Mario Party 6 doesn't reinvent the party-game wheel, but it's still as enjoyable as ever.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with Mario Party, let me break down the basic gameplay mechanics. The game is modeled after a board game where four players take turns cruising around a predetermined board in pursuit of stars. Stars can be purchased with coins that are procured in various mini-games. The player who has obtained the most stars at the end of the game wins. The basic gameplay is quite simple and easy to get the hang of, but it’s equally easy to get into a great round of Mario Party and have a lot of fun doing so.
As the name implies, Mario Party 6 is best played with friends. While you can certainly play this game by your lonesome, strictly doing so does not merit the purchase of this game. If you aren’t into social gaming then this title will not be for you. However, if you like getting together with friends to enjoy some great multiplayer gaming, Mario Party 6 is just what you’re looking for.
Mario Party 6 offers the most fundamental changes that the series has ever seen. First off, the most obvious addition to this installment in the franchise is the pre-packaged microphone. The microphone plugs into the second memory card port and is used for a variety of different mini-games and creative gameplay modes. The microphone is easy to set up, fun to use, and adds some new gameplay experiences to Mario Party vets. In addition, nighttime and daytime alternate every three turns to mix up some of the board’s gameplay mechanics and make minor alternations to some of the mini-games. This game also has some of the best mini-games and game boards that the franchise has ever seen. Lastly, and my personal favorite, is the addition of the Star Bank. By playing each of the game’s modes you can unlock stars which are used to purchase various items in the Star Bank. New characters, boards, mini-games, and some other off-the-wall items can be purchased after earning stars. All told, Mario Party 6 has not made any drastic changes to the series, but it has made several minor tweaks that all work in the game’s favor.
Graphically, while Mario Party 6 looks as bright and colorful as ever, the low-res character models and simplistic backgrounds have aged noticeably. If you’ve played Mario Party 4 or 5 then there really isn’t a whole lot new to report about the game’s graphics. Basically, they are not by any means painful to look at, but after seeing such great character models in recent games like Mario Power Tennis, I was hoping to see a bit more this time around.
In the sound department, things work pretty well for Mario Party 6. The soundtrack has a few memorable ditties and the voice-overs and sound effects are still clear and familiar. The game also has Dolby Pro Logic II support, but it really won’t blow you out of the room or have your friends in awe.
In the end, I had a lot of fun with Mario Party 6. I found myself playing the single-player mode in order to unlock new features and then enjoying those new features with friends in the game’s robust multiplayer modes. While the graphics have aged a bit and the sound didn’t blow me out of the room, nothing substantially hurt the experience and I still find myself coming back for more Mario Party. I feel kind of pathetic saying this, but I eagerly await Mario Party 7.