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Mario Party 10 or Wii Party U for non-gamers?

J

Jaded Alyx

Member
My girlfriend decided she wants us to invite some friends over for a 'game day', much to my surprise.

The only non-Candy Crush games she's actually enjoyed/can play are Wii Sports Club Bowling and Wii Fit U.

I have NintendoLand, but I think I'll need something more. Which out of MP10 and WPU would you recommend and why?
 
Honestly, neither one is that good. But I guess Mario Party 10 is the better one.

Wii Party U was pretty bland, and Mario Party 10 was really derivative. But if they're non-gamers, then they likely won't care about the lack of fresh ideas in Mario Party 10.

Have fun.
 
Wii Party U is actually pretty fun. I got it free from the Mario Kart 8 promotion and it works really well as a pick-up-and-play type thing.

I haven't played Mario Party 10 but I heard mixed things about it.
 
Wii Party U is probably the game you're looking for, but be prepared to have a lot of Wii Remotes and batteries on hand.

I'd given some consideration to Game & Wario as well. The Pictionary game they have there is better than the Wii Party U version.

Give the Jackbox Party Pack(s) a look as well. They're our go to party games now, even among gamers, it's a riot. I'd say Keep Talking is a safe bet for non-gamers as well, although it's not exactly a relaxing experience.
 
I'd say Wii Party, Mario Party 10 is pretty shallow and not that engaging with the vehicles, and the traditional mode is locked behind amiibos which is also pretty annoying to play with the gamepad implementation. Wii Party U is straightforward and the mini games are about the same quality.
 
Wii Party U has a couple of fun mini games and fun modes. Mario Party 10 has fun mini games and Bowser Party but everything else is absolutely terrible.

They're two very different games. But I personally recommend Wii Party U over Mario Party.
 
Wii Party U is probably better for somebody who doesn't really play games as much, since its minigames are much simpler.

That said, if you are fine with recommendations beyond just those two, I actually strongly recommend Game & Wario above either. The pictionary clone is one of the best party game experiences on the WiiU and the rest of its multiplayer options are insanely easy for anybody to pick up.
 
Wii Party U is the best Mario Party NDcube has (accidentally) created. Oh, and you could keep folks busy for a very long time with those two-player tabletop games which are played on GamePad alone.

Nintendo Land, though, is a superior party game. Luigi's Mansion minigame is the shit! I tested it on a non-gamers, too.
 
Of the two, Wii Party U. Since it offers more modes, more options and even goes a bit crazy with some of the games (like the one putting the gamepad in the floor, while everyone holds a Wii Remote like holding hands).

Mario Party 10 is still a blast with friends. But it's a bit more familiar when it comes to variety.

Also Game & Wario. The pictionary-like game is always played around here along the one stealing fruits.

Runbow, Toto Temple Deluxe are nice additions too.
 
Wii Party U is more of a non-game so that? But seriously, both are utter crap. I'd recommend Mario Kart 8 instead, very welcoming and highly enjoyable for many new players and a good fit for a multiplayer game.
 
Yoshi said:
Wii Party U is more of a non-game so that? But seriously, both are utter crap. I'd recommend Mario Kart 8 instead, very welcoming and highly enjoyable for many new players and a good fit for a multiplayer game.
Click to expand...

She would be terrible at it. Plus I'd win without even having to look at the screen.
 
Jaded Alyx said:
She would be terrible at it. Plus I'd win without even having to look at the screen.
Click to expand...

Well if you want to maximise the luck factor and minimise the skill factor, play Wii Party U. But it really feels like a lottery most of the time and the very few good minigams feel a bit unfair, because the work put into them isn't really worth it, considering most of the game is still decided by gambling.
 
Am I missing something on Game & Wario guys? My girlfriend got it for me about a year ago but I thought it was quite bare and simple, especially compared to Warioware: Smooth Moves (which I know isn't exactly a party game but it's still has some really fun mini-games if you'd call them that). I loved the drawing game thing but apart from that I thought most of the games got really repetitive.

Also I made a thread asking about Mario Party 10 a while back and pretty much everyone said it was dreadful which was a shame. A good few people said the minigames are decent but not plentiful enough and apart from that the game is rubbish. I've seen someone locally selling it with the Mario amiibo brand new for €29 and am tempted by it though at that price.
 
NateDog said:
Am I missing something on Game & Wario guys? My girlfriend got it for me about a year ago but I thought it was quite bare and simple, especially compared to Warioware: Smooth Moves (which I know isn't exactly a party game but it's still has some really fun mini-games if you'd call them that). I loved the drawing game thing but apart from that I thought most of the games got really repetitive.

