Mario Party 3

Mario Party 3
For alternate box art, see the game's gallery.
Developer	Hudson Soft CAProduction
Publisher	Nintendo
Platform(s)	Nintendo 64 Nintendo 64 - Nintendo Switch Online
Release date	Nintendo 64: December 7, 2000[?] May 7, 2001[?] September 3, 2001[?] November 16, 2001[?] Nintendo 64 - Nintendo Switch Online: October 26, 2023 October 27, 2023 October 27, 2023 October 27, 2023
Language(s)	English (United States) French (France) German Spanish (Spain) Japanese
Genre	Party
Rating(s)	ESRB: - Everyone ELSPA: - Three years and older ACB: - General SELL: - All ages
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer
Format	Nintendo 64: Game Pak Nintendo Switch: Digital download
Input	Nintendo 64: Nintendo 64 Controller Nintendo Switch: Joy-Con Joy-Con (horizontal) Nintendo Switch Pro Controller Nintendo 64 Controller
Serial code(s)	NUS-NMVJ-JPN

Mario Party 3 is the third game in the Mario Party series, released in Japan in 2000 and overseas the following year. It was the last Mario Party game to be released for the Nintendo 64, as well as the last Super Mario game overall for the system in all regions except Australia, where Paper Mario was the last. The game is centered around the Millennium Star, who replaces Toad as the host alongside Tumble. It includes 70 new minigames, as well as a feature unique to the Mario Party series: duel boards, on which two players fight each other using partners. In addition to the six characters from the previous Mario Party games returning, two new characters are introduced: Daisy and Waluigi. This game also introduces elements that would become standard in future Mario Party installments: it is the first game to feature a solo mode story campaign, mini-games that can be unlocked and played anytime without purchasing them first, and handicaps for players. In addition, more than three difficulty levels and choices of game length can be selected, and players can now hold up to three items instead of just one.

Like the original Mario Party, Mario Party 3 was never re-released on any Virtual Console. It saw its first re-release on the Nintendo 64 - Nintendo Switch Online service in October 2023.

Story and objective

From the Mario Party 3 instruction booklet:

Mario and his friends find the Millennium Star.

Mario and his friends are transported to the inside of the toy box.

A Star is Born: In the center of the vast universe, a remarkably bright star was born. It was the star that is born only once in a thousand years, the Millennium Star. According to the legend, whoever possessed the mystical star was destined to become the Superstar of the universe. However since the Millennium Star was but a newborn, it fell from the starry sky.

Around that time, Mario and his friends were all happily relaxing when suddenly the Millennium Star came crashing down. Mario and his friends soon began arguing about who should keep the Millennium Star.

Suddenly, the Millennium Star gave off a brilliantly bright flash of light. And with that bright flash, Mario and his friends were transported into a toy box!

"Greetings. I am the Millennium Star. You must pass my test to prove yourself worthy of possessing me. You must journey across many lands and collect the Star Stamps. If you can collect all seven, I shall accept you as the top Superstar in the universe."

Who will collect the seven Star Stamps and become the universe's top Superstar?

Game and Story Mode introduction:

In the center of the vast universe, a remarkably bright star was born. It was a star that is born only once in a thousand years, the Millennium Star. According to legend, whoever possessed this mystical star was destined to become the Superstar of the universe. However, since the Millennium Star was but a newborn...it fell from the starry sky.

Around that time, Mario and his friends were all happily relaxing, when......suddenly the Millennium Star came crashing down...Mario and his friends soon began arguing over who should keep the Millennium Star.

Seeing this, Lakitu came flying in, dangling a toy box from his rod.

That's right! They could play "Mario Party" to see who the biggest Superstar was!

Suddenly, the Millennium Star gave off a brilliantly bright flash of light! And with that bright flash, Mario and his friends were transported inside the toy box!

"Greetings! I am the Millennium Star! You must pass my test to prove yourself worthy of possessing me. You must adventure across many lands and collect the Star Stamps. If you can collect all seven, I shall accept you as the top Superstar in the universe."

In Battle Royale Mode, players have to get as many Stars as possible. Stars can normally be obtained at a cost of 20 coins.

In Duel Mode, players have to defeat their opponent with their partners. Each player starts with five heart pieces.

In Story Mode, a single player must battle their way towards the rank of Super Star. To do so, they must fill their stamp card with Star Stamps. The Star Stamps are Wit, Kindness, Strength, Love, Courage, Beauty, and Mischief. The trend the game follows is Battle Royale, Duel, Battle Royale, Duel; and this continues until the player's next objective is to earn the Beauty Star Stamp. At this point, the player plays a Duel against Daisy, followed by a final Battle Royale on Waluigi's Island.

Name	Star Stamp	Battle Royale board	Duel board	Opponent
Wit		Chilly Waters	Gate Guy	WarioA
Kindness		Deep Bloober Sea	Arrowhead	YoshiA
Strength		Spiny Desert	Pipesqueak	Donkey KongA
Love		Woody Woods	Blowhard	PeachA
Courage		Creepy Cavern	Mr. Mover	MarioA
Beauty		Not present	Backtrack	Daisy
Mischief		Waluigi's Island	Not present	Waluigi and two other random characters

A - If the player is using this character, that opponent is replaced with Luigi.

