Mario Party 6
Template:Infobox Mario Party 6 is the sixth title in the Mario Party sub-series made for the Nintendo GameCube and the third installment for that console. This game is developed by Hudson Soft and published by Nintendo. The game is the first in the series that features an installment of voice controlled minigames using a packaged microphone, which makes an all new mode, Speak Up, which is microphone-oriented. The main focus of this game is collecting Stars to stop the conflict going on with the sun and the moon to fill the Star Bank.
Story
Story from Instruction Booklet
Brighton and Twila – the sun and the moon – watch over Mario Party World from the sky and host the best parties. The two celestial party animals have always been good friends. That is, until the day Brighton asked Twila, "Who's more impressive, you or me?"
Brighton and Twila argued furiously over who was more popular and impressive. The sky thundered with the fury of their cataclysmic squabble!
Mario and his party-hearty friends tried to get them to make up, but nothing they said could settle their spat in the sky. That's when Mario came up with a brilliant plan to harness the power of the Stars to end the feud!
They decided to throw a massive Mario Party to collect Stars and fill the great Star Bank! Determined to end Brighton and Twila's feud, they started partying right away.
...But will the power of the Stars be enough to end the furious feud?
Brighton and Twila, the hosts of Mario Party 6, have watched over Mario Party world from the sky. They had always been good friends until one day, when Brighton asked Twila which of the duo is better, and the two start to argue with each other. This bothers Mario and his friends, so they try whatever they can to stop the argument, but nothing works. However, Mario comes up with the idea to throw a Mario Party, collecting Stars to fill the Star Bank to end their hosts' dispute.
By collecting Stars, Mario and friends are able to obtain pages to the Miracle Book. After collecting all the pages of the book, Brighton and Twila see the Star Bank, filled with Stars. Noting how hard Mario and friends had worked to obtain the Stars, Brighton and Twila apologize to them for the hassle their quarrel had caused, and make up. To show their appreciation for the effort, the hosts send the Stars flying into the sky. The ending goes on to state that Brighton and Twila "watched over Mario Party world until the end of time," and that "everyone got back to partying as usual."
Playable Characters
magenta (unlockable)
Team Names
In Mario Party 5, two players could compete with another pair in tag-team parties. This feature returns in Mario Party 6. Another feature that returns with this is the inclusion of team names. Here is a table containing all possible team names.
| Mario | Luigi | Princess Peach | Yoshi | Wario | Princess Daisy | Waluigi | Toad | Boo | Koopa Kid | Toadette | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mario | Mario Bros. | Cutest Couple | Famous Combo | Alter Egos | Nice Couple | Pseudo Bros. | Best Buds | Old Acquaintances | Uneasy Allies | Unexpected Pair | |
| Luigi | Mario Bros. | Green Escort | Green Bros. | Unloving Bros. | Steady Sweeties | Unlikely Bros. | Good Pals | Scare Pair | Friendly Enemies | Forgotten Force | |
| Princess Peach | Cutest Couple | Green Escort | Regal Friends | Royal Pain | Lordly Ladies | Anti-couple | Royal Family | Royally Spooky | Trouble Brewing | Pink Punishers | |
| Yoshi | Famous Combo | Green Bros. | Regal Friends | Food Fanatics | Royal Ride | Unhappy Dino | Cute Buddies | Scary Dino | Dino Cousins | Racing Champs | |
| Wario | Alter Egos | Unloving Bros. | Royal Pain | Food Fanatics | Mismatched Pair | Wicked Bros. | Mushroom Stinkers | Spooky Spoilsports | Bad Baddies | Secret Friends | |
| Princess Daisy | Nice Couple | Steady Sweeties | Lordly Ladies | Royal Ride | Mismatched Pair | Awkward Date | Royal Pals | Haunted Flower | Grudging Allies | Shopping Buddies | |
| Waluigi | Pseudo Bros. | Unlikely Bros. | Anti-couple | Unhappy Dino | Wicked Bros. | Awkward Date | Tall 'n' Small | Scary Screechers | Cheep Chaps | Diabolical Duo | |
| Toad | Best Buds | Good Pals | Royal Family | Cute Buddies | Mushroom Stinkers | Royal Pals | Tall 'n' Small | Scaredy Toad | Little Guys | Shroommates | |
| Boo | Old Acquaintances | Scare Pair | Royally Spooky | Scary Dino | Spooky Spoilsports | Haunted Flower | Scary Screechers | Scaredy Toad | Pure Evil | Terrifying Twosome | |
| Koopa Kid | Uneasy Allies | Friendly Enemies | Trouble Brewing | Dino Cousins | Bad Baddies | Grudging Allies | Cheep Chaps | Little Guys | Pure Evil | Potent Pals | |
| Toadette | Unexpected Pair | Forgotten Force | Pink Punishers | Racing Champs | Secret Friends | Shopping Buddies | Diabolical Duo | Shroommates | Terrifying Twosome | Potent Pals |
Gameplay
In Mario Party 6, up to four players take turns rolling Dice Blocks with numbers 1-10 to move on board game-style stages, often playing multiplayer minigames to earn coins and stars. While the object of the game is to amass the most Stars before completing a set number of turns, the focus is on the competition itself more than the outcome. There is also a change in the game's Solo Mode: The player can only roll a Dice Block that shows numbers from 1-6.
