Minigame

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Minigame logo
Minigame logo, seen in New Super Mario Bros.

A minigame (sometimes formatted as "mini-game") is a short game which may reward coins, items, or higher scores. However, some main games may require completion of a minigame to access a new area or gain a key. The most common form of minigames is from the Mario Party series.

Super Smash Bros. series minigames

Wario Land series minigames

Wario Land II

Wario Land 3

Wario Land 4

Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars minigames

Mario Party series minigames

Wario in Catchy Tunes from Mario Party 7
An in-game screenshot of Catchy Tunes, a minigame from Mario Party 7

The Mario Party series has many types of minigames. Most award ten coins while some award items. In Mario Party, a few minigames can cause a player to lose coins, although this system was changed in later Mario Party games. Since Mario Party 2, players can now practice minigames before trying them out for real.

Minigame types

1-player minigames

Originally featured in Mario Party, 1-player minigames are minigames played alone. These minigames are usually accessed by landing on the Minigame Space. If the player fails, they lose 5 coins; but if they win, the player wins 10 coins, unless it is a different kind of minigame, like Whack-a-Plant, where players cannot win or lose.

1-player minigames reappear in Mario Party 8, now called 'Challenge Minigames'. If the player wins, they get to spin the wheel to throw a dart to collect the number of coins on the platform the arrow landed on. However, if the player loses, they cannot throw the dart and their turn ends. A challenge minigame is triggered when a player lands on a Challenge Space.

The 3 challenge minigames are Pour to Score, Stampede, and Fruit Picker.

4-player minigames

Frozen Frenzy from Mario Party 5
Frozen Frenzy, a 4-Player minigame from Mario Party 5

4-player minigames are minigames that pit all four players against each other. In Mario Party, the two games Key-pa-Way and Running of the Bulb require the four players to work together and if they succeed, they all get coins. However, this concept has not been used in any other Mario Party game and instead only versus games. This system has remained unchanged since the first Mario Party; however, in Mario Party 9, they are renamed, being called Free-for-All minigames

1 vs. 3 minigames

File:Mp3 Coconut Conkers.png
Luigi, Donkey Kong, and Waluigi attempt to hit Wario with a coconut in Coconut Conk

1 vs. 3 minigames are minigames that challenge a single player against the other three. They typically come in three forms, the three players trying to take down or hinder the single player, the single player trying to take down or hinder the other three players, or both the single and three players trying to achieve a similar goal, with the single player usually getting some form of advantage. In Mario Party 9, they are called 1-vs.-Rivals minigames.

2 vs. 2 minigames

Burnstile from Mario Party 6
Burnstile, a 2 vs 2 minigame from Mario Party 6

2 vs. 2 minigames are minigames that have the player paired-up with another player. Players often need to work together and cooperate to beat these games. Mario Party 9 is the only Mario Party game (not counting Mario Party Advance) not to feature this category of minigames, but Shell Soccer qualifies as a 2 vs. 2 minigame.

Item minigames

Item minigames are games that a player can play to get an item. They are triggered by landing on an Item Space. If the player gets Baby Bowser, they get nothing. They only appear in Mario Party 2 and Mario Party 3. In Mario Party 2, the minigame played depends on what board is played on. In Mario Party 3, the Item Space may trigger a roulette to decide a minigame to be played. The below table displays information pertaining to which board has which item minigame is played in which board in Mario Party 2.

Board Minigame played
Pirate Land Roll Out the Barrels
Western Land Give Me a Brake!
Space Land Hammer Slammer
Mystery Land Mallet-Go-Round
Horror Land Coffin Congestion
Bowser Land Bowser Slots

Bowser minigames

Bowser minigames are Bowser's own minigames. Bowser minigames are often extremely unfair to the players, as Bowser makes all the rules. Bowser minigames are also similar to 4-player and 1-vs-3 minigames (where the 1 is the player who lands on the Bowser Space), except that they produce a loser instead of a winner. The loser can lose Coins, Stars (if they have one, or more), or Items.

