Once again, Nintendo has gone against the grain, and succeeded. While most of its competitors have decided to make and develop games targeted at older, more mature audiences, Nintendo has stayed away from the typical shooting and violence-laden games found on other systems, choosing instead to maintain its ties with the characters that most gamers grew up with.

 

Whether they will admit it or not, most gamers have a special place in their heart for some of Nintendo's most famous characters. Nintendo has used this nostalgic connection to its benefit, especially when developing titles for its most recent system, the Nintendo Wii.

 

Mario Party 8 for the Nintendo Wii is the latest incarnation of the title that first appeared in late 1998 for the now-replaced Nintendo 64. In fact, Mario Party 8 for the Nintendo Wii represents the twelfth version of this particular title. 

 

Mario Party 8 for the Nintendo Wii plays essentially like digital version of a traditional board game. In the game, players take turns "rolling dice" and moving across a digital game board. Like in a traditional board game, certain squares that players land on have certain effects, either positive or negative, for the player or players involved. Although patterned after a traditional board game, the goal of Mario Party 8 for the Nintendo Wii is not to reach the "end" of the board but rather to collect as many stars as possible. At the end of the game, the player with the most stars is declared the winner.

 

Players can earn or lose stars in a variety of ways during the game. This is where the popular party aspect of the game really shines through, as the players involved begin to compete with each other and even work together as a team to try to earn as many stars as they can before the game ends. In Mario Party 8 for the Nintendo Wii, players can choose from a variety of playable characters, including classic Nintendo characters like Mario, Luigi, Yoshi and Princess Peach, as well as Toad, Blooper and one of the Hammer Brothers. Overall, players can choose from fourteen different playable characters. 

 

Nintendo characters such as Donkey Kong and Bowser make appearances throughout the game as well, though their characters are not playable. One of the features of the latest Mario Party game is that it also allows players to use characters known as Miis during certain sections of the game. A Mii is a character that can be created by players using certain features of the Nintendo Wii system.

 

Mario Party 8 features six different game boards, each unique in its theme and in the tasks and events that players must participate in. However, what makes Mario Party 8 for the Nintendo Wii so popular is what made the game popular from the very first version: the minigames. During the game, at least one minigame per turn may be played. Each minigame is unique, and it is here that players can win or lose stars. The minigames in Mario Party 8 exist in four different categories, from 4 player minigames where everyone competes against everyone, to 2-on-2 battles where players team up with each other to complete a challenge.

 

The Nintendo Wii's unique control system also adds for a more unique experience during gameplay and during some of the minigames, as in some of the games, players have to use the Wii remote's wireless capabilities in order to complete certain challenges and tasks.

 

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