yo thanks so much for leaving this comment man!! i really appreciate it, it’s great to hear from a fellow Mario Party fan. I definitely have plans for more Mario Party in the near future for sure.
Mario Party 4 is this mental battle for me of quality vs nostalgia. I replayed the game last year, and its shortcoming are very apparent to me now. While Mario Party has always had a blend of luck and strategy, the boards in this one go too far into the luck sphere to the point where player agency feels non-existent, which makes them far less engaging to play, especially with how they changed the mushrooms. There's a reason why they reverted back to the status quo in later entries. And while the minigames are great with my personal favorite probably being Revers-a-Bomb for its frantic pace, they're not enough to save a mediocre board experience, especially with the smaller pool to pick from meaning you're bound to run into more repeats. That being said, this is the first Mario game I ever played and the game that got me into this whole hobby entirely. I remember having the time of my life learning about these characters I never knew before and getting to play around with them in these fun environments, and I've been a lifelong fan since. The music tugs at my heartstrings, the extras are neat, and there's a special uniqueness to this entry with the presents you could unlock in the story mode and the fact that it's the only entry with FMV cutscenes, albeit very dated ones. It's far from my favorite Mario Party game, and the later installments on the GameCube definitely improved on the formula, but 4 will always hold a special place in my heart.
thanks so much for watching!! i agree with this comment for sure, especially as someone who also has really fond memories with Mario Party 4. Also revers-a-bomb is a great pick for fav minigame!
There is also the possibility to pass Bowser on Bowser's Gnarly Party while wearing the Bowser Suit! Yesterday I watched a video about this and Bowser's reaction is that he notices that you look just like him and he gives you 50 coins as a reward! Also on Koopa's Seaside Soiree you can simply choose the direction at Ukiki's Banana Junction while wearing the Bowser Suit. The character will walk onto the banana peel removing it and a text appears stating that Bowser doesn't slip on banana peels. Then you can just choose to go up or down.
Nice video overall, but I highly disagree about the mushrooms because you have to calculate more and even then there is an exciting risk. I think this is the most balanced Mario Party in the series. I Always had the feeling that the most skilled player has the best chances but in every round it is still possible that you can be so lucky to turn it around. The feature to create a minigame list is incredible for the fun factor. Regarding the boards: These infinites which can be outplayed with items or the space which let you jump to another player ensure to hold the star count low so that the bonus stars get more important which are more skillbased (winning minigames and collecting coins). But yeah Mario Part 4 is not perfect but it is the one I like the most because it offers so much fun in minigames and the best balance.
You're saying it has the most balance in the mini games? Imo there just shouldn't be infinites at all, some items won't help you enough and landing on the spring space is still a dice roll too. But I agree about the mini mushrooms being a good strategy concept
This one broke my heart 😭 Mario Party 4 is til this day probably my fav game of all time yeah sure some of the boards have glaring problems but I can easily call out MP2 and especially 3 for the same reasons. On the whole valid criticism just sad that I’ve been seeing MP4 more and more dogged on over the years
Mario Party 4 is great aside from two areas which i think are crucial. The boards are all on a track. I hate this and it absolutely kills the mood of all boards. Why couldnt they have been in natural scenery like the rest of the games? Because the theming itself is good but man they are no fun to look at. Second is the overreliance on the Big/Mini mushrooms. Its the main item and they are just not fun to use in the slightest. Having certain spaces you can only get to using them or certain spaces that only trigger with them is pretty lame. That being said theyre not deal breakers and the minigames are great. Also love the story mode and the little homes you can fill. Overall a solid time but a downgrade from 2&3
On top of playing the game for likely hundreds of hours as a kid, once in college I spent a summer beating the story mode as every character. In all that time, over all those games, I NEVER saw Big Boo get summoned, I NEVER saw someone win the last five turns drawings, and I only saw a Bowser suit drop once.
I honestly think that if they just used MP2 and MP3 as a blueprint (items, boards etc.) for a new game, it would be immediately one of the best Mario Party games.