For the Millennium Star, his original plan was to have a straight run-through of seven (since there are seven Star Stamps) Battle Royale Boards. However, when the Millennium Star is about to stamp the player's stamp card, another character bursts from the castle, saying they deserve this. The two argue, and Millennium Star decides to go to a Duel Board. The player wins (they must to continue) and the other character runs away in disappointment. After the stamp is received, the next Star Stamp is shown and another Battle Royale begins.

After a Star Stamp has been received and the player is ready to move to the next Battle Royale board, Bowser appears with two Baby Bowser cohorts, attempting to get the Star Stamps for himself, but he always shows up late. The first two times, when trying to get the Wit and Kindness Star Stamps, the player, the Millennium Star, and Tumble have already left to the next board. When trying to get the Strength Star Stamp, Bowser does arrive before the player, the Millennium Star, and Tumble leave, but they ignore him and continue to the next board anyway. When trying to get the Love Star Stamp, Bowser and the Baby Bowsers managed to surround the three, but when Tumble politely asks them to get out of the way, Bowser lets them go, and after they leave, he breathes fire, frustrated at his own foolishness.

When the Beauty Star Stamp is revealed, Daisy makes a sudden appearance before a Battle Royale can begin. The Millennium Star mentions it, but Daisy strikes a pose, causing the Millennium Star to fall in love with her and offer her the Beauty Star Stamp. The player says this is not fair and the two argue. The Millennium Star comes back to its senses and says that they will go to Backtrack to settle this. Suddenly, Bowser appears and tries to take the stamp, but Daisy swats him away in one attack. After the player defeats Daisy, she mopes and runs away. Tumble states Daisy said she has never lost, not even to her father. The player then receives the Beauty Star Stamp.

The Mischief Star Stamp is then revealed, but Bowser appears and unknowingly sends it flying into the castle, declaring the player must battle him to earn it. Everyone notices it is gone, and Waluigi comes out of the castle with the stamp trapped in a cage. Waluigi and Bowser fight each other, but to everyone's surprise, Waluigi wins. He tells the player they will go to Waluigi's Island. Bowser tells the player to avenge him for what happened, and they chase after Waluigi. After the battle is over, Waluigi pounds the floor in frustration, yelling that he will not forget what happened. The Millennium Star gives the player the Mischief Star Stamp.

Despite the player winning all the stamps, the Millennium Star declares that there is one person left they must battle. The player is seen thinking hard of who could it be. Both the player and Tumble are surprised when the Millennium Star exclaims the player must defeat him in Stardust Battle to win. When the player defeats him, they ask to be the greatest superstar in the universe. The Millennium Star startles everyone by admitting he is not the real Millennium Star and flies away in shame. The player drops to the ground in disappointment, shocked that it was all for nothing.

Suddenly, Tumble begins glowing and his dice head opens to reveal a small white star. He explains he is the real Millennium Star, and was watching the player the whole time. After returning the castle and the grounds to its normal state, he promises the player he will make them the superstar of the universe. After the credits roll, in the final scene, set in front of the castle, Mario is lying on a folding chair, Luigi and Peach are talking to each other nearby, and Donkey Kong is sitting near the three and watching. In the back, Wario and Waluigi are apparently arguing, Daisy is sitting and watching the butterflies, and Yoshi is in the far back chasing a butterfly. The closing scene is a table with a box with the words "Mario Party" on it. A die (the same color as Tumble's head) is thrown onto the table and the word "END" appears on the lower right corner.

Modes

The main menu screen.

As in all Mario Party games, there are always other modes to play:

• Mini-game Mode: Players can play all the mini-games that they have collected here, even secret mini-games, organized by type.
  • Battle Room: A bonus game mode where players can compete in a random set of minigames. Players can choose how many points are needed to win, along with which minigame type is used.
  • Game Guy's Room: Another bonus game mode for one player, in which they consecutively plays Game Guy's minigames. At the start of a game the player is given 10 coins, and the player decides how many coins they are going to risk before each minigame starts. After each minigame the player's balance is increased or decreased according to the game's result. The game is successfully completed once the player's balance reaches 1000 coins. However, losing all of the coins occurs a game over. Completing the challenge unlocks Mario's Puzzle Party Pro, one of the three rare minigames. The Story Mode must be beaten with at least eight S rankings for this room to be unlocked. The maximum balance of 7299 coins is achieved by having 999 coins in the player's balance, betting 100 coins, and then getting a x64 multiplier.
• Story Mode: A single player can go through the storyline. It is set what boards have to be completed in what order. There are Battle Royale and Duel boards. After each Battle Royale board, the player has to fight a certain character on a duel board for a Star Stamp. If the player is to duel with the character they are playing as, they battle Luigi instead. Unlike Party Mode and Mini-game Mode, Princess Daisy and Waluigi are unplayable in this mode, instead acting as NPCs.
• Party Mode: A multiplayer that can go through Battle Royale, Duel Mode, and can also go through settings.

