Played from: 3/4 - 3/11
Review: Mario Party 9
It has been five years and finally Mario has returned for a new party, that being Mario Party 9. The series has had its ups and downs, but it has managed to stay alive even to this day. There has been so much wait and hype for this game, and the fans worldwide wondered just what the developers were creating behind our backs. The final product was played through, and now a verdict can be made:
Without proper gameplay (or favorable gameplay at that) one will find it very difficult to even play a game for more than a few hours. Mario Party 9 fortunately has great gameplay. There are 7 one-way boards that are filled will all types of different characters. From a simple stroll in Toad Road to running for your lives in Magma Mine (rather, riding up), this game has something for everyone. Movements around the board a fast-paced and always keeping one near the edge of their seats, waiting to see what will happen to them in the future. Complaints because of waiting times have been for the most part answered (I still find those complaints pointless). All types of events can happen around the board when landing on certain spaces considering how many different ones there are(randomness is high, but I don't see that as negative). Some include Green Spaces which do nothing (there aren't a lot of those surprisingly enough), Lucky Spaces allow you to gain more Mini-Stars (usually), there are Unlucky Spaces which do the opposite of what the Lucky Spaces do, Blue spaces will allow you to open a red box with a dice item (which are just about the only type of items in the game (unfortunately)) which can be used to one's advantage, and can even contain a few mini-stars or even a random mini-game. Speaking of random and mini-games, they aren't chosen at random anymore. It gives some an advantage if they really dont want to play a certain mini-game which they may loathe.
- Mini-games play a large role in defining Mario Party, and this game delivers all sorts of mini-games. From fast paced Speeding Bullets to a more calm 10 to Win there's something everyone is good at. Luck-based mini-games have diminished to a smaller amount, so that's a good fix. The inclusions of the Bowser Event Reverse Mini-games are also nice add-ons but it would be nicer if more of them were included. Losing is the way to win for those!! Who ever thought you'd actually want to lose? The Battle mini-games are also fun, but the stakes aren't all that large. It'll be nicer if they were larger than how they appear to be. The biggest catch from mini-games of course have to be the boss mini-games, one of them half-way through the board (roughly) and another at the very end. They are a great way to stock in on Mini-Stars if you have been extremely unlucky. It may be the case that some are just unlucky, but if one is exceptional in the mini-game category, take advantage of that to score big on these mini-games. They are worth the win.
-The worst part of the gameplay (but isn't terribly bad in my opinion) is the lack of the real freedom which previous Mario Party games had. Diminished freedom to roam the board how one wishes to, affects a player in more ways than one. I have realized that before playing, though I expected to be under a larger disappointment than what I actually experienced. It's actually not too bad traveling around together and it really is nothing that would make me believe that the game is completely ruined. I sometimes am able to use the moves of other players to my advantage; however I cannot rely on that to its entirety either. But to make this perfectly clear, I'm not saying that I sort of dislike this idea because I prefer the older formula; I'm stating this in a sense that the freedom to make most of the choices your own is very low, and that's not good. This Car idea can possibly drive the series into something good into the future though, as we only have a little taste of what NdCube can do with Mario Party.
- The Story is simple: Bowser comes to crash the party as usual. It'll be nice to see someone else for a change, but nothing to complain about. Everyone loves that Bowser. He wants Mini-stars here and there to use for his own purposes (whatever they may be). About a dozen henchmen are sent to destroy Mario and his friends (somehow), and they are critters which we have seen all throughout the Mushroom Kingdom: from the creepy cloud guy Lakitu, to the dead Koopa Dry Bones. In the Solo (Story) Mode, its nice that one is able to move on to the next stage without actually winning, especially since how it's easier to lose now because of that lost freedom and increased chances of messing up.
-The graphics, they are how Mario Party 8 should have been. They are bright and colorful which are also polished and appear done well enough to appeal to the player, even those who could care less about good graphics. However, there are some drawbacks. Some places lack enough shadows and textures, in that they look unfinished. Not as bad as Mario Party 8 by any means, but not what the Nintendo Wii was designed to do.
