Homestretch
- This article is about the event that occurs in Mario Party games. For the downloadable microgame from WarioWare: D.I.Y., see Home Stretch.
- “We're down to the last five turns! Let's take a look at the current standings.”
- —Toad, Mario Party Superstars
Homestretch, originally called the Last Five Turns Event, is an event from the Mario Party series that takes place near the end of the board game. This event traditionally occurs just before the last five turns in games with a finite turn count, or near the end of the board in games where the board has an endpoint (such as Mario Party 9 and Mario Party 10). Every Mario Party game has had some form of this event, except for Mario Party Advance and Mario Party: Island Tour, although the latter has a similar unnamed event that occurs on the boards.
History[edit]
Mario Party[edit]
The Last Five Turns Event made its debut in the original Mario Party, which Koopa Troopa talks to the players playing the game to announce the current standings, then predicts who he thinks the Superstar will be at the end of the game. The prediction is chosen randomly; it is not influenced by the players' current stats and has no effect on the outcome of the game. Then, for the rest of the game, both Blue Spaces and Red Spaces are worth twice the normal number of coins when landed on (players will gain or lose six coins), and Koopa gives twenty coins to players who pass him, with the exception of Eternal Star, where Koopa Troopa is not present, or if the No Koopa item's in effect.
Mario Party 2[edit]
In Mario Party 2, the Last Five Turns Event is hosted by Toad (and Baby Bowser in Bowser Land), who first gives the current standings, then introduce a character to predict the Superstar. Usually, a green- or red-shelled Koopa Troopa predicts it, but if Mario is a participant, Whomp may sometimes appear to make the prediction and will always choose Mario. However, in Bowser Land, Bowser will always appear to make the prediction, choosing the last-place player or one of the last-place players if players are tied. The predicted player is given 10 coins from the predictor. From that point onward, Blue and Red Spaces' value are doubled again, and players that land on the same space as another player play a Duel Minigame with that player before activating the space, unless one of the players has no coins.
Mario Party 3[edit]
In Mario Party 3, the Last Five Turns Event is the same as the last game, but it is usually the Millennium Star who predicts who the Superstar is, giving them 10 coins. Sometimes, Baby Bowser hosts the event and lets Bowser predict who the loser is. The predicted player ends up losing 10 coins to Bowser. If Mario is one of the playable characters on the board, there is a chance Whomp will appear and award him 10 coins. Afterwards, Blue and Red Spaces' value are doubled once more, and players that land on the same space as another player play a Duel Minigame with that player before activating the space, as in the last installment.
Mario Party 4[edit]
In Mario Party 4, there are new changes to the Last Five Turns Event. Here, the board's host does a lottery if at least one player manages to get a Lucky Party Ticket from the Lottery Shop earlier in the game. The host spins a wheel showing all four players' faces. If a player's ticket matches all three faces shown from the wheel in order from left to right, they receive a Star. After that, the standings are given, with the characters' voices reacting accordingly to their positions (first and second cheer, third is shocked, and fourth is disappointed), then the host lets the player in last place spin a special roulette. Then, for the rest of the game, the board has one of these four new rules. However, only three of those rules will appear in the roulette, with the Coin Multiplier always being one of those rules:
- Coin Multiplier: Blue and Red spaces are worth double coins (an event from the previous three installments in the Mario Party series).
- All Red Spaces become Bowser Spaces.
- All Red Spaces become Fortune Spaces.
- Star Present: The price of Stars changes from 20 coins to being absolutely free, with no option to decline the Star.
Since Mario Party 4, if more than one player/team is in last place, the player/team in the bottom of the standings will be the one to spin a roulette. Also, due to the lack of proper Duel Minigames in Mario Party 4, Duel Minigames will not occur when a player lands on the same space as another player.