Orbs
Orbs are special items players can either collect on the board or buy. They can be used in many ways to give a player an advantage, such as setting traps on spaces to steal coins from rivals, to hamper a rival's progress, or to quickly obtain stars.
Green Orbs
All of these orbs affect the player or the Dice Block the player is using when the player uses them.
| Orb | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| File:Mushroom Orb.JPG | Mushroom Orb | "Move using two Dice Blocks!" |
|
Super 'Shroom Orb | "Move using three Dice Blocks!" |
| File:Cursed Mushroom Capsule.JPG | Cursed Mushroom Orb | The Cursed Mushroom Orb decreases the dice block roll from 1-6 to 1-3. It is only found in Solo Mode. |
| File:Sluggish 'Shroom Orb.JPG | Sluggish 'Shroom Orb | "The Dice Block will roll slowly." |
| File:Metal Mushroom Orb.JPG | Metal Mushroom Orb | When the player uses the Metal Mushroom Orb, they turn metal. The player ignores any trap orbs they pass or land on. |
| File:Flutter Orb.JPG | Flutter Orb | The player summons Flutter and takes the player to the star space. The player still has to pay 20 coins to buy a star. |
| File:Bullet Bill Orb.JPG | Bullet Bill Orb | The player rides on a Bullet Bill. The player can steal 20 coins from anyone they pass. |
| File:Warp Pipe Orb.JPG | Warp Pipe Orb | "Switch places with whoever the wheel of chance chooses!" |
Red Orbs
These Orbs will take effect when either the opponent passes or lands on it. The player who lands on it will still have the effects of a Blue or Red space. The orb will also disappear once it has been activated.
| Orb | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| File:Zap Orb.JPG | Zap Orb | When an opposing player passes this space, the player will lose five coins for every step they take. If the player has no coins, nothing happens. |
| File:Thwomp Orb.JPG | Thwomp Orb | When an opposing player passes this space, a Thwomp will appear and crush the player, stopping them on that space they just passed. |
| File:Paratroopa Orb.JPG | Paratroopa Orb | When an opposing player passes this space, a Paratroopa will appear and switch places with the owner of this orb. |
| File:Tweester Orb.JPG | Tweester Orb | When an opposing player passes this space, a Tweester will appear and takes the player somewhere else on the board. |
| File:Podoboo Orb.JPG | Podoboo Orb | When an opposing player passes this space, Podoboos will appear and burns up the player who passes it. The player then loses ten coins. |
| File:BobombOrb.PNG | Bob-omb Orb | When an opposing player passes this space, a Bob-omb will appear and explode on them. The remaining spaces they would have left will get cut in half. |
Yellow Orbs
These orbs have an effect on a player who lands on the space. If the owner lands on the space, they will receive five coins. During the last five turn events, they may receive 15 coins if the coin's ×3 roulette was chosen. The orb will also stay on the board as long as no one replaces the orb.
