Mario Party 5

Mario Party 5 is the fifth installment in the Mario Party series. Like its namesake, it is a party game for the Nintendo GameCube that up to four players can participate in, succeeding the Nintendo GameCube's first Mario Party installment, Mario Party 4. It was first released in November 10, 2003 in North American territories, approximately one year after Mario Party 4 was released. As in other Mario Party installments, players interact with one another in virtual boards, playing as various Mario characters. Players then can participate in various mini-games at the end of every turn in the board, each with their own set of rules and settings. The most notable change in this game is that the item system that was first introduced in Mario Party 2 was replaced with the new Capsule system, where players can not only use them for their own advantage but set up traps for other players to fall into; Mario Party 6 and Mario Party 7 would later return the capsule system (now called Orbs) and add new mechanics to the capsules. Mario Party 5 also introduces new modes such as Super Duel Mode, where players can battle each other on battle machines and Bonus Mode, where players can play special mini-games, similar to Mario Party 4's Extra Mode. The game is also significant for being the second in the series to introduce 3D game boards. Previous titles, all except for Mario Party 4, use pre-rendered backgrounds, which are static and limited in their presentation. As a result, all subsequent Mario Party titles, with the exception of Mario Party Advance on the Game Boy Advance, have employed 3D backgrounds allowing for much more dynamic fields of play.

Mario Party 5 features the Star Spirits (known as Star Guards in this game) from Paper Mario as the main hosts of the game, where one of them guides the player through each of the game's various modes. The game features a dream-theme, where the game takes place in the Dream Depot and each of the boards' names have "Dream" suffixes. In the game's Story Mode, geared towards single players, a playable character has to face Bowser and the Koopa Kids (known as Mini Bowser in the PAL version), who invade the Dream Depot, and need to challenge them in every stage.

Mario Party 5 became part of the Nintendo Player's Choice label in October 22, 2004, and won the Console's Children award at the 2004 Interactive Achievement Awards.

Story
From the Mario Party 5 instruction booklet: In the night sky, past the moon and beyond the stars, there's a dream world known as Dream Depot, where everyone's dreams come together. This is the real land of dreams... In this land, there are Star Guards who protect the dreams of all. One dreamy night, the Star Guards thought of something. "Many dreams arrive here at Dream Depot every day," they said, "so... why don't we offer those with the power of dreaming a chance to visit?" In the end, they decided to invite Mario and his closest friends because, when it comes to dreamers, nobody dreams bigger than they do! So the Star Guards prepared for their guests' arrival by creating many fun-filled games for them to play. And that is how the story of Mario and his friends both old and new began!

In Story Mode, Bowser and Koopa Kid are planning to ruin everyone's dreams, and players must stop Bowser from taking over said dreams. If players clear the six boards, they must face the Koopa Kids in Bowser Nightmare, and if they beat that board, they fight Bowser in Frightmare.

Gameplay
The gameplay in Mario Party 5 is the same as in other installments. Players move around the board by rolling a Dice Block numbered one through ten. The game begins by deciding the order of play with Dice Blocks. Players who roll the highest numbers get to start their turn sooner. Then players are given ten coins to start. The object of the game is to collect as many Stars as possible. Each Star is worth 20 coins. Stars appear in random, set locations, which get shuffled every time a player acquires a Star. Players can earn coins to purchase these Stars by either landing on spaces or winning mini-games. The spaces players land on can either be beneficial or harmful: for example, Plus Spaces award players three coins, Minus Spaces deduct three coins, and ? Spaces cause an event to happen, which is dependent on the board being played. Players also have the option to receive items called capsules at Capsule Machines, which replace the Item Shops of the previous entries of the Mario Party series. Players can toss capsules onto spaces or use capsules on themselves for a price. Plus or Minus Spaces that have an icon on them mean that they are under influence of a capsule and their effects is dependent on the capsule effect it has.

After everyone moves, a mini-game starts; the type of mini-game is determined by the color of the panel, which is dependent on the space the player has landed on. If everyone has the same color, then a 4-Player mini-game begin. If players have equal amount of colored panels, a 2-vs.-2 mini-game is played. If all players except one have landed on the same space, a 1-vs.-3 mini-game commences. Sometimes, a battle mini-game take place and everyone pays coins to put at stake to compete, with winning players receiving more coins than lower-placed players. After a mini-game, players earn 10 coins if they win, with Bonus mini-games having the potential of players receiving even more coins. Other mini-games such as Duel, Bowser, and DK mini-games require a specific space-landing or item usage for the mini-games to be played; these do not happen at the end of a turn as normal mini-games. After normal mini-games are played, the game saves and the next turn begins, repeating the process until the end of the game.

