Boo

Thwomps are not all you will have to contend with in this second fortress, as you soon discover the tower to be haunted. Here and there around every corner, you might spot a bright white ghost lurking. If you are looking right at it, the ghost will have its face covered, unable to move due to its crippling shyness. The moment you turn your back, however, these spooky fiends will close in for the kill.

These are the Boos, or Boo Diddlies as they were once known. They are ghosts who prefer to attack their enemies when their backs are turned, hiding away once seen. They have since seen heavy prominence across the entire series, starring in major playable roles in numerous sports and party titles, and even getting a heavy focus in their own haunted spinoff series, each time bringing an air of horror and fright to the proceedings.

In game, they will be light and floaty, with high defensive capabilities and low offense. Their moves will pull from all over their appearances in the Mario series, but mostly with a high focus on their own personal self-preservation, making themselves intangible to harm or attacking from a distance.

Likelihood rating: Good possibility

Character Sheet: Team Captains

TEAM CAPTAINS

Today, let's go over the last batch of characters that video games are going to give us, at any rate. Obviously there will be many more offered up by the movies, television series, manga, comics, and other media, but that's it for the games. This time, we have five, appearing across the Mario, Yoshi, and Mario RPG rosters. They are:

1. Cat Mario

2. Mr. Blizzard

3. Team Captains

4. Best Fitness Friends

5. Poochy

It occurs to me that I actually forgot to do the Character Review for all the characters already on the roster. So . . . as far as I can recall at the moment, the only big changes would be Robirdo being added as Birdo's final smash, and the fire move and special dashes from Mario Golf: Super Rush being added to our Golf reps' movesets. Honestly, the fire move would work as a Standard B if we just wanted to treat the normal golf ball hit as an A move or something, and the special dash might be an option for Side B.

Anyway, on to today's character! The Team Captains are the main characters of the Bowser's Minions expansion of Superstar Saga and appear as potential party members in Bowser Jr.'s Journey as well. They are comprised of a Goomba, Shy Guy, Boo, and Koopa, each with a flag on their head, and would be stylized in the Mario & Luigi style in order to visually differentiate them from the regular playable member of their race. Likewise, the four would move in one solid group, acting as the squad rather than having a full squad of troops like in the game.

Now, the Bowser's Minions gameplay relies on using three different types of fighter well. You have the melee fighters that attack up close, the aerial fighters that fight from the air, and the long-range fighters that throw projectiles. Within this character, Koopa will be the primary melee fighter, Boo will be the aerial, Shy Guy will cover long range, and Goomba will be in charge of all Captain maneuvers. Speaking of Captain maneuvers, the captain can deny to prevent an enemies attack, rally his troops by cheering them on, summon a block for a bonus, play dead for a while, call down lightning, parry an attack, throw a Bob-Omb, and summon a Thwomp to slam down.

Here's the moveset I came up with:

Standard B: Lightning

So I think it might be fun to treat this character in a way similar to Min Min. However, rather than A and B being assigned to specific arms, the different directional inputs will be assigned to the four members of the squad. All upward inputs will be assigned to the Boo, and downward inputs will be assigned to the Koopa, all side inputs belong to the Shy Guy, and all non-directional inputs are the Goomba's. As such this move is the Goomba's and he will use his lightning attack.

Side B: Spear Guy

This move belongs to the Shy Guy. He will pull out a spear like he uses in one of his base attacks and throw it as a projectile.

Up B: Team Lift

This move belongs to the Boo. He will grab his three companions and float upwards as a recovery move.

Down B: Shell Strike

This move, of course, belongs to the Koopa. He will tuck into his shell and spin forward at high speed just as he does in his base move.

Final Smash: Squad Rush

The Goomba captain will do a rallying call, and he and the three other captains will charge forward, followed by a horde of minions, made up of all the types of minions that can be recruited in the original game.

Entrance: The Goomba will appear first, and send out a rallying call, with the other three rushing to his side.

Taunts: Much like with all of their other moves, the directional inputs are tied to a specific member. Up, the Boo will do his rallying cry; side, the Shy Guy will do his; and down, the Koopa will do his. A fun secret taunt could have Goomba go into one of his big motivational speeches.

Thanks for reading! Next up, we cover the villains of Bowser Jr.'s Journey, the Best Fitness Friends!

Mario Golf: Super Rush

MARIO GOLF: SUPER RUSH

You just couldn't do, could you, Nintendo? You just couldn't let me go without throwing me one last left-field curve ball? No, you just had to give your brand new golf game a story mode with basically a giant Mr. Blizzard as the final boss. Do you think this is funny, Nintendo? (Insert Nintendo saying "Yes" here).

