Mario Party DS
SCORE: 91
A lot of friends chastise me for not getting into the Mario Party games sooner. Well I have recently got into them, and have found Mario Party DS to be a solid little party game that is missing one important feature - Wi-Fi. If there was ever a party game that screams for Wi-Fi then Mario Party DS is it. For those unfamiliar this Nintendo DS video game is like a board game with all kinds of different party games at the end of each turn. There are also special squares to dual an opponent (editor: usually the character leading the game). A lot of the mushroom kingdom characters are present to play with, and against.
Mario Party DS has some very bright and colorful graphics. There is some small cartoon violence like a tile hitting a player to take away a set number of coins/star/etc. The characters can also get vacuumed up, have big things fall on them, and other cartoonish acts. I personally did not find these offensive, but if you do - don’t say I didn’t warn you.
There are plenty of classic, and remixed Mario style sounds in this game. They are very good, and of exceptional quality. The oh’s made when a character loses something is humorous, and well placed. I did not catch any offensive sounds while I was playing this hand held party game.
Nintendo knows how to include an amazing amount of unlockables in a video game. Mario Party DS is no exception to that rule. In face the number of unlockable items, and sounds in the gallery is staggering. Local connections are allowed with only one Nintendo DS cartridge. That means you and a friend (or four people total) that are within the normal DS range can play one another. An online mode is missing and that kinda makes me sad. With the success of Mario Kart DS, and Animal Crossing Wild World I would have thought an online mode would have been a no brainer. Oh well.
The controls are masterfully done in all of the different screens, and mini games. Almost all of the features of the Nintendo DS are utilized in Mario Party DS. There is some serious intelligent design to the layout of the boards, and it saves often. Nintendo also made sure to include the practice mode of any party game so no one can complain they could not figure it out (resulting in their loss). My one complaint is some of the mini games are luck based only.
I had a lot of fun playing
Mario Party DS, and would like to see more games like this in the near
future. This game is safe for the entire family, but a basic reading
ability is needed.
- Paul
Graphics: 91%
Sound: 95%
Replay/Extras: 89%
Gameplay: 93%
Family Friendly Factor: 88%
System: Nintendo DS
Publisher: Nintendo
ESRB Rating: 'E' for Everyone
{Comic Mischief}
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