Mario Party (series)

Mario Party (Japanese: マリオパーティ, Mario Pāti) is a series of party games featuring the characters of the Mario franchise, in which four human- or computer-controlled characters compete in a board game interspersed with minigames. The series is known for its party game elements, including the often-unpredictable multiplayer modes that allow play with up to four (and sometimes eight) human players. The series was created under Nintendo's supervision by Hudson Soft, and was inaugurated on Nintendo 64, where its first game launched in Japan on December 18, 1998, and in the West in early 1999.

Hudson developed all installments until several of its key designers left the company, leading to its eventual disestablishment. After eight entries on consoles and two on handhelds (as well as three arcade spin-off games developed by Capcom), the ex-Hudson staffers then joined Nd Cube where they developed Wii Party, then restarted production of the Mario Party series, with the new development studio's first installment appearing on Wii in 2012.

Mario Party currently holds the record for the longest-running minigame series in video game history. According to Nintendo's official reports, by December 2014, the various games in the series had sold a cumulative total of 39.6 million copies worldwide.

Gameplay
Mario Party takes the form of a traditional board game which players can play by directing characters on various themed game boards. Playable character rosters generally consist of major Mario franchise characters, including the main protagonist Mario; his brother Luigi; his love interest Princess Peach; his sidekick Yoshi; his antagonists and rivals Wario, Donkey Kong, and Waluigi; and his friends Toad and Princess Daisy, among others; each game features its own variations on the cast and storyline. There are several modes available for play in each game, each of which provides its own rules and challenges.

Party Mode
Every game in the "main" branch of the Mario Party series has a standard "Party Mode" in which up to four players play through a board, trying to collect as many stars as possible. In every turn, each player rolls (hits) a Dice Block and moves ahead the number of spaces shown (ranging from 1 to 10) to make progress on the board, which usually has branching paths. There are many different types of spaces players can land on, each producing a different effect. On most boards, players earn stars by reaching a "Star Space" in a random location on the board, and purchasing the star for the specific amount of coins stated (usually 20). Every time the star is purchased, the Star Space moves to one of several predetermined alternate locations, almost always occupying a blue space. In early games, players could also pay a visit to Boo and have him steal stars from their opponents for 50 coins. In addition to buying the stars, coins are also necessary to purchase power-up items and to determine the game winner in the event of a tie. Players gain coins by landing on blue spaces or performing well in the minigame played at the end of each turn; and lose them by landing on red spaces or by losing certain minigames.

At the end of each round of play (i.e. after each of the four players have taken their turn), a random minigame commences. The minigames are generally short (about a minute in length), and fairly simple. In most situations, the winner(s) of a mini-game receive 10 coins for their victory; sometimes, the loser(s) have to pay the winner(s) a sum of coins. Each Mario Party features any number of minigames (ranging from 50 to 90), divided into several different categories. Four-player minigames include cooperative games, in which all four players collectively win or lose; competitive free-for-alls, in which players must compete against each other in order to win a limited number of coins; and non-competitive free-for-alls, in which players accrue coins independently of one another and one player's loss is not automatically another's gain. Other minigame categories include 2-on-2 games, which place players on teams so that they have to cooperate with others to win (though they still compete against each other in the main game); 1-on-3 games, where a lone player is placed against a team of three, and either the team or the lone player must survive for a certain amount of time while the opposition tries to take them out; and single-player games, which occur when a player lands on a special space and give them the opportunity to earn or lose coins depending on their performance.

Three new types of minigames were introduced in Mario Party 2. Battle games are like the 4-player games, but instead of winners earning ten coins each, each player contributes a randomly selected number of coins. The winner of the game receives approximately 70% of the pot, the second-place finisher receives the other 30%, and a random player occasionally gets coins left over from rounding. Item games allow a single player to take a chance to collect an item, which can be used to further their board strategy. Duel minigames pit two players against each other, with the player that initiates the duel wagering coins or even a star against their opponent; the winner receives all coins or stars wagered. Starting with Mario Party 7, the player no longer chooses the wager in a duel, rather, the duel takes place and the prize to the winner, if any, is randomly determined.