Either way, Mario Golf: Super Rush is a brand new game in the Mario Golf series after seven years since World Tour. The game features a number of ease-of-life changes to the game, like lines showing you where the ball ended up, and other changes that make it a bit more exciting. For instance, speed golf has been added, a mode that lets you run to your ball, racing against your opponents, rather than just taking you directly to the ball. We also have battle golf, taking place in a big arena and everyone playing a big free-for-all.

At the moment, our roster includes Mario and Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Rosalina, and Pauline, Wario and Waluigi, Yoshi, Toad, Donkey Kong, Bowser and Bowser Jr., Boo, King Bob-Omb, and Chargin' Chuck in his playable debut (just want to take the meaningless brownie points of saying "I did it first, na na na na na na!"). Each have special shots and special dashes to help them in speed golf. Mario mostly uses his super star, Luigi uses the ice flower, Peach a gymnastics ribbon and Daisy a twirling baton, Wario uses lightning mostly, Waluigi is flamboyant as usual, Yoshi uses eggs, Toad uses the giant mushroom, Donkey Kong uses punches and rolls, Rosalina mostly uses her Lumas, Pauline sings "Jump Up, Superstar!", Bowser mostly uses fire, Junior uses his Klown Kar and Bullet Bills, Boo mostly uses strings of other Boos, King Bob-Omb uses a cannon and other Bob-Ombs, and Chargin' Chuck just straight up yeets the golf ball like a football (I think he's a little confused).

We also have Miis, who star in the story mode taking after the old RPG story modes where you are a young rookie golfer working their way up through the ranks. About halfway through though, the plot veers off into a story about an evil Snow King taking over Bowser's kingdom and freezing the entire area, and your character being guided to defeat him by a disembodied voice, who grants the character fire and lightning powers (which I think can be used to garnish Plum and Kid's movesets, so there's that). Across the game, you fight three bosses, an Electric Statue that fights you with lightning attacks, the Sacred Flamebeast that fights you with fireballs, and the Snow King, who, while being guarded by Mr. Blizzards all over his course, also throws giant versions of their snowballs at you, uses Freezies, freezes whole areas, and sends off shockwaves. That, along with Mr. Blizzard's own moves like throwing snowballs, bouncing around, whipping up small flurries sometimes, and even Dr. Freezegoods skiing in the Yoshi games . . . yeah, the moveset's there. Nintendo just had to do it. I . . . I . . . I think I'm a little broken right now. I'm going to need a minute.

Anyhoo, as for our stages, we have a Rookie Course to learn the ropes; Bonny Greens, a standard grassland stage; Balmy Dunes, a desert level; Wildweather Woods, a forested area with lots of weather effects; Ridgerock Lake, a rough rocky area with some tornadoes; Bowser Highlands, a combo snow-and-lava world; and the Super Golf Stadium for the battle golf. Apparently a New Donk City-based stage will appear in later DLC.

And that's it for the currently existing games! Only took two years. Here's what we've got so far:

Characters:

Mario: handstand, jump, crouch, spin, spin on bar, hammer, spring, key, pick up and throw, giant, float, fly

Cat Mario: glide, swipe, climb, evil cats, throw blocks, butt bash, Giga Cat Mode

Luigi: invisible

Wario: metal, Wario Man

Yoshi: fire breath, tongue

Donkey Kong: punch, barrel, stomp, jack, grow giant, throw enemies

Donkey Kong Jr.: hop, throw switches

Pauline

Birdo: Robirdo

Bowser Jr.: paintbrush, Klown Kar, hammer

All characters appearing in SMB2, SMW, SMW2, and SMB3

All characters appearing in the DKC series

All characters appearing in SM64

Diddy Kong

Dixie Kong

Tiny Kong

Wizpig

Taj

Timber and the other racers

Team Captains: deny, rally, bonus block, play dead, lightning, parry, bob-omb, thwomp, face off, backup, sneak attack, shell strike, aerial, melee, long range

Best Fitness Friends: rubber bands, malatone formula, doppelganger, fire punch, barrel, spin, divebomb, screech, fire, lightning, combine, laser beam, charge, cyclone, mystery box

Poochy: run, bash through objects, spin, Poochy pups, sliding, crouching, biting a hand, eating cake, catching a ball, carrying things, catching a frisbee, pulling on a rubber band, licking things, pushing a button with his tail, rolling.

