Now that it's finally been released, Mario Party Superstars has fans revisiting classic Mario Party boards and mini-games while embracing the joy of completely unfair competition. After playing it for a little while, however, it begins to feel strangely similar to another Mario game that was re-released earlier this year: Super Mario 3D World. While the two share very little in terms of mechanics and player goals, they have a fair bit in common when it comes to the overall feeling that players get while playing: friendly competition.

The Mario series isn't necessarily known for being particularly challenging or punishing, but the Mario Party games and Super Mario 3D World purposefully pit players against one another, showcasing Nintendo's ongoing initiative to bring players together through the world of gaming. Although 3D World is several years old at this point and there hasn't been a new proper Mario Party game since 2018, the fact that Nintendo was willing to release multiple highly competitive games in the same year with the Switch port of 3D World and the Mario Party Superstars, a compilation title, seems to suggest that more competitive and multiplayer Mario titles could be in the works.

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The Competitive Nature of Mario Party and Super Mario 3D World

mario party superstars characters

Due to its nature as a virtual board game, Mario Party is inherently a competition. This is aided by the fact that the games are constantly putting players at odds with one another through competitive mini-games, by encouraging in-game sabotage, and with the fact that, at the end of the day, everyone is trying their hardest to win. The final tally of points, whether it's stars, coins, or other medallions, usually results in the losers challenging the winners to one more game, furthering the competitive cycle that Mario Party traps its player in.

This sort of play is exactly the appeal of Mario Party and can be observed with the experience of playing Super Mario 3D World as well. Similar to Mario Party, 3D World scores its players at the end of each level, making it very clear who's doing the best and who's dragging behind. The game digs further wedges between players by giving the person who won a giant gold crown to wear throughout the next level and can be stolen by other players and redeemed at the end for bonus points. Although there isn't an inherent competitive nature to 3D World in the same way that there is with Mario Party, 3D World does a lot to help its players embrace the spirit of competition.

Cooperative Play in Mario Party and Super Mario 3D World

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Alternatively, both games can also be played cooperatively, and, oddly enough, Mario Party and Super Mario 3D World share similar elements in that regard as well. When playing on the same team in Mario Party, there's still the opportunity to accidentally sabotage one another during mini-games whether that's through poor communication or intentionally challenging games. Super Mario 3D World doesn't have a cooperative mode, but the end goal is to get players to the final flagpole of a level, which can be completed through teamwork. If the players decide to work together instead of playing competitively, however, there are still pitfalls that can await them, similar to in Mario Party. In 3D World, players can bounce off one another, accidentally pick up and throw teammates, and even spawn directly on top of each other, messing up precise platforming sections.

The similarities between the two games could simply be coincidence, but, while most other gaming companies have shied away from competitive party games, Nintendo seems to be leaning into the multiplayer experience and continuing to give major focus to bringing players closer together.

Mario Party Superstars is available now on Nintendo Switch.

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