Playable characters

The character selection screen.

The game brings back the original six playable characters from the last two Mario Party games and introduces two new characters, Princess Daisy and Waluigi. However, they are only playable in Party Mode and Mini-game mode.

Mario		Luigi		Princess Peach		Yoshi
Our famous hero use the Golden Mushroom to dash about!		This man of many talents loves to use Skeleton Keys.		She's tricky, so watch out for she has the Plunder Chest!		Warping is his way of keeping the others on their toes!
Default Partner	Koopa Troopa	Default Partner	Goomba	Default Partner	Toad	Default Partner	Boo
Favorite Item	Golden Mushroom	Favorite Item	Skeleton Key	Favorite Item	Plunder Chest	Favorite Item	Warp Block
Star Stamp	Courage	Star Stamp	Any but Beauty and Mischief*	Star Stamp	Love	Star Stamp	Kindness
Wario		Donkey Kong		Princess Daisy1		Waluigi1
This matchless dueler loves using the Dueling Glove!		Strongest of all, he likes the Reverse Mushroom!		Quite the tomboy, she's a fan of the Cellular Shopper!		Beware, or this sneak may use the Poison Mushroom on you!
Default Partner	Bob-omb	Default Partner	Whomp	Default Partner	Snifit	Default Partner	Piranha Plant
Favorite Item	Dueling Glove	Favorite Item	Reverse Mushroom	Favorite Item	Cellular Shopper	Favorite Item	Poison Mushroom
Star Stamp	Wit	Star Stamp	Strength	Star Stamp	Beauty	Star Stamp	Mischief

*Luigi steps in as the opponent if the player is playing as the specified character.
¹Character is not playable in Story Mode.

Boards

Just as Mario Party 2 did for Mario Party, Mario Party 3 references and takes gimmicks from Mario Party 2's boards to use in its own boards. For example, Waluigi's Island uses an altered gimmick from Space Land, along with a gimmick from Luigi's Engine Room from Mario Party; in one island, when a total of five Happening Spaces has been landed on, all players lose all of their coins if they are within a certain area (Space Land), and all islands and routes contain Red Warp Pipes that lead back to start, at the Green Warp Pipe (Luigi's Engine Room).

Battle Royale boards

Board		Description	Difficulty
		This ice-themed board has the players get 20 coins for them to purchase a Star from the Millennium Star. While the players are trying to complete this task, they are faced with the two most prominent features of this board: the Action Time, and the icy five-way junction in the middle. The Action Time on this board is triggered if a player lands on a Happening Space on either the board's leftmost column or the board's uppermost row; it may also be triggered if a player passes by Mr. Blizzard on the uppermost row. If a player manages to meet Mr. Blizzard when passing by, he asks the player to pay him five coins for him to initiate the Action Time. The Action Time of this board includes Mr. Blizzard rolling a snowball leftwards (then downwards) or rightwards (then downwards). If the player hits in time, they jump over the snowball; however, if they do not, they are chased by the snowball. If two players are standing on the icy five-way junction at once, then the ice cracks. When the ice cracks, the players who are standing on the cracking ice flee to the southeast corner of the board.
		This undersea-themed board has the players get 20 coins for them to purchase a Star from the Millennium Star. There are three notable features of this board: the two Action Times, and the two Happening Space-heavy pathways in the middle. One of the Action Times on this board is triggered when the player is trying to pass by the junction placed in the center left part of the board. When it is triggered, the player has to choose from an assortment of four buttons. If the player chooses the incorrect one (the incorrect one is randomized), they have to take the path they did not choose; however, if the player chooses a correct button, they are permitted to go on the path they originally chose. The other Action Time is triggered when a player lands on one of the Happening Spaces that are on the top left corner of the board. When it is triggered, an arrow rotates to select a random direction. After that, the player has to escape being sucked in by an anglerfish by repeatedly pressing . If the player fails, then they are launched in the direction the arrow is pointing. When a player lands on a Happening Space on one of the two Happening Space-heavy pathways in the middle, they are grabbed by Bloober. Bloober then places the player on the other pathway that is parallel to the pathway that the player was on.
		This desert-themed board has the players collect 20 coins for them to purchase a Star from the Millennium Star. The most prominent feature of this board is the fact that there are two Millennium Stars: one that is a mirage (a fake), and one that is real. There is no way to differentiate the two from each other. When a player passes by the mirage, it vanishes. Another notable feature of this board is the two quicksand pits that are located on the lower middle part of the board and the upper middle part of the board. When a player lands on a Happening Space that is located around the perimeter of either quicksand pit, the quicksand pit inhales all players standing on said perimeter. The other quicksand pit then ejects said players so they land on its perimeter. The Action Time of this board is triggered if a player chooses to pass the path with two cacti. The player has to hit with correct timing in this Action Time. If the player fails at doing so, then either cacti sends the player bouncing away in another direction.
		On this forest-themed board, players have to procure 20 coins for them to purchase a Star from the Millennium Star. The most prominent event on this board is the arrows that are in three of the junctions in the forest. Whenever a player passes such a junction, they are forced to walk that way. At the end of every turn, Monty Mole changes the direction of all the arrows on the board. A way for players to manipulate the arrows is to pass by one of his army-like huts and pay him five coins for him to flip all arrows on the board. Another way for players to manipulate the arrows is to land on a Happening Space that is placed directly before a junction with an arrow. This flips only the arrow in front of the player. The Action Time of this board is Woody. When a player lands on the Happening Spaces in front of him, they are given five seconds to choose from either a Plus Coin Fruit (which gives the player five coins) or a Plus Block Fruit (which makes the player roll the Dice Block a second time). Action Time also happens when a player lands on a Happening Space at the Evil Woody. He makes the player choose from one of these two fruits: a Minus Coin Fruit (which takes away five coins from the player) or a Reverse Block Fruit (which makes the player roll a Dice Block and go in reverse).
		On this cavern-themed board, players have to collect 20 coins in order for them to purchase a Star from the Millennium Star. The most prominent feature of this board is Whomp. He is located at the middle of the board, blocking a passage to the upper part of the board via the middle-most path. There are two ways for players to make Whomp turn around: giving an item—randomized each time—to him when passing by, or landing on a Happening Space that is in front of him. Another notable feature of this board is the two horizontal railways. When a player lands on a Happening Space that is located on one of those railways, a minecart appears. Any players who are placed on said railway are chased by said minecart until the railway ends. Action Time on this board happens when a player passes a Thwomp that is located beside a railway, and pays him five coins. The event includes the player jumping on a minecart (with ) and then riding to the end of the railway, subsequently moving any players who are on the same railway.
		This isle-heavy board has the players collect 20 coins for them to obtain Stars when purchased from the Millennium Star. The two most notable features of this board are the circle at the bottom middle part of the board and the island at the top left corner of the board. The circle at the bottom middle part of the board has a number, which always is at five at the start. For this number to decrease, players have to land on the Happening Spaces that are placed on the circle. When this number reaches zero, it causes an explosion that covers the entire circle. Any players that are caught in the explosion lose all of their coins. The spaces that are on the island located at the top left part of the board always show what the rest shows, minus the Bank Space. However, instead of always being one type of space, the type of space shown changes from turn to turn. Action Time on this board is triggered when a player is at the four-way junction at the center of the board. The event has the player press to jump on the pad. After landing on the pad, the player is forced to go the way the arrow that is lit up shows.