Kat & Ana

Dribble & Spitz

I8-Volt

Nabbit

Peachette

Funky Kong: surfboard

King Boo

Dry Bones

Inklings

Chargin' Chuck

King Bob-Omb

Pauline

Mr. Blizzard: snowballs, icy breeze, whirlwind, Freezie, freeze everything, shockwave, giant snowball, bounce

Golfer: fire blast, lightning, dash

Bosses:

King Bob-Omb

Goomboss

King Boo

Chief Chilly

Electric Statue

Sacred Flamebeast

Snow King

Stages:

Construction Site

Big City

Forest

Ship

Jungle

Desert

Airplane

Iceberg

Rocky-Valley

All stages appearing in SMB2, SMW, SMW2, and SMB3

All stages appearing in DKC series

Palm Beach

Poison Swamp

Secret Factory

Ice Area

All locations in Diddy Kong Racing

Minions Battlefield

Dribble & Spitz Rally

Kat & Ana's Sky Patrol

Jet 18Volt

World-9 Cloud

Battle Stadium

Sweet Sweet Kingdom

Dragon Palace

Lunar Colony

Wuhu Town

Luigi's Mansion

Battle Course 1

Urchin Underpass

Lake Lapcat

Mount Magmeow

Rookie Course

Bonny Greens

Balmy Dunes

Wildweather Woods

Ridgerock Lake

Bowser Highlands

Super Golf Stadium

New Donk City

Thanks for reading! Now, the brand new four (excuse me) five characters to be added, starting with Cat Mario!

Mario Party: Island Tour

MARIO PARTY: ISLAND TOUR

So, for some reason, the Mario Party series decided to pump out three Mario Party games for the 3DS in a short span of time. (I guess that explains why console production suddenly slowed way down about this time). Island Tour was one of them. The game involves the characters visiting a series of floating islands and Bowser getting jealous of their good time. The roster this time is pretty much the same as DS's roster, with Boo and Bowser Jr. added in. Ah, that's nice and simple.

Spaces are more varied and item-like, similar to a console game around this period. Blue, red, event, warp, lucky, unlucky, switch-places, star, item, duel, and Bowser spaces should all be familiar, alongside back spaces that send you back a few places, Banzai Bill spaces that, well, shoot off one, booster spaces that give you a boost, dash spaces, dead end spaces that force you to stop, Kamek spaces that will cause said magician to switch everyone around, and Piranha Plant spaces that summon a Piranha that will grab you and throw you backwards. Items are pretty much just dice, except the first board which gives you shells, mushrooms, stars, lightning and stuff which mostly acts the way you expect.

We have seven boards this time around: Perilous Palace Path, a pretty standard grassland area; Banzai Bill's Mad Mountain, a mountainous region; Star-Crossed Skyway, a sky level; Rocket Road, a Mario Galaxy-themed level; Kamek's Carpet Ride, an Arabian Nights-esque level; Shy Guy's Shuffle City, a casino area; and Bowser's Peculiar Peak, a Bowser's Castle world.

Across the minigames, we have our characters: climbing rope, avoiding Mattermouths, running, coloring, jumping, shooting from cannons, leading Goombas, driving tanks, playing a xylophone, shooting paint, spinning a bubble, gliding, piloting submarines, watering plants, grabbing chickens, decorating a cake, sliding on ice, playing pachinko, hovering, hopping through space, bouncing, corralling Pokeys, catching bunnies, jumproping with fire, skateboarding, kayaking, catching Goombas, fishing, golfing, avoiding meteors, climbing ladders, avoiding Amps, racing crickets, and rolling on a ball among others.

Here's what we've got so far:

Characters:

Mario: fishing, hammer, running, stopping a bomb

Luigi

Princess Peach

Yoshi: eat

Daisy: mechanical bull

Waluigi: hammers, bombs

Wario: car

Toad

Boo

Bowser Jr.

Tumble

Toadette

Professor E. Gadd

Wiggler

Diddy Kong

Donkey Kong

Kamek

Bowser

Koopa Kid

Stages:

Shroom City

Wiggler's Garden

Toadette's Music Room

DK's Stone Statue

Kamek's Library

Bowser's Pinball Machine

Party Islands

Perilous Palace Path

Banzai Bill's Mad Mountain

Star-Crossed Skyway

Rocket Road

Kamek's Carpet Ride

Shy Guy's Shuffle City

Bowser's Peculiar Peak

Thanks for reading! Next up, let's cover Mario Party: Island Tour!

