The latest Nintendo leaks have some pretty major implications for the companies future projects. According to a known Nintendo insider, the next Mario Kart game could be called Mario Kart Crossroads, and the game will feature a high number of characters from other Nintendo properties, rather than focusing on Super Mario characters alone. Considering how many creative ideas Nintendo could get out of blending its own games with Mario Kart, it'd be great to see the company experiment with further crossover-heavy games in this way. For instance, a Mario Party game that brings Nintendo characters together could be pretty compelling.
Mario Party is already doing pretty well for itself lately. Super Mario Party introduced some innovative mechanics like character-specific dice, while Mario Party Superstars revived tons of beloved core content from the franchise, giving players a second taste of Mario Party's past. Even so, a new Mario Party game that includes characters from The Legend of Zelda, Animal Crossing, and so on could be a ton of fun. If characters from all parts of the Super Mario universe can come together for Mario Party, then extending invitations to Nintendo characters from beyond the Mushroom Kingdom doesn't seem all that far-fetched.
Room For Mario Party Guests
For a long time now, Mario Kart has already proven that other Nintendo characters can fit into Super Mario party games easily. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, for instance, features the original Mario Kart 8's DLC as core content, meaning The Legend of Zelda and Animal Crossing both have presences as base content in the game. The characters and courses that these franchises provide to Mario Kart are really charming and mesh with the racing game, even if they don't bend the rules of Mario Kart significantly. Mario Party, on the other hand, would be at liberty to make much more extensive use of other Nintendo IPs.
If the next Mario Party game is all about Nintendo crossovers, then inevitably Nintendo and developer NDcube would end up creating a long list of new game boards themed after other franchises. It's not hard to imagine Mario Party game boards about other franchises; a Zelda board could be based on Tingle or Beedle, a Splatoon board could star Judd and Lil' Judd, and an Animal Crossing board might be managed by Tom Nook and his sons.
NDcube could create minigames about battling Zelda enemies or helping out Animal Crossing villagers, and naturally the game could get great playable characters like Link, Zelda, Isabelle, the Inklings, Samus, Kirby, and many more. A Mario Party crossover game would hardly be short on inspiration.
Nintendo's Next Big Crossover
It's worth noting that Nintendo is potentially in the market for a new crossover franchise right now. As series director Masahiro Sakurai has confirmed, there aren't any plans for a new Super Smash Bros. game right now, which means Nintendo will lack its main way of bringing its diverse IPs together under one roof. While a Mario Party crossover title wouldn't scratch the fighting game itch for Smash fans, it would certainly fill the niche of a party game starring Nintendo characters of all kinds. If Super Smash Bros. is potentially getting sidelined for now, then maybe Mario Party can fill its shoes for a little while.
Of course, if Mario Kart Crossroads is really in development, then a Mario Party game with a similar premise is probably far off. Nintendo may not want to oversaturate the Switch with crossover titles, since Smash Ultimate remains a major presence on the console. What's more, Mario Party Superstars is still very fresh, meaning Nintendo probably doesn't plan on releasing a new Mario Party soon. Regardless of that, though, when constructing a plan for Mario Party's long-term future, Nintendo should look into a crossover title. Considering the precedent of Super Smash Bros. and Mario Kart, Nintendo characters in a Mario Party game will probably get along just fine.