6 taking the great day night gimmick from 2's horror land and fleshing it out as much as possible throughout the boards and mini games was an incredible idea that added replay value. Add the much improved visuals, content count, solid item use, action events and imo that's the definitive entry as of today.
Really excellent analysis. Mario Party 4 has always been the entry I shelve the fastest. It shares a feeling of subliminal dread from the board's featurelessness with 8 & later Super Mario Party (although distinctly less empty feeling in other aspects) suffered. At time's it an severely empty feeling game, no other entry has me staring back at my reflection through the tv wondering why I'm playing than 4, ironically very little party feeling haha.
yeah there’s things about Mario Party 4 that i like, but there is a feeling of emptiness and i think it just comes down to a lack of interesting spaces and board mechanics. thanks so much for watching!!
You know, all they had to do for dueks was just let you play the boss mini games (excluding Bowser's) as duel mini games. Freeplay lets you do it, so why not?
One thing I always hated about mario party 4 was the visual aesthetic of the boards. I hate that they all exist as floating stainless steel meshs over the board you wish you actually played on. Certainly doesn't help that they almost all suck to play on. I think the worst offender visually is boo's board. The board isn't even floating over a place it's just in the void with some ghostly furniture... probably my least favorite board in the whole series, visually.
The Mega and Mini mushroom idea is a fun concept poorly executed. I think the reasoning is the boards just feel kind of small? I dunno but it is the big kill to playing this one despite the great games ugh
No offence but I don’t really understand your rankings for the mini games? Like why are Slime Time and Domination scored so high but Cheep Cheep Chase isn’t? Cheep Cheep Chase has more stuff going on and requires more effort than the other two which are literally just mashing A but with different colours of paint.
I really disagree about the lottery system, I think it stinks. Mario party is at its best when the stakes are high, and the lottery is low-stakes board filler. Game guy was almost always an exciting moment, I don't even think about the lottery when I play mp4. In fact, it's pretty common for an entire game to go by where nobody wins a single thing from the lottery. I've played the game to death and the lottery really just feels like it slows turns down with very little impact in most games.
This is a solid review, but your script could use a bit of cleanup. You mention that "Mario Party 4's boards are a step down from 2 and 3" twice in the span of less than 30 seconds (17:59 and 18:23). Otherwise, this is my favorite Mario Party, and I still had difficulty disagreeing with most of the points you made.
As someone who loved the hell out of MP2 and 3, even as a kid new to the Gamecube MP4 while OK was a HUGE step down overall. I know you dont talk about single player stuff but the single player stuff in MP4 sux compared to 3 and even 2
Dude.... Your hyper fixations on the infinites is RUINING these videos. It's funny if someone gets stuck in a loop over and over again! These games aren't about balance, or winning, it's about having fun with friends! You're missing the plot when you're rambling about infinites
marks rec room?? what a cute coomer making sweet videos :3 I respect the level of passion put into your opinions btw, I think mario party 4 has needed this kind of criticism in a general sense for a long time now. However I HIGHLY disagree about your opinion on GOAL!, it is correct that almost every 1v3 in that game is unbalanced but if you're good as the goalie with dives and all then you can make it near IMPOSSIBLE for the 3 players, the 1 person pretty much always has an easier time in this game lol If I had to pick a favorite minigame though it'd have to be one of the 2v2's, I have so many fond memories of teams just screaming at each other and it always made for the most satisfying victories bc they're so damn intense and down to the wire in this game lol. Either the great deflate or reverse-a-bomb are my favorites since they both have to do with rhythm and timing, the better players always win, but reverse-a-bomb wins in the song factor alone lol the music is so fire
This game unfortunately leaves a sour taste in my mouth. Goomba’s Greedy Gala and Koopa’s Seaside Soiree are so hellishly awful that I straight up rage quit the Mario party series for months.