In Mario Party, Bowser Minigames are minigames where players compete against each other in a 4-player or 1-vs-3 minigame where each player that loses must hand over somewhere between 10-50 coins. If there are no losers due to the game not ending in the time limit, then Bowser steals coins from everyone.

In Mario Party 4, Bowser Minigames are minigames where players compete against each other and the one player who messes up loses. The loser loses either half or all of their coins, or all of their items.

In Mario Party 5, and Mario Party 6, and Mario Party 7, there are Bowser minigames where each player must survive attacks from Bowser and/or Koopa Kid (in Mario Party 7) in a given time limit and each player that does not survive loses. Each loser in the minigames loses either half or all of their coins, all of their items (5 and 6) or a star (7)

Also in Mario Party 7, there are single-player Bowser minigames where the one player who lands on the Bowser Space has to do various things to collect a key to escape from a dungeon before a time limit runs out. The penalty for losing is the same as in the Multiplayer Bowser minigames.

In Mario Party 9, Bowser's Minigames are referred to as Reverse Minigames where the player has to lose in order to win Mini Stars.

In Mario Party 10, Bowser Minigames are referred to as Bowser Battles. If someone loses, they lose Hearts. Reverse Minigames from Mario Party 9 also return in this game. If someone loses, they will win twenty Mini Stars.

Donkey Kong minigames

Banana Shake from Mario Party 6
Toadette, Daisy, Waluigi, and Wario collecting bananas in Banana Shake

Introduced in Mario Party 5, Donkey Kong minigames are minigames run by Donkey Kong which are often short. They usually have players focus on collecting as many bananas as possible. After the Donkey Kong minigame is finished, players can trade their bananas to Donkey Kong for coins. They can also gain more depending on the DK Roulette.

Duel minigames

Eyebrawl in Mario Party 8
Toadette and Wario battling in Eyebrawl, a duel minigame from Mario Party 8

First appearing in Mario Party 2, duel minigames are minigames that involve two players playing a minigame against each other. Most usually have high stakes. They are the only type of minigame in any 1-vs-1 game mode. The challenging player can choose to either play for coins or Stars. This is provided that the challenging player himself has enough to wager. From Mario Party 7 onwards, the winner's prize is decided by a roulette wheel.

Mini minigames

Goomba Poker
Goomba Poker, a Mini Mini-Game

Mini Mini-Games are a type of minigame in Mario Party 4. It can be played only by a character that has the effects of a Mini Mushroom via Gates that lead to secret passageways on all of the boards. There are two types of Mini minigames, those that involve winning items, like Item-Go-Round and Item Poker, and those that involve winning coins, like the Coin Slots and Tropical Fishing. The themes are usually paired with the theme of the board (such as Goomba Poker and Card Matching on Goomba's Greedy Gala).

Battle minigames

Insectiride at night from Mario Party 6
Mario, Daisy, Waluigi, and Wario competing in a race in Insectiride, a Battle Minigame

Battle minigames are minigames that take coins from all the players, then gives them back in different amounts based on the results. The amount of coins taken can go from 10 (later 5) to 50 coins per player. Unlike other minigames, the rank order is important – a player can still win some coins for being in second place. Like the 4-player minigames, most minigames are evenly matched between the four players.

In Mario Party 2, Mario Party 3, Mario Party 4, and Mario Party 9, battle minigames are played when a player lands on a Battle Space. From Mario Party 5 until Mario Party 8, battle minigames are not triggered when landing on any particular space (except for landing on a Battle Space in Mario Party 6's Solo Mode), but instead played at the end of a turn, like a normal minigame. The Battle minigame is only played if all four players' combined dice roll for the turn is a multiple of 10. Here, players are able to vote on which battle minigame they want to play, out of a list of three battle minigames. The minigame that gets the most votes after each player has voted is the one played. If there is a tie in the votes between two minigames, the minigame with no votes is played instead.

