Gameboy Advance - Mario Party Advance

Format
Gameboy Advance
Publisher
Nintendo
Developer
Hudson
Country of origin
Japan
Genre
Party games

Mario Party Advance

By David Rasmussen
28th Apr 05

If I didn’t know any better I’d say that Mario likes to party all the time, party all the time, party all the time.
Case in point - Mario Party Advance, yet another one of those Mario Party games.
Unfortunately this time out this so-called Mario Party is more RPG than party game.
Set in the strange town of Shroom City (or something like that) Mario and the gang finds that the new amusement park has been vandalized by Bowser, who has scattered all the mini games/gaddgets of the park across the vast “city” you are in, which leads to Mario Party’s gameplay.

Sadly this game is not a compliment to the whole Mario Party franchise, in fact it’s a little bit of an insult.
When I first heard of this game I thought for certain it was a classic Mario Party game set back when the original came out, and the party began. Too bad I was wrong, for this isn’t what I was thinking about.
It’s got mini games, it’s stacked full of every minor character from every Mario Party game you’ve ever seen (but only stars four of the stars of those games), has a few new characters and has a new system of gameplay… which is it’s major problem in my book.

Choosing from either Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach or Yoshi you start out the game with 5 mushrooms, which represent one roll of a single dice which means you can move between 1-10 steps per round. And since the game offers only a limited amount of “spins” per move it means you are constantly managing your spins for the best performance. To best manage your few spins you’ll need to use the dice “spaces” on the board which allows you to spin again.
Don’t expect to play for long at the start! You’ll need time to get used to the new rules, and the limited number of spins, so you’ll play (end) and auto-save your progress.
Once you get into the swing of things you’ll be able to play for longer and longer periods, but for now at the start it’ll be short bouts.

Along the way you’ll pass by many a building, each with a tenant or four who need your help.
Helping each tenant of each site helps you as you are given mini games and gaddgets for the theme park you are reassembling said park. That is why, by the way, this game is a an RPG over a party game, since a lot of the game is about “journeying” and taking on “quests”.
The old format of earning coins to buy stars to become top player and beat your opponents is thrown out for this RPG style game that seems interesting, but lacks replay value.

And the character that is chosen also affects how the game plays, especially since each player has his or her own spot to begin the game on (and one task that only they can accomplish). Each one (Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach and Toad) starts from their own starting area, which makes clearing out some areas that much easier… in a sense. With the micromanagement of the dice rolls to consider you’ll have your work cut out for you, but you’ll have a chance to win more mushrooms for rolls if you can beat mini games as you play. That isn’t the problem in my book, heck it could have even been fun.

The one real problem with this game, however, is the RPG format.
Yes, the world of Mario Party is given a fresh look with this new format, and the many mini games and puzzles are quite different from what you’re used to in previous Mario Party games! However those same differences ultimately hinder this game when you come right down to it!

Yes, this game does have an RPG mode, but once you beat it you’ve done just about everything there is to do in this game. You lost a great deal of your purpose in having this game after beating that so easily.
Yes, there’s some sort of multiplayer mode but be prepared to be ripped off! The so called “multiplayer” Mario only exists on paper… as in a paper “map” you print out using the printer attachment for the GBA which allows you to print a board to play with… what the heck?!?
I’m thinking this is how you get the bonus game since I didn’t see a bonus game board in this box nor is there mention of it in anything I’ve seen (about an aditional thing needing to be bought).

Then there’s the so-called Gaddgets, which are another change to the Mario Party format… and a bad change at that! The Gaddgets are mostly useless, and considering the work that went into “winning” them during gameplay I would have at least expected some good games, but the concept of “Good” in these Gaddgets are too few and far between.

The game has lots to offer, but it also burns out rather quickly (I beat it in two days) and doesn’t offer much once you climbed to the top of Mt. Mario Party to keep you going past you beating it.
So, with that said, how will it affect the breakdown! Let’s find out!

Mario Party Breakdown the 7th (Seventh Mario Party game out overall)
What’s Hot?
I wish there was more about this game to rave about, but there just isn’t much.
The mini games are nice, but the Gaddgets are awful.
The puzzles are a nice touch, but way too many of these are too easy!
Gameplay was great, but a lack of replay value drags the game down.
I wish there was more to say, but the game is only so-so.

What’s Not?
Think I said enough topside, so nuff’ said.

Moments to Remember?
There are some great games here to play, so you’ll find some memorable things.

What to Ignore?
What to ignore?? Besides the not so hot games and the even worse Gaddgets?? There’s the strange quirky characters who are abit of a drag to have about in this game. Take Shroomlock, the “Great detective” who really isn’t much of a detective to begin with. He pops in wherever there is a “Crime” and then drops the entire “crime” onto your lap.

Then there’s the mysterious Mister E, the strange searcher of adventure who always ends up in odd places looking to do odd things. Mostly nailing you with mysteries for you to solve.
And that’s about it. Other than Bowser and his kid there isn’t much places for characters to act.

Overall?
I wish the game was more like the original Mario Party than what it is.
It would have been more fun, though it might have lacked originality.
It would have been more interesting, even if it won’t do that.
It would have had replay value which is the most important thing.
In short it would have done better, yet it fell short.
Hopefully Mario Golf Advance Tour isn’t as lame, and considering it got a 5 out of 5 from X-Play I’m going to go out on a limb and say the next Mario Party should be a good thing, if I remember right.

-- David Rasmussen 28th Apr 05

Gameboy Advance Mario Party Advance Images