Spaces

Battle Royale spaces

Image	Space	Description	Rarity
	Blue Space	If a player lands on this space, they obtain three Coins. The amount of Coins gained are doubled during the Last Five Turns Event.	Common
	Red Space	If a player lands on this space, they lose three Coins. The amount of Coins lost are doubled during the Last Five Turns Event.	Semi-Common
	Item Space	When a player lands on this space, an Item minigame is played. Toad or Baby Bowser may appear. They ask the player a question and, depending on the answer, they may give the player Items or not.	Uncommon
	? Space	When a player lands on this space, an event happens. The event that happens depends on the board.	Uncommon
	Star Space	When a player passes by this space, they are asked by Millennium Star if the player trades 20 coins for a star.	One per board (two in Spiny Desert: a real and a fake one)
	Bowser Space	If this space is landed on, then Bowser appears. He usually tries to steal Coins and Stars from players. He may give players certain Items.	Semi-Rare
	Battle Space	When a player lands on this space, a Battle minigame is played. The amount of Coins that the players pay is decided by a roulette.	Semi-Rare
	Bank Space	Whenever players pass this space, Koopa makes players pay five Coins. If a player lands on this space, all previously paid Coins is given to that player.	Two per board
	! Space	Players who land on this space initiate Chance Time.	Rare
	Game Guy Space	Players who land on this space have to pay all of their Coins to Game Guy. After this, a Game Guy minigame is played. If the player succeeds at it, then they receive double the amount of Coins (or more, depending on the minigame). If the player fails, they lose all of their Coins.	Rare

Duel boards

What happens when the players' hearts and coins are both the same.

Duel boards can be played in Duel Mode and Story Mode. Duel Mode can be selected by selecting the red star in the main menu. Duel boards can only be played with two characters. The objective is to defeat the opponent by attacking them with partners. Each player has a heart gauge, consisting of five segments. The game is over when 20 turns end (when "20 turns" is selected in game length) or when one player's heart gauge is empty. If 20 turns have finished, the player with the most hearts is the winner. If heart counts tie, then the player with the most coins wins, but if that count also ties as well, the match is a tie.

Players start with one partner and can gain another (or replace one) when they reach their start space, which also gives them ten coins. Partners are given to the player at random using a roulette (on every third return, the player gets a "Lucky Roulette", which slows the roulette, allowing the player to more easily obtain a desired partner). When the partner is between the player and their opponent with the opponent facing the direction of the partner, the partner will automatically attack them. Each partner has a salary where they are paid when the player's turn starts. If a player cannot afford to pay the salary, the partner(s) leave(s).