Also I made a thread asking about Mario Party 10 a while back and pretty much everyone said it was dreadful which was a shame. A good few people said the minigames are decent but not plentiful enough and apart from that the game is rubbish. I've seen someone locally selling it with the Mario amiibo brand new for €29 and am tempted by it though at that price.
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Game & Wario is a weird game, the single player games really aren't anything more than a tech demo (more a tech demo than normal WarioWare standards). When people recommend it it's always the multiplayer games, which really is mainly that Pictionary game (which is perfect), and the Fruit and Islands games are always worth a few rounds at parties, so that's why it's brought up.

Mario Party 10 really depends on a few things, like what you think of Mario Party overall, Mario Party 9's 'new formula', and all that. It's still a competently made game, just a bit content light and the modes all have some downsides. Mario Party mode is less strategic than veteran players like, Bowser Party swings between awesome and awful every game purely by luck, and amiibo Party is too basic and limited by amiibos. The bundle with the Mario amiibo may not really be worth it because there's a minor advantage for players with amiibos in that mode, so it'll make you feel like you need more amiibos for an already barebones mode.
 
I recommend the Pictionary mini game on Game and Wario. It's been a huge success with my group of friends.

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WARNING: I'm pretty sure you have to unlock pictionary.
 
Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival is the best game ever created for people who have no idea how to play videogames. Just cute & simple fun.
 
They're both incredibly average. Mario Party probably has the better mini games, but Wii U Party has more diverse modes.

If I had to choose: Wii U Party because it's not going to be full price and should be relatively cheap.

As others have said, Nintendo land is the best option.
 
Stopdoor said:
Game & Wario is a weird game, the single player games really aren't anything more than a tech demo (more a tech demo than normal WarioWare standards). When people recommend it it's always the multiplayer games, which really is mainly that Pictionary game (which is perfect), and the Fruit and Islands games are always worth a few rounds at parties, so that's why it's brought up.
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Oh no but that's what I meant! We've pretty much solely played the multiplayer modes but I still thought it was dull. I found Islands really boring after just a few games and didn't think it had any longevity. Fruit is OK but again I just felt like after a few games it's just the same thing over and over.
 
NateDog said:
Oh no but that's what I meant! We've pretty much solely played the multiplayer modes but I still thought it was dull. I found Islands really boring after just a few games and didn't think it had any longevity. Fruit is OK but again I just felt like after a few games it's just the same thing over and over.
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Well, yeah, I think that's just how the game is, what's there is good but since there's not much of it it's good to play with a new group of people and then you have to change games eventually. It's not like Mario Kart or Mario Party where there's relatively a lot of content to play for awhile.

Personally I find Islands pretty cool for a single round with 5 people, the Scales and Roulette maps lead to some quick reversals of fortune with really light strategy. I've never got the "Tippy Tower" map to ever work and the Arrow one is kind of meh.
 
Well I ended up getting Wii Party U. Very simplistic mini-games, and mildly annoying that despite winning the majority of them, I didn't end up winning the game overall, but my gf had fun and that's all that matters. We'll have some friends over next weekend so we'll see how that goes.

Thanks for the help, everyone.

BTW, these tabletop GamePad games are pretty decent. I wonder how well they'd adapt to mobile?
 
Late to the party here, but for future endeavours, Spin The Bottle : Bumpies Party is a ridiculously good party game. More laughs out of it than Mario / Wii party by a long shot, and much more imaginative.

Easily the best party title on Wii U, and a hidden gem in it's catalogue.
 
Jaded Alyx said:
BTW, these tabletop GamePad games are pretty decent. I wonder how well they'd adapt to mobile?
Click to expand...

I think most of their appeal comes from pressing buttons and using analogue controls like on real mechanical tabletops, but the base is definitely suitable for a mobile game.
 
Are other games an option? Can always give NSMBU or 3D World a try.
 
For non-gamers I'd probably go in this order:

Wii Party U
Nintendo Land
Mario Kart 8 (let the non gamers race against eachother while you help)
Mario Party 10
New Super Mario Bros. U
Runbow (eshop)
Bomberman Blast (WiiWare)
Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (again, let them play against eachother at first)

Instead of Game and Wario you could get PictoParty from the eshop and enter your own words.
 
I thought Wii Party U was far more enjoyable than Mario Party 10. Nintendoland has a nice mix of co-op and competitive games.
 
They're both pretty bad to be honest. Especially compared to Wii Party and Mario Party 9 on Wii which me and my friends heavily invested in.

And they're AWFUL for the fact that they barely take into account to support 5 players. I guess Mario Party 10 is better in the sense that it has Bowser Party which is an actually fun spin on the party board but limited to 12 mini-games. Wii Party is limited to 1 Gamepad versus 3 Wiimote players. And it's missing the fun games like Pass-the-Bomb and Hide-the-Wiimotes game from the first one.

