Mario Party 6

Just in time for those long winter nights comes The Main Man himself (i.e., Mario) with fistfuls of all new games that are guaranteed to keep you mashing and mouthing (more later) 'til the break of dawn. Literally.

Features

* Unique day/night feature. As the sun rises and sets, boards transform, characters emerge from hiding and much more

* More than 80 minigames. As the day changes, you'll get all-new games!

* Talk to victory in select minigames via the included Mic controller

Graphically, Mario Party 6 is the prettiest in the franchise yet. Fully rounded character models, smooth animation and cheerful lighting make for nonstop eye candy.

Every three turns on the multiplayer boards, the sun sets or rises. Barriers rise to redirect your path, spaces move or disappear altogether and scruffy characters like Boo appear. On one board, you reverse direction altogether! Minigames change appearance or may not be available at. Some even flip upside-down!

Use the Mic controller for quizzes and to bark orders to your racing character in the Shine Sprint minigame. In other minigames, the player with the Mic will verbally guide his or her character in a competition against three other characters. In Verbal Assault, for example, shout orders to blast away at your three rivals.

Besides three-on-one, two-vs.-two and four-player minigames, Mario Party 6 features Duel (one vs. one), and challenges from Donkey Kong and Bowser. Natch, the King of the Koopas doesn't miss a chance to trash-talk you beforehand. Perhaps most intriguing are Rare games. To get one of these, you have to land by exact count on the very last space on one of the three Solo Mode boards.

Some of the many minigames:

* Snow Brawl It's you and your three homies (monkeys by day, Shy Guys by night) vs. three opponents in a frenetic snowball fight

* Ball Dozers You're handed a mallet and set on a giant pachinko machine, where the ball is about three times as tall as you. Smash the barriers to open a clear path to the bottom before your rivals can do the same.

* Dunk Bros. Two-on-two street ball. Who knew Yoshi had such a killer jump shot?

* Dark 'n Crispy Bowser and his flame breath (no wonder Peach can't stand him) lurk in the shadows. Avoid both at all costs. If you fall off the edge, you'll lose this minigame and an item from your inventory.

* O-Zone A frenetic twist on Concentration. Butt-stomp three 'O' panels to win.

* Granite Getaway Run like Indiana Jones before a giant boulder rumbling your way.

* Clean Team In this surprisingly puzzle-like two-on-two minigame, one character sprays foam on the windows of an apartment building, while the other wipes. The trick is to avoid the pails and stay out of each other's way.

* Mole-It! During the day, your team hops to bash regular and gold moles overhead. At night, you bash moles underfoot. Watch out or a Piranha Plant will stun you!

The deep Solo Mode is a great way to unlock new minigames. You can hone your skills in oddball Mini-game Mode challenges like Treetop Bingo, Decathlon Park and Endurance Alley. If you do well on a multiplayer or solo board, you'll earn Stars. Spend these in the Star Bank to buy 20 pages to a pop-up Magic Book, secrets, sound checks, taunts, a hidden multiplayer board and much more. Bottom Line

Polished graphics, state-of-the-art sound and the usual hijinks of Mario and friends (and troublemakers like Boo) will convert even certified wallflowers into 24-hour party people. Mark the date: December 6 is the time to get funky with The Man.

Last updated on August 14, 2015