Mario's archnemesis, Bowser, has taken on various roles in the gameplay of the Mario Party series. In almost all entries, he can be summoned via a special space of his own, where he tries to steal from the player. Starting in Mario Party 4, he hosts his own minigames, where in addition to rewarding the winning player, he will try to burn the losing players with his fire breath, forcing them to give up coins, items, or even stars. Bowser's minigames originally only appeared in multiplayer format, but starting in Mario Party 7, single-player games of that category began to be featured. His son, Bowser Jr., got his own minigames starting in Mario Party 9, where he challenges two players to compete in a minigame with him. If Bowser Jr. is successfully defeated, the players will each receive five Mini Stars; if not, then he will take five from each player. In Mario Party 10, Bowser became a playable character in a mode all his own, where he, controlled by a fifth player, would challenge the other four players as they progressed through the game by trying to catch them and take away their hit points.

At the end of the game, Bonus Stars are given to the players. In Mario Parties one through six, there are three Bonus Stars given out. The Coin Star award is given to the player who collected the most coins overall during the game, the Mini-Game Star award is awarded to the player who collected the most coins in mini-games, and the Happening Star award is given to the player who landed on the most "?" spaces. In Mario Party 7, 8, and DS, the roster of potential Bonus Stars was expanded to six; still, only three would be chosen, and it was random as to which ones got picked. It is common for more than one character to be awarded the same Bonus Star; this happens if there is a tie for the category in question. The person with the most stars after the bonus awarding has concluded is declared the winner. In the event of a tie, the player with the most coins wins, and if two players have the same number of both stars and coins, a dice block will be rolled to determine the winner.

Starting in Mario Party 9, the format of the series was overhauled. Instead of trying to collect coins to buy stars, players receive "Mini Stars" if they pass by them. While doing that, players must also try to avoid "Mini Ztars," which deduct their current amount of Mini Stars. Furthermore, Mario Party 9 and 10 had all four players moving around together in one vehicle, instead of each player having to wait their turn in a single spot on the board. The number of potential Bonus Stars was reduced to five, and in Mario Party 10 the number of stars that would be chosen was also reduced to two. At the end of each stage, the number of Mini Stars the player collects is converted into "Party Points," which can be used to buy new stages, difficulties, and bonus content.

Minigame mode
In addition to Party Mode, every Mario Party has a minigame mode in which minigames are played without the board game. Minigame modes vary from game to game, but later games have many different variations. In one such example from Mario Party 5, each player tries to fill a board with as many spaces as possible in his or her color by winning minigames. In Mario Party 6 and onward, there is one game in the minigame mode intended for single-player.

Arcade
In addition to its home console and handheld installments, the Mario Party brand has also been licensed into five Japan-only arcade games developed by Capcom: Super Mario Fushigi no Korokoro Party ("Super Mario: Wonderful Rolling Party"), released in 2004; a sequel to the aforementioned game, released the following year; Mario Party Kurukuru Carnival ("Mario Party: Spinning Carnival"), released in 2009; Mario Party Fushigi no Korokoro Catcher ("Mario Party: Rolling Wonder Catcher"), released in 2009; and Mario Party Fushigi no Challenge World ("Mario Party: The Wonderful Challenge World"), which is currently undergoing location testing as of 2016. These games generally feature mini-games from actual entries in the Mario Party series, and can be played by up to six players instead of the normal four.

Boards
The Mario Party series includes 87 boards in total. Below is a list of all of them and what games they appear in.

Main Boards
The main boards are the board that can be played from one to four players, this is the main mode of each Mario Party games.

Other Boards
Some games included special boards that can be played. This is the list of boards that appear in other modes throughout the Mario Party games.
 * * - Unlockable Board.
 * ** - Can be unlocked with the amiibo of the respective character board (eg: Rosalina amiibo unlocks the Rosalina Board).
 * X_mark.svg – No board

Playable characters
During the first two Mario Party games, Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Wario, Yoshi, and Donkey Kong are the only playable characters. Starting in Mario Party 3, the game introduces new playable characters in debut such as Princess Daisy and Waluigi, though they are only playable in the Party Mode; the previous new characters that appear in the next game are now playable in the Story Mode. There are some exceptions in games like Mario Party Advance and Mario Party DS which do not introduce new characters. Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, and Yoshi are the only characters to appear in all of the installments; Toad also appeared in all of the installments but was not a playable character until Mario Party 5. Wario appeared in all of the installments except for Mario Party Advance and Daisy and Waluigi appeared in all of the installments except for the first two Mario Party games and Mario Party Advance.

