Mario Party 8

Mario Party 8
Developer	Hudson Soft
Publisher	Nintendo
System	Nintendo Wii
Release Date	US May 29, 2007 EU June 22, 2007 AU July 19, 2007 JP July 26, 2007 EU August 3, 2007 (rerelease)
Genre	Party
Gallery	GH Gallery
Rating	ESRB: E

Mario Party 8 is the eighth installment (twelfth counting the arcade, e-Reader and GBA games) of the Mario Party series and the first installment for the Nintendo Wii.

Story

Mario and his friends are invited to the Star Carnival by MC Ballyhoo, an eccentric ringmaster who seems to have come from nowhere. There Mario and his friends compete in a variety of events.

Gameplay

The game retains the essential gameplay of previous games with competing for earning stars in a variety of board game levels. The new batch of minigames also feature a variety of minigames using classic controls and minigames that use new Wii-specific motion controls. The orbs from the previous few games are absent in the place of a variety of candy items. The game also adds two more unlockable characters, Blooper and Hammer Bro. Miis are also playable in the Extra Zone.

Like other Mario Party games, Mario Party 8 is divided into several different modes. In the Party Tent, players can compete in either Battle Royale, Tag Battle or Duel Mode games. The Star Battle Arena mode is the solo story mode in which the player must compete against others amongst the various boards to win a special prize from MC Ballyhoo. The Fun Bazaar is the game's shop, the Minigame Tent is where minigames can be replayed, and the Extra Zone is a source of special minigames.

Release Problems

In Europe, its release date was pushed back and it was recalled shortly after being released due to the word "spastic" (which is considered an offensive work in the United Kingdom) being spoken by a Magikoopa. The fixed version (replacing "spastic" with "erratic") was soon released on August 3rd.

Legacy

Sequels

It was followed by Mario Party DS. A direct sequel has yet to be announced.