In the middle of every board is Belltop, a mechanical toy. Every time a player passes him, the numbers on his hat goes down by one. Whenever the hat reaches 0, all players go to him and play a duel mini-game. After the winner receives his/her coin prize, the timer is reset to 5.

In Story Mode, after a Battle Royale map, the player's character is about to receive a Star Stamp when another character emerges from the castle and says they deserve it. To settle this dispute, both characters are sent to a Duel board (with the exception of Waluigi, who challenges the character to his Battle Royale board, Waluigi's Island). The winner receives the Star Stamp. (Luigi serves as the player's opponent if the player is supposed to duel the character they chose. As Daisy cannot be chosen in Story Mode, Luigi cannot be fought on Backtrack.)

Duel boards

Board		Description	Opponent
		This board's main gimmick is the two Gate Guys. When players pass by one of them, they are asked to pay an optional fee of five Coins. If the player decides to pay, then they are able to use the middle-most path as a short-cut to get to the other side of the board.	Wario
		The main gimmick of this board is the Arrowheads. When players pass by them from the outer perimeter of the board, they may choose to go directly to a Start Space, essentially creating a short-cut from a Start Space to the next.	Yoshi
		The main gimmick of this board is the four Warp Pipes. (Hence the name "Pipesqueak") There is one Warp Pipe in each corner of the board. Players may choose to enter a Warp Pipe when they pass it. When they do that, they are taken to a random Warp Pipe that is not the one the player chose to enter.	Donkey Kong
		This board's main gimmick is the Blowhard in the middle. When players pass by it, it sends the players and their partners up in the air. This changes the position of any partners the player has (if a partner is in front, then that partner switches to the back and vice versa).	Peach
		This board's main gimmick is Mr. Mover. At start, it is colored blue, which means that it takes players stepping on it to the left. Every turn, Mr.Mover's colors switch between blue and red. When Mr. Mover is colored red it takes players stepping on it to the right.	Mario
		The unique feature of this board is the Reverse Spaces. When a player lands on one on this board, it does not make that player go backwards with another Dice Roll; it changes the direction which is moved, and it also changes the positions of the partners.	Daisy

Spaces

Duel spaces

Image	Space name	Description	Rarity
	Basic Space	When a player lands on it, it becomes that player's space. When the opponent lands on the "owned" space, they must pay an amount of Coins to the player who "owns" the space. The amount of Coins paid depends on what turn it is. If the "owner" lands on it, then they obtain Coins.	Very common
	Power Up Space	When a player lands on this space, their partners' attack, health, and salary is doubled. The effect wears off when the player returns to start, or if they get the "Power Down" event from a Happening Space.	Rare
	Back Space	If a player lands on this space, then they have to roll the Dice Block again. The amount of steps shown is then traveled backwards. In Backtrack, the direction which players move change and so does the position of all partners.	Semi-rare
	Minigame Space	When a player lands on this space, a Duel Minigame is initiated.	Semi-common
	Happening Space	If a player lands on this space, a roulette rolls. The player gets to stop the roulette. The effect decided by the roulette then happens.	Semi-rare
	Game Guy Space	When a player lands on this space, then they must pay all of their Coins to Game Guy. After this, the player plays a Game Guy minigame.	Rare