Mario Party 5[edit]
In Mario Party 5, Bowser hosts the Last Five Turns Event. He first gives the current standings as usual, then brings the player in last place to him to spin a roulette. Depending on the result, the board will have one of four new rules for the rest of the game:
- Plus and Minus Spaces are worth triple coins (and players either get or lose nine coins), a strengthened version of the old rule from the previous four installments.
- All Minus Spaces become Bowser Spaces (returning from the previous installment).
- All Plus Spaces and Minus Spaces become Capsule Spaces; existing Capsule Spaces are overridden.
- Five Star Spaces are on the board at all times.
Eldstar then shows concern over which new rule will be added.
Also, like in previous games, when a player lands on the same space as another player during the last five turns, a duel minigame is initiated.
In Story Mode, Bowser doubles the coins earned in duel battles (from Duel Spaces). If the player passes Koopa Kid, they will lose 10 coins if they lose the minigame; however, if Koopa Kid loses, he will lose 30 coins. If Koopa Kid passes the player, they will lose 20 coins if they lose the minigame, but if Koopa Kid loses, he will lose 10 coins.
Mario Party 6[edit]
In Mario Party 6, the Last Five Turns Event is hosted by Brighton during the day and by Twila at night. Whoever is hosting it gives the current standings, then lets the player in last place spin a bonus wheel, giving them one of the following:
- Blue and Red Spaces are worth triple the number of coins (so characters gain or lose nine coins), as well as gaining 15 coins when landing on their own Character Spaces.
- Receive 40 coins.
- Have five of their Character Spaces added to the board.
- Bowser Revolution: Bowser comes to take everyone's Coins and splits them evenly among all the players.
There are only cosmetic differences between Brighton's and Twila's hosting of this event.
As with the last game, if two players land on the same space, then it will trigger a Duel Minigame.
Mario Party 7[edit]
In Mario Party 7, this event is called the Last Four Turns Event, since the Bowser Time event occurs every five turns. Bowser also hosts this event, but makes Koopa Kid give the current standings (in reverse order, however). Bowser summons the player or team in last place to spin his roulette wheel and obtain one of the following bonuses or rule changes:
- Landing on Blue and Red Spaces gives and takes triple the number of coins respectively (as well as landing on one's own Character Spaces).
- The player (or team) receives 40 coins.
- The price of Stars is halved (for Grand Canal and Bowser's Enchanted Inferno! only).
- The price of riding Chain Chomps is halved (for Pyramid Park only).
- All Red Spaces become Bowser Spaces (cannot occur on Grand Canal, Pyramid Park, and Bowser's Enchanted Inferno!; there are no Bowser Spaces on Bowser's Enchanted Inferno! despite the fact that it is a Bowser board).
- 10 Koopa Kid Spaces are added on the board.
Like Mario Party 4, a Duel Minigame will no longer occur if a player lands on the same space as another player.
Mario Party 8[edit]
In Mario Party 8, this event is retooled and renamed Chump Charity, and is hosted by MC Ballyhoo. First, Ballyhoo gives out the current standings, as is commonplace with previous games. He then gives the player(s) or team in last place a piece of Duelo Candy. If the game is being played on Koopa's Tycoon Town, Ballyhoo gives the player(s) or team 30 coins instead. Then Big Top, his hat, showers the entire board with coins, placing a coin bag on each Red Space and one coin on all other spaces unoccupied by players at the time.
In King Boo's Haunted Hideaway, if a player receives a Star from King Boo and he rearranges the rooms, the coins and coin bags will no longer appear.
In Duel Battle and Star Battle Arena, there is a very similar version of this event called Special Bonus. Here, MC gives out the standings, and the losing player uses the dart wheel to obtain a prize to try to catch up to the goal before their opponent does.