The scoring for Battle games up to Mario Party 5:

  • 1st: 70% of the total no. coins; 50% for tie; 33% for 3-way tie; 25% if all players win/lose
  • 2nd: 30% of the total no. coins; 15% for tie; 10% for 3-way tie

If the total number of coins is not a multiple of 10, one random player gets a bonus coin.

In Mario Party 6, the scoring was changed slightly:

  • 1st: 70% of the total
  • 2nd: 25% of the total
  • 3rd: 5% of the total
  • 4th: 0% of the total

In Mario Party DS, there are some big changes. Depending on the turn number ranging from 2-30, the players can pay up to 60 coins and the scoring is a bit different from the previous installments. The reward distribution is as follows:

  • 1st: 65% of the total
  • 2nd: 30% of the total
  • 3rd: 5% of the total
  • 4th: 0% of the total

In Mario Party 9, players can engage in a battle minigame by landing on the "Battle Minigame" space. Once a player has done so, a Hammer Bro will come and take three Mini Stars per person:

  • 4-Player Battle:
    • 1st: (50%) 6 Mini Stars
    • 2nd: (33.3%) 4 Mini Stars
    • 3rd: (16.7%) 2 Mini Stars
    • 4th: 0 Mini Stars
  • 3-Player Battle:
    • 1st: (66%) 6 Mini Stars
    • 2nd: (33%) 3 Mini Stars
    • 3rd: 0 Mini Stars

Sometimes landing on the space mentioned above will cause a Fire Bro to appear. The Fire Bro only makes last place lose ten Mini Stars, while the winners split the ten of the results:

  • 4-Player Battle:
    • 1st: +5 Mini Stars ; +4 for tie ; +3 for 3-way tie ; +9 if three players tie for last place ; +6 if two players tie for 2nd place or last
    • 2nd: +3 Mini Stars ; +2 for tie
    • 3rd: +2 Mini Stars
    • 4th: -10 Mini Stars ; -5 Mini Stars for tie ; -9 for 3-way tie
  • 3-Player Battle:
    • 1st: +7 Mini Stars ; +5 for tie ; +10 if two players tie for last
    • 2nd: +3 Mini Stars
    • 3rd: -10 Mini Stars : -5 for tie

Also, if a player lands on a Bowser Space the players can be forced into battling for half of each player's Mini Stars. However, Bowser keeps any left over Mini Stars.

  • 4-Player Battle:
    • 1st: (50%)
    • 2nd: (30%)
    • 3rd: (20%)
    • 4th: (0%)
  • 3-Player Battle:
    • 1st: (75%)
    • 2nd: (25%)
    • 3rd: (0%)

8-Player minigames

Real Smoothie from Mario Party 7
An 8-Player minigame, Real Smoothie

8-Player minigames are minigames only in Mario Party 7. They are played with eight players, in four teams of two. With the Nintendo GameCube not having eight controller slots, this must be done by having four controllers plugged in and each player sharing half of the controller. The first player of each team uses Control Stick and L Button while the second player of each team uses C Stick and R Button. They are only accessible in 8 Player parties.

Rare minigames

Dunk Bros. from Mario Party 6
Mario and Toadette competing against Waluigi and Wario in Dunk Bros.

Introduced in Mario Party 3, rare minigames are special minigames that do not appear at all in normal Party Mode. They are sometimes very long and have special options that other minigames do not have.

Bowser Jr. minigames

Featured in Mario Party 9, Bowser Jr. minigames are only played when landing on a Bowser Jr. Space. These minigames involve two players, a captain and a partner competing against Bowser Jr. If the players win, they get 5 Mini Stars each. If they lose, Bowser Jr. steals 5 Mini Stars each. They also appear in Mario Party 10. They can only be activated by selecting them from Bonus Games or landing on an event space on Bowser's Board in amiibo party. Players who win get 10 coins or a Star, and players who lose must pay 10 coins. Unlike Mario Party 9, players who face Bowser Jr. do not receive a partner.

