Mario Party Superstars

Mario Party Superstars is an amalgamation of some of the best boards, minigames, mechanics, and quality of life improvements from the whole series, resulting in the best Mario Party has been in a very long time.

Mario Party Superstars delivers on the nostalgia, but at the cost of feeling fresh.

But in the end, despite its value for video game preservation and appreciation, Mario Party Superstars is more than that. It’s a collection of Mario Party’s best work, perfect for veteran partiers, newcomers, and everyone in-between.

Whether you grew up with these games or this is your first time partying, Mario Party Superstars is a fun way to celebrate the series

“Mario Party Superstars” is the return to form the franchise sorely needed. It refocuses on what fans loved about the series in the first place, and most importantly, nails its most important mode, Party Mode. If you can look past the rotating control stick games, and if developer NDcube can offer new content and refine the game over time, you’re likely to enjoy this party for years to come.

So while Mario Party Superstars doesn’t necessarily break massively new ground, it’s so good at replaying the classics that it will probably be my new go-to for Mario Party fun moving forward. It isn’t just the Nintendo 64 nostalgia talking here; this is a good collection of minigames, a smart board selection, a nice-looking game, and it’s got tons of settings, dials, and options to fiddle with for repeat play sessions. It might not be filled with new ideas, but Mario Party Superstars plays the hits, and plays them as well as it did the first time around.

Mario Party Superstars is a love letter to the parties you remember attending 20 years ago. A disappointingly slim selection of boards takes the shine off things somewhat, but it's hard to argue that this is the best Mario Party has been in over a decade. No new ideas absolutely feels like a missed opportunity, but by the same token we'd much prefer to have all these classic ideas intact rather than potentially tainting them with unwanted and unnecessary inclusions only added for the sake of being new. Grab a can of Tango and a fistful of 10p Freddos - you're going to party like it's 1999.

But, as is the case with almost every Mario Party game, be aware of what you're getting into with Superstars. If you're not careful, friendships will take a hit, just because of the random nature of this beast. That's just Mario Party.

Mario Party Superstars is the best game in the series, bringing a better selection of minigames and fewer gameplay gimmicks.

Mario Party Superstars is a solid, if unambitious, compilation of the best the series has to offer.