The prizes for each board are as follows:
- DK's Treetop Temple - Thrice Candy, Springo Candy, or nothing
- Goomba's Booty Boardwalk - Vampire Candy, 20 coins, or nothing
- King Boo's Haunted Hideaway - Thrice Candy, Springo Candy, or nothing
- Shy Guy's Perplex Express - Bowlo Candy, 20 coins, or nothing
- Koopa's Tycoon Town - Bitsize Candy, 20 coins, or nothing
- Bowser's Warped Orbit - Bullet Candy, Bowser Candy, or nothing
Mario Party DS[edit]
In Mario Party DS, the Last Five Turns Event is renamed Final 5 Frenzy. In it, Bowser gives out the current standings as usual and gives the losing player a bonus, chosen by a wheel. All Friend Spaces are also changed into Duel Spaces.
Possible prizes presented in the Final 5 Frenzy:
- Get 20 coins
- Get 30 coins (Toadette's Music Room and Kamek's Library only)
- Get 1 Star
- Get 10 coins from others
- Stars for 5 coins (for Wiggler's Garden, DK's Stone Statue, and Bowser's Pinball Machine only)
- Get 100 Stars
- Get 300 Stars
The yellow prizes at the bottom of the wheel can never be awarded — if the wheel lands on a yellow prize, the wheel will suddenly turn to a different prize.
If multiple players are tied for last place, or if everybody is tied for first place, Bowser will randomly choose one of them to spin the roulette.
Mario Party 9[edit]
In Mario Party 9, the event is known as Homestretch! (in-game as Almost There!), and it occurs when the players are almost at the end of the board, when they pass by a green Toad. His green-spotted flag pops up beside him as he gives out the current standings. The last place player get a Slow Dice Block. Anybody tied for last will receive a Slow Dice Block as well, including if everyone is tied for first.
Additionally, minigames are now selected by the player currently in last place, not the captain (unless the Captain is in last). This does not matter who is hosting a minigame; the boss minigame is still selected by the captain, regardless of their position (except at Bowser Station and DK's Jungle Ruins, where players are not given the option of choosing which boss minigame to play).
- If two players tie for last place, one of them is randomly chosen to pick a minigame, regardless if the player is a human or CPU.
- The Captain can still choose a minigame after the Almost There! event if any of these situations occur:
- The Captain is the one in last place
- Everybody is tied for first place
- Three players are tied for last place (when playing with 4 players)
During the event, Bowser also appears and asks the captain if they want "a whole bunch" of presents; if the captain agrees, he turns three to six predetermined spaces into Bowser Spaces; the spaces that he chooses never change. If the captain refuses Bowser's offer, he gives the players "a few" presents by turning 2 or 3 predetermined spaces into Bowser Spaces. On some occasions, Bowser will chastise the captain for being "a stick in the mud", and act as though they accepted his offer. If the Captain in this event is a CPU, then they will always accept Bowser's offer to turn three to six predetermined spaces into Bowser Spaces. In Bowser Station, the choice is not given at all; Bowser automatically adds five Bowser Spaces to preset locations on the board. Four of the spaces are placed within the last six spaces of the route, along with a Jackpot Space and a Back Space; the latter's presence increases the odds of players being stuck in the gauntlet of Bowser Spaces for as long as possible.
Mario Party 10[edit]
In Mario Party 10, the events of Homestretch! vary depending on which party mode is being played.
In Mario Party mode, if played on any of the boards except Chaos Castle, the standings are shown, and then Blue Toad gives the player(s) in last place a Slow Dice Block, just like in Mario Party 9. If played on Chaos Castle, instead of last place receiving a Slow Dice Block, it acts like a Toad House, giving everyone a Special Dice Block before the gate opens. Then, if Bowser (or Yellow Toad in Chaos Castle) was not freed, the gate closes, leaving him sealed inside, then, Bowser Jr. appears and makes Bowser Jr. Spaces appear by throwing bombs on specific spaces. If playing on Chaos Castle or if Bowser had been freed before Homestretch, this does not happen. Finally, Blue Toad reminds the players to be careful on those last spaces.
