Mario Party (e)

MARIO PARTY MINIGAME ISLAND STRATEGY GUIDE V1.0
Kirk Israel 

---INTRO---
Looking around GameFAQs, I noticed that while many people were quick
to describe all the minigames, nobody actually suggested startegies
to help get through the one player mode.  While some of the fun of 
one player mode is figuring out how to win on your own, this document 
might turn out to be a useful guide if you get stuck.  I'm not a 
hardcore gamer and I got through it, so you probably can too.

Mario Party is a good game.  The first time through the multiplayer
game it seems chaotic and slow, but it really grows on you after
a short while.  Also, at first it seems unpolished, with a relatively
low polygon count (especially with the main characters) but then 
you start to notice all the little touches that add to the experience.

I've given each game a one to three star "Aargh!" rating, a combination
difficulty/frustration description.  The more stars, the more difficult
it was.

---PLUG---
Check out my website, http://www.alienbill.com , especially
if you're interested in "Classic" Video Games.

---THANKS---
Thanks to Cam Roth's FAQ, from whom I got the world numbers of each 
minigame (forgot to write them down the first time through.)

Thanks also to GameFAQs-- what a resource!  It's what the web should
be all about.

---TECH NOTE---
The bulk of this guide was written on my trusty PalmPilot, using
a GoType keyboard (quicker than scribbling away using Grafitti.)
Much more convenient than having to run back to my PC all the time.)

---THE GAMES---

1-1 Coin Block Blitz
*
A very easy warmup. The computer players jump rather slowly, and for you
the jumping is just a simple matter of timing.  If a player decides to
joust you for your "spot", let him (or her) have it, there are plenty of
other spots to go around.

1-2 Coin Block Bash
**
You're a lot slower with the hammer then the other players are without.  
Luckily, the other players are back to their slow jumping ways, and won't
go too far out of their way to snipe the treasures you free. Either break
the blocks facing away from the other players (so they can't get your
stuff) or smack 'em out of the way with the sideways blow. (Much better at
getting them out of your hair)

1-3 Coin Shower Flower
*+
Try not keep the flower fairly centered by making good use of jumping.  
Watch for the shadows of falling coins (you can see the shadow before the
coins themselves) and this one should be a cakewalk.

1-4 Paddle Battle
*+
The first brutal rotate-a-thon. Not much strategy beyond how you decide to
hold the analog stick.

2-1 Memory Match
*
Once you get down the trick of Hip Dropping ON the panels instead of next
to them, this one shouldn't be much of a problem for anyone who has
graduated kindergarten.  As a kindergarten graduate myself, I tend to say
the pictures I've uncovered outloud in the order I uncovered them as a
memory technique. (Also, make sure you take efficient routes accross the
field.)

2-2 Ground Pound
*
This one gets my vote for most disturbing imagery in the game, watching
this guy impale himself on a big wooden spike.  I believe there are always
five flat tops, so take a good look in the first few seconds, think of the
field as a 4x3 lowrez bitmap, get good at hipdropping on target, and this
shouldn't be a hassle.

2-3 The Limbo Dance
***
The first real toughie.  Amazing how this game is more interesting than
average despite having a single button for control.  The Blue and Yellow
posts are pretty easy, so don't start hopping too fast.  With the red
ones, you generally need to be so low that your legs start to flail.  
Once you start flailing, give your guy a second, then hop.  Flail, Hop,
Flail, Hop, and you can make it under the reds as well.

2-4 Musical Mushroom
*+
For starters, ignore the blue mushrooms, they aren't much of a help in
reaching the top.  A little precision jumping will see you through the
day.

2-5 Pirahna's Pursuit
**+
Ugh. The first brutal button smasher.  Not much strategy, just decide how
you're going to hold the controller, and watch out for falling logs.

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Whoops- time for a decision.  (the only real one in the whole 
game.)  Given what a pain in the butt Cast Aways is, I would 
recommend staying on land.  Later you can come back and finish
up this path, which will free up another minigame back at the
shop.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
3-1 Crazy Cutter
*
Tracing.  Another kindergarten favorite revamped.  Easy. Just remember
that what counts is how much you drill on the line, not how closely your
drill path matches the curves of the outline.

