The recent announcement of Mario Party Superstars has set many fans of the series abuzz with excitement. The game seems like it'll be a return to form after some of the previous installments took a departure from the formula that popularized the franchise.
It was also announced that Superstars would feature five classic boards from the three Nintendo 64 games: Mario Party, Mario Party 2, and Mario Party 3. While three of those five boards have already been announced, now seems like the perfect time to discuss other boards from these three classic installments that deserve a spot in the final roster.
10 Deep Bloober Sea Is A Visual Standout
Appearing in Mario Party 3, Deep Bloober Sea was actually the first of the Nintendo 64 boards to actually be underwater instead of on water. As a result, it benefits from a very unique visual design and set pieces, with large fish and Bloopers being active parts of various events that can happen around the board.
A standout is the boards "action time" event, which is a sort of quick time event unique to the boards of Mario Party 3. In Deep Bloober Sea it involved trying to avoid getting sucked up by a massive fish, which will spit unlucky players wherever it's pointing to. The board might be fairly standard, but its unique style makes it more than worthy of seeing a visual upgrade.
9 Spiny Desert Mixes Classic Desert Tropes With Mario Party Fun
Spiny Desert is a board featured in Mario Party 3 and is a Mario-style spin on a desert adventure. The majority of the board is illuminated by sunlight, while a slightly smaller section is covered in perpetual night, giving the board a split design. The board takes full advantage of its desert theme, with a myriad of interesting events to encounter, and gaining a star requiring the player to choose between a mirage and the real thing.
The board also keeps most of its happening spaces confined to two sand pits, meaning players are less likely to experience unwanted events. Despite being a desert, this board is actually fun and fairly forgiving to its players.
8 Mario's Rainbow Castle Has A Classical Appeal
Like something straight out of Mario 64, Mario's Rainbow Castle has a look to it that makes it feel like a lost level from the iconic 3D platformer. Debuting in Mario Party this board features a rotating castle tower that swaps between Toad (who gives the player an actual star) and Bowser (who gives the player a fake star).
While the rotating tower can be frustrating, it also adds a level of strategy in how you approach it, as there are happening spaces all leading up to it that swap which character a player will meet. Mario's Rainbow Castle is a nostalgic board in all the right ways.
7 Wario's Battle Canyon Has A Crazy Story Of War As Its Backdrop
The original Mario Party often incorporated stories and goals into each board. For Wario's Battle Canyon the players are collecting stars with the sole purpose of stopping a war between Bob-ombs and Bob-omb Buddies. It's a strangely serious goal for a game with the word "party" in its title— even weirder is that Wario is only tangentially related— but the board makes it work and goes all the way with it. The map is broken up into several islands with canons and flags denoting which side each island is allied with.
There are planes and supply crates overhead while each of the islands are riddled with cracks and other damage from canon fire. The central gimmick of this board is that each island is totally disconnected from the others, and the only way to cross is to use the canons to be launched from island to island. Wario's Battle Canyon is the perfect map for players battling it out to be the Super Star.
6 Pirate Land Is A Great Stage For New Players
Pirate Land is a board from Mario Party 2 and is listed in game as the easiest board to play. This easiness makes it a very beginner-friendly map as the events that can occur aren't too severe while still being interesting.
New players will find themselves on a board that gives them a taste of what Mario Party is about without having to worry about events that take them straight to Bowser or steal all their coins. The pirate theme of the board adds a fun and adventurous feel that players of all skill levels are sure to enjoy.
5 The Eternal Star Is An Epic Final Board
The final board in the first Mario Party, The Eternal Star has an unmistakably grandiose feel. When unlocked, it becomes the only available board until players beat it, making it a sort of final boss for the original game.
The board eliminates many of the existing elements from the other boards, like the Koopa Troopa who hands out coins each time a player passes the start (like passing "Go" in Monopoly) and replacing Toad with a Baby Bowsers that players first pay, then must beat in a dice rolling competition to win a star. The board is difficult, epic, and is sure to challenge players in a fun way.
4 Mystery Land Brings Cryptids & World Mysteries To Mario
Mystery Land is a board introduced in Mario Party 2 and features several Mario-themed parodies on real life mysteries ranging from Stonehenge to aliens. The board is separated into four visually distinct areas filled with ruins, pyramids, and strange structures that the player can warp between.
The board also features a UFO piloted by a Bob-Omb that players can pay to be taken to other areas. The board is full of references to real-world mysteries that have been given a fun Mario spin, making the board a standout amongst the roster. The only thing it's missing is a Mushroom Kingdom Bigfoot.
3 Horror Land Has A Unique Gimmick
Another board from Mario Party 2, Horror Land is unique in that it incorporates a day/night mechanic. Every two turns, or by interacting with specific characters on the board, the time switches from day to night. Not only does the map's appearance change, but pathways become blocked, some NPCs become unavailable, and others become active.
This adds an interesting wrinkle to the proceedings that led to the day/night mechanic becoming a primary feature of Mario Party 6, showing it had staying power within the series.
2 Yoshi's Tropical Island Is A Surprisingly Relaxing Experience
Yoshi's Tropical Island from the original game is another board that features a fun story to go along with the gameplay. In this board, two Yoshis have been separated and the players have to collect enough stars to form a bridge between two islands so they can reunite. It's a simple and fun story, which describes the rest of the board quite nicely.
The board's gimmicks are fairly simple: Thwomps block the paths, and fish swap Toad & Bowser. The real appeal of this board is how colorful and upbeat everything is. It's covered in big, brightly-colored fruit and the music is upbeat and fun. Yoshi's Tropical Island is the closest thing to a relaxing board the series has, and that makes it something special.
1 Waluigi's Island Expertly Represents The Chaos The Series Thrives On
Waluigi's Island is an unlockable board in Mario Party 3 and easily one of the standouts from the Nintendo 64 era of games. The board is separated into several segments each with their own unique look and events ranging from an island piled with dynamite to an island where the spaces change form every turn.
This variety keeps the board fresh, with players having to keep on their toes and thinking fast as they plan their next move. Even better is the fact that the entire board is littered with pictures of Waluigi and Waluigi-themed items, and hilariously includes a few subtle hints that Luigi may have been the previous owner of the island before Waluigi took over. Just like the character the board is named after, Waluigi's Island is chaotic in all the best ways.