Mario Party Superstars

Genre: Party Game / Minigame Collection

Players: 1-4 Competitive / Team Competitive (Local, Online)

The Nintendo Switch 2 Difference

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Review:

Mario Party Superstars, released on Nintendo Switch in 2021, is the second Mario Party on Nintendo Switch, but in many ways it is following in the footsteps of the last Nintendo 3DS game in the franchise, Mario Party: The Top 100. Like The Top 100, Superstars is a game focused on revisiting the past of the series, bringing back both game boards and minigames from prior entries in the series.

Specifically, Mario Party Superstars includes lovingly recreated versions of Yoshi’s Tropical Island and Peach’s Birthday Cake from the first game in the series, Space Land and Horror Land from Mario Party 2, and Woody Woods from Mario Party 3. In addition, as with The Top 100, the minigames featured here span across the first ten numbered Mario Party games, with many of the same minigames featured in both of these nostalgic throwback games (though a good number are different here).

The minigames here are generally pretty good, though there are definitely some stinkers that made it into the mix – I don’t think anyone was asking for button-mashing minigames like Pokey Pummel to make a return. What’s more, this game shares the same main problem that The Top 100 had – because its minigames were all designed for other platforms, there’s nothing here that makes especially good use of the Nintendo Switch’s unique features.

That’s not the only negative quality this game shares with The Top 100, either. As with that game, this game is overall pretty bland, and while some may appreciate it for being relatively straightforward, it still lacks a lot of the gameplay modes and features introduced in prior games, like the Partner Party game mode from Super Mario Party, nor does it have anything particularly compelling for solo players to do.

At the very least, this game does offer online play, and for the most part this seemed to work pretty well, though when I tried it I wasn’t always able to fill an entire lobby. Still, those online players that did join me seemed to play smoothly and without any lag that I noticed.

There is one other area where Mario Party Superstars excels, and that is the presentation. This game is gorgeous on the Nintendo Switch, with great-looking Water, beautiful lighting, colorful and well-rendered characters and backgrounds, and solid animations. In particular I thought the texture work in some areas was truly superb – Peach’s Birthday Cake looked absolutely mouth-watering. The sound was… well, typically cheerful standard Mario fare. Nothing memorable, but it fit the game well enough.

All told, Mario Party Superstars is a throwback that channels both the good and bad parts of that word. On the one hand, this game does a great job of creating beautiful modern versions of classic boards and games, and allowing you to play them online. On the other hand, it’s straightforward, uninspired, and lacking a good number of more modern features the series has added over the years. If you’re looking for a Mario Party game that looks new but feels purely old-school, this game may suit your tastes. But if you want a Mario Party game that plays like a modern Mario Party, you’re probably better off sticking with Super Mario Party.

tl;dr – Mario Party Superstars is a Party game that revisits past boards and minigames from throughout the franchise, with modernized visuals and online play. It’s a pretty game, and the minigames here are mostly quite fun, but this game overall feels largely uninspired and lacks features added to the series over the years. If you’re looking for a retro-style Mario Party game, this is definitely that – both the good and the bad.

Grade: C+

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The Nintendo Switch 2 Difference

Mario Party Superstars

Genre: Party Game / Minigame Collection

Players: 1-4 Competitive / Team Competitive (Local, Online)

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Review:

While Nintendo Switch 2 has yet to receive its own unique Mario Party game as of this writing, it did get Super Mario Party Jamboree: Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV, a release that took a game that I would argue is the greatest Mario Party game ever made… and then gave it an absolutely terrible, overpriced, feature-poor “upgrade”. Ugh. While I still maintain the original version of Super Mario Party Jamboree remains the best in the series, players may be seeking alternatives, and their eyes may be drawn to the prior game in the series, Mario Party Superstars. I still feel like that original game is an uninspired entry in the series, but nevertheless I felt we should look to see if it’s enjoyed any improvement on Nintendo Switch 2.

And… no, not really. Honestly, this is probably the least-improved of any Nintendo Switch game I have tested on Nintendo Switch 2. No improvement to framerates or resolution, and even though most games at least get improved loading times, even that is almost nonexistent here – it took me 9 seconds to load to the first opening options screen on Nintendo Switch 2 instead of the 10 it took me on Nintendo Switch, and all other loading screens were pretty much identical.

So that’s it, one second of difference. So that’s twice now that Mario Party has disappointed me on Nintendo Switch 2… At the very least the original game is… well, playable. Even if it’s nowhere near as good as Super Mario Party Jamboree.

tl;dr – Mario Party Superstars is a Party game that revisits past boards and minigames from throughout the franchise, with modernized visuals and online play. It’s a pretty game, and the minigames here are mostly quite fun, but this game overall feels largely uninspired and lacks features added to the series over the years. If you’re looking for a retro-style Mario Party game, this is definitely that – both the good and the bad.

Grade: C+

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