Mario Party 9

Mario Party 9
The European cover art
Information
Developer(s)	Ndcube
Publisher(s)	Nintendo
Series	Mario Party
Release date	Original release: April 26, 2012 March 11, 2012 April 11, 2013 March 11, 2012 March 2, 2012 March 8, 2012 June 29, 2012 June 29, 2012 June 29, 2012 Nintendo Selects: November 6, 2014
Genre(s)	Party
Mode(s)	Single-player, Multiplayer
Ratings	ACB: G (General) CERO: A (All ages) ESRB: E (Everyone) PEGI: 3+ USK: 6+
Platform(s)	Wii
Navigation
Predecessor	Mario Party 8 (2007) Mario Party DS (2007)
Successor	Mario Party: Island Tour (2013) Mario Party 10 (2015)

Mario Party 9 is the ninth home console installment of the Mario Party series and the second Mario Party installment for the Wii, following after Mario Party 8. The game was the first in the series to be developed by Ndcube. This is also the last Mario game for the Wii.

Story

On a night outside of Princess Peach's Castle, Mario and his friends are gathering together to watch the Mini Stars glitter in the sky. As Mario peers through the telescope, he is shocked as he notices that the stars are suddenly being sucked into a vortex. It is then revealed to be Bowser and Bowser Jr. on a spacecraft, who are using a vacuum-like machine to suck the Stars out of the sky and into containers. Upon witnessing this, Mario and the gang move out to defeat them and save the Mini Stars. After they start their journey, Shy Guy and Magikoopa are seen coming out of the woods and start following them, as part of Bowser's plan.

Before each board, there is a cutscene that features Bowser admiring his collection of Mini Stars. Bowser Jr. then runs over to him to show his father the progression of Mario's group. Bowser is enraged but summons two of his minions to stop the group before they can take all the Mini Stars. Eventually, however, the group reach Bowser's location, Bowser Station, and must face Bowser Jr. before battling his father.

After the final battle with Bowser, the player looks out from the stadium at Bowser's other platform, where the canisters containing all the Mini Stars burst and release them back to where they once were. As this happens, Bowser and Bowser Jr. are flying off. Bowser is mourning over the failure of his plan, which he reveals was to decorate his castle using the Mini Stars. However, upon seeing the released Mini Stars, Bowser is enraged and chases off the ones that fly near him. However, this only results in him falling out of his car; Bowser Jr. flies down to save him. Back at Peach's Castle, Mario and friends are once again gathered around the telescope to admire the Mini Stars as they glisten in the night sky.

Gameplay

A new form of this gameplay was introduced in this game. The classic Mario Party series formula from the first eight installments --and Mario Party DS-- is gone for one game (both this installment --Mario Party 9-- and Mario Party 10). This does not return until the home console games Super Mario Party, Mario Party Superstars, and Super Mario Party Jamboree.

In this game --Mario Party 9-- players move all at once through the board in a vehicle (a car in Toad Road, a magic carpet in Boo's Horror Castle and a legged machine in Bob-omb Factory) at the same time. Instead of trying to collect Coins to buy stars, players receive Mini Stars (instead of stars and coins) if they pass by them. Mini Stars are the successor to coins and stars from previous installments. New minigame types are introduced in the Mario Party series, one example being 2 vs. 1 minigames against Bowser Jr. Players must try to avoid Mini Ztars, which deduct their current amount of Mini Stars. In this game, the minigames don't appear after every four turns, but only when a player ends up on any of the spaces that trigger a minigame. Also, when receiving dice blocks, a minigame might pop up after as well. Unlike the previous Mario Party games, where often only the winner mattered, all minigames are ranked from first to last place and generally all players receive Mini Stars, although the winning player(s) earns the most.

If played on the board DK's Jungle Ruins, the player collects Bananas and Z-Bananas instead of Mini Stars and Mini Ztars. But --despite the fact that Bananas and Z-Bananas replace the said collectibles-- they (Bananas and Z-Bananas) function like Mini Stars and Mini Ztars from previous boards.

Modes

The Main Menu.

Mario Party 9 has 5 modes in all. They are:

• Party Mode
• Solo Mode
• Minigame Mode
• Extras
• Museum

Minigame Mode

• Free Play - In the Free Play mode, the players can play unlocked minigames freely.
• Step It Up - In this mode, players must win minigames to climb up stairs per win. The player who reaches the top first wins.
• Garden Battle - The players must get puzzle pieces to fill their gardens winning minigames. The player who completes it first wins.
• Choice Challenge - All the players choose three minigames from a group of five that they would like to play. These minigames are played and the player who gets the most points wins.
• High Rollers - In this mode, the players must win minigames to roll a Dice Block to pass through a panel floor. The player who gets 500 points first wins.
• Time Attack - The player must try to win 10 minigames as fast as he or she can.
• Boss Rush - The players must defeat a series of bosses to win, similar to Boss Bash in Mario Party DS.

Party Mode

Once again returning from previous Mario Party games, Party Mode involves the players going around the board like with the previous games, but changed due to the new gameplay mechanics of Mario Party 9.