| Orb | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| File:Mr. Blizzard Orb.JPG | Mr. Blizzard Orb | When an opposing player lands on this space, Mr. Blizzard will appear and crush the player. They will lose all of their orbs. Nothing happens if the player has no orbs. |
| File:Goomba Orb.JPG | Goomba Orb | "Any foe who lands on it hits a Dice Block that determines how many coins they give you." |
| File:Kamek Orb.JPG | Kamek Orb | When an opposing player lands on this space, Kamek will appear and take one of the player's character spaces and give it to the owner. |
| File:Klepto Orb.JPG | Klepto Orb | When an opposing player lands on this space, Klepto will appear and he will take the player back to the start of the board. |
| File:Spiny Orb.JPG | Spiny Orb | When an opposing player lands on this space, Spiny Shells will come and attack the player who lands on it, making them lose ten coins. The owner will receive those coins. |
| File:Toady Orb.JPG | Toady Orb | When an opposing player lands on this space, a Toady will appear and randomly takes one of the player's orbs. He will then give the orb to the owner. Nothing will happen if the player has no orbs. |
| File:Piranha Plant Orb.JPG | Piranha Plant Orb | When an opposing player lands on this space, a Piranha Plant gobbles up the player. The player will then lose half of their coins. The owner will receive those coins. |
Blue Orbs
These orbs protect the player from attacks such as Boo and Chain Chomp. They can only be found in specific boards such as Snowflake Lake. They cannot be thrown on a space or used. Instead, they are used automatically. They can be disposed at any time if the players chooses to, though.
| Orb | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| File:Boo Away Orb.JPG | Boo Away Orb | This orb protects the player from Red Boo attacks in Towering Treetop and Castaway Bay. |
| File:Snack Orb.JPG | Snack Orb | This orb protects the player from Chain Chomp attacks in Snowflake Lake. |
Day and Night
On multiplayer boards, the sun will periodically set or rise (every three turns), producing different effects. Changes include spaces moving, different characters appearing, DK spaces transforming to Bowser spaces, and changes to minigames. This is reflected in two new characters, Brighton and Twila. This day and night system is a reminiscent of Horror Land from Mario Party 2.
Solo Mode
In Mario Party 6, Solo Mode is a game mode hosted by Brighton. It is for one player only, and it has the character playing minigames against the Koopa Kids. The turn limit on these boards are set to 50 turns, although it is impossible to check this when playing the mode.
There are three boards in Solo Mode:
- Thirsty Gulch, a desert-themed board.
- Astro Avenue, a space-themed board.
- Infernal Tower, a Bowser-themed board.
The spaces on Solo Mode are different than those in normal modes of play. There are spaces for 4-player, 2-vs-2 (these are played teamed up with a CPU partner of the player's choice; but it can't be the same character as the player's.), 1-vs-3 (the human is always the 1 player against 3), Battle, and Duel Minigames. There are also Bowser spaces, which feature (normally 1-vs-3) games played against the Koopa Kids where all the player's coins are lost if they lose; ? spaces, which cause an event to happen; and the goals which are Rare spaces.
Landing on one of these Rare spaces concludes the game and grant the player one of the Rare Minigames: (Dunk Bros., Lab Brats, or Block Star. Seer Terror must be bought from the Star Bank. If the player goes past the Rare space, then they lose everything collected, and the game ends. Players can avert this by selecting to "Call it Quits" and keep everything they have earned so far; however, this ends the mode.
Only two of the game's Orbs appear in this mode. One is the Sluggish 'Shroom Orb, which slows down the dice block so players can easily hit the number they want. The other is the Cursed Mushroom Orb, which makes the dice block only roll one through three. This can prevent players from walking past the Rare space.
At the end of the mode, players receives any minigames that are played during the mode if they are not unlocked previously. In addition, they receive bonuses at the end of the game for meeting certain criteria, such as playing ten minigames during the game, rolling only even Dice Block numbers, or landing on every space on the board, which are paid out in Coins. The Coins are converted into Stars (one Star for every 20 Coins), which are transferred to the Star Bank.
