Mario Party Superstars Review - Break Out The Pizza and Beer — Too Much Gaming

Like millions of Millennials, my history with the Mario Party series goes way back to the first one on the N64, when, for a time, the games were a staple of the late-night gaming sessions Carlos, myself, and our mutual friends would partake in. My siblings and I also killed time with the series, though only about half of that time was actually enjoyable - I’ll never forget the drama that would ensue between my brothers and I whenever someone would, say, threaten to steal a Star, or agree to throw a 2-vs-2 or 3-vs-1 match to keep a dominant player from being able to grab the Star on their next turn.

During the Wii and Wii U eras, Nintendo tried many experiments with the simple board game-like experience, but none of the variants really stuck the landing. An over-reliance on motion controls and gimmicks complicated the experience, stripping it of its simplicity and accessibility. In 2018, Super Mario Party successfully recaptured the feel of the older titles, and the personalized dice blocks were a nice touch. However, with only four small boards, no handheld support, a mixed bag of mini-games, and only Joy-Con controllers being supported with many motion-controlled games, there was a lot of room for improvement.

You’re A Superstar, Get Your Game On, Go Play

Enter Mario Party Superstars, a happy medium between the board-focused Super Mario Party and the recent Mario Party: The Top 100, a collection of some of the series’ best mini-games. Superstars leans heavily on nostalgia and formula, bringing back remastered boards from the first three Mario Party titles on the N64 and a collection of mini-games, music, and competitive modes from the whole series, but with an emphasis on the N64 and GameCube eras. It also has a plethora of options for Local and Online play, including 3-vs-1 matches, 2-vs-2 matches, boards, and mini-game marathons.

All of the extra features are well-implemented and make good use of the many mini-games. I dusted off my N64 and tried out the first three Mario Party titles in order to compare them with this new game, and as far as I could tell, almost all of the minigames’ precise mechanics remain intact. For the most part, developer NDCube strove to successfully adapt these games into HD, granting them a new coat of paint without taking away the elements that made them special. The classic Hot Rope Jump, for instance, is just as fun and tricky as ever. Rare exceptions to the rule involve toning down certain animations in mini-games to make them less violent (the explosion in Bowser’s Big Blast got nerfed, for instance).

In-game challenges also add a lot of replay value to some of the mini-games, with splendidly-realized dedicated game modes for taking on mini-games in gauntlet form, both locally and online. You can also team up with a friend or two against CPUs, the difficulty of which ranges from Easy to Master. However, despite the great presentation and gameplay options, I was not always impressed by the selection of games chosen for this title. Many of the games overlap with Mario Party: The Top 100. Did both titles really need the simplistic button-mashing Mecha Marathon, control stick-breaking Tug o’ War, or gimmicky Eatsa Pizza over my absolute favorite minigame ever, Lights Out? Where are classics like Three Throw, Blame It On the Crane, Shock, Drop, or Roll, Running of the Bulb, Chump Rope, or Mob Sleds?

All That Glitters Ain’t Gold

Of course, the return to a more traditional, turn-based Mario Party means that during normal board play, there’s a lot more waiting around for others to take their turns, which I’m personally fine with, even if it means all you can do is send ‘Stickers’ (which act like image-based messages to other players) in the meantime. The absence of personalized dice also means much less precise control and more reliance on RNG, although the game does offset this somewhat by providing a healthy offering of Lucky Spaces and Shops to keep the player stocked with items such as Double and Triple Dice, Custom Roll Dice, and the like.

A nice touch is the ability to toggle Bonus Stars between On, Classic, and Off, and to pick between several different “playlists” of Mini-games, including by era, or by skill. Another great quality-of-life improvement is the ability to extend the number of turns while a game is ongoing, although for balance reasons, this can only be done once, and before the final turn.

As for the boards themselves, a better batch could easily have been chosen. Space Land’s overzealous Sniftit Patrol (the Shy Guy cops) greatly slows down progression. Peach’s Birthday Cake’s carnivorous Piranha Plants and fixed Star location make it a decent (if somewhat repetitive) competitive map, as each playthrough will end up being a cutthroat endeavor, and thanks to how you’ll essentially be forced to play Russian roulette in order to avoid Bowser’s section, the roll order makes a huge difference. The other three boards are fine, if uneventful.

Easily the most exciting part of Horror Land is the fact that King Boo, once unlocked behind a Skeleton Key gate, will steal up to three Stars - one from each of your rivals - for 150 coins. It would have been great to see at least one original board made specifically for the game’s unique blend of Lucky Spaces, Chance Time, and plethora of shops and Hidden Blocks, but alas. Perhaps we’ll get some DLC, which would be more than welcome, as the small base roster of characters and significant overlap in mini-games with The Top 100 leaves quite a bit of room for improvement

Quality Of Life Changes Can’t Fix Outdated Ideas

My final caveat with this title is one that has been a recurrent issue throughout the series’ history: the wonky game balance. Multiple times, someone would be able to collect two Stars in a single turn, thanks to the Star moving just ahead of the character on the board, instead of on the other side of the map as in the more balanced series entries. Hidden Blocks also gave out Stars far too often, and too often to those in the top two positions. The totally unfair Chance Time, which was the reason my siblings and I literally stopped playing Mario Party 3, remains a terrible mechanic. Some of the Duel games, such as Mass Meteor, are downright dumb or frustrating. Golden Pipes (25 coins) appear liberally in later turns, and as Shops are abundant and don’t sell out and the item takes players directly to the Star, they tend to trivialize board traversal and disproportionately affect the game balance.

I played Mario Party Superstars with my wife and Mom, and we had a few fun nights reliving childhood memories. I’m glad to report that no one’s feelings were hurt. However, after seeing them struggle for minutes on end in Practice mode to get the controls and timing on certain games (and feeling bad that despite my best efforts to help them out, I ended up winning every game), I got to thinking about the RNG-to-skill factor, cutthroat gameplay, and resource-stealing built into these titles, and how the Mario Party series in general features a tad too many casino-like and light gambling elements for me to feel comfortable recommending it to families who don’t already thrive on competition.

For better or worse, Mario Party Superstars delivers on its promise of bringing the best elements of the classic era of Mario Party to vivid life on the Switch, though even with a variety of gameplay styles and customization options, the formula is showing its age, and the loose combination of RNG hijinx and skill-based gameplay won’t be for everyone. Now that I have a family of my own and very little free time, I’m far more conscientious and choosy regarding the quality of the media that I spend my time on, and while Nintendo and NDCube undoubtedly did a great job adapting many of the best elements of Mario Party for modern Switch owners, a part of me has to wonder whether this game’s target audience would be better served by playing something more meaty and balanced.

7/10

HIGHLIGHTS

PROS

Excellent updates for classic mini-games and N64 boards
Many options for customizing your experience
Online play and mini-game gauntlets and challenges add replay value

CONS:

Lack of variety in its small character roster and limited board selection
Significant mini-game overlap with Mario Party: The Top 100, while leaving out many classic games
Several small but cumulative game balance issues