Mario Party 8

MARIO PARTY 8

Here's where we start to mix things up a bit. Mario Party 8's roster all returns, exactly as they stood in the previous game, but this time with Hammer Bro and Blooper added in. The plot of the game is built around a special Star Carnival coming to town, hosted by the magical imp MC Ballyhoo and his talking hat Big Top. Bowser ends up stealing the Star Rod that acts as the final reward, and you then have to fight him for it. You know, pretty standard.

The spaces in this game are now big pavement blocks of various color instead of the little buttons from before, but they still serve the same functions, with blue, red, event, duel, challenge, Bowser, and DK spaces, alongside the new Lucky space that takes you to a special Lucky Area where every space is a blue space and a free star. Items and capsules this time are traded out with special magic candies. Red candies affect the dice block, including adding a second and third block and slowing the roll. Green candies transform the player for a single action, allowing them to spring to new areas, lets you zap opponents and make them lose coins, and turn you into a vampire to take others' coins. Yellow candies transform the player for a full turn, turning them into an 8-bit version, a tornado that blows opponents back to start, a trio of tiny clones, and a ball. Blue candies are more offense-oriented, turning them into a stone block to run through opponents, a Bullet Bill, Bowser, and a fiery version that automatically gets into duels. I think we can feel comfortable in saying what a moveset for Ballyhoo would pull from.

Our stages include: DK's Treetop Temple, a Donkey Kong-themed stage; Goomba's Booty Boardwalk, a beach stage; King Boo's Haunted Hideaway, a haunted house level; Shy Guy's Perplex Express, set on a train; Koopa's Tycoon Town, very Monopoly-inspired; and Bowser's Warped Orbit, set on a space station orbiting a sun. Outside of that, we have the carnival and the various tents within.

We have 73 minigames here this time, featuring our characters doing: graffiti, playing baseball, punching a statue, water skiing, raising a flag, cleaning a Chomp, driving karts, steering a leaf, platforming, shaking soda, setting a clock, driving a scooter, protecting an Ukiki, snowboarding, walking a tightrope, catching coins, dropping bombs, flying a plane, shooting snow, jumping rope, playing football, playing bumper cars, rowing, shooting paint, decorating a cake, playing King on the Mountain, shooting Boos, stealing plants, shooting cards, flying a flying saucer, getting a boat's attention, swinging a lasso, driving a minecart, slaloming in a space station, shooting lava, building things, balancing on a ball, blowing up King Bob-Omb, running around a Mr. I, shooting basketballs, snipping a rope to not get flung by a catapult (my favorite), trying to stay on an iceberg, stamping, and fighting Bowser.

That's about it! Here's what we've got so far:

Characters:

Gimmick Rep: play music, fight in a giant bubble, run on a conveyor belt, run up a tower, collect coins, snowboard, make a picture, look for ghosts, collect honey, shoot targets, smack Pokeys with a hammer, zap opponents, drive karts, pop a balloon, stop a clock, throw darts, do math, avoid bombs, spray water, shoot balloons, avoid a spinner, drive tanks, use a flashlight, use a slot machine, use a pickaxe, bounce on a pogo stick, run on a wheel, box with a giant robot, avoid a shark, avoid Bullet Bills, fly a bug, ground pound, work through a maze, play cards, pull crops, hop around, fly, roll a ball, shoot Piranha Plants, match puzzle pieces, shoot Piders, fly helicopters, avoid getting smacked by Monty Mole, get through a maze of pipes, drive a boat, avoid Cheep Cheeps, squash Goombas, run from Ukikis, jump across platforms, make smoothies, row a kayak, jump rope, throw hammers, ride rocking horses, fix pipes, play hot potato with a bomb, jump over barrels, climb vines, slide down a slide, collect bananas, roll on barrels, avoid Mechakoopas, open treasure chests, climb a wall, play air hockey, fight Bowser, capsule, spacesgraffiti, playing baseball, punching a statue, water skiing, raising a flag, cleaning a Chomp, driving karts, steering a leaf, platforming, shaking soda, setting a clock, driving a scooter, protecting an Ukiki, snowboarding, walking a tightrope, catching coins, dropping bombs, flying a plane, shooting snow, jumping rope, playing football, playing bumper cars, rowing, shooting paint, decorating a cake, playing King on the Mountain, shooting Boos, stealing plants, shooting cards, flying a flying saucer, getting a boat's attention, swinging a lasso, driving a minecart, slaloming in a space station, shooting lava, building things, balancing on a ball, blowing up King Bob-Omb, running around a Mr. I, shooting basketballs, snipping a rope to not get flung by a catapult (my favorite), trying to stay on an iceberg, stamping, and fighting Bowser.