Solo Mode

The game's story mode, Solo Mode involves the players traveling across all six boards to defeat Bowser and save the Mini Stars.

During the first four boards, the player plays either a four-player match against three computers, three-player match against two computers, or a two-player duel match against one computer (either Kamek or Shy Guy, which ensures the player must be the Superstar or tie to move on). The player often has at least one ally on four boards; if they win instead of the player, then they can still continue to the next board regardless of their final position. If Kamek or Shy Guy wins, then they take all the Mini Stars from the other players and the player must replay the board, similar to a Game Over, and the results screen does not show up. If Kamek or Shy Guy ties with the player or an ally, the player still continues to the next stage. During the last two boards, the player plays against a four-player match against Kamek, Shy and one computer player or three-player match against Kamek and Shy Guy. If they are the only players on either Magma Mine, Bowser Station, or both, this ensures the player must be the Superstar or tie to move on and/or complete solo mode.

Extras Mode

In Extras Mode, the player can play through various extra minigames such as Goomba Bowling, Castle Clearout, or Shell Soccer. There is also a mode called Perspective Mode, in which the player plays through various minigames with a changed camera angle.

Museum

The Museum is where the player can spend Party Points on various things such as constellations, game sounds, vehicles, extra game modes, or watch the credits. Once they return a constellation into the sky, the player can go back and see it in the sky.

Characters

Playable

		(newcomer)		(newcomer and unlockable)		(newcomer and unlockable)

Default Partners

• Mario and Luigi
• Wario and Waluigi
• Peach and Daisy
• Yoshi and Birdo
• Toad and Koopa Troopa
• Shy Guy and Kamek (Magikoopa)

Non-playable

The host is Yellow Toad for the boards while Blue Toad is the host for minigames, and Green Toad appears near the end of Boards to initiate an event similar to the Last Five Turns Event from the past Mario Party games.

• Bob-ombs
• Boos
• Bullet Bills
• Buzzy Beetles
• Cheep Cheeps
• Deep Cheeps
• Dolphins
• Dry Bones
• Fire Bros.
• Fishbones.
• Goombas.
• Hammer Bros.
• Huckit Crabs
• Mechakoopas
• Missile Bills
• Monty Moles
• Mr. Blizzards
• Penguins
• Piantas
• Piranha Plants
• Podoboo
• Scaredy Rats
• Seagulls
• Spikes
• Spinys
• Sushi
• Swoopers
• Thwomps
• Toads (Green, Yellow, Green)
• Urchins
• Whittles

Bosses

These characters are various NPCs who appear as bosses.

Toad Road	Bob-omb Factory	Boo's Horror Castle	Blooper Beach	Magma Mine	Bowser Station	DK's Jungle Ruins
Mid-Bosses
Stage Bosses
Note: King Bob-omb is called Big Bob-omb in the European version. Note #2: Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong are not actual bosses. Note #3: In Bowser Station and DK's Jungle Ruins, the bosses are not optional.

Boards

These are all the playable board maps in Mario Party 9. Five are available from the start, while two are unlockable.

Board	Description	Captain Event(s)
Toad Road	Toad Road is the first board in the game, and is a simple stage with almost no gimmicks. It is designed after New Super Mario Bros. Wii, with features lush grassland, flowers, and windmills. A broken bridge after Lakitu prevents players from moving forward, and if the Energy Meter does not reach the required number, the players will fall to a lower route with Mini Ztar Spaces.	9 Island
Bob-omb Factory	Bob-omb Factory is the second board. Players move around a room full of conveyor belts, and if the Captain lands on a Happening Space, the conveyor belts will move the group of players around, including spaces. After the mid boss battle, Bob-ombs will intrude on the vehicle and will explode after 10 moves. Whatever the Captain happens to stop the Bob-omb's countdown, half of the Captain's Mini Stars are lost.	Side-by-Side Zone
Boo's Horror Castle	Boo's Horror Castle is the third board. Players move throughout a big castle, which is haunted with Boos. After a Captain passes a Boo Portrait, a Boo will come out of it. If a Captain is caught by a Boo, then a Boo will take away half of their Mini Stars. Boos will follow the players until they leave the current hallway, or enter an alternative room with lights. Before the players can face King Boo, the Captain must roll a number higher than the specified numeral on the gate. There is less chances of doing so the first time, minimal chances the second time and/or most chances the third or fourth time.	Scaredy Rat Race
Blooper Beach	Blooper Beach is the fourth board. Players travel along an ocean to reach the end goal. If a Captain passes by a Dolphin, he or she will receive five Mini Stars. However, sushis will take away half of the Captain's Mini Stars. Huckit Crabs ship will turn all the Mini Stars on the stage into Mini Ztars if a Captain lands on an Event Space, and if they land on it again, the Huckit Crabs will turn them back.	Sunken Treasure
Magma Mine	Magma Mine is the fifth board, which takes place in an active volcano where players mainly travel up and out of the mine. After the mid boss battle, players must escape rising magma that rises two spaces each turn and is increased further if a Captain lands on a Magma Space. The Captain must avoid getting hit by magma, or the Captain will lose half their Mini Stars.	Dice Block Chicken
Bowser Station	Bowser Station is the final board. Bowser Jr. and Bowser are the stage's mid-boss and boss. A Jackpot Machine here will increase in Mini Stars if a Captain lands on a Jackpot Space. If the Jackpot Machine happens to have 20 or more Mini Stars, a Jackpot Minigame will commence. Oddly this board has no actual hazards that will detract Mini Stars from the Captain have three captain events.	Heart Star Colony Bingo Colony Speed Star Colony
DK's Jungle Ruins	DK's Jungle Ruins is an unlockable board that can be purchased from the Museum for 500 Party Points. Instead of collecting Mini Stars, players collect Bananas and Z-Bananas. (However, they --Bananas and Z-Bananas-- have the same effect as Mini Stars and Mini Ztars from the previous six boards.) Players must make two laps before completing the board. Bananas and Z-Bananas are placed on each space rather than in between. The actual Boss Mini-games in this stage are done in form of a bonus minigame to collect bananas of two laps.	Barrel Choice

