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Get down with Mario Party Superstars

Get down with Mario Party Superstars

Gather your mates, snuggle up on the sofa, then DESTROY THEM in the ultimate minigame arena. That’s right, Mario Party is back, and it’s better than ever!

 

By Jon Billinge, Writer

The old adage, “There ain’t no party like a Mario Party”, is a statement rings truer with each new entry in the epic party game franchise. So you can only imagine the kind of brilliant chaos the latest effort on Nintendo Switch is bringing, quite literally, to the Party.

 

From its beginnings on the Nintendo 64 right through to Super Mario Party (the 11th game in the main series), Mario Party has had us laughing, crying, winning and losing our way across its multitude of colourful and crazy boards and minigames for a whopping 23 years!

 

 

If you’ve never played Mario Party, the premise is simple. After picking your player character, you and up to three friends (or computer-controlled opponents, or friends/other players online) navigate a boardgame-style board by rolling a dice. Depending on where you land, you might be granted a bonus or suffer a punishment, stay put, or find yourselves launched into one of the many marvellous minigames on offer.

 

 

And it’s all about the minigames. Hugely varied, often challenging and always fun, Mario Party Superstars brings together five classic boards from the Nintendo 64 era, along with more than 100 minigames from across the wider series.

 

Here, we round up our pick of the minigames that are getting the remake treatment in Superstars. See how many you remember, then scroll down to see how long Mario Party Superstars takes to download with Virgin Media, and when it’s coming out!

 

Mushroom Mix-up (Mario Party 1)

 

Warning: this description contains a lot of puns. So, fan favourite and all-round fun-ghi Toad enlists his mate to raise and lower a series of different coloured flags. Depending on the flag colour he raises, one mushroom stays standing, while the other descends into the sea. With each round increasing in speed, there’s not mushroom for error. Toad you there were a lot of puns.

 

Bumper Balls (Mario Party 2)

 

Up to four players face off in a fiery arena OF DEATH. Each balancing atop a Swiss ball OF DEATH. Roll your ball into another player to send them bouncing, or just infuriate them by pootling around the outer edge.

 

Eatsa Pizza (Mario Party 3)

 

“If there was one challenge from a game you wish was real, what’d it be? Building the space station in Breathedge; searching for the SKATE letters from Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater IRL?”

“Eatsa Pizza.”

“Sorry?”

“Eatsa Pizza. You crawl on all fours around a giant plate, cramming as much of a humongous pizza into your mouth as you can, as fast as you can.”

“...”

* phone dialling *

“Hi, can I get an extra-extra-extra-extra-extra large please?”

 

Booksquirm (Mario Party 4)

 

Because reading is what? No, not fundamental. Reading is positioning yourself precisely within the outlines of a cut-out shape on a series of endlessly falling pages that’ll crush you flat without so much as a whisper. Reading don't care. Reading is ’ard. 

 

Pushy Penguins (Mario Party 5)

 

Penguins are so cute, right? Oh and they’re so caring, right? Wrong. Penguins will absolutely clatter you on their way to the ocean as you frantically fight to stay alive. P-p-p pick up a penguin? Absolutely not. Size of them! 

 

Snow Whirled (Mario Party 6)

 

Without question the raddest minigame from the series, Snow Whirled has you, well, whirling (and twirling) through the snowy air, racking up points as you rack up the spins. Coolest.Plumber.Ever. 

 

Pogo a Gogo (Mario Party 7)

 

Because why wouldn’t you enjoy the bounciest of pastimes on a creaky platform suspended 12,000 feet in the air? Players must avoid falling down trapdoors and bouncing into each other, and all while one player sits in the middle controlling the spin of the platform (and likely laughing maniacally IRL).

 

Paint Misbehavin’ (Mario Party 8)

 

Not only does this one’s name take us to pun heaven, its core gamplay is super similar to another favourite game of ours, Splatoon. Players operate a moveable cannon and fire its paint gun to coat as many wandering enemies as they can. With chances aplenty to derail your opponents with a well-aimed shot of Hague Blue TO THE FACE, things are going to get messy.

 

Shell Soccer (Mario Party 9)

 

Forget your FIFA and pawn your PES, Shell Soccer is the one true game. In place of a ball, players hurtle a turtle about in the hope of finding the goal. (No animals were harmed in the making of this minigame, though we’re not sure the same can be said for the players’ feet – that must hurt!)

 

Rapid River Race (Mario Party 10)

 

That name ain’t lying. Slow Stream Saunter this is not. This blisteringly fast racer has you darting between obstacles as you tear towards the finish line. One slip-up and boom: you're crawling back up from 0 knots. But at speeds this fast we wouldn’t blame you for self-sabotaging to grant yourself a quick breather.


 

How big is Mario Party Superstars?

The Legend Of Zelda: Skyward Sword download information

 

When can I play Mario Party Superstars?

Mario Party Superstars is available to play on Nintendo Switch from Friday 29 October.

 

When can I play Mario Party Superstars?

Mario Party Superstars is available to play on Nintendo Switch from Friday 29 October.

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