Partners

Duel Mode partners
Partner		Attack	Stamina	Salary	Default partner	Other unique abilities	In-game blurb	Moves
	Koopa Troopa	1	2	-1	Mario	N/A	His attacks aren't very powerful, but he has decent stamina. His low pay is a plus.	Standard: He withdraws and launches himself forward. Powered Up: He withdraws, spins for a second creating a yellow effect around him, then attacks.
	Goomba	2	1	-2	Luigi	N/A	This familiar, funny guy really packs a punch.	Standard: He kicks the opponent. Powered Up: He jumps, spins in the air creating a yellow effect around him, and then kicks the opponent.
	Toad	1	1	-1	Princess Peach	If a player lands on an opponent's Basic Space, no coins are lost.	His ability to prevent coin theft is more helpful than you might think.	Standard: He hits the opponent with his hammer. Powered Up: He does two fake swings, then hits the opponent, creating multicolored stars as an effect.
	Bob-omb	1	1	-3	Wario	Jumps over an opponent's partner and attacks them directly; disappears after only 1 attack, since it explodes.	This explosive specialist can jump over your opponent's helpers for a direct attack!	Standard: It lights itself and then jumps onto the opponent and explodes. Powered Up: It glows hot pink, then jumps onto the opponent and explodes.
	Boo	2	1	-3	Yoshi	If attacked, will counter-attack for equal damage before disappearing. Will not attack back if hit by a Thwomp or a Chain Chomp in its multi-attack if it is not directly in front of the attacking Chain Chomp.	This frightening fiend returns any damage you've taken back to your opponent.	Standard: It floats toward the opponent and then tackles them. This move creates a heart effect. Powered Up: It appears on the opponent's left, right, and back sides alternately, then tackles with a large heart effect.
	Whomp	0	4	-3	Donkey Kong	Unable to attack since he has zero attack.	This defensive pro has more than enough stamina, but he lacks attack power.	Standard: Instead of attacking, Whomp will make a struggling animation and grunt once. Powered Up: Instead of attacking, Whomp will do the above twice.
	Snifit	2	2	-5	Princess Daisy	Can sometimes give the player two to four coins at the start of a turn.	He has well-balanced abilities and can even collect coins, which can be a big help.	Standard: He shoots a bullet at the opponent. Powered Up: He shoots a large, blue orb of electricity at them.
	Piranha Plant	3	1	-5	Waluigi	Can sometimes offer extra dice. These dice allow the player to move up to 3 more spaces.	He has the strongest attack, and he can sometimes move up to three extra spaces using a special die.	Standard: He whips the opponent with one of his vine-like legs. Powered Up: He revs up for a second and then crunches the opponent, creating an effect of a bunch of stars.
	Chain Chomp	1	2	-6	None	Attacks opponent and all partners simultaneously.	This monster's mighty attack damages all members of the opposing team.	Standard: It charges through the opponents very quickly. Powered Up: It grows to the size of a Shark Chomp, jumps up, and then body slams all opponents.
	Thwomp	0	2	-4	None	Although it has zero attack, it can attack partners and defeats them instantly; but does nothing to the opposing player.	He can take out your opponent's partner in one blow but won't touch your opponent.	Standard: He crushes the opponent's partner(s) by falling on them. Powered Up: He pounds on the opponent's partner(s) four times, with the last time creating a rainbow star effect (but due to not having attack power, this achieves the same effect as no power up).
	Mr. Blizzard	1	3	-2	None	Attacks the opponent farthest away from him.	He lobs snowballs at the most distant opponent, and his stamina makes him a reliable partner.	Standard: He lobs a snowball at the farthest opponent. Powered Up: He lobs a much larger snowball that breaks into small ice pellets that rain down on the opponent.
	Baby Bowser	1	1	-3	None	Sometimes changes into Bowser and does triple damage; if transformation fails, no damage is taken. The probability of transformation success is 80%.	Usually he's Baby Bowser, but he can transform into Bowser himself to cause triple damage!	Standard: If successful, he turns into Bowser and tackles the opponent. Powered Up: Bowser will breathe fire onto the opponent.

Combinations\Pair\Duo

If the player gets two of the same partners, the Millennium Star calls them a glorious (_____) (fill the blank with the partner). It also raises the attack by one (with the exception of Thwomp and Whomp, whose salaries are decreased by one instead). The following combinations causes the Millennium Star to comment on it, but the attack does not get raised.

• Whomp and Thwomp make an earth shaking combination!
• Toad and Koopa Troopa make an economical pair!
• Mr. Blizzard and Snifit make a long-range pair!
• Boo and Mr. Blizzard make a chilling combination!
• Bob-omb and Chomp make a dangerous duo!

Items

Items appear only on Battle Royale boards. They can be bought at an item shop or obtained on an Item Space. Either Toad or Baby Bowser runs the shop, both selling different items. Some items can only be collected through an Item Space.

Mario Party 3 allows the player to carry three items at once, as opposed to the single item the player can carry in Mario Party 2.

