Mario Party 3
Encyclopedia
is the third in a series of board game
style video games for Nintendo
platforms, featuring popular Nintendo characters. It was released for the Nintendo 64
in Japan on December 7, 2000, following a North American release on May 7, 2001. It was released in Australia on September 3, 2001 and in Europe as the final PAL-region Nintendo 64 game on November 16, 2001. It is the eighth Mario
game for the Nintendo 64.
Mario Party 3 is the third and final Mario Party title for the Nintendo 64. The player can choose between eight playable characters: Mario
, Luigi
, Princess Peach
, Yoshi
, Wario
, Donkey Kong, and newcomers Waluigi
and Princess Daisy. Mario Party 3 features duel maps, in which two players try to lower each other's stamina to zero using non-playable characters such as Chain Chomps. It is the first Mario Party game to feature Luigi's main voice and also is the last Mario game where Princess Daisy's appearance includes a yellow and white dress and long hair, as well as the last Mario game (until New Super Mario Bros. Wii
) in which Yoshi's "record-scratching" voice is used. It is also the first Mario Party game to have multiple save slots. Mario Party 3 is followed by Mario Party 4
.
The player with the most stars (and most coins if stars are tied [if both stars and coins are tied, a dice block decides the game]) at the end of the game wins. Coins are found on many spaces on the board and also earned in mini-games.
Stars are found on the board for purchase and can also be acquired through certain items or special events.
Players take turns moving around the board by hitting a dice block, the game's equivalent of rolling a die. The character moves the given number of spaces and may trigger special actions or events by passing or landing on certain spaces. After all four characters have moved, a mini-game begins. Mini-games can also be triggered by certain special event spaces.
This game introduces Story Mode to the series, in which one player starts a campaign
through every board, challenging computer controlled opponents at a shortened version of party mode. The player's objective is to defeat the other characters and earn stamps from the Millennium Star. After all 7 stamps are acquired the player is challenged to a final duel with the Millennium Star. This mini-game is called the Star Dust Battle in which the player must hit the Millennium Star 3 times (6 times on Normal difficulty, and 9 times on Hard difficulty) with stars in order to defeat story mode. When this has been accomplished, a title representing the player's overall progress in the game is awarded. If at least 8 "S" ranks are acquired, that character becomes a 'Miracle Star" and the Game Guy Room in the Mini Game House is opened for use. Simply beating the Story Mode and not earning a high title will cause the character's face to be sculpted into the mountain.
The game, as usual, contains a standard party mode in which four players play through a board. Princess Daisy was the only Nintendo main character to not have a board named after her (i.e. "Peach's Birthday Cake"). Mario Party 3 and Mario Tennis 64 were the only times Daisy still had her "Classic" look.
Battle mini-games are featured here as in Mario Party 2. These games are like the 4-player games, but generally more elaborate. Battle games are usually tense because every player has to put a certain number of coins (10, 20, 30, 50, or sometimes 0, in which the battle is cancelled) into a pot. First place gets 70% of the pot, second place gets 30%, and a random player gets any coins lost in rounding.
Duel games pit two players against each other. These are engaged through a Dueling Glove and in the last 5 turns in the game where if a player lands on the same space as another a duel is initiated. In Party Mode, one player initiates the duel, and bet coins against another player. The winner of the duel wins all of the coins in the bet. There is an option to turn off duels that contain only computer players.
Every game in the Mario Party series contains 50 to 80 mini-games of a few different types. Four-player games are a free-for-all in which all players compete against each other. 2-on-2 and 1-on-3 mini-games put players in groups, so they have to cooperate in the mini-game to win, even though they are against each other in the main game. In most situations, winners of these games make 10 coins each.
New (and exclusive) to this edition are Game Guy mini-games. When a character landed on a Game Guy space, he/she is forced to surrender all of his/her coins and play a chance-based mini-game. If the game is won, the coins of the character are multiplied, usually twofold, but in one of the games, it is possible to win up to 64-fold. However, if the game is lost, then the character will not receive his/her coins back. These games proved to be unpopular and were not continued in subsequent Mario Party games.
and published by Nintendo
. It is the first Mario Party game to feature Luigi's main voice and also is the last Mario game where Princess Daisy appears in a yellow and white dress, and with long hair, as well as the last Mario game (until New Super Mario Bros. Wii
) in which Yoshi's "record-scratching" voice is used. It is also the first Mario Party game to have multiple save slots.
On August 9, 2000, Nintendo Power Source updated its website with details on Mario Party 3 to be featured at the firm's Space World show, which happened on August 24 at a pre-event press briefing. Nintendo Power Source posted only one screenshot of the game on there site at the time. Nintendo later released 12 more screenshots of the game's adventure boards in January 2001. The game was about 70% completed during the time being.
, Luigi
, Princess Peach
, Wario
, Yoshi
, and Donkey Kong
, with the addition of Waluigi
and Princess Daisy.
for 2002.
The game sold over 1 million units world wide, making it the game of the month.