3-2 Buried Treasure
*+
An homage to DigDug?  Dig towards the center at first and then just stay
alert (watching what's happening with the other diggers, in term of
arrowsigns) and it shouldn't take you too many tries (There's definately 
an element of chance in this one.)

3-3 Desert Dash
*
Easy (the computer players aren't too good, thankfully, because if Hudson
was feeling mean these guys could be unbeatable)  Watch the speech balloon
and you are all set.

3-4 Tug o' War
*+
Sit and spin, baby.

3-5 Teetering Towers
**
Make sure to do full length jumps 

4-1 Bobsled Run
*+
Fun! You're teammate goes along with whatever you decide to do, so get a
fast start, hit the zippers, block the other guys, and get the victory.

4-2 Skateboard Stamper
*
Not much to say.  Tap quickly, jump carefully, and you'll get the clear.

4-3 Handcar Havoc
*+
On turns, make sure you lean so that your platform stays as level as
possible, otherwise you risk taking a plunge. (So maybe I'm dense, but I
wasn't sure what "move against the lean" meant at first.)

4-4 Ghost Guess
*+
Like the Advice says, it's easier to tell which ghost is commanding the
others by watching the shadows.

5-1 Cast Aways
***
Not too easy to begin with, this game is made even harder by the
difficulty of reliably making short and medium casts (if I were them, I
would have the length of windup determine the strength of the cast, but
hey, I'm not Nintendo or even Hudson.)  You probably only want to bother
with treasure chests, of which you'll need three to move on.  My technique
(which worked best when I was positioned at the leftmost spot) was to
figure out where the chest in the third row needed to be for me to cast
and catch it (for the leftmost spot, this is about when the chest has
passed 2/3 of the rightmost island.)

5-2 Shy Guy Says
*+
Try not to get hypnotized by the waves, or stunned by how cool the Pirate
shy guy looks. This game is reasonably forgiving of being slow to raise
your flags, so take your time, especially when the shy guy raises both
flags at once.

5-3 Bumper Balls
*
I *love* this game, it was the first minigame I bought so I could play it
at will.  The computer's not too tough, play defensively at first (let them
take each other out.)  Once it's down to just one other guy, try to lure
them near the edge, then give them that final push to their watery doom.

5-4 Treasure Divers 
*+
Another fun one. Reminds me of "Fishing Derby" on the Atari 2600. Go for
the big chests early, and be ready to capitalize on shark-inspired drops
by the computer opponents once the chests start to run out.

5-5 Bombs Away
*+
Try not to jump too much- if you land on an opponent, it can be very hard
to control your bounce (And getting stunned by a cannonball isn't nearly
as bad as it sounds.)

5-6 Deep Sea Divers
**
You can usually beat the computer to the big chest at the bottom.  (Or, if
you're in a gambling mood, let the computer get it and be ready to catch
it if they run out of air.)  The computer is not to smart about what
targets it picks, so this one shouldn't be too much of a challenge.

5-7 Mushroom Mixup
**+
Try not to jump too much.. Use your body to block off other players
because they'll do the sqme thing to you. (The computer is tougher than
average in this game.) One strategy is to try to be under where the other
characters need to land, so they rebound off your head and into the water.

5-8 Tightrope Trachery
*
This game is so easy for the walker.  Just lumber across like Frankenstein.  
It's not like you can dodge anyway.  (It might be cooler if getting hit
made you give up coins, but see my earlier comment about me not being
Nintendo or Hudson...)

6-1 Box Mountain Mayhem
*+
It's not always easy to tell what's going on during this level.  Don't get
too caught up in breaking the boxes that you don't pursue any coin bags
that other players may release.

6-2 Pedal Pwer
*+
Another repetitive motion sickness case waiting to happen.  Not that much
fun.  Make sure you are fully rotating the stick.

6-3 Tipsey Tourney
*
Try to clear out the middle 9 blocks since the edges are easy.

6-4 Hot Bob-omb
*
Seems like mostly a game of chance to me.  

