

While simultaneous dice rolls and an open board make for interesting strategy at times, Toad Scramble isn’t worth getting too excited over. The mode is over when all bosses are defeated. Boss battles can be initiated by getting an exact roll onto a boss space, starting a minigame where all four players participate in taking down a boss. Ally characters can be picked up around the map to help you manipulate the dice in your favor. Some mechanics of Toad Scramble are familiar enough: you can collect coins by passing through them and items by landing on them, engage switches and other board traps as you pass or touch them, and buy items from shops to aid yourself or mess with opponents. More app trigger: 50 Best Nintendo Games Right Now The recent disappointments of Mario Parties 9, 10, and Island Tour had my hopes up that lessons were learned and things would finally take a turn for the better in Mario Party Star Rush. Recent titles have failed at bringing my friends and I back together on the couch to rage at one another over challenging, delightfully frustrating minigames. I’ve dabbled in the series here and there since, and while I’ve kept an open mind about new mechanics, nothing has quite captured my attention in the same way the first few Mario Party games did. I also remember going home with marks on my palm from stick-rotating, and the groans induced when we discovered we had to play the flaming jump rope minigame. I’m old enough to remember the first Mario Party and how many good-natured fights between my friends and I it caused. Can Mario Party Star Rush regain some of that lost ground?

By Rebekah Valentine 6 years ago Mario Party as a series has struggled in recent years to retain its once-captive party audience.