-The sounds and music are as cheerful as ever. Happy and gleeful when one is enjoying themselves, and loud with power when something large occurs. Of course, one may even be enjoying themselves as they watch another player face their untimely doom while listening to that loud and powerfully evil music. The voices for the characters are as they have been, but there are signs of re-used voices (like Daisy's "oh oh oh, yeeeaaaahhh!!!" from Mario Kart Wii during the Speeding Bullets mini-game). At least the voices remained as they have been this past generation without changing the actors, because they have been working out for the past few years.
- The biggest disappointment is the absence of Wi-Fi connectivity. The Wii has been in the market for almost 6 years, so developers should already know how Wi-Fi on Wii works. It may not have in-depth content as the competitors, but it still can do enough to have people spend numerous hours glued to the TV playing online matches back and forth. My question to NdCube is simple: why didn't you include a Wi-Fi mode in Mario Party 9? Don't know what to include in it or something?
- Mario Party 9 is a move in the right direction for the series; however some are capable of finding "large" problems with it. Reviewers (and fans) across the internet tend to agree with one thing though: its heavily based on chance, and therefore it needs to be docked points and complaints must be shouted out. Well lawdeedaw, its a BOARD GAME. I capitalize the words board and game to emphasize how little meaning those constant pointless complaints have. If one has expectations for thinking that chance won't play a good factor in the gameplay of a board game, then that one person is setting themselves up for an inevitable disappointment; therefore they are creating the problem for themselves. Many reviews around the internet have also complained due to the large amounts of possible randomness (they apparently dont understand the concept of a board game). That's not my approah, I refuse to make a big deal out of too much randomness or chance as that is what defines a board game for the most part. This game is great (even if some is luck based) for a long 5 year wait, and hopefully will be able to set some standard for the next Mario Party games, whenever they are released. Its a great game, and though it's preferable to play with a friend, it's still pretty fun if you play alone. Grab a Wii-remote, and start playing it! Well, after you buy it.
Gameplay 8.1/10
Graphics 8.6/10
Sound 7.9/10
Appeal 9.2/10
Overall: 8.45/10
Review: Mario Party 9
It has been five years and finally Mario has returned for a new party, that being Mario Party 9. The series has had its ups and downs, but it has managed to stay alive even to this day. There has been so much wait and hype for this game, and the fans worldwide wondered just what the developers were creating behind our backs. The final product was played through, and now a verdict can be made:
Without proper gameplay (or favorable gameplay at that) one will find it very difficult to even play a game for more than a few hours. Mario Party 9 fortunately has great gameplay. There are 7 one-way boards that are filled will all types of different characters. From a simple stroll in Toad Road to running for your lives in Magma Mine (rather, riding up), this game has something for everyone. Movements around the board a fast-paced and always keeping one near the edge of their seats, waiting to see what will happen to them in the future. Complaints because of waiting times have been for the most part answered (I still find those complaints pointless). All types of events can happen around the board when landing on certain spaces considering how many different ones there are(randomness is high, but I don't see that as negative). Some include Green Spaces which do nothing (there aren't a lot of those surprisingly enough), Lucky Spaces allow you to gain more Mini-Stars (usually), there are Unlucky Spaces which do the opposite of what the Lucky Spaces do, Blue spaces will allow you to open a red box with a dice item (which are just about the only type of items in the game (unfortunately)) which can be used to one's advantage, and can even contain a few mini-stars or even a random mini-game. Speaking of random and mini-games, they aren't chosen at random anymore. It gives some an advantage if they really dont want to play a certain mini-game which they may loathe.
- Mini-games play a large role in defining Mario Party, and this game delivers all sorts of mini-games. From fast paced Speeding Bullets to a more calm 10 to Win there's something everyone is good at. Luck-based mini-games have diminished to a smaller amount, so that's a good fix. The inclusions of the Bowser Event Reverse Mini-games are also nice add-ons but it would be nicer if more of them were included. Losing is the way to win for those!! Who ever thought you'd actually want to lose? The Battle mini-games are also fun, but the stakes aren't all that large. It'll be nicer if they were larger than how they appear to be. The biggest catch from mini-games of course have to be the boss mini-games, one of them half-way through the board (roughly) and another at the very end. They are a great way to stock in on Mini-Stars if you have been extremely unlucky. It may be the case that some are just unlucky, but if one is exceptional in the mini-game category, take advantage of that to score big on these mini-games. They are worth the win.