Boss Battles

Appearing in Mario Party 9, Mario Party 10 and Mario Party: Star Rush, Boss Battles are played when the players reach a Boss Battle Space. Each board features two bosses. In these minigames, players must defeat an enemy by working together (except in Diddy's Banana Blast and DK's Banana Bonus), though each one tries to get more points than the others. These minigames have no time limit and end only when the boss health meter is empty. When half of the health meter is empty, the boss develops more diverse ways to attack. Whoever lands the final hit on the boss will receive bonus points.

Mario Party DS also features Boss minigames, though they are one-to-one showdowns. In Mario Party: Island Tour, Boss minigames can be played in Bowser's Tower and are also one-on-one.

Last minigame

Superstar Showdown from Mario Party 8
Superstar Showdown

A category only found in Mario Party 8, only one minigame appears in the Last category, Superstar Showdown, which is played at the end of Star Battle Arena. The minigame plays out similar to the Boss minigames in Mario Party DS and Mario Party: Island Tour, as it involves the player fighting against Bowser one-on-one.

Mario Party minigame lists

Trivia

  • Mario Party 7 has the most minigames, at 88 minigames (not counting Mario Party: The Top 100, which is a compilation of a hundred returning minigames)
  • Mario Party and Mario Party Advance are tied at last place, at 50 minigames. The second-to-last is Mario Party: Star Rush, with 53 minigames.
  • A total of 923 minigames are found in the Mario Party series, including returning minigames in Mario Party 2 and Mario Party: The Top 100.

WarioWare series minigames

In addition to its trademark short microgames, the WarioWare series feature a small number of long-form minigames in each installment, which are played separately from the microgame sets and take the form of either simple endless games where the goal is to improve own's high score or simple competitive multiplayer. They are typically unlocked by beating a score target in the character stages, which is indicated in the character's story mode description.

WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$! minigames

Single Player

Dual-Player

WarioWare: Twisted!

They are accessible from "Games" category of souvenirs.

WarioWare: Smooth Moves

All minigames are unlocked by progressing through the game, with the exception of Pyoro S, which requires unlocking every microgames.

Donkey Kong 64

See also: Bonus Area

Mario Tennis series minigames

The Mario Tennis game series have all had Minigames of some sort, with most being Tennis-Based, although there are some exceptions.

Mario Tennis (Game Boy Color)

File:LuigiShootingStars.PNG
Luigi Shooting Stars from Mario Tennis for the Game Boy Color

Mario Power Tennis

Mario Tennis: Power Tour

Treadmill, the first minigame in Mario Tennis: Power Tour

Mario Tennis Open

Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash

Mario Tennis Aces

Super Mario series minigames

Super Mario 64 DS minigames

Super Mario 64 DS features a grand total of 36 minigames (mini-games), which are divided among the game's four playable characters. Two of each character's minigames are unlocked along with the characters themselves, while the remainder are unlocked by catching Rabbits. All of the minigames utilize the DS's touch screen.

Yoshi's Games

Yoshi's minigames are puzzle-based.

  1. Wanted!
  2. Loves me...?
  3. Hide and Boo Seek
  4. Puzzle Panel
  5. Boom Box
  6. Tox Box Shuffle
  7. Which Wiggler?
  8. Mix-a-Mug
  9. Puzzle Panic

Mario's Games

Mario's minigames are action-themed.

  1. Mario's Slides
  2. Bounce and Pounce
  3. Sort or 'Splode
  4. Trampoline Time
  5. Shuffle Shell
  6. Bounce and Trounce
  7. Connect the Characters
  8. Shell Smash
  9. Trampoline Terror

Luigi's Games

Luigi specializes in "table" games, also known as gambling games. This is also a reason the Virtual Console PAL re-release of Super Mario 64 DS got a PEGI 12+ rating.