In Bowser Party, Blue Toad reminds Team Mario to be careful on those last spaces. Then, Bowser Jr. reminds Bowser that Team Mario is close to the goal, then Bowser spins a roulette that can make him go into Big Bad Bowser Mode, add Bowser Jr. Spaces to the board, or give him an extra Bowser Dice Block. In Chaos Castle, this does not happen; rather, after Team Mario enters the last section, Bowser grows giant and merges his Bowser Dice Blocks into a Super Bowser Dice Block, which replaces the one-dotted face with a Bowser emblem which, when rolled, causes Bowser to catch up to Team Mario regardless of their distance from him. Additionally, Bowser now rolls after each player rather than waiting for all four players to take their turn.
A variation of the event also appears in amiibo Party, specifically after the minigame set before the eighth turn. When it happens, the standings are shown, then the person in last place gets a coin bonus. Afterwards, players can also pay 40 coins to get two Stars (or possibly 20, 30, or 50 if played on the Toad Board or at least if the top left corner is the Toad Board), and when landing on a Blue Space or a Red Space, players earn or pay six coins.
Mario Party: Star Rush[edit]
In Mario Party: Star Rush, this event, called The Last Hurrah, appears in Toad Scramble and Balloon Bash. In Toad Scramble, it occurs when the final boss appears, while in Balloon Bash, it occurs in the last three turns, like in the amiibo Party of Mario Party 10. The player in last place is given a choice between four cards, which may grant them an item (or an Ally in Toad Scramble).
Mario Party: The Top 100[edit]
When starting the fifth-to-last turn in Minigame Match in Mario Party: The Top 100, Toad will give an item to the last-place player as they enter the "home stretch" of the game.
Super Mario Party[edit]
For Super Mario Party, the event takes place during the last three turns. First, the current standings are shown, and Toad gives an assessment. A guest character, either the board's unique event character or Lakitu, will enter and pick a character whom they think will win, usually the one ranked lowest. That character will then receive an item. Blue and Red Spaces will have their coin output increased to six in most boards, and 10 in Kamek's Tantalizing Tower. Lastly, Kamek will turn the Bad Luck Spaces into Extra Bad Luck Spaces, which have harsher penalties.
In Partner Party mode, the events are slightly different. The standings, assessment, prediction, and item reward are the same as Mario Party mode. After the item has been distributed, the number of Stars that can be purchased at a time will increase from one to two, or two to three on Tantalizing Tower Toys. After Kamek changes the Bad Luck Spaces, an additional five allies will be distributed across the board for players to pick up.
Mario Party Superstars[edit]
In Mario Party Superstars, the event works much like it does in the Nintendo 64 installments, with the value of Blue and Red Spaces being doubled, players dueling whenever they land on the same space, and a winner being predicted after the current standings are announced. The predicted winner will receive a random item, such as a Hidden-Block Card, Warp Block, Super Warp Block, Triple Dice, Plunder Chest, Boo Bell, or Golden Pipe. They also have a chance of receiving 10 or 20 coins. If the board has Koopa Banks, they will make players who pass them pay five coins instead of three. Additionally, if the board's background music is set to "Modern" in the Option House, a unique "homestretch" variant of that board's music will play during the last five turns.
The predictor is chosen from a small pool depending on the board:
- Yoshi's Tropical Island: Cheep Cheep or Urchin
- Space Land: Snifit or Whomp
- Peach's Birthday Cake: Lakitu or Goomba
- Woody Woods: Woody or Monty Mole
- Horror Land: Kamek (daytime) or King Boo (nighttime)
Super Mario Party Jamboree / Super Mario Party Jamboree – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV[edit]
In Super Mario Party Jamboree and its Nintendo Switch 2 port, this event is officially called Homestretch. Toad announces the current standings, then declares that Blue and Red Spaces' values have been doubled, and normal duels will occur when two or more players land on the same space. After that, one of five special events will occur (two in Frenzy Rules at the start of the game), either chosen randomly or by one of the players (except in Pro Rules). The possible events are as follows:
- One player receives a Mushroom. - This is the only event that always appears as a possible option, and it is always the first event on the list. If the player chooses this event, they will receive a Mushroom, but if Yellow Toad chooses this event, the chosen player is random.