Board game
A board game is a game which involves counters or pieces being moved on a pre-marked surface or "board", according to a set of rules. Games may be based on pure strategy, chance or a mixture of the two, and usually have a goal which a player aims to achieve...
style video games for Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
platforms, featuring popular Nintendo characters. It was released for the Nintendo 64
Nintendo 64
The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...
in Japan on December 7, 2000, following a North American release on May 7, 2001. It was released in Australia on September 3, 2001 and in Europe as the final PAL-region Nintendo 64 game on November 16, 2001. It is the eighth Mario
Mario
is a fictional character in his video game series, created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Serving as Nintendo's mascot and the main protagonist of the series, Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation...
game for the Nintendo 64.
Mario Party 3 is the third and final Mario Party title for the Nintendo 64. The player can choose between eight playable characters: Mario
Mario
is a fictional character in his video game series, created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Serving as Nintendo's mascot and the main protagonist of the series, Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation...
, Luigi
Luigi
is a fictional character, featured in video games and related media released by Nintendo. Created by prominent game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, Luigi is portrayed as the slightly younger fraternal twin brother of Nintendo's mascot Mario, and appears in many games throughout the Mario series,...
, Princess Peach
Princess Peach
is a character in Nintendo's Mario series of video games. She is the Princess of the fictitious Mushroom Kingdom, and often plays the damsel in distress role within the adventure series. In 2007, Princess Peach landed on Forbes magazine's Wealthiest Fictional People list, with a fortune upwards of...
, Yoshi
Yoshi
, is a fictional dragon-like character who appears in video games published by Nintendo. His debut was in Super Mario World on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System as Mario and Luigi's sidekick , and he later established his own series with several platform and puzzle games, including Super...
, Wario
Wario
is a fictional character in Nintendo's Mario series. The character was designed as another antagonist to Mario , and first appeared in the 1992 Game Boy title Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins as the main antagonist and final boss...
, Donkey Kong, and newcomers Waluigi
Waluigi
is a fictional character in the Mario series of video games. He accompanies Wario in spin-offs from the main Mario series, oftentimes for the sake of causing mischief...
and Princess Daisy. Mario Party 3 features duel maps, in which two players try to lower each other's stamina to zero using non-playable characters such as Chain Chomps. It is the first Mario Party game to feature Luigi's main voice and also is the last Mario game where Princess Daisy's appearance includes a yellow and white dress and long hair, as well as the last Mario game (until New Super Mario Bros. Wii
New Super Mario Bros. Wii
is a 2009 side-scrolling platform video game published and developed by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. The game was released on November 12, 2009 in Australia, November 15, 2009 in North America, November 20, 2009 in Europe and December 3, 2009 in Japan...
) in which Yoshi's "record-scratching" voice is used. It is also the first Mario Party game to have multiple save slots. Mario Party 3 is followed by Mario Party 4
Mario Party 4
is the fourth installment in a series of board game style and is the first game in the series to be released for Nintendo Gamecube, featuring popular Nintendo characters. Mario Party 4 was released in North America on October 21, 2002, in Japan on November 8, 2002, and in Europe and Australia on...
.
Gameplay
Mario Party 3 is a party game where the player can now play a duel board with up to two people, and there are 8 characters in the game. This is also the first game to feature twelve game boards. The objective in Mario Party 3, as in the other games, is to move the player's character around the board and collect coins and stars.The player with the most stars (and most coins if stars are tied [if both stars and coins are tied, a dice block decides the game]) at the end of the game wins. Coins are found on many spaces on the board and also earned in mini-games.
Stars are found on the board for purchase and can also be acquired through certain items or special events.
Players take turns moving around the board by hitting a dice block, the game's equivalent of rolling a die. The character moves the given number of spaces and may trigger special actions or events by passing or landing on certain spaces. After all four characters have moved, a mini-game begins. Mini-games can also be triggered by certain special event spaces.
This game introduces Story Mode to the series, in which one player starts a campaign
Campaign (role-playing games)
In role-playing games, a campaign is a continuing storyline or set of adventures, typically involving the same characters. The purpose of the continuing storyline is to introduce a further aspect into the game: that of development, improvement, and growth of the characters. In a campaign, a...
through every board, challenging computer controlled opponents at a shortened version of party mode. The player's objective is to defeat the other characters and earn stamps from the Millennium Star. After all 7 stamps are acquired the player is challenged to a final duel with the Millennium Star. This mini-game is called the Star Dust Battle in which the player must hit the Millennium Star 3 times (6 times on Normal difficulty, and 9 times on Hard difficulty) with stars in order to defeat story mode. When this has been accomplished, a title representing the player's overall progress in the game is awarded. If at least 8 "S" ranks are acquired, that character becomes a 'Miracle Star" and the Game Guy Room in the Mini Game House is opened for use. Simply beating the Story Mode and not earning a high title will cause the character's face to be sculpted into the mountain.
The game, as usual, contains a standard party mode in which four players play through a board. Princess Daisy was the only Nintendo main character to not have a board named after her (i.e. "Peach's Birthday Cake"). Mario Party 3 and Mario Tennis 64 were the only times Daisy still had her "Classic" look.