-The worst part of the gameplay (but isn't terribly bad in my opinion) is the lack of the real freedom which previous Mario Party games had. Diminished freedom to roam the board how one wishes to, affects a player in more ways than one. I have realized that before playing, though I expected to be under a larger disappointment than what I actually experienced. It's actually not too bad traveling around together and it really is nothing that would make me believe that the game is completely ruined. I sometimes am able to use the moves of other players to my advantage; however I cannot rely on that to its entirety either. But to make this perfectly clear, I'm not saying that I sort of dislike this idea because I prefer the older formula; I'm stating this in a sense that the freedom to make most of the choices your own is very low, and that's not good. This Car idea can possibly drive the series into something good into the future though, as we only have a little taste of what NdCube can do with Mario Party.
- The Story is simple: Bowser comes to crash the party as usual. It'll be nice to see someone else for a change, but nothing to complain about. Everyone loves that Bowser. He wants Mini-stars here and there to use for his own purposes (whatever they may be). About a dozen henchmen are sent to destroy Mario and his friends (somehow), and they are critters which we have seen all throughout the Mushroom Kingdom: from the creepy cloud guy Lakitu, to the dead Koopa Dry Bones. In the Solo (Story) Mode, its nice that one is able to move on to the next stage without actually winning, especially since how it's easier to lose now because of that lost freedom and increased chances of messing up.
-The graphics, they are how Mario Party 8 should have been. They are bright and colorful which are also polished and appear done well enough to appeal to the player, even those who could care less about good graphics. However, there are some drawbacks. Some places lack enough shadows and textures, in that they look unfinished. Not as bad as Mario Party 8 by any means, but not what the Nintendo Wii was designed to do.
-The sounds and music are as cheerful as ever. Happy and gleeful when one is enjoying themselves, and loud with power when something large occurs. Of course, one may even be enjoying themselves as they watch another player face their untimely doom while listening to that loud and powerfully evil music. The voices for the characters are as they have been, but there are signs of re-used voices (like Daisy's "oh oh oh, yeeeaaaahhh!!!" from Mario Kart Wii during the Speeding Bullets mini-game). At least the voices remained as they have been this past generation without changing the actors, because they have been working out for the past few years.
- The biggest disappointment is the absence of Wi-Fi connectivity. The Wii has been in the market for almost 6 years, so developers should already know how Wi-Fi on Wii works. It may not have in-depth content as the competitors, but it still can do enough to have people spend numerous hours glued to the TV playing online matches back and forth. My question to NdCube is simple: why didn't you include a Wi-Fi mode in Mario Party 9? Don't know what to include in it or something?
- Mario Party 9 is a move in the right direction for the series; however some are capable of finding "large" problems with it. Reviewers (and fans) across the internet tend to agree with one thing though: its heavily based on chance, and therefore it needs to be docked points and complaints must be shouted out. Well lawdeedaw, its a BOARD GAME. I capitalize the words board and game to emphasize how little meaning those constant pointless complaints have. If one has expectations for thinking that chance won't play a good factor in the gameplay of a board game, then that one person is setting themselves up for an inevitable disappointment; therefore they are creating the problem for themselves. Many reviews around the internet have also complained due to the large amounts of possible randomness (they apparently dont understand the concept of a board game). That's not my approah, I refuse to make a big deal out of too much randomness or chance as that is what defines a board game for the most part. This game is great (even if some is luck based) for a long 5 year wait, and hopefully will be able to set some standard for the next Mario Party games, whenever they are released. Its a great game, and though it's preferable to play with a friend, it's still pretty fun if you play alone. Grab a Wii-remote, and start playing it! Well, after you buy it.
Gameplay 8.1/10
Graphics 8.6/10
Sound 7.9/10
Appeal 9.2/10
Overall: 8.45/10