  1. Memory Match
  2. Pair-a-Gone
  3. Picture Poker
  4. Mushroom Roulette
  5. Mario Slot
  6. Lucky Stars
  7. Pair-a-Gone and On
  8. Memory Master
  9. Super Mario Slot

Wario's Games

Wario has the most diverse collection of minigames, almost no description applies to all of them.

  1. Bob-omb Squad
  2. Snowball Slalom
  3. Bingo Ball
  4. Coincentration
  5. Psyche Out!
  6. Slots Shot
  7. Lakitu Launch
  8. Intense Coincentration
  9. Giant Snowball Slalom

New Super Mario Bros. minigames

New Super Mario Bros. features minigames in much the same vein as Super Mario 64 DS. Indeed, some of the more popular Super Mario 64 DS minigames are copied exactly for New Super Mario Bros. However, most of the minigames are new, and many are multiplayer, something never seen in Super Mario 64 DS's games.

Vs. Battle

Action
  1. Snowball Slalom
  2. Vs. Lakitu Launch
  3. Run, Bob-omb! Run!
  4. Whack-a-Monty
  5. Balloon Racing
  6. Snowball Slam
Puzzle
  1. Wanted!
  2. Which Wiggler?
  3. Hide and Boo Seek
  4. Puzzle Panel
  5. Loves Me...?
  6. Coincentration
Table
  1. Speed
  2. Memory Match
  3. Picture Poker
  4. Luigi's Thrilling Cards
  5. Luigi-Jack
  6. Bob-omb Reverse
1 on 1
  1. Vs. Mario's Slides
  2. Bob-omb Sudden Death
  3. Jumping Brothers
  4. Lakitu Launch
  5. Jumping Sudden Death
  6. Vs. Trampoline Time
  7. Bob-omb Trampoline
  8. Vs. Pair-a-Gone

1 Player

Action
  1. Snowball Slalom
  2. Lakitu Launch
  3. Danger, Bob-omb! Danger!
  4. Whack-a-Monty
  5. Balloon Racing
Puzzle
  1. Wanted!
  2. Which Wiggler?
  3. Hide and Boo Seek
  4. Puzzle Panel
  5. Coincentration
Table
  1. Memory Match
  2. Picture Poker
  3. Pair-a-Gone
Variety
  1. Mario's Slides
  2. Sort or 'Splode
  3. Bounce and Trounce
  4. Bob-omb Squad
  5. Trampoline Time

Super Mario Galaxy minigames

New Super Mario Bros. Wii minigames

These appear in Toad Houses within each world:

Super Mario Galaxy 2 minigames

These are scattered across the galaxies.

Super Mario Odyssey minigames

These are scattered among the different kingdoms.

Nintendo Land attractions

Competitive

Team

Solo

Game & Wario minigames

Game & Wario is a game for Wii U that has 16 minigames. These games usually try to showcase the Wii U GamePad's capabilities. All of their titles are based off of how the original Game & Watch's games had one name.

1-player minigames

Taxi from Game & Wario
Gameplay of the minigame Taxi

Multiplayer minigames

Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move minigames

Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move is a Nintendo eShop for Nintendo 3DS that has four minigames. These minigames use the stylus on the bottom screen. ¾ of these minigames launch an object on the play area.

Paper Mario series minigames

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door minigames

In Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, there are four minigames in the Pianta Parlor. These games require a certain card to play each one.

  • Plane Game
  • Paper Game
  • Tube Game
  • Boat Game

Super Paper Mario minigames

In Super Paper Mario, these minigames are found in the arcade on floor B1. The first three are unlocked from the start, costing 10 Flipside Tokens, while Hammer Whacker can be played once getting a golden card from Flopside. This mini game costs 20 tokens.

Paper Mario: Sticker Star minigames

In Paper Mario: Sticker Star, there is only one minigame located at Stump Glade.

Paper Mario: Color Splash minigames

Minigames are found in various places in Paper Mario: Color Splash.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b [http://mariotennis.nintendo.com/aces/modes/ Mario Tennis Aces North American official site

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