The Mario Party franchise has never failed to bring fun (and discord) to families and friend groups around the world. The premise might be deceptively simple, yet its minigames and boards are where the complexity comes into play. This balance defines the best entries in the series. However, recently, newer Mario Party titles haven’t quite lived up to their predecessors.
The Nintendo Switch’s first Mario Party title, Super Mario Party, was just sort of bland, with a memorable set of mechanics but boards that weren’t very compelling. Further, while Mario Party Superstars is good, because of the fact that they only used returning boards, there’s not very much creativity on display. As such, the announcement of Super Mario Party Jamboree woke up the franchise’s many fans due to how promising it looked. The graphics looked beautiful, the minigames looked fun, and the boards had creative designs and gimmicks.
After playing a fair few rounds of Mario Party with both friends and CPUs, I can confidently say that Super Mario Party Jamboree is a true return to form that fans of the franchise will love. Make no mistake: if you’ve been yearning for a new game to enjoy with friends and family while debating with yourself if you’d be better off moving out of your home and running away instead of losing a star, then this is the game for you.
Maximum Creativity on Display
The heart and soul of the Mario Party franchise lies within both its minigames and boards. Before Super Mario Party, both Mario Party 9 and Mario Party 10 relegated the acting to a vehicle that all the players shared. While Super Mario Party and Superstars returned the series to its roots, it never reached the same heights as previous entries on the Nintendo 64 and Gamecube.
With Super Mario Party Jamboree, the series has reached its greatest creative heights since Mario Party 8. To start with, let’s focus on the boards. When you first boot up the game, there are only four boards. There are three unlockable boards, two of which return from previous entries, while the last is themed around Bowser. This makes for a total of seven boards.
Unlocking the boards is a somewhat exhausting process, at least from what I’ve played so far. In order to unlock boards, you have to complete ten achievements. Completing those unlocks one board, completing twenty unlocks another, and completing thirty unlocks the last one. These achievements can vary from simple ones, such as “get first place for the first time,” to ones more complicated, such as “use every item.”
That said, the four boards that you have access to at the beginning of the game aren’t boring. Quite the opposite, in fact, as these boards were arguably some of the best in the franchise. The five opening boards include Mega Wiggler’s Tree Party, Rainbow Galleria, Goomba Lagoon, and Roll ‘Em Raceway. Each board has its own unique aesthetic.
For example, there’s Rainbow Galleria, which is built around the concept of a mall. Every few turns, there’s a flash sale where certain items, including stars, are priced at a discount. Additionally, you can collect stamps around the map at select stations. If you collect all four stamps, you get fifty coins once you cash them in at a spot on the map.
If I had to pick one, I’d say that Rainbow Galleria is probably my favorite map I’ve played so far. The music is great, and the colors really pop in both docked and handheld modes. Another map I got a kick out of was Roll ‘Em Raceway. The track is based on a Formula 1 track, and as such, you ride around the board in a race car. It’s so charming speeding around the course as you’re bounced around or chased by a random Thwomp.
I briefly played one of the unlockable boards, Western Land (which made its debut in Mario Party 2). Like the rest, it was an extremely fun time from beginning to end. Further, the boards all look beautiful, thanks to the vibrant visuals. The gimmicks were also great and weren’t too obnoxious or unfair. They struck the perfect balance between being challenging and fun to play on.
Of course, you can’t have a good Mario Party without great minigames. Unlike Superstars, there are quite a few brand-new minigames that spice up the fun in unique ways. There were a few great selections of individual, two vs. two, and one vs. three minigames that were all either absurdly difficult or way too easy. Unlike other games, though, this only added to the fun. After every minigame, I either celebrated as I walked away with ten coins or screamed in rage as I found I didn’t have enough coins to buy a star.
My favorite minigames were the ones you get when you’re recruiting a Jamboree Buddy. The Jamboree Buddy is a new mechanic similar to Super Mario Party, where you can recruit other members of the roster (such as Mario, Luigi, Daisy, Peach, etc.) to add more rolls to your dice. Here, they add a perk to your movement, such as automatically giving you a higher roll, stealing coins from people you pass, or placing a coin-steal trap where you land on the board.