Spaces

When a player lands on a space, something is going to happen. Each space has its own effect, but like in the previous Mario Party games, every space is color-coded. The color of the space will tell what kind of event is going to happen.

Name	Picture	Effect
Green Space		Nothing happens when the player lands here.
Dice Block Space		The player landing here receives a special Dice Block. Sometimes, a special mini-game or Mini Stars comes out of the gift.
Lucky Space		Something good will happen to the player landing here.
Unlucky Space		Something bad will happen if the player lands here.
Event Space		As the player lands here, a special event will occur.
Shuffle Space		The players' order to become Captain changes.
Dash Space		The player landing here can move again by hitting another Dice Block.
Back Space		The player landing here can move backward by hitting another Dice Block.
Bowser Space		If the player lands here, they will summon Bowser to hinder them.
Mini Star Space		The player landing here receives the number of Mini Stars over the space.
Mini Ztar Space		If the player lands here, they will lose the number of over the Mini Stars.
Captain Event Space		Arriving at this step triggers a Captain Event. The players can't just pass over this space.
Boss Battle Space		Arriving at this space triggers a Boss Battle. This space also can't be skipped.
Free-for-All Space		If the player lands here, everyone will compete in a Free-For-All minigame.
1-vs-Rival Space		If the player lands here, they will trigger a 1-vs-3 minigame with them being the solo player.
Bowser Jr. Space		If the player lands here, they and another randomly-chosen player take part in a Bowser Jr. minigame.
Battle Space		A minigame will commence in which all players must participate. Mini Stars are distributed differently from regular minigames.
Magma Space		Raises the lava level by the Magma Mine board.
Jackpot+ Space		Adds Mini Stars to the Jackpot Machine in Bowser Station.
DK Space		Donkey Kong will start an activity where they try to collect the most bananas spinning in a circle board the board.

Trivia

• This game is the first installment in the Mario Party series:
  • to be published by the ND Cube.
  • to not created by Hudson Soft due to it being absorbed by Konami.
• This is the first and currently only Mario Party to have fewer characters than its numbered predecessor.
• This is the final Mario Party where the DK spaces appears.
• This is the second and final Mario Party game and the final Mario game overall to be released on the Wii.
• Toadette is the only playable Mario Party 8 character to not appear in this game, as Mario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Peach, Daisy, Yoshi, Birdo,  and Toad are playable, Blooper and Dry Bones appear as bosses, Hammer Bro. appears for battle minigames and Boo appears in Boo's Horror Castle.
• While this installment in the series --counting only the home console games-- has playable antagonists --like the predecessors (since Mario Party 5)-- this is the only installment where none of the antagonist characters from the former five returns (Koopa Kid/Bowser Jr., Boo, Dry Bones, Hammer Bro, and Blooper). Instead, the new antagonist characters are Shy Guy, Koopa Troopa, and Kamek. Mario Party 10 introduces Spike, and Super Mario Party introduces Goomba, Monty Mole, and Pom Pom.
  • While Shy Guy, Koopa Troopa, Spike, Goomba, and Monty Mole (along with Boo and Bowser Jr.) returned in the latest installment of the series (Super Mario Party Jamboree), Kamek (along with Pom Pom) have not returned in any other future installment after Mario Party 9, Mario Party 10, and Super Mario Party. Dry Bones and Hammer Bro have only returned in Super Mario Party. And the remaining antagonist character Blooper hasn't appeared in any other future installment.
• This installment in the series was in production and its development was the longest of any game in the series.
• This is the one of the two installments in the series that does not have Coins, Stars, number of turns, and Item Shops. Instead, they use --the successor to stars and coins-- Mini Stars and Mini Ztars (or Bananas and Z-Bananas if played in the board DK's Jungle Ruins). (The other installment is Mario Party 10. That is, where Mini Stars and Mini Ztars are the successor to stars and coins.)
• The Golden Star is only shown in the Superstar scene.
• This game was the first and only Mario game on the Wii to use the modern Mario font we see today.
• This is one of the two installments to play differently from its predecessors, the other is Mario Party 10.
• This is the first installment to have the player use a vehicle instead of running around the board.

Gallery

To view Mario Party 9's image gallery, click here.