When there is only five turns left, the Last Five Turns Event starts. Here, Bowser announces the current standings and asks the player in last place to spin the wheel to add a new rule for the remainder of the game. Also, when two players land on the same space, a Duel mini-game begins.

After the final turn, Eldstar announces the results starting with the current Star count and the final coin count. Then, players receive three Bonus Stars based on their performance before announcing the winner of the game, which is the player with the most Stars overall (with coins or Dice Blocks serving as the tiebreaker).

Game modes
All six of the game's modes are hosted by a member of the Star Guard, barring Klevar who guides players through the selection and description of the modes and hosts some ? Space events located in the boards of the game.

Party Mode
The main mode of any Mario Party game, including Mario Party 5, this game mode is hosted by Eldstar. Up to four players can enjoy the mode as they partake against each other in the game's boards to collect the most Stars. Four players always participate in the game. If there are not enough human players, the remaining players are controlled by CPU. Characters are then chosen out of the roster of ten playable characters; CPU players can have their difficulty adjusted as their characters are chosen. In a Team Match, players can choose which character can be on what team. The main rules of the game are played in this mode; however, players can adjust various settings to change up some aspects of the game before they play the mode.


 * Rules: Players can play in Battle Royal, where four players all compete in a free-for-all, or Team Match, where two teams of two play against each other.
 * Number of Turns: This controls how many turns the game lasts. Players can set from 10 to 50 turns, with increments of 5 turns in between.
 * Mini-Games: Forgoing the custom mini-game set from Mario Party 4, mini-games are grouped into specific categories, which are All, Easy, Action, Skill, and Goofy mini-games.
 * Bonus Awards: If turned on, hidden blocks containing coins in them become available in the board map. Also, Bonus Stars are awarded at the end of the game if the setting is turned on. They are the following:
 * Mini-Game Star: Awarded to players who have received the most coins from mini-games.
 * Coin Star: Awarded to players who have accumulated the most coins in the game.
 * Happening Star: Awarded to players who have landed on the most ? Spaces.
 * Handicap: This lets players adjust the number of stars they start out with, giving them an advantage. Up to nine stars can be given initially.

After a board is chosen, the game then starts. Players can access the pause menu by pressing in the middle of the game, where they can see the number of turns they have left and also access more features that can be toggled. These are the features as of follows:


 * Controller: Players can adjust the control settings for each character. Players can turn CPU players into human places, vice-versa, or adjust their difficulty.
 * Mini-Game Explanation Screen: Players can either view or skip the mini-game explanation screen.
 * CPU Mini-Game: Players can either view or skip mini-games involving only CPU characters.
 * Mini-Game Pack: Players can adjust which type of mini-games that can be played, from All, Easy, Action, Skill, or Goofy mini-games.
 * Rumble Settings: Players can toggle the Nintendo GameCube controller Rumble Feature on or off.
 * Message Speed: Players can change the speed messages display, from Fast, Normal, or Slow.
 * Save: Players can choose to not save game data, save game data at the end of the current turn, or save the game data at the end of every turn.
 * Quit: This quits the game and returns to the main menu. Players can leave off where they have last saved.

Story Mode
Story Mode is a single player mode hosted by Misstar. In this mode, the player participates on seven, smaller, modified boards facing the three colored Koopa Kids. The difficulty is dependent on what the player has set before playing on the boards, and players can adjust which mini-game set will be used before play. The main objective is to eliminate all three of the Koopa Kids before they eliminate the player; in order to eliminate a Koopa Kid, the player must make them lose all of their coins, either by dueling them or using capsules to make them lose coins. If players loses all of their Coins, they lose the game. In this game mode, mini-games are not played at the end of every turn. Unlike Party Mode, players can duel Koopa Kids by simply passing them rather than either landing on a Duel Space, using a Duel Orb, or landing on the same space as them. There are no coins put at stake; rather, a set number of coins are lost depending on which character wins and which character passes who. If players pass or land with a Koopa Kid, players losing have 5 coins deducted while winning against a Koopa Kid costs him 15 coins. When the Koopa Kid passes or lands on the players, they duel the players; losing costs the Koopa Kids 5 coins while winning cost players 10 coins. All the Koopa Kids move at the same time, quickening game play.