Battle mini-games are featured here as in Mario Party 2. These games are like the 4-player games, but generally more elaborate. Battle games are usually tense because every player has to put a certain number of coins (10, 20, 30, 50, or sometimes 0, in which the battle is cancelled) into a pot. First place gets 70% of the pot, second place gets 30%, and a random player gets any coins lost in rounding.
Duel games pit two players against each other. These are engaged through a Dueling Glove and in the last 5 turns in the game where if a player lands on the same space as another a duel is initiated. In Party Mode, one player initiates the duel, and bet coins against another player. The winner of the duel wins all of the coins in the bet. There is an option to turn off duels that contain only computer players.
Every game in the Mario Party series contains 50 to 80 mini-games of a few different types. Four-player games are a free-for-all in which all players compete against each other. 2-on-2 and 1-on-3 mini-games put players in groups, so they have to cooperate in the mini-game to win, even though they are against each other in the main game. In most situations, winners of these games make 10 coins each.
New (and exclusive) to this edition are Game Guy mini-games. When a character landed on a Game Guy space, he/she is forced to surrender all of his/her coins and play a chance-based mini-game. If the game is won, the coins of the character are multiplied, usually twofold, but in one of the games, it is possible to win up to 64-fold. However, if the game is lost, then the character will not receive his/her coins back. These games proved to be unpopular and were not continued in subsequent Mario Party games.
Development
Like all games in the Mario Party franchise, Mario Party 3 was developed by Hudson SoftHudson Soft
, formally known as , is a majority-owned subsidiary of Konami Corporation is a Japanese electronic entertainment publisher headquartered in the Midtown Tower in Tokyo Midtown, Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, with an additional office in the Hudson Building in Sapporo. It was founded on May 18, 1973...
and published by Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
. It is the first Mario Party game to feature Luigi's main voice and also is the last Mario game where Princess Daisy appears in a yellow and white dress, and with long hair, as well as the last Mario game (until New Super Mario Bros. Wii
New Super Mario Bros. Wii
is a 2009 side-scrolling platform video game published and developed by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. The game was released on November 12, 2009 in Australia, November 15, 2009 in North America, November 20, 2009 in Europe and December 3, 2009 in Japan...
) in which Yoshi's "record-scratching" voice is used. It is also the first Mario Party game to have multiple save slots.
On August 9, 2000, Nintendo Power Source updated its website with details on Mario Party 3 to be featured at the firm's Space World show, which happened on August 24 at a pre-event press briefing. Nintendo Power Source posted only one screenshot of the game on there site at the time. Nintendo later released 12 more screenshots of the game's adventure boards in January 2001. The game was about 70% completed during the time being.
Playable characters
Mario Party 3 still includes MarioMario
is a fictional character in his video game series, created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Serving as Nintendo's mascot and the main protagonist of the series, Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation...
, Luigi
Luigi
is a fictional character, featured in video games and related media released by Nintendo. Created by prominent game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, Luigi is portrayed as the slightly younger fraternal twin brother of Nintendo's mascot Mario, and appears in many games throughout the Mario series,...
, Princess Peach
Princess Peach
is a character in Nintendo's Mario series of video games. She is the Princess of the fictitious Mushroom Kingdom, and often plays the damsel in distress role within the adventure series. In 2007, Princess Peach landed on Forbes magazine's Wealthiest Fictional People list, with a fortune upwards of...
, Wario
Wario
is a fictional character in Nintendo's Mario series. The character was designed as another antagonist to Mario , and first appeared in the 1992 Game Boy title Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins as the main antagonist and final boss...
, Yoshi
Yoshi
, is a fictional dragon-like character who appears in video games published by Nintendo. His debut was in Super Mario World on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System as Mario and Luigi's sidekick , and he later established his own series with several platform and puzzle games, including Super...
, and Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong
is a fictional gorilla in the Donkey Kong and Mario series. He is roughly twice the size of a normal gorilla, weighing approximately 800 pounds. Donkey Kong first appeared in Nintendo's popular 1981 video game of the same name. Since then he has appeared in over 20 games in his own series, as well...
, with the addition of Waluigi
Waluigi
is a fictional character in the Mario series of video games. He accompanies Wario in spin-offs from the main Mario series, oftentimes for the sake of causing mischief...
and Princess Daisy.
Reception
Mario Party 3 had mixed to decent reviews. Scores included:- IGNIGNIGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
: 6.4 - GameSpotGameSpotGameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
: 7.5 - MetacriticMetacriticMetacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
: 74 out of 100 (Based on 12 reviews) - Game RankingsGame RankingsGameRankings is a website that collects review scores from both offline and online sources to give an average rating. It indexes over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 games.GameRankings is owned by CBS Interactive...
: 73% (Based on 17 reviews)
Awards
The game won the Console Family Award from Academy of Interactive Arts & SciencesAcademy of Interactive Arts & Sciences
The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences , founded in 1996, is a non-profit organization that promotes computer and video game entertainment with the annual D.I.C.E. Summit event, where its Interactive Achievement Awards ceremony has been held annually since 1998...
for 2002.
The game sold over 1 million units world wide, making it the game of the month.