I just found your channel a few days ago via the Star Fox video. I've been enjoying this trip through the old Mario Party titles. I've already recommended your videos to a few of my friends. Keep making good content and thanks for the thoughtful analysis!
yo thanks so much!! i really appreciate the support and you sharing the videos, that means a lot haha. i’ve got some new videos in the works, especially if you like stuff like the mario party series haha
Fantastic video of this classic game! This is actually my favorite Mario Party game, primarily from nostalgia as it was also my first Mario Party game, oh I wish I could relive those childhood memories!
I really appreciate how you try to look at these as clear headed and bias free as possible. This was my first real MP I believe and I loved the look of the boards, but you really break everything down so well. It seems like only 6 lacks deal breaking bs somewhere, or it has the least while visually still really holding up.
I never liked Chance Time or the Game Guy Spaces. You are forced to play Game Guy's minigames and lose all your coins if you lose. To me it doesn't even matter how many coins I get if I win. If the Game Guy Minigame with the two treasure chests appears and I happen to pick Toad, I refuse to double my coins another time after that and I just want to get out of there before I lose everything.
The Bowser Suit mushroom is on the box! Yet i don't think i ever saw it when i played it with my family as a kid. We usually got Bowser mini-games. I've always wondered what it looks like in-game.
The mini games are great but the boards and item system are so bad in this game. Mario Party 5 somehow managed to have a even worse item system. You can't even choose what items you want or even pay for them.
Love your content! This was a wonderful dissection of MP4. Even though there would need to be adjustments with items and therefore shroom-specific board designs, the addition of Shy Guy Jungle into Superstars would be super cool
thanks so much!! yeah i think it would be cool to see shy guy’s jungle jam in superstars but with the mini pipes converted into skeleton key doors, i think that’d be cool
Mario Party 4 was my first Mario game I've ever owened. I fell so in love with Mario Party that I bought MP5 and borrowed MP6 from a friend. My goal was to own every Mario Party game in existence... lol
@@cliffturbo2146 Nah I didn't pursue this "goal" any further but maybe in the future I will find interest again. I would try to get every Mario Party up to 8 not big of a fan of the newer ones
I currently own what I consider the best N64 Mario Party game (3) and I’m currently looking for a GameCube game to pick as the main game for me and my family & friends. The difference between the GCN and N64 games is that instead of being fine with just one entry, I’m okay with owning more than 1 GameCube entry, but I don’t know if I should pick 2 or 3. The main reason is that I also consider the aspects that you don’t cover here (ie the character roster, single player content, and music). This video is the start of my search.
Excellent review! But while I agree with many points you make in this entire review, I disagree with a few as well and what really upset and disappoint me was that you did not mention one thing at all about story mode, the presents you get from all the board hosts and the present room, and ommitted all those extra mini games too which in my opinion were some of the best mini games and you mentioned no duals but those story mini games that you play with the host at the end were basically duals so it kind of made up for the lack of them although yes I do agree that more dual mini games should've been added to the main boards as well in both party and story mode including the same ones already included at the end of the story mode boards. Also, about the lottery shop....did you know there's a cheat to it? If you roll the analog stick backwards on the ball game either all the way, backwards all the way until the last tilt and then tilt it frontwards on the very last tilt, or tilt it frontwards all the way until the last tilt and then tilt it backwards on the last tilt, you will get one of the jackpots. Also choosing the last or second to last ticket on the scratch offs can sometimes give you a jackpot as well.
This is my second favorite Mario Party of the bunch but a lot of that is because of the quality of minigames. Dungeon Duos, Avalanche, Booksquirm, Hop or Pop and Team Treasure Trek are among the games I remember most when I played with my friends.
My absolute favorite in the series. Yes nostalgia is a big part. But I love the boards (except Goomba’s), the minigame. And the extra minigame slot. I remember discovering Volleyball for the first time.
My childhood was mario party 4 and mario party 5, and I always enjoyed 5 more than 4. It had more entertaining minigames and the boards were amazing and everything felt so alive.
Only thing I really dislike about this game is how the boards look. It just used backgrounds that look cool with metal looking platforms. I think it’s better in the other games where the spaces are built into the map