A new space introduced is the VS Space, exclusive to Story Mode. Landing on it triggers mini-games dependent on the number of Koopa Kids on the playing field; if there are three Koopa Kids, a 1-vs.-3 game is played. Two causes a 2-vs.-2 mini-game to be played, where the player is partnered with a CPU Toad. Only one Koopa Kid on the board causes a Duel mini-game to be played. An error is present in the instruction booklet of the game: the instruction booklet lists a 2-vs.-1 mini-game that can be played upon landing on this space when no 2-vs.-1 mini-games can be played in Mario Party 5. In addition to the exclusive VS Space, DK Spaces and Bowser Spaces have their rules changed. If a Koopa Kid lands on a DK Space, half of his coins are taken away. Players who land on a DK Space have 10 coins rewarded. The flipside occurs for Bowser Spaces: Bowser takes half a player's coins away upon landing on the space while a Koopa Kid receives 5 coins.

After the player beats four of the six default boards, the player then battles the Koopa Kids in the unlockable board, Bowser Nightmare. After the players beat the Koopa Kids in that board, the player faces Bowser in Frightmare. Upon winning the mini-game, players beat Story Mode, unlock Frightmare to play in Mini-Game Mode, and unlock the Bowser Nightmare board to play on in Party Mode.

Mini-Game Mode
Mini-Game Mode is hosted by Muskular, where up to four players can play the mini-games of Mario Party 5 that they have unlocked. Mini-games are unlocked by simply playing them in Party Mode or Solo Mode at the end of every turn. Mini-Game Mode offers six ways to play the mini-games.


 * Free Play: Players can play any mini-game they have unlocked. Players need to have unlocked at least one mini-game to access this mode.
 * Mini-Game Battle: Players play a random assortment of 4-Player, 1-vs.-3, or 2-vs.-2 mini-games, where they advance when they win a mini-game. The size of the game can be set at 3, 5, or 7 wins to overall win the game. Players need to play at least one 4-Player, 1-vs.-3, and 2-vs.-2 mini-game to play.
 * Mini-Game Circuit: Players drive around a race-track in cars, where the goal of the game is to be the first player to reach the finish line. Players play mini-games, and whoever wins the mini-game uses the Dice Block to move forward. Capsules can be awarded to players who win the mini-game, and those who lose the mini-game do not receive the capsule's effects. Three areas are present in the game: the Normal Area, the Battle Area and the Bowser Area. The Normal Area has no effect when landed on, the Battle Area commences a Duel mini-game where losers are moved back depending on the roll of the Dice Block, and the Bowser Area causes players to play a Bowser mini-game, where the losing players are moved back a number of spaces decided by Bowser. Players need to play a 4-Player, 1-vs.-3, 2-vs.-2, Bowser, and a duel mini-game to play this game. If at the end of the game that there is a tie, the winner is decided by a Dice Block roll.
 * Mini-Game Decathlon: Players earn points in ten set mini-games dependent on their performance on those mini-games. Decathlon records can then be seen in the Options Mode of this game. The following mini-games need to be unlocked to play Mini-Game Decathlon: Ground Pound Down, Chomp Romp, Flower Shower, Leaf Leap, Night Light Fright, Dinger Derby, Hydrostars, Will Flower, Later Skater, and Triple Jump.
 * Mini-Game Wars: Players need to capture 19 hexagonal tiles on a board by winning 4-player mini-games. Players can claim a tile when it is flashing and can capture other opponent's tiles by surrounding the tile. Whoever has the most tiles wins the game. At least one 4-player mini-game needs to be unlocked to play this game.
 * Mini-Game Tournament: Players play duel mini-games in a tournament-like setting; players advance the bracket when they win a mini-game. Losing players can compete in a losers bracket for 3rd and 4th place slots. At least one duel mini-game needs to be unlocked to play this mode.

Super Duel Mode
Super Duel Mode is a mode hosted by Skolar where players buy and assemble machines using points earned by playing mini-games. The machines come with a body, tire, engine, and weapon, and are used to pit against opponent machines in a battle arena. Players can either battle, capture flags, or shoot Robo-Rabbits in order to win. Players can either play in tournaments or against each other. Up to two players can participate in this mode, though save data can be handled by a third player.

Bonus Mode
In Bonus Mode, hosted by Mamar, players could play one of three bonus games that are not available in any other mode: Beach Volleyball, Ice Hockey, and Card Party. All of the three bonus games come with their own set of rules: Card Party is a four player battle royale where players need to find Star Cards to win the game while Beach Volleyball and Ice Hockey are 2-vs.-2 bonus games that play as their sports' namesakes.

Options Mode
Options Mode is hosted by Kalmar where players can change settings or view records. The following are actions players can perform:


 * View Mini-Game Packs: Players can view which category called packs each mini-game is under. The following packs are All, Easy, Action, Skill, and Goofy mini-games.
 * Set Rumble: Players can toggle the Nintendo GameCube Rumble Feature on or off.
 * Set Music: Players can switch between Stereo, Mono, and Surround sound. In addition to those settings, players can listen to background music and character voices.
 * View Records: Players can view mini-game high scores, board map records for Party and Solo Modes such as the number of times the board map is played, the number of stars collected, and the times characters have won each board, the Mini-Game Decathlon records, and Super Duel Mode records.

