Mario Party 8 is one of my favorite video games. I don’t really play it to play the “party mode,” which is the mode where you play on different themed board game-like levels. I like to play the minigames. There are those I love, and those I don’t like very much. This list will be based on how difficult, fun, and engaging the games are. It will be divided into five posts. Extras Zone minigames are excluded from this list.
#13: Snipe For The Picking. This challenge/battle minigame is almost too easy! Humblebrag time: This is the first minigame in Test for the Best mode that I have ever gotten a perfect score on. It also kind of feels like playing darts with plungers.
#12: Eyebrawl. How many of y’all are familiar with the ghost level in the iconic game Super Mario 64? This minigame is kind of a throwback to that game. In the SM64 ghost level, you had to defeat/dodge anthropomorphic eyeballs. In this game, you make the eyes dizzy.
#11: Breakneck Building. Want to go to the hardware store without actually going to the hardware store? This is the minigame for you! You get to saw a log, hammer in nails, and paint a wooden board. I also have to wonder how many people were inspired to go into construction, industrial engineering, and interior design because of this minigame.
#10: Mosh Pit Playroom. Who else remembers the ball pit episode from The Big Bang Theory? This reminds me so much of that episode, since the purpose of this game is to collect all of your colored bouncing balls. This also reminds me of my childhood, when I would get bouncy balls at the dentist.
#9: Blazing Lassos. Here’s your chance to feel like you’re starring in an old west movie. The point is to shake your lasso until it glows and get the higher scoring barrels than your opponent. Also, what’s in those barrels? Fire flowers? Power stars? Tanooki suits?
#8: Attention Grabber. This minigame almost feels like the Tom Hanks film Castaway. All you do is shake your Wii Remote to get the ship of Goombas and Koopa Troopas over to you. I don’t understand why those are on the ship that is sailing to save the winner. I thought that the protagonists from the Mario Universe were against them? Also, it feels like the pirate ship from Shy Guy Beach from Mario Kart: Super Circuit.
#7: Scooter Pursuit. I wish I knew why my mouth would always taste like a Wii Remote Jacket when I would initially play this game. Oddly specific, I know. Nonetheless, this game feels like the Mario Kart battle modes. You ride around on hoverboard scooters and fire laser balls at your opponents. That should be a battle mode option in future Mario Kart games, in my opinion.
#6: Kartastrophe. Kartastrophe walked so Mario Kart Wii could run. Also, it feels like participating in Nascar without actually participating in Nascar. And instead of getting a trophy, you will be getting coins in board game mode or an advantage in minigame mode.
#5: Crank To Rank. All you do is move your Wii Remote in a circle to raise your flag outside the Mushroom Kingdom. That’s literally it. Honest question: if someone wins this minigame, does it mean that they get hired to do the flag/guard work at Princess Peach’s castle? If Peach wins, what would happen then?
#4: Punch-A-Bunch. As if boss fights against Bowser weren’t enough, Nintendo decided to let us use virtual boxing gloves to defeat statues of Bowser, too! Quick life hack: make sure your boxing glove is big enough to do maximum damage. This will give you advantage in Party and Minigame Modes.
#3: Mario Matrix. Does anyone else remember the television series Code Lyoko? This minigame feels like that, and it’s also easy to win. You just select the lit up panels as fast as you can. Easy as pie. And speaking of pie, tangent: Village Inn has tasty apple pie.
#2: At The Chomp Wash. Quick question: how close does the butterfly get to the Chain Chomp to wake it up? The trick here is to aggressively shake your Wii Remote to clean all the paint off of the Chain Chomp. Also, it’s hilarious and adorable how Nintendo decided to make the Chain Chomp bark.
#1: Shake It Up. You aggressively shake your Wii Remote for five seconds to make your soda go high in the air. That’s it. That’s the minigame. Easy as pie. Also a good arm exercise.
What are your favorite minigames from the Mario Party franchise? Let me know in the comments below.
Elephants & Extra Base Hits 