6-5 Bombsketball
*+
Your teammate is pretty good, so don't hog the ball.

6-6 Hot Rope Jump
**
Don't jump too early.  15-20 and 36-40 are rather fast, but it gets slow
at 20.

7-1 Slot Machine
**
Anticipate. Don't wait too long or it will jump for you. A good rule of
thumb is to jump when the one before the one before the one you want shows
up (if the order was coin, mushroom, turtle and you wanted turtle, jump
when you see he coin.

7-2 Crane Game
*
Line up your shadow and press A quickly.  Those little dolls will be no
match for you, my friend. (If only these games were so easy in real life.)

7-3 Pipe Maze
**
For me, this seems like a game of chance.  Maybe I'm just too slow.  The
computer players seem to have no problem with it in the multiplayer
version. (Hint: if you are just guessing, always guess the same starting
point..  Statistically, that's a better pay off then guessing each time,
assuming equal odds for each starting point.) I want to look at the
mathematics of this and see if there's any rule of thumb about which
starting points to avoid.

7-4 Bowl Over
**+
Remember to stand a little to the left since your turtle is thrown with
your right hand. Steer but don't oversteer the shell.

7-5 Whack-a-Plant
**
Watch the gro-lites to see what's coming, and then master the trick of
bouncing from one plant to another without having to jump again.

7-6 Mario Bandstand
**
What the HECK is going on here?  It's very odd. Make sure to watch the
direction chart at top. Beyond that, I can't figure out why sometimes I
can conduct this and sometimes I can't.

8-1 Running of th Bulb
**
Kind of cool.  Confusing at first, (Especially in multiplayer mode) easy
once you get used to it.  Let the computer cover your sides, stay where
you can see all the action, get ready to run from your friends when they
can turn into zombies.  (I've beaten this level even when all three of the
others were turned into zombies, just by making big laps around the
screen.)

8-2 Grab Bag
*+
Another fun one.  Jump to stay behind the other guys, press B quickly, and
get ready to rake in the dough.

8-3 Key-pa-Way
*+
The computer's pretty good at this, so throw the key when you need
to...don't be a hero, son, and play defense when the need arises.

8-4 Balloon Burst
*+
I usually seem to win this and I'm not sure how.  A+B seems easier than
A+Z, make sure you get the flash before you pump, and find a groove.

8-5 Face Lift
**
Not too bad once you learn the 6 or so points you can grab (chin, cheeks,
eyebrows, nose) and how the eyebrows grow and shrink.

8-6 Bash 'n' Cash
***
This one sucks to be Bowser in, especially in multiplayer mode.  The main
diffiuclty is that Bowser can't jump very often- so use your jumps to go
over the others, or better yet, to bounce on their hands and knock 'em
down. Also, try staying near the edge of the arena and leading them in
circles- it takes em a second to swing those mighty hammers, which often
gives you the chance to scurry away.

Hammer Drop
9-1 **
If you just go for the coinbags and not the coins and watch the shadows
you should get your 10 pieces of Gold and be out of there.

9-2 Slot Car Derby
***
MAN this level had be frustrated.  "Remember when games used to be ...
fun?" I muttered to myself.  Eventually I got the hang of it.  The trick
is to let up on the throttle very, very briefly, and only when there's
smoke AND you're going into some kind of curve.  When you're on the
outside laps you got nothing to worry about, so let 'er rip.

9-3 Shell Game
*
A nice break after Slot Cars. Just track the trasure shell with your eyes
and you'll get the prize every time.

9-4 Knock Block Tower
**
Easy once you get the hang of precision jump punching.  Interestingly,
certain initial setups are much easier than others. Remember to grab the
treasure and not try to punch it!

9-5 Platform Peril
*
Surprisngly easy.  The hardest part is figuring out when you're finally
controlling your guy at the begining!  Run and jump, not being afraid to
"change lanes" when obstacles get in your way.

GOAL Slot Car Derby
***
Once you got the first version of this, the new shouldn't take too too
many new tries..



Copyright 1999 By Kirk Israel .
Not to be posted, published, or modified without explicit permission.