Graphics

Mario Party 3 is one of the Nintendo 64’s last titles; as such, it is in the position to be one of the best games, graphics-wise. Unfortunately, it is most certainly not. Let’s get one thing straight: it is definitely better than the last two Mario Parties, but between the lacking character models and the flat ugly backgrounds, this game definitely falls short.

6

Sound

Music-wise the game does what it needs to do. It offers a bland and forgettable, yet catchy enough soundtrack that scrapes along by. Nothing sticks out, for better or for worse. No song will have you humming along, yet no song will have you grabbing your ears in pain. As for other sounds, the character sounds are wide and varied, which is definitely good. It’s interesting to hear all the little blurbs, and unlike most people, I never found the taunts to be annoying (maybe because it was always me doing them). For what it’s worth, the sound is good, not great, but not shit.

6

Play Control

With a game as varied as this, the only consistent control keeping it together is the map screen, which are nothing more than dice blocks and items. The minigames are fun, for what it’s worth. The play control on each one is unique and different for the most part, offering fun and enjoyable experiences. No games are repeated (well, maybe repeated from previous games). And this is where the fun comes in: the minigames. Unfortunately, the game can get boring and frustrating to play while not in minigames. I guess rolling dice blocks isn’t gameplay at its finest.

7

Originality

Oh boy, here we go. This is Mario Party 3, the third game in a series with one release every year up to this title. I guess what I’m getting at is that this game has a bad case of “been there, done that”. No, that’s putting it lightly. It was churned out as quickly as possible to cash in and make profit with no real originality or soul put in. Most minigames are recycled from previous titles but with new faces and new backgrounds. Truly pathetic. What’s more is that even outside of the minigames (which we have established as the redeeming quality), the game brings very little new to the table. It evolves the item system a bit to include three items, but still all the same items from Mario Party 2. The key? Yeah, but now it’s a boy. The lamp? Yeah, but the genie looks different. Same items, same objectives, virtually same mechanics but with new boards and two new characters. Sounds like an expansion pack, but they treat the old as new by changing a few pixels around. So is there anything new and exciting to write home about? There is a new one on one battle mode, but god forbid if you ever feel like playing it (it’s really that boring). It also throws in a defined story mode which will help throw away an extra five hours (albeit in a painful way, facing computers is not fun or fair).

2

Final Word

For what it’s worth, Mario Party 3 does do one thing right: it offers a fun experience for a casual gathering of four friends, or a “party”. Problem is how often you’ll play it and how much you’ll get out of it truly doesn’t justify its existence compared to the original Mario Party (the only one we should have gotten on the N64). The graphics suck, the sound is forgettable, it’s Mario Party 2 painted differently and above all else, it’s frustrating. The problem with the game is that, when you start to escape complete casual play, is that too much of it is left up to luck. Go to fucking hell, “Chance Time”; you are the bane of my existence. All things considered, I have had some seriously fun times with this game with family and friends; too bad underneath that it is an abysmal game. 7

Final Score: 6/10