Party Mode Boards
There are 6 boards in Party Mode. Some of the boards in Mario Party 6 have different objectives and goals to earn stars.
| Board Name | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| File:TTday.JPG File:TTnight.JPG |
Towering Treetop | Players must move across this large board and try to arrive at randomly placed star first. Once the star has been bought for 20 coins, the star moves to another location. Day and night changes the paths along the board, making them longer or shorter. The tree at the top of the board changes at night. In the day, if a player lands on the happening space all players will get some coins; however, at night all players will lose some coins. |
| File:FSday.JPG File:FSnight.JPG |
Faire Square | Players have to move around this board to reach the star space. There is only one star space that will never change location, but players can buy up to five stars at a time if they have enough coins. The price of a star is always 20 coins during the day, but the price at night can be 5, 10, 30, or 40 coins, determined by the dice block Twila rolls. |
| File:GGday.JPG File:GGnight.JPG |
E. Gadd's Garage | Players must move across this board and try to get to a randomly placed star first. Once the star has been bought for 20 coins, the star moves to another location. There are many gadgets and machines to experiment with in this board, such as teleporters, fans, conveyor belts, and a machine that converts orbs into other orbs or turns them into coins depending on the time of the day. |
| File:SLday.JPG File:SLnight.JPG |
Snowflake Lake | All players start with five stars, and then they must pay Chain Chomps coins to ride them and steal stars from other players in the process. When a player reaches a Chain Chomp's house, the player can pay it 20 coins for one dice block during the day and ten for one dice block, 20 for two, and 30 for three at night to ride it. After a player has paid the Chain Chomp, they can roll a dice block (or two or three if they pay for it at night) and move that many spaces from the Chain Chomp house. For every player that the Chain Chomp passes, a star is stolen from the victim and is given to the player riding the Chain Chomp unless the victim is holding a Snack Orb. |
| File:CBday.JPG File:CBnight.JPG |
Castaway Bay | Players must travel across the board to reach the end of the board. At the end of the board is either Donkey Kong or Bowser. If a player reaches the end of the board while Donkey Kong is present, then that player is given the opportunity to buy a star for 20 coins. The player is taken back to the "Start" space, and Donkey Kong switches positions with Bowser. If a player reaches the end of the board while Bowser is present, then the player gets a star taken away by Bowser. If the player doesn't have a star, the player loses 20 coins. There are many spaces on the board that can switch Bowser's and DK's positions. This board is similar to Mario's Rainbow Castle from the original Mario Party in the sense of how stars are obtained. |
| File:CCday.JPG File:CCnight.JPG |
Clockwork Castle | Players have to chase Donkey Kong around the board during the day to buy a star. The unique aspect of this board is that after all four players have moved, DK will roll a dice block (two if he eats a banana) and move that many spaces. If a player catches up to or if DK catches up to a player, then the player is given the opportunity to buy a star for 20 coins. At night, DK is replaced by Bowser. The movement on the board is reversed at night, and Bowser now chases the players (He uses two dice blocks when he breathes out fire). If Bowser catches up to or if a player runs into Bowser, then the player will lose a star. If the player doesn't have a star, then Bowser will steal 20 coins. Warp pipes are placed around the board so that players can move closer to DK or run away from Bowser.
Unlockable for 100 stars at the Star Bank. |
Solo Mode Boards
These are the three Solo Mode boards. They differ mostly in length, but they all have the same objective, which is to land on the Rare space located at the end of the board.
| Board Name | Description | |
|---|---|---|
|
Thirsty Gulch | Like in all Solo Mode boards, the player has to stop at the Rare space on the end of the board in order to avoid falling into an abyss. ? Spaces in this board causes the player to fall into lower sections of the board, making it longer for the player to advance. This board is a desert theme, and it is the shortest of all Solo Mode boards. |
|
Astro Avenue | Like in all Solo Mode boards, the player has to land on the Rare Space at the end of the board in order to avoid riding on the spaceship. ? Spaces in this board causes the player to advance closer to the Rare Minigame Space. This board has a space theme, and it is longer than Thirsty Gulch, and shorter than Infernal Tower. |
|
Infernal Tower | Like in all Solo Mode boards, the player has to stop at the Rare Minigame space end of the board in order to avoid getting trapped in Bowser's cage. ? mark spaces causes Chain Chomps to knock the player back to the start of the board. This board has a Bowser theme and it is the longest of all Solo Mode boards. |
