Top 10 WORST Mario Party Mini-Games

“Mario Party 7” (2005)

Most of your time in “Mario Party” is hitting dice blocks, earning or losing coins, and ending friendships. It stops being a Mario Party when a minigame is built to have no losers, such is the case for “Cointageous”, where everyone just spends time hitting a dice block and getting up to three coins with each jump. Glad to see Nintendo getting those creative juices flowing… Seriously, don’t we spend enough time doing stuff like this, hitting dice blocks and getting coins?

“Mario Party 2” (1999)

It's our first one-versus-three minigame on the list, and, spoilers, it won’t be the last. One player assigns buttons to a series of notes displayed at the bottom of the screen. The other three must memorize and copy the buttons, but the notes are sporadically divided. For something that is, at its core, “Simon Says”, this game doesn’t give the solo player much of an opportunity to try and win. However, all four players won’t find themselves at odds with each other, but with the mini-game itself due to its pickiness on timing. Did we mention the voice lines are incredibly obnoxious?

“Mario Party 8” (2007)

What else can you expect from the first “Mario Party” on Wii other than (all together now) MOTION CONTROLS!! This duel tasks two players with tipping a board to correctly sort green and pink orbs, you know, because sorting things really gets the party going. As the timer progresses, so does the speed of the orbs dropping—WAIT, what in the hell?! Look how fast they’re going! Yeah, this one does not take normal human reaction times into consideration.

“Mario Party 2” (1999)

Nobody likes losing to luck. It always feels like you’re getting cheated out of a potential victory…well, if you lose, anyways. Day at the Races is precisely like that. Players take turns choosing a character they think might win the race. Yes, they take turns, which means that if you’re the unlucky one who gets slim pickings, chances are you’re going to lose. To make things worse, your character moves at random intervals. You and your friends might be yelling at the TV for your picks to win, but in the end, your consolation prize is rage. Hope you weren’t screwed over too much on your coins!

“Mario Party” (1998)

In this one-versus-three mini-game, the solo player must escape a terrifying piranha plant, which is being sped up by the other three players as they ground-pound a rain cloud. This mini-game is the definition of a “fruitless endeavor”. The solo player can easily keep mashing the A button while hitting every obstacle and still win! If that’s the case, then what’s even the point in participating? Although, the bigger question here is how did this broken game make it into the “Mario Party: Top 100” game?!

“Mario Party 8” (2007)

What better example of motion control gimmicks than Flip the Chimp? As an Ukiki slowly climbs to the top of a tree, players must tilt their Wii Remote left or right to avoid falling coconuts. Okay, what the hell is this game supposed to be? Most minigames require some level of skill and strategy. This…well, this is the equivalent of watching paint dry! You’re just sitting there and occasionally tilting the controller. It’s a mind-number, if not, a total snooze-fest…

“Mario Party 8” (2007)

Mario has had some decent racing mini-games across the series, some more fun than others, but none are as intolerable as “Rudder Madness”, which sees you careening down a raging river of mud and rocks-- okay, that's what we wish it was. This minigame is so boring that it becomes a huge buzzkill for everyone. If we wanted to compete in what is essentially a snail race, we would have gone partying with the Rabbids!

“Mario Party 3” (2000)

The “Mario Party” series has been no stranger to rhythm mini-games. Every entry has a few to add variety. However, this one was a total bust. Four players take turns memorizing a Shy Guy’s drum beats for up to sixteen notes. Yeah, this one feels like it takes an eternity to finish! It gets quicker when it comes down to two players, but if both succeed until the end, the game ends in a draw. So, you basically wasted a solid five minutes just to win a measly ten coins…

“Mario Party” (1998) & “Mario Party 2” (1999)

There are some people who believe crane machines are rigged. Allow “Mario Party” to reinforce that belief. Three players sit idle on the floor while one player tries to grab all three of them before the time runs out. Their only defense is to mash a button to wiggle out of the solo player's clutches. In “Mario Party 1”, this game was unfair due to how many coins the solo player can nab. When it was reworked in the sequel, extra coin bags were replaced with additional time, giving the solo player an extra sixty-five seconds total! Yep! Its rigged!

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few Dishonorable Mentions…

Honeycomb Havoc
“Mario Party 2” (1999)

M.P.I.Q.
“Mario Party 3” (2000)

Get the Lead Out
“Mario Party DS” (2007)

“Mario Party” (1998)

It's not often we come across a 4-way tie on our lists, but trust us, these minigames are more than deserving of this dishonor. This list has featured mini-games that are boring, frustrating, or complicated, but so far, none of them have caused legal and health issues! These four mini-games had players rapidly rotating the analog stick, which gave gamers everywhere cuts, blisters, and lacerations. Once the New York State Attorney General’s office investigated, Nintendo was forced to send out eighty million dollars’ worth of protective gloves on top of paying off the costs of the investigation. This is why we do game testing, people.