Item		Description	Price
Items Purchasable From Toad
	Mushroom	When used, the player can roll two Dice Blocks before moving. The results of the two rolls is then added together. The player can then move that many spaces. If the player gets two matching digits (e.g., a six and another six), the player gets ten Coins; however, if the matching digits are sevens, the player obtains twenty Coins.	5 Coins
	Warp Block	When used, the Warp Block appears above the player using it. The player then hits the block and switches places with a randomly chosen opponent. The player can then roll a Dice Block to move normally after warping. It is Yoshi's favorite item.	5 Coins
	Cellular Shopper	When used, the player is able to choose to call either Toad or Baby Bowser. When the player has called, the player may shop items in the usual manner. It is Princess Daisy's favorite item.	5 Coins
	Dueling Glove	When used, a Goomba appears, initiating a Duel minigame. Before doing this, he asks whom the player wants to challenge, and for how many Coins. This amount may not be more Coins than what the participator that has the lowest amount of Coins has (e.g., the player cannot choose to duel for twenty Coins if the other dueler only has nineteen Coins, even if the player challenging has more than twenty). This is Wario's favorite item.	10 Coins
	Golden Mushroom	When used, the player can roll three Dice Blocks. The result of these three rolls are then added together, enabling the player to move that many spaces. If a player gets three matching digits, they receive twenty Coins (e.g., a five, another five, and another five); however, if the matching digits are sevens, the player obtains fifty Coins. It is Mario's favorite item.	10 Coins
	Boo Repellant	This item activates itself when a player who is carrying it around is targeted by Boo. The effect it has is that it fends off Boo. If it is used by the player before they move, the item is discarded.	10 Coins
	Magic Lamp	When used, the player summons the Mushroom Genie. He then escorts the player to the Star, where they may purchase it for twenty Coins. It always takes the player to the correct Star Space in Spiny Desert.	20 Coins
Items Purchasable From Baby Bowser
	Reverse Mushroom	When used, the player using it chooses a player to target (this can also be the player who uses the mushroom). The next time the selected player moves, that player has to go backwards the amount of steps as shown on the Dice Block. It is Donkey Kong's favorite item.	5 Coins
	Poison Mushroom	When used, the player using it chooses a player to target (can also be the player who uses the mushroom). The next time that the chosen player moves, that player's Dice Block is only able to roll numbers from one to three. It is Waluigi's favorite item.	5 Coins
	Bowser Phone	When used, the player calls Bowser. Bowser then asks who is calling him, the player chooses one of the players (can be the caller). Bowser then performs his events to that player as if the player landed on a Bowser Space.	10 Coins
	Bowser Suit	The player who uses this steals twenty Coins from any player passed.	10 Coins
	Lucky Lamp	When used, the Mushroom Jeanie appears. She then moves the Star somewhere else, essentially making it the counter-part of the Magic Lamp.	10 Coins
	Plunder Chest	When the player uses this item, the player gets to choose an opponent to steal an item from. If the designated player has more than one item, the item stolen is chosen randomly. This is Princess Peach's favorite item.	10 Coins
	Boo Bell	The player who uses this item summons Boo. Boo then asks who the player wants Boo to steal from and what to steal.	15 Coins
Items Purchaseable From Both
	Skeleton Key	This item is activated automatically when any player who possesses it passes special gates. When activated, it asks the player passing if they want to use it or not. This item may be used at the start of a player's turn, during which the key asks the player if the player wants to discard it or not. This is Luigi's favorite item.	5 Coins
	Item Bag	When a player purchases this item, the player then gets to hit the bag that appears above the player one to three times (this depends on the amount of items the player has prior to hitting it). The player receives an item each time the bag is hit. The items the player receives also depends from which salesman the bag was bought.	30 Coins
Rare Items (Obtained through an Item Space, a Hidden Block, or purchasing an Item Bag from Toad)
	Wacky Watch	When used, this rare item sets the game to such a time that there are five turns left. Effectively, this can either increase or decrease the time a game is played.	N/A
	Barter Box	When this rare item is used, the player who uses it chooses an opponent. What then happens is that the player chosen and the player using the item swaps items.	N/A
	Koopa Kard	This item activates automatically when a player who possesses it passes by a Koopa Bank. When activated, it allows the player to earn all Coins deposited in the bank thus far.	N/A
	Lucky Charm	When a player uses this item, they summon Game Guy. Game Guy then takes all of the player's Coins, and a Game Guy minigame is initiated. This can also be used to force another player to play a Game Guy minigame.	N/A

Minigames

Main article: List of Mario Party 3 minigames

There are a total of 71 minigames within this game. Unlike Mario Party 2, all of the minigames are original. In keeping with the toy box theming, the minigames use stylized two-dimensional elements. For the first time in the Mario Party series, the player can select whether to play all or easy minigames in Party Mode.

Quotes

Main article: List of Mario Party 3 quotes

Staff

Main article: List of Mario Party 3 staff

Pre-release and unused content

Main article: List of Mario Party 3 pre-release and unused content

Glitches

Bounce 'n' Trounce softlock

In Bounce 'n' Trounce, if one player manages to bounce on the other three players in a way that does not make them move until the timer runs out, the game softlocks.

Reshooting an arrow in Bobbing Bow-loons

In Bobbing Bow-loons, the arrow will be shot automatically after time is up, causing the player to lose the game. However, if the player presses to shoot an arrow after time is up, the arrow will be re-shot from the bow with the shooting sound effect.

Regional differences

Differences between the Japanese and English releases

Upon failing an Item minigame in the Japanese version, the announcer says "MISS!" with said word also shown on screen. This was changed in the American, Australian, and European versions to say "GAME OVER" instead, but retaining the announcer's tone of voice from the first game.

Differences exclusive to the European version

Language select

Exclusive to the European version is a language select, which allows the game to be played in English, French, German, or Spanish. The screen first appears when turning on the game for the first time. can be held down before turning on the console to force the screen to appear after the first time.

Gallery

For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Mario Party 3.

• 

  Mario

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  Luigi

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  Yoshi

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  Princess Daisy

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  Waluigi

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  Bowser

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  Tumble

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  Millennium Star

Media

For a complete list of media for this subject, see List of Mario Party 3 media. For this subject's sound test, see Mario Party 3 sound test.

Star Lift - Used for the board map setup screen

File infoMedia:Mario Party 3 Music - Star Lift.oga 0:30

Chilly Waters

File infoMedia:Mario Party 3 Music - Chilly Waters.oga 0:30

Deep Bloober Sea

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Spiny Desert

File infoMedia:Mario Party 3 Music - Spiny Desert.oga 0:30

Woody Woods

File infoMedia:Mario Party 3 Music Woody Woods.oga 0:30

Creepy Cavern

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Begin Mini-Game - Used for the rules explanation screen

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Mini-Game End 1

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Help:Media • Having trouble playing?

