One fun game, endless fun experiences!
Mario Party 6 was the first Mario Party game I ever played, and I couldn't think of a better introduction to the series. By the time the Mario Party' first entries on the Nintendo 64 came around I'd gotten rid of the system, and I never picked up the sequels on the Gamecube. I had never looked into the games, thinking they were just an endless series of minigames, which didn't interest me. It wasn't until I bought my girlfriend a Gamecube of her own in an attempt to get her to like videogames that she suggested we rent MP6. I was skeptical at first, but was soon won over by both the game's diversity of gameplay and its universal appeal.
The first surprise was the main game's structure as a form of board game in which the object is to collect the most stars. Players begin with 10 coins and move around this board after hitting a dice block that determines the number of spaces. As they travel they might land on a spot that adds or detracts coins, get a chance to play a minigame for a reward (or for punishment from Bowser), acquire an orb, or have the opportunity to buy a star at a star space. After all four players have a turn, a four-player minigame is played, completing the turn and saving the game, where it can be picked up again at any time.
A mechanic unique to MP6 and adding another layer of complexity to its formula is that every three turns the board switches from day to night and back. The different times affect various changes on the board, making some paths more or less accessible and some special events enhanced or reversed.
The type of minigame played at the end of the turn is determined by what type of space the players landed on. It could be a free-for-all, 3v1, or 2v2. Everyone on the winning team gets 10 coins, which is the main source of income. The minigames are fun, numerous and varied, and usually simple enough even for people that don't play games at all. A nice option is being able to select general categories of minigames, making the game more accessible to even children.
The fun of Mario Party 6 is in a four-player game with friends. While one player can play against three CPU players, the AI ranges from frustratingly dumb to unfairly difficult and you never know what you'll get when you are occasionally partnered with one for a minigame. Players can choose from a free-for-all match or 2v2 teams. In team matches partners share coins and orbs and are also always partnered during 2v2 minigames.
Orbs are what really drive the strategy as far as the board is concerned. Orbs include mushrooms that allow the player to hit two or three dice blocks in one turn, traps to stop or limit the movement of other players, traps to take coins from players, and even other types that are level-specific. Traps can be of a permanent type requiring the victim to land on them while others are activated by a character passing them. Orbs are obtained for free at certain parts of each board or can be purchased at stores.
The boards are for the most part enjoyable. Two offer a 'standard' game experience where players move around a board with branching paths chasing a star space that moves (somewhat) randomly after every star purchase. Another entertaining level features a single stationary star space that allows the player to purchase up to five stars at once, which is more than possible at night when the price can be as low as five coins. One unique level forces players to mount giant Chain Chomps to hunt down their competitors on a circular board and steal their stars, with the added bonus that in a 2v2 match it's a strategic brain buster. The only unplayable level stars Bowser in a too-frequent punishing role, while he redeems himself in a final unlockable level on a floating castle.
The game offers lots of laughs and variety rounded out by a pure minigame mode for the action crazed and an extras shop. In this shop the player can used stars gathered in the main game as currency to purchase goodies such as the extra Bowser level, some minigames and minigame modes, a character, and the hilarious character taunts that one can use to try to distract other players.
Overall, after having gone back and tried all the other MP games, I believe Mario Party 6 offers the best all-around package. It streamlines the orb usage from previous iterations and it's missing the obnoxious Bowser mechanic found in its sequel. The levels are more well-rounded than in the other games, and offer more replay value than those games'. I've played this game both with my nephews and friends my age and had a blast and for that at least my hat's off to this game.