MC Ballyhoo and Big Top: second block, third block, slowing the roll, spring, zap opponents, turn into a vampire, 8-bit version, tornado, trio of tiny clones, ball, stone block, Bullet Bill, Bowser, fiery dueler.

Mario: fireball

Luigi: fireball

Peach: flower

Daisy: flower

Wario: vacuum

Waluigi: vacuum

Yoshi: egg

Birdo: egg

Toad: mushrooms

Toadette: mushrooms

Boo: magic wand

Dry Bones: magic wand

Hammer Bro

Blooper

Donkey Kong

Koopa Kid

Bowser

Stages:

MSS Sea Star

Grand Canal

Pagoda Peak

Pyramid Park

Neon Heights

Windmillville

Bowser's Enchanted Inferno

DK's Treetop Temple

Goomba's Booty Boardwalk

King Boo's Haunted Hideaway

Shy Guy's Perplex Express

Koopa's Tycoon Town

Bowser's Warped Orbit

Items:

Capsules

Candies

Thanks for reading! Next up, Mario Party 9, and, as I understand it, everyone's least favorite mechanic introduced to the franchise!

Mario Party 7

MARIO PARTY 7

Alright, Mario Party 7, let's do this! Mario Party 7 follows the previous trend in the series by having every odd-numbered game shake up the roster a bit. This time around, our original five Mario, Luigi, Peach, Yoshi, and Wario all return, as well as Daisy and Waluigi from numbers 3 and 4, and Toad, Boo, and Toadette from 5 on 6. Koopa Kid sadly does not return, shifting over to a board space like Donkey Kong before him. I'm also fairly certain this is the last time we will ever see the character. (Barring any handhelds that came prior. I mean real world chronologically, not "this blog" chronologically). Birdo and Dry Bones are added in as brand-new characters, giving everyone in the game a go-to partner. The game takes place on a cruise ship hosted by Toadsworth, who takes you to various islands to partake in the games.

Our red, blue, event, duel, Donkey Kong, Bowser, and character spaces all return, alongside a Mic space for mic minigames and a Koopa Kid space where Koopa Kid will challenge you to a game. The Orbs return as items, with Mushrooms, Super Mushrooms, Slow Shrooms, Metal Shrooms, Flutter, cannons, Lakitu, bones, Hammer Bros, Piranha Plants, Kamek, Toadies, Mr. Blizzard, Spinies, Amps, Tweesters, Thwomps, Warp Pipes, and Bob-Ombs all returning, alongside Spear Guys who take money, Bandits who steal from a windmill (?), and Pink Boos who steal stars. There are also character-specific orbs for each of the partner pairs. Mario and Luigi throw fireballs, Peach and Daisy will use a flower to avoid traps, Yoshi and Birdo will turn obstacles in their path into eggs, Wario and Waluigi will use a vacuum to suck up coins from other players, Boo and Dry Bones will use a magic wand to turn invisible, and Toad and Toadette will use three mushrooms. A Koopa Kid orb will cause more Koopa Kid spaces to appear.

Our stages this time, besides the MSS Sea Star you'd be traveling around on, include: Grand Canal, an oceanside level; Pagoda Peak, a mountainous, stereotypically Chinese-themed stage; Pyramid Park, a desert level; Neon Heights, a futuristic sci-fi stage; Windmillville, a picturesque Yoshi's Island type of stage; and Bowser's Enchanted Inferno. You get that one.

Across Mario Party 7's 88 minigames, we see our heroes: play music, fight in a giant bubble, run on a conveyor belt, run up a tower, collect coins, snowboard, make a picture, look for ghosts, collect honey, shoot targets, smack Pokeys with a hammer, zap opponents, drive karts, pop a balloon, stop a clock, throw darts, do math, avoid bombs, spray water, shoot balloons, avoid a spinner, drive tanks, use a flashlight, use a slot machine, use a pickaxe, bounce on a pogo stick, run on a wheel, box with a giant robot, avoid a shark, avoid Bullet Bills, fly a bug, ground pound, work through a maze, play cards, pull crops, hop around, fly, roll a ball, shoot Piranha Plants, match puzzle pieces, shoot Piders, fly helicopters, avoid getting smacked by Monty Mole, get through a maze of pipes, drive a boat, avoid Cheep Cheeps, squash Goombas, run from Ukikis, jump across platforms, make smoothies, row a kayak, jump rope, throw hammers, ride rocking horses, fix pipes, play hot potato with a bomb, jump over barrels, climb vines, slide down a slide, collect bananas, roll on barrels, avoid Mechakoopas, open treasure chests, climb a wall, play air hockey, and fight Bowser.