References to other games

• Super Mario Bros.: The Underground Theme is briefly sampled in Creepy Cavern's background music.
• Super Mario Bros. 3: "What to Do?!?", one of the minigame themes, rearranges the first four bars of this game's fortress theme.
• Dr. Mario: The minigame Mario's Puzzle Party plays similarly to Dr. Mario.
• Mario Kart 64: Toad's voice from the Japanese version is recycled from this game, as are Yoshi and Donkey Kong's sound effects.
• Mario Party / Mario Party 2: The character mugshots of Mario, Luigi, Peach, Yoshi, Wario and Donkey Kong are reused in these games. Also, in the Mini-Game Mario's Puzzle Party, these characters have the same winning mugshots from Mario Party 2 with the announcer’s voice being reused from the latter. Several animations are also reused.

References in later games

• Mario Party 4: "You're the Star" is a similar song to "The Adventure Ends". Also, some of the playable characters' voice clips are reused.
• Mario Party 5: Some of the playable characters' voice clips are reused.
• Mario Party Advance: Some songs from Mario Party 3 are rearranged in this game.
• Mario Party DS: The music sheets in the background of Toadette's Music Room feature the song "Let's Get a Move On" from this game.
• Mario Party: The Top 100: Twelve of Mario Party 3's minigames are remastered in this game.
• Mario Party Superstars: Woody Woods returns along with 27 minigames and their respective music.
• Super Mario Party Jamboree: The Bowser Phone and Cellular Shopper return in this game.

Reception

Mario Party 3 received mixed to positive reviews. It has a 74% rating from Metacritic, based on 12 reviews, and a 73% from Game Rankings based on 17 reviews. IGN gave it a 6.4 and GameSpot gave it a 7.5. In Japan, Famitsu magazine scored the game a 31 out of 40.

Reviews
Release	Reviewer, Publication	Score	Comment
N64	Joe Fielder, GameSpot	7.5/10	"While pure innovation may not be king in the Mario Party world, Hudson's dedication to solid, addictive puzzle gaming that makes for a wholly enjoyable multiplayer experience is apparent. Mario Party 3 is fun, different enough from the early games due to the duel mode, and full of enough value to make the purchase worthwhile, even if you now play the other two. Still, it's clear that Hudson has probably exhausted the possibilities for this kind of game with Mario Party 3 and that the premise is beginning to wear a bit thin. Nintendo might want to let Mario take it easy for a while--to take a break from this life in the fast lane and go back to more leisurely pursuits, like playing more golf or tennis."
N64	Jason Venter, Honest Gamers	3/5	"All things considered, Mario Party 3 is a solid entry into the franchise. It has some good innovations that almost worked, and nothing that counts against it is really a crippling blow. At this point it might be best to wait for Mario Party 4, which hopefully will fix everything to perfection. But if you find this on store shelves--and you're likely to; I still see it around--you wouldn't do badly to pick it up, especially if you like to party."
N64	Fran Mirabella III, IGN	6.4/10	"I can't say I was thrilled with Mario Party 3 at first. I made the fatal mistake of trying to give the single-player story mode a chance. It's a decent way to practice, but it's INSANE as to how much watching you do. You even WATCH your opponents play mini-games all the time. Also, moving around the board becomes very tedious and boring quite quickly. So, as far as single-player goes, I think it'd better be classified as a tutorial mode. The multiplayer mode is where all the fun lies. Gather up three guys around the office, throw in some unsaid aggression, and the fun factor immediately goes up. This is what Mario Party has always been about. So, while there's nothing really new about the franchise there are 70 brand-new mini-games. For me, it makes a very worthwhile rental with some friends. I would only consider buying this if I had three siblings who were addicted to the N64 or had a family that would benefit from it. I suggest you take the same approach."
Aggregators
Compiler		Platform / Score
Metacritic		74
GameRankings		73.64%

Sales

Mario Party 3 is the 26th best-selling game for the Nintendo 64, selling approximately 1.9 million copies: 1.02 million copies in Japan, 720,000 copies in North America, and 160,000 copies elsewhere, as of December 31, 2009.

Awards

Mario Party 3 won the Console Family Award from the Academy of the Interactive Arts and Sciences of 2002.

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes
Japanese	マリオパーティ３[?] Mario Pāti 3	Mario Party 3
Chinese (traditional)	瑪利歐派對3 Mǎlì'ōu Pàiduì 3	Mario Party 3

Trivia

• On the game's cover artwork and wallpaper featuring the entire cast of characters that has an example of a Battle Royale Board Map which is based on Chilly Waters, the spaces illustrated are circle-shaped like the previous games, yet in the game, they are octagon-shaped.
• The instruction booklet incorrectly states that Thwomp has an attack stat of 2 instead of 0.
• This is the last Mario Party game to feature multiple minigame tracks for when there is just one winner, multiple winners, and a new record. It is also the last game to save the records set by CPU players.
• None of the music tracks in this game is scored in any sharp or flat key.
• This is the final game that Nintendo of America copyrighted under its full name. The division would copyright all further products as simply "Nintendo."
• Each of the boards has a cloud hidden in the background, including the reflection of one in Woody Woods and the shadow of one in Creepy Cavern.

External links

• Official Mario Party 3 Japanese website
• Nintendo of UK website