Spaces
| Space | Description | |
|---|---|---|
|
Blue Space | When players land on this space, they receive three coins. On the last five turn event, the coins players receive get multiplied by three if the losing player stops the roulette wheel on this event. |
|
Red Space | When players land on this space, they lose three coins. On the last five turn event, the coins player lose get multiplied by three if the losing player stops the roulette wheel on this event. |
|
Green Space | When the player lands on this space, an event happens. The event varies on location and board. The event may help or hinder the player or everyone. |
|
Bowser Space | When the player lands on this space, Bowser appears and causes a series of events, such as forcing everyone to play a Bowser minigame that can usually hinder the player who landed on this space or everyone. Bowser spaces change to DK spaces during the day. |
|
Donkey Kong Space | When the player lands on this space, Donkey Kong appears and causes events such as a minigame where everyone can collect bananas for coins. The events may help the player or everyone. DK spaces change to Bowser spaces during the night. |
|
Duel Space | When the player lands on this space, the player chooses who to duel with. After the opponent has chosen, the player who lands on this space gets to choose what to put at stake: stars, coins, or a star and 40 coins. |
| File:SpaceFortune.png | Miracle Space | When the player lands on this space, a fortune event happens. Results may vary from giving coins to another player to swapping stars. |
|
Orb Space | The player receives a random orb upon passing this space assuming the player is not on the final turn. This space does not count towards the dice block roll. |
|
Star Space | The player has the option of buying a star if the player passes this space. Conditions of obtaining stars differ per board. This space does not count towards the dice block roll. |
|
Shadow Star Space | Appearing only in Castaway Bay and Clockwork Castle, this space, if passed on, gives players a Shadow Star (aka a Ztar), thus deducting Stars (or Coins if the player does not have any Stars) from the player's amount. This space does not count towards the dice block roll. |
Other Features
- Star Bank: The Star Bank allows players to trade their stars to unlock special in-game bonuses, including unlockable characters, game tips, and Miracle Book pages.
- Harder Difficulty: 30 Stars
- Brutal Difficulty: 30 Stars
- Toadette as a playable character: 30 Stars
- Clockwork Castle Stage: 100 Stars
- Credit Roll: 100 Stars
- Character Taunts: 10 Stars Each
- Mic Secrets: 10 Stars Each
- Mini Game Secrets: 10 Stars Each
- Mushroom Bus: 30 Stars
- Miracle Book (Includes Page 1): 10 Stars
- Page 2-6: 10 Stars Each
- Page 7-13: 20 Stars Each
- Page 14-20: 30 Stars Each
- Miracle Book Secret: 10 Stars
- Miracle Book: The Miracle Book is an in-game pop-up book functioning as a reward for players. Pages in the book are interactive. Buying all of them unlocks the epilogue.
- Microphone: The microphone is used as a controller device to answer quiz questions in Speak Up and give orders to characters in Mic-specific games
- Minigame Mode: This mode allows the player to play any minigames that are unlocked or play a set of minigames using a set of rules.
- Option Mode: In this mode, the player can adjust sound settings, view minigame records and history for previous parties, listen to the sound test (some of the sounds and music must be bought at the Star Bank before available use), adjust Microphone settings, and also view the bonuses earned from the solo mode.
Minigames
- Main article: List of Mario Party 6 minigames
Staff
- Main article: List of Mario Party 6 staff
Pre-release and unused content
The minigame Garden Grab featured turnips in the night version of it. It was changed to a carrot, as the day version of the minigame.
The Solo Mode originally used colored spaces, as opposed to special 2VS2, 1VS3, and 4VS spaces seen in the final game.
Version differences
Brighton, and Twila have voices in the Japanese version.
Gallery
Names in other languages
Reception
The game received mostly mixed and positive reviews. GameSpot gave the game 6.9/10, citing great family and multiplayer fun, but the same idea of older Mario Parties. IGN gave the game 7/10. They criticized it's lack of originality and the use of the microphone. 1UP gave the game a C+ rating due to unoriginality and other factors.
Mario Party 6 is the 17th best selling game for the Nintendo GameCube, selling about 1.6 million copies worldwide as of December 31, 2009.
Trivia
- This is the one of the two "Mario Party" games since Mario Party 2 to not have a boss battle. The other is Mario Party Advance.
- In the German version of the game, the genders of Brighton and Twila are inversed. Brighton is called "Sonnja", which is derived from a female given name and Twila is called "Raimond", which derives from a male given name. This is most likely because on German, the genders for the words sun and moon are inversed, too. The sun has a feminine article while the moon has a masculine article.