These minigames were all customized based on the buddy you recruited. For example, Waluigi’s minigame is based around pinball, much like his Mario Kart DS map. On the other hand, Donkey Kong’s minigame involves playing the bongos, similar to his depiction in Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat. There are countless others to explore, and I look forward to the day when I can find them all.
Overall, Super Mario Party Jamboree strikes the perfect balance between great boards and great minigames. Both sides of the spectrum have some of the most creative designs ever seen in the franchise. On its own, this would be enough to justify a purchase. However, the game goes above and beyond and adds several other modes for fans looking for some variety.
What Else Is On the Table?
If you happen to be one of the few people who want more out of a Mario Party game than minigames and boards, then Jamboree has plenty of options for you. There are six or so alternative modes for those looking for a different experience. So far, I’ve only played a little bit of half of the modes, but what I’ve seen so far is very promising.
First, you can experience motion control-based minigames like Rhythm Kitchen, Toad’s Item Factory, and Paratroopa Flight School. These utilize the Joycon’s motion controls in various different ways. Paratroopa Flight School has you flapping your arms as if you have the wings of a Paratroopa. Toad’s Item Factory asks players to complete sets of puzzles that involve navigating a maze with motion controls.
By far, my favorite motion control minigame is definitely Rhythm Kitchen. In this mode, you assemble ingredients to the beat of a song. While all of these modes are extremely creative, they can be difficult due to the temperamental nature of motion controls.
Thankfully, there are other options for players who aren’t fond of motion controls. There’s the Koopathlon and Bowser Kaboom Squad, which put you in direct opposition to Imposter Bowser as you work with either CPUs or players around the world. You can also test out Minigame Bay, which allows you to play through the different minigames throughout Jamboree in various categories.
There are also some variations on the base Mario Party mode. The most notable is Pro Rules, which switches the luck-based focus of the traditional Mario Party formula to one more relying on skill. An example of how this works is that the Bonus Stars, usually announced at the end of the match, are instead announced at the very beginning of the round. This allows players to formulate a strategy to acquire them rather than hoping they’re lucky enough to earn them at the last second.
Above all, the biggest surprise mode I found was the Party Planner Trek. Once you enter the main hub, the Party Plaza, you can talk to Kamek, who is fretting over planning the upcoming party. You can ask to help him in the game’s equivalent of a story mode, where you can pick one of Jamboree‘s many playable characters to explore its countless boards.
You can help some of the game’s other characters by playing minigames and finding items around the map to help set up the board’s attractions, all while collecting a set amount of mini-stars. All of these options add a great deal of variety to the overall experience of Super Mario Party Jamboree. They’re a welcome addition, even if you find yourself only sticking to the main Mario Party mode.
Overall, Super Mario Party Jamboree has a great selection of boards, minigames, and alternative modes. At the end of the day, though, none of this matters if the game isn’t fun to play with friends. And thankfully, Super Mario Party Jamboree is one of the most fun games I’ve played this year.
Undeniably Fun
I had a chance to play Super Mario Party Jamboree with fellow Final Weapon writer Ryuji Shiryu. We hadn’t talked to each other that much, yet when we started playing the game together, we were talking as if we’d known each other for years. In my opinion, the magic of Mario Party lies within its ability to bring people together, as well as break them apart.
Ryuji lives in Brazil, and despite some minor stuttering, the game ran nearly flawlessly despite us living thousands of miles away from each other. Every match we played together, we found ourselves at each other’s throats one second and grinning like fools the next. We stole stars from each other, teamed up against the other CPU players, and celebrated when we won a minigame right before landing on a Bowser space.
It’s been a really long time since a Mario Party game has won me over so quickly. I’m already planning parties with my friends in the coming weeks and months where we’ll play Jamboree together. I can’t wait to see the arguments and conversations it starts. In a post-COVID era, Super Mario Party Jamboree feels like the perfect way to bring people back together.
I adored the time spent with the game. I loved playing through the different boards. I had a blast with all the different minigames, and I even enjoyed trying out the different modes. As I prepare to travel and organize more events with my friends and family, I fully expect to break out my copy of Super Mario Party Jamboree so I can enjoy the undeniable fun that the game has to offer. Let’s just hope no one hates me if I steal their star.
Disclaimer: Nintendo provided Final Weapon with a Nintendo Switch copy of Super Mario Party Jamboree for review purposes.