Edit: Since you already got Wii Party U, I suggest trying:
Wii Party 1
Mario Party 9 on Wii. This was the only Mario Party my friends enjoyed themselves when it comes to playing the boards and not just the mini-games because ANYONE can win at the last minute.
Runbow on eShop. It's only $15, supports 9 players, and has a very easy learning curve.
 
Everyone is wrong.

1. Get Mario Party 10.
2. Play Bowser Party.
3. Play as Bowser.
4. Crush their souls.
5. Bathe in the angst of your GF & Co.
6. Get dumped.
7. Repeat
 
Stopdoor said:
Game & Wario is a weird game, the single player games really aren't anything more than a tech demo (more a tech demo than normal WarioWare standards). When people recommend it it's always the multiplayer games, which really is mainly that Pictionary game (which is perfect), and the Fruit and Islands games are always worth a few rounds at parties, so that's why it's brought up.
Click to expand...


I got Game & Wario as a free download as a Club Nintendo Platinum prize, but even if I had paid the $40 I would have considered it worth it for these. I'm the one person in my friend circle with a WiiU, and they want to play Islands (or "Fronks" as we call it) every single time they're over. I don't even know how many hours we've put into it over the last couple years.

edit: Mario Chase and Ghost Mansion in NintendoLand get even more play though
 
Nintendo Land, followed by Wii Party U.

Nintendo Land is great, everything else is subpar compared to it, unfortunately. In my opinion, party games on the Wii U have suffered tremendously coming after the Wii, and it is no hyperbole when I say that the library is the worst out of any Nintendo home console since the inception of the subgenre back in the N64 days.
 
Of the two I prefer MP10, but I think for someone who isn't sure which to get I would recommend Wii U Party, as it has more variety in it.

Having said that why not consider the Wii versions as you can, of course, still play them on the Wii U. MP8 has lots of different game board styles and is great fun. But I think the best one of all would be the original Wii Party for the Wii - lots of variety and lots of mini-games.

(I would not recommend MP9 as I find it a slightly tedious)
 
Wii Party U has was more variety. There's bound to be something that everyone likes.

I actually think it's better than the original Wii Party in many ways, though it's missing Balance Boat which is probably the best game in Wii Party.

Mario Party 10 has limited modes and what's there isn't even great. Bowser Party is okay but Amiibo Party is an abomination of boring.
 
Both are great titles, but Mario Party 10 is more traditional.

Wii Party U has a bunch of different party game modes but none fully match what Mario Party offers.

I say buy both, but start with MP10.

Broritos said:
Everyone is wrong.

1. Get Mario Party 10.
2. Play Bowser Party.
3. Play as Bowser.
4. Crush their souls.
5. Bathe in the angst of your GF & Co.
6. Get dumped.
7. Repeat
Click to expand...

Bowser Party mode is godly when you've got someone that's really into it. A few weeks back we had two guys that were playing the part of "Team Bowser" against everyone else and it got pretty intense.
 
I don't understand people who dislike Wii Party U.
That's been a major hit every time we've played Wii U in a group.

Mario Party 10, on the other hand, was a disappointment. It's playable and there's some fun to be had, but it's quite boring. Wii Party U is way better.


EDIT:
Also, Game & Wario.
Do it.
The Pictionary game is hilarious!
 
Despite all advice I've heard here before I'm buying MP10 but only because someone locally is selling it very cheap and because I think the mini games look good. I bought MP9 like 3 weeks ago but it never arrived and culminated in a lesson to never use GameSeek ever again. If MP10 sucks I can get good value for it anyway and actually get MP9. Also getting Nintendo Land too though as I had to buy something else from Amazon and rather than spend almost a tenner omln delivery for 1 item I might as well pop something extra on it and get something else.
 
Jaded Alyx said:
Well I ended up getting Wii Party U. Very simplistic mini-games, and mildly annoying that despite winning the majority of them, I didn't end up winning the game overall, but my gf had fun and that's all that matters. We'll have some friends over next weekend so we'll see how that goes.

Thanks for the help, everyone.

BTW, these tabletop GamePad games are pretty decent. I wonder how well they'd adapt to mobile?
Click to expand...

Quoting this because everyone in this thread is now already late to the party, haha.
Glad you kinda had fun, OP. In my experience non-gamers struggle with Mario Party, my friends got really frustrated and angry at one co-op boss fight, and gaming night was cut short (not in a cute "Mario Party destroys friendships" way either).

Check out Runbow, it's very frantic and random enough at times to make up for a difference in skill.
 
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