Mario Party DS

Link up with other DS owners and this is essential. [Jan 2008, p.88]

This is one of the best Mario Party games to come out in a while--but if Nintendo just took the liberty of making it online, this really could have been the best one yet.

Best of all, the developers have made it so that you need only a single cartridge to get a party going with as many as four people.

Taking your party on the road just got easy thanks to the first multiplayer portable "Mario Party" game. [Holiday 2007, p.79]

Just add ice. Getting a party started is easy with this multiplayer gem, thanks to a huge assortment of quirky mini-games and single-cartridge play.

Its wide variety of game modes and options lets you create a multiplayer gaming experience to suit any time frame, and the huge number of mini-games sets a very high, very consumer-friendly bar.

The truth be told, Mario Party DS is one of the better games in the series, with replay value galore -- especially if you got friends around.

If you have played MarioParty games before you know all too well what DS version is about. Neat, cute and smooth fun for you and three friends, throwing the dice to get you around the board and organizing mischief to the others inbetween collecting randomly scattered stars, minigames following each round to win some more money - you know the stuff. And if you don't then this is as good a time as any to learn what MarioParty means. DS version is no inferior to any other previous one so go check it out for some light hearted fun á la Nintendo. [Jan 2008]

If you want a template for how to provide a top value party game, this is as good a place to start as any. [Issue#17, p.88]

The number and quality of the mini-games makes Mario Party DS an easy recommendation to fans of the series.

Mario Party DS's strong line-up of mini-games with varied controls, interesting boards, and portable nature make it one of the best Mario Party games. The lack of online multiplayer two years after Mario Kart DS is disappointing, but Mario can still party on the DS.

Releasing Mario Party to the smaller screen has turned many of its ho-hum qualities on the console into considerable assets.

Mario Party DS is actually a pretty good Mario Party installment, but it's ultimately meant for gamers who regularly get together with their friends for some DS gaming.

At its base, it's really just a recycling of old Mario Party mini-games, and just doesn't feel new enough to be its own game.

If you're a diehard fan of Mario Party or you've never played one before, this isn't bad. For the rest of us, it's another unimproved, indistinguishable sequel-by-numbers.

A solid multiplayer mini-game experience with a lot of the flaws of the previous versions. It doesn't do anything truly special than create a bunch of touch screen and microphone-centric minigames (and even then we've seen variations of them in other DS titles), but it at least comes together as a better title than the last console Mario Party design.

The ability to score board items and extra puzzle games is a nifty bonus, adding to longevity. However, the Mario Party formula is too comparable to previous games, with dull artificial intelligence (except on Expert). Lastly, the absence of Wi-Fi support hurts the game's appeal.

Mario Party DS does a better job at retreading the core concept, however tired it may be, than last summer’s Mario Party 8. Barring a complete shakeup of the series, this seems to be the most we can hope for at this point.

The stylus might offer some new dynamic to these mini-games, but that doesn’t stop them from being repetitive when played solo. This makes playing with your friend a mandatory condition to enjoy it. [Jan 2008]

One of Mario's better parties; shame it's that same old irritating game underneath. [Jan 2007, p.60]

Like any Mario Party, this one's harmless fun, and it's especially worthwhile if you've got a group of friends and don't have to deal with the cheating computer. But the repetitiveness and shallow, luck-based gameplay just further drive home why the wacky, dynamic WarioWare has been crowned Nintendo's real party king.

Half of the events don't even bother with the touch screen or microphone, leaving us with too many uninspired, Nintendo 64-era minigames. [Jan 2008, p.95]

So while Mario Party continues on its inevitable course for world domination in Japan, we're left scratching our heads. We'd rather be partying with Wario Ware Touched!

The problem is, once you've worked out how each mini-game works, you realise there's little to no skill involved. In fact, some of them are completely random.

The franchise’s virgin release on the DS does little to mend the flawed reputation of its forebears, but nor does it represent a step back. [Jan 2008, p.133]