- Add one Star Exchange. - Add one more possible location to buy a Star, which can only be bought once and will be gone permanently after purchase. This event does not appear in Mario's Rainbow Castle due to the Star's fixed location.
- All players receive a Star Steal Trap.
- All players receive Double Dice.
- Blue Spaces and Red Spaces coins double. - Double the effects of Blue Spaces and Red Spaces again to 12 coins.
- All players' coins double.
- Add more Bowser Spaces. - Replaces two or three spaces with Bowser Spaces. This event does not appear in King Bowser's Keep, as Impostor Bowser manages the Bowser Spaces on this board.
- Add more Chance Time Spaces.- Replaces two to four spaces with Chance Time Spaces.
Toad will then give players two useful tips before the game continues.
If the player who was in last place during the Homestretch manages to become the Superstar, they will receive the "Miracle Worker" achievement.
Profiles[edit]
Mario Party 2[edit]
- Wii Virtual Console manual: "When you reach the last five turns of the game, Toad appears and announces the current standings, and someone will receive 10 coins. Also, the following rules are added."
- "Blue and Red Spaces are worth double. Gain or lose six coins."
- "When two players land on the same space, a duel minigame occurs."
Names in other languages[edit]
Last Five Turns Event[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | のこり5ターンイベント[?] Nokori Go Tān Ibento |
Remaining Five Turns Event | |
| ラストスパート[1] Rasuto Supāto |
Last Spurt | ||
| Chinese (simplified) | 最后5回合[?] Zuìhòu Wǔ Huíhé |
Last Five Turns Event | |
| Chinese (traditional) | 最後5回合[?] Zuìhòu Wǔ Huíhé |
Last Five Turns Event | |
| Spanish | Evento de las Últimas 5 Rondas[?] | Last 5 Turns Event | Mario Party 2-6 |
| Evento de las Últimas 4 Rondas[?] | Last 4 Turns Event | Mario Party 7 |
Homestretch![edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ラストチャンス![?] Rasuto Chansu! |
Last Chance! | |
| Chinese | 最後㙨㑹![?] Zuìhòu Jì Huì |
Last Chance! | |
| French (NOA) | Dernière ligne droite![?] | Home stretch! | |
| French (NOE) | Dernière ligne droite ![?] | Home stretch! | |
| German | Fast Geschafft![?] | Almost there! | |
| Italian | Traguardo in vista![2] | Finish line in sight! | |
| Manca poco![?] | Not long to go! | ||
| Korean | 라스트 찬스![?] Raseuteu Chanseu! |
Last Chance! | |
| Russian | Финальный отрезок[?] Final'nyy otrezok |
Final stretch | |
| Spanish | ¡Ya falta menos![?] | Not long to go! |
Chump Charity[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| French (NOA) | Pitié pour le Perdant[?] | Pity for the Loser | |
| Spanish | Caridad para Bobos[?] | Charity for Fools |
Final 5 Frenzy[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spanish | Frenesí Final 5[?] | Final 5 Frenzy |
Notes[edit]
- In the Mario Party 7 manual, it says 10 Blue or Red Spaces turn into Bowser Spaces in the Last Four Turns. This is most likely an error, as Blue and Red Spaces turn into Koopa Kid Spaces in-game.
References[edit]
- ^ Nintendo 公式チャンネル (November 30, 2024). よゐこのマリオでパーティ生活 前編. YouTube. Retrieved January 12, 2025.
- ^ «Traguardo in vista!» – 20 Mar. 2015. Mario Party 10. Nintendo (Italian).
