump
- Bumper Balls
- Honeycomb Havoc
- Bumper Balloon Cars
- Sky Pilots
- Dizzy Dancing
- Archer-ival
- Dungeon Dash
Mario Party 3 – N64
- Rockin’ Raceway
- River Raiders
- Storm Chasers
- Puddle Paddle
- Tidal Toss
- Parasol Plummet
- Etch n Catch
- Messy Memory
- Ticktock Hop
- Boulder Ball
- Picking Panic
- Vine with Me
- Spotlight Swim
- Ice Rink Risk
- Hide and Sneak
- Mario’s Puzzle Party
- Chip Shot Challenge
- Cheep Cheep Chase
- Coconut Conk
- Bounce n Trounce
- Motor Rooter
- Mush Pit
- Eatsa Pizza
- Snowball Summit
Mario Party 4 – GameCube
- Money Belts
- Paths of Peril
- GOOOOOOOAL !!
- Trace Race
- Beach Volley Folly
- Booksquirm
- Dungeon Duos
- Revers-a-Bomb
Mario Party 5 – GameCube
- Coney Island
- Night Light Fright
- Bill Blasters
- Ice Hockey
- Squared Away
- Later Skater
- Things derby
- Pushy Penguins
- Leaf Leap
- Tube it or Lose It
Mario Party 6 – GameCube
- Burnstile
- Rocky Road
- Mass Meteor
- Dark ‘n Crispy
- Trap Ease Artist
- Cashapult
- Money Belt
- Block Star
- Pit Boss
- What Goes Up…
- Catch You Letter
- Snow Whirled
Mario Party 7 – GameCube
- The Final Countdown
- Stick and Spin
- Spin Doctor
- Pogo-a-Go-Go
- Monty’s Revenge
- Pokey Pummel
Mario Party 8 – Wii
- Winner or Dinner
- Paint Misbehavin
Mario Party 9 – Wii
- Goomba Spotting
- Tackle Takedown
- Manor of Escape
- Shell Soccer
Mario Party 10 – Wii U
- Skewer Scurry
- Flash Forward
- Rapid River Race
A Mountain of Minigames – What to know about Mario Party Superstars
Playing other exponents of the party game genre, such as Crash Bash (direct competitor of the first three chapters), may have made you hungry. You will want to know if there is any way of just play the minigames and that’s it. Well, although it has already been possible to replay the minigames unlocked in previous episodes of the saga, you will be happy to know that there is a mode that responds to this specific desire. And, as you may have guessed, the one we used above is not just a powerful title: you will be dealing with a literal mountain of minigames.
Originally known as Mt. Minigames, this mode is accessible directly from the main menu and will allow you to compete with other characters. It will be up to you to decide if the latter are led by the CPU, by other friends locally or, why not, by other online players. There are no scoreboards whatsoever here: the only focus is and remains only the minigames themselves. To be able to give yourself crazy joy, you will have seven different paths to change things a bit. We talked a lot about the variety inside the software, but will we have freedom of choice also at the hardware level?
Where, when and how you want – What to know about Mario Party Superstars
One very intriguing thing to know about Mario Party Superstars is how much the development team learned from a mistake made in Super. The title is in fact conceived in such a way that it can be played in …