Mario Party or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Bob-omb

Mario Party is a series where I'll always be there day one, yet saying I “enjoy” it is debatable.

Ever since getting the original Mario Party as a kid, it's been one of those series me and my friends have found weirdly compelling. From those earliest days on N64, four entries on GameCube with the last two adding microphone support, various handheld spin-offs, bundling everyone into the same vehicle and later reversing that idea, we've seen it all.

It's a staple of any Nintendo lineup along with Mario Kart, despite the deep-seated rage we've often felt across the years. What can I say, apparently, I enjoy schadenfreude as much as the next Mario Party fan. If you're reading this, Josh, remember Pirate Land? Good times. One particularly enjoyable birthday game on the appropriately chosen Peach's Birthday Cake board in Superstars saw my finest victory. I caught up to 1st place, who was three stars ahead on the last turn, with a 28 on the triple dice that just let me reach the star, followed by securing both bonus stars.

For all the absolute nonsense that Mario Party delivers when things go wrong, there is something deeply intoxicating about taking those hard-earned (yes, hard-earned) victories at the end. And yet, hubris is a dangerous thing, regardless of what entry you pick. All it takes is one unfortunate Chance Time to undo your success. Or someone paying Boo 50 coins to shake you down. Or a train running you over. Giant lasers. Cannon fire. An ill-timed hootenanny... this could go on. I've long accepted that whatever happens in Mario Party will happen, so I may as well enjoy the ride.

I'd confidently call Super Mario Party Jamboree's original release last year one of my favourite entries yet, surpassing the nostalgic thrills of 2021's Mario Party Superstars. The seven boards are mostly winners, with Western Land marking the welcome return of an old favourite. We're no longer limited to a strict character roster; computer-controlled participants are actually useful if you're paired with one in minigames. It's also a fine showcase for Switch's visual capabilities, which was seven years into the console's lifecycle at that time.

Jamboree's minigames can be rather hit or miss, and that's par for the course with this series. Anyone who ends up in the middle of Three Throw is all but guaranteed to lose, and I'm hardly fond of 1v3 games like Unfriendly Flying Object when you're the poor soul against the rest of the party. Even then, the good mostly outweighs the mediocre: Lumber Tumble, Prime Cut, Defuse or Lose and Sandwiched are all great additions.

That said, I'm not a fan of the Showdown Minigames where you compete to secure an ally. Additional support is always appreciated, and allies can offer useful bonuses like more favourable dice rolls or the ability to buy two stars at once, but putting everyone into a lengthy minigame often kills the momentum. Some showdowns are more exciting, like DK's Konga Line, though my wider point remains.

I haven't gone hands-on with the Switch 2 edition for Super Mario Party Jamboree before today's launch, which I'll likely rectify soon, and that notably adds some new ways to play. This upgraded edition makes use of the camera accessory and Joy-Con mouse mode for more minigames, a new game mode called Bowser Live, plus promised visual and performance enhancements.

I'll update this article in the coming days if I find time to go hands-on, and I can already see my friends scheming up how to screw me over. Not that I'm pointing any fingers, Abbie. Jamboree's already given me plenty of those times on Switch 1. Still, with the right group and unspeakably bad luck, Mario Party can leave you with stories you'll tell others for years. If I'm lucky, long may that continue.