Playable characters
Mario Party 5 returns the playable characters from Mario Party 4, aside from Donkey Kong, who is now a space character, while also introducing new playable characters, featuring ten playable characters in total. However, the new playable characters cannot be used in Story Mode. Despite Donkey Kong's role as an NPC, he is an unlockable character in the game's Super Duel Mode.

Tag teams
Mario Party 5 brings the ability for players to team up from Mario Party 4 back and extends the concept. In this game, players now share coins and their Player Panel on the screen. Unique team names are also given out to all combinations. Here is a table containing this game's possible team names, all of which are carried over into Mario Party 6.

Capsules
Mario Party 5 does away with the traditional item system of the previous games, and instead introduces items called capsules, which can be obtained for free by passing Capsule Dispensers. Capsules can be thrown on the board up to ten spaces in front of them, and the player that lands on the capsule space receives its effects. Alternatively, players can pay a fee to use the capsule on themselves; the fee varies by capsule. Below is a list of all twenty-eight capsules found in Mario Party 5 and a description describing their effects.

Music
The music in Mario Party 5 was composed by Aya Tanaka. It is different from the other games in that the music sounds sophisticated and (despite being synthesized as in most Mario Party games) has the illusion of being played by a professional symphony orchestra. This may be caused by the use of sounds that sound like true instruments, especially the harpsichord. This apparently didn't catch on, however, as Aya Tanaka has not composed any other Mario Party game. However, this game's sequels, Mario Party 6 and Mario Party 7 have progressed to an orchestrated musical score.

Pre-release and unused content
The pre-release title screen is different from the final version. Unlike the final version, it features various playable characters running around the screen. However, it does strike a resemblance with the file select screen in the final version. The character select screen is also significantly different from the final version.

Reception
Mario Party 5 received mostly mixed to positive reviews from critics. Game Informer's Andrew Reiner cited the example of coin redistribution in the game, which meant that "you could win every mini-game and collect the most coins and still end up in last place", when giving a second option of the game. GameSpot's Ryan Davis processed to note "If you brought Mario Party 4 last year, Mario Party 5 is hard to recommend.", noting a lack of change to the series formula. The game's graphics received a mediocre response, with GameSpot commenting that the presentation is "starting to seem a bit antiquated" when noting that the character models did not seem to been updated from Mario Party 4. Generally, critics cited having a fun experience in Mario Party 5, although the minigames received a more enthusiastic reaction than the actual board game, with GameSpy commenting that "the sheer volume can keep you compelled. If only you didn't have to deal with all that BS in-between" when referring to gameplay of the actual board game.

Mario Party 5 is the 12th best selling game for the Nintendo GameCube, selling approximately 2.08 million units: 807,331 copies in North America, 697,472 copies in Japan, and about 400,000 copies elsewhere, as of December 31, 2009.

References to other games

 * Super Mario Bros.: Pop-Star Piranhas features three differently-styled covers of the main theme. A rendition of the underwater theme is used in Submarathon.
 * Super Mario 64: Coin Cache takes place in front of Princess Peach's Castle, which looks very similar to how it did in this game. Plastic Dorries appear in the minigame Tug-o-Dorrie.
 * Paper Mario: The Star Spirits return in this game.
 * Mario Party 3: Some of the playable characters' voice clips were reused in this game.
 * Mario Party 4: The Chomp Call is featured in the minigame Chomp Romp. Beach Volley Folley returns in this game, though it is simply named "Beach Volleyball" and now includes the option to use special gimmick balls.

References in later games

 * Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix: The Toy Dream song is covered in the song, Cabin Fever.
 * Super Smash Bros. Brawl: Eldstar, Misstar and Muskular appear as stickers.

Trivia

 * The capsule depicting a Toady is incorrectly labeled as "Magikoopa Capsule". Later Mario Party games correctly labeled it as "Toady Orb".
 * Daisy's voice in this game is actually a higher pitched version of her voice in the previous game, similar to how her voice in Mario Party 3 was.
 * This is the last Mario game where Jen Taylor voices Daisy. Deanna Mustard voices Daisy in later games, starting with Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour.
 * This is the last game in the Mario Party series with all boards having the same traditional condition for a Star (that is, trading 20 coins); which has been around since Mario Party. In later installments, many, if not all, of the boards have introduced more unique ways to acquire Stars, with only one or two boards having the classic conditions for acquiring a Star.