Super Mario Party gets a surprise update that expands its online play

By Giovanni Colantonio Published April 27, 2021

Super Mario Party just got a left-field update over two years after its release. The surprise download expands the game’s online multiplayer options.

When Super Mario Party released in 2018, fans anticipated that it would get updates and DLC down the line. Oddly enough, updates never came, even as Nintendo offered long-tail support for titles like Mario Tennis Aces and Arms. Over two years later, an update has finally arrived and it brings a heavily fan-requested update.

Recommended Videos

The free download is available now and it allows fans to play three modes online: Mario Party, Partner Party, and Free Play. Naturally, a Nintendo Online subscription is needed to play online.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Super-charge the fun of Super Mario Party on Nintendo Switch with new online play options, available now via a free update. Enjoy Mario Party mode, Partner Party mode and dozens of minigames online!

Find out more: https://t.co/xtV23phRBA pic.twitter.com/Y4m6etnAk4

— Nintendo UK (@NintendoUK) April 27, 2021

When playing online, players can either select Friend Match or Private Game. The latter allows players to create a password-protected match that anyone with the code can join. Players can also use the Switch’s Invite Friend feature, though that option is not available for the Online Mariothon mode.

It wouldn’t be Nintendo online integration without a confusing caveat. Online play supports two specific configurations. Up to four players can compete from separate Switch system or two Switches can link up with two players on each. According to the update notes, “If two players are each playing on their own systems, they cannot play with two players using a third system.”

All maps and characters are available in online play regardless of what each player has unlocked. Only 70 of the game’s 80 minigames can be played online, as none of the rhythm minigames are compatible.

Previously online play was only available in the game’s Online Mariothon mode.

Topics

Giovanni Colantonio

Senior Gaming Editor

As Digital Trends' Senior Gaming Editor, Giovanni Colantonio oversees all things video games at Digital Trends. As a veteran…

Gaming

Super Mario Party Jamboree is the series’ biggest game yet

super mario party jamboree announcement

Super Mario Party Jamboree – Announcement Trailer – Nintendo Switch

There's nothing quite like a Mario Party game, and Nintendo has announced another entry that's coming out this fall. Super Mario Party Jamboree is the series' biggest game yet, and it's due out on October 17 for the Nintendo Switch.

Gaming

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door remake is full of quality of life updates

Mario bumps into a Goomba in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.

Next month, Nintendo will celebrate the 20th anniversary of one of its finest games. Nintendo GameCube classic Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is getting a Nintendo Switch rerelease that's somewhere between a remaster and a remake (not unlike the company's recent Super Mario RPG revisit). But a game as beloved as this presents a challenge for developers: How do you stay true to the original while still upgrading it enough to justify a full-priced double-dip rather than an HD port?

I got an answer to that question when Nintendo gave members of the press a close look at the upcoming Switch release. The good news for protective purists is that the remake doesn't seem to be changing much about the core RPG aside from a bit of dialogue translation. Instead, the new version delivers key quality of life improvements to make a cult classic a bit friendlier to newcomers. That leaves it feeling like an even lighter makeover than Super Mario RPG, but a welcome one nonetheless.
What's new?
During my hands-off demo, Nintendo would walk me through several familiar snippets of the adventure. I'd see the opening combat tutorial in Rogueport, some fights against Pale Piranhas, and Chapter 1's climactic clash with Hooktail. Naturally, the most obvious change here is the remake's newly redone visuals. The Switch version is notably more crisp than the GameCube original, thanks to the removal of messy artifacts around the edges of its paper characters. It's smoother and more vibrant overall, with some more dynamic lighting to boot.

Gaming

Super Monkey Ball: Banana Rumble is as fun to watch as it is to play

Monkeys race one another in Super Monkey Ball: Banana Rumble.

I couldn’t tell you what the last Super Monkey Ball game I played was, but I can still talk your ear off about the series. That’s thanks to the speedrunning community that has formed around the franchise, making it into the most exciting game to watch when it's played at a high level. After spending close to a decade watching old games turned inside and out, I’m ready to finally dig into a new entry for myself.

Thankfully, I’m getting that chance on June 25 when Super Monkey Ball: Banana Rumble launches on Nintendo Switch. The latest entry in Sega’s precise platforming series comes loaded with content, from an adventure mode with 200 stages to multiple 16-player multiplayer modes. That’s all exciting, but my attention was on one question when I sat down to demo all of that last week: How fun will it be to watch players master it?