In the game Beach Volley Folley that appeared in Mario Party 4 and then Mario Party 5, there are exceptionally playable characters that can not be played as on the normal boards but are able to participate in this game.

The Mario Party series included 24 characters in various installments. Below is a list of all of them and what games they appear in.


 * Check_mark.svg – Playable character
 * X_mark.svg – Non-playable character
 * Question.svg – Unknown status


 * 1 — The character is playable only in Beach Volley Folley.
 * 2 — The character is playable only in Super Duel Mode.
 * 3 — The character is playable only in Party Mode.
 * 4 — The character is playable only in the Extra Mode.
 * 5 — The character is playable only in Bowser Party and amiibo Party.
 * 6 — The character is unlockable.
 * 7 — The character is playable only when players tap their amiibo in Mario Shuffle.
 * 8 — The character is only playable by Player 1 in Toad Scramble.
 * 9 — The character is only playable by Player 2 in Toad Scramble.
 * 10 — The character is only playable by Player 3 in Toad Scramble.
 * 11 — The character is only playable by Player 4 in Toad Scramble.

Hosts
These characters lead each individual Mario Party game.
 * Mario Party: Toad, Koopa Troopa, and Koopa Kid (only in Eternal Star).
 * Mario Party 2: Toad and Koopa Kid (only in Bowser Land)
 * Mario Party 3: Tumble and Millennium Star
 * Mario Party 4: Toad, Shy Guy, Boo, Koopa Troopa, Goomba, Koopa Kid, Thwomp (only in Extras Mode), Whomp (only in Extras Mode), and Ztar (only in Beach Volley Folley)
 * Mario Party 5: Star Spirits
 * Mario Party 6: Brighton and Twila
 * Mario Party Advance: Toad, Toadette, Tumble, and Professor Elvin Gadd
 * Mario Party 7: Toadsworth
 * Mario Party 8: MC Ballyhoo and Big Top
 * Mario Party DS: Wiggler, Toadette, Diddy Kong, Koopa Troopa and Bowser Jr.*
 * Mario Party 9: Yellow Toad (Party, Solo, and Museum) and Blue Toad (Minigames and Extras)
 * Mario Party: Island Tour: Yellow Toad (Party), Bowser (only in Bowser's Peculiar Peak and Bowser's Tower), Blue Toad (Minigames, StreetPass Minigames, and Collectables), and Green Toad (Bowser's Tower)
 * Mario Party 10: Blue Toad, Bowser Jr. (Bowser Party)

 *Technically there are no visual hosts, however, similar to Mario Party 4, each board has a guide that assist players in the Story Mode 

Spaces
All the spaces in the Mario Party games.

Items
Every item, capsule, orb, candy, hex and card from the series.

List of all Minigames
The Mario Party series' popularity is due in no small part to its minigames. Throughout the series' thirteen non-arcade titles, the list of minigames has become tremendous. Below is a list of all 769 minigames, separated by game. The minigames' titles generally rhyme, use alliteration, or are puns of popular phrases.

Awards

 * Longest Running Mini-Game Series - Guinness Book of World Records Gamer's Edition 2009 - 2013

Trivia

 * Luigi mentions the Mario Party series in his diary in the events of Paper Mario.
 * The Mario Party games are mentioned in one of the Coin Block/Brick Block cards in Nintendo Monopoly. Here, the player gets $50 from every player for organizing a Mario Party in the 2006 version, and $10 in the 2010 version.
 * Every numbered installment of the Mario Party series on the same console as the previous numbered Mario Party installment has had more mini-games than its numbered predecessor.
 * Donkey Kong, Rosalina, Toadette, Birdo and Dry Bones are the only characters in the Mario Party series to have been both an unlockable and a starter character.