That should be about it! Here's all we've got so far:

Characters:

Gimmick Rep: play music, fight in a giant bubble, run on a conveyor belt, run up a tower, collect coins, snowboard, make a picture, look for ghosts, collect honey, shoot targets, smack Pokeys with a hammer, zap opponents, drive karts, pop a balloon, stop a clock, throw darts, do math, avoid bombs, spray water, shoot balloons, avoid a spinner, drive tanks, use a flashlight, use a slot machine, use a pickaxe, bounce on a pogo stick, run on a wheel, box with a giant robot, avoid a shark, avoid Bullet Bills, fly a bug, ground pound, work through a maze, play cards, pull crops, hop around, fly, roll a ball, shoot Piranha Plants, match puzzle pieces, shoot Piders, fly helicopters, avoid getting smacked by Monty Mole, get through a maze of pipes, drive a boat, avoid Cheep Cheeps, squash Goombas, run from Ukikis, jump across platforms, make smoothies, row a kayak, jump rope, throw hammers, ride rocking horses, fix pipes, play hot potato with a bomb, jump over barrels, climb vines, slide down a slide, collect bananas, roll on barrels, avoid Mechakoopas, open treasure chests, climb a wall, play air hockey, fight Bowser, capsule, spaces

Mario: fireball

Luigi: fireball

Peach: flower

Daisy: flower

Wario: vacuum

Waluigi: vacuum

Yoshi: egg

Birdo: egg

Toad: mushrooms

Toadette: mushrooms

Boo: magic wand

Dry Bones: magic wand

Donkey Kong

Koopa Kid

Bowser

Stages:

MSS Sea Star

Grand Canal

Pagoda Peak

Pyramid Park

Neon Heights

Windmillville

Bowser's Enchanted Inferno

Items:

Capsules

Thanks for reading! Next up, Mario Party 8!

Mario Party 6

MARIO PARTY 6

Alright, it's time for Mario Party 6, the last game before we take a break to gather our thoughts and tackle the second half of the main console games. The game stars our ten playable characters from before, but with Toadette as a secret characters. Hmm, is anyone else noticing a pattern here? We go two games with the same roster, then we get a couple added, then that stays for two games, rinse and repeat. Welp, I hope we at least stay consistent to that if that's the pattern we've established.

The game's plot involves Brighton and Twila, two divine beings representing the sun and moon respectively, getting into a, well, joystick-measuring contest, resulting in life becoming very difficult for everyone else. So, Mario and his friends decide to help out by competing in games to prove which one is better once and for all.

The game boards have both day and night modes, the stars won during each adding to Brighton or Twila's scores respectively. We have blue, red, chance, duel, Donkey Kong, Bowser, orb, and star spaces, alongside miracle spaces, acting like the miracle capsules in the last game, and character spaces. Capsules, or rather orbs this time, return, with their contents including Mushrooms, Super Mushrooms, Cursed Mushrooms, Bullet Bills, Warp Pipes, Wiggler (or rather Flutter now), Lava Bubbles, Tweesters, Bob-Ombs, Paratroopas, Spinies, Goombas, Piranha Plants, Klepto, Toadies, Kamek, Mr. Blizzard, Chain Chomp's bone, and the Gaddlight all returning. New ones include the Sluggish Mushroom, which will slow the dice roll; Metal Mushroom, which will turn opponents into metal; and Thwomps, which will stomp on an opponent.

We have a number of stages here, both for party mode, and some for solo mode if you're playing by yourself. The party boards include: Towering Treetop set on a tree; E. Gadd's Garage, which is awesome; Faire Square, a carnival board; Snowflake Lake, a snow level; Castaway Bay, a pirate-themed world; and Clockwork Castle, which I'm pretty sure is basically Brighton and Twila's home. The solo boards include: Thirsty Gulch, a desert stage; Astro Avenue, a space board; and Infernal Tower, because Bowser had to get a castle in there somewhere.

Our eighty-two minigames this time see our characters butt bashing, playing cards, finding differences, springing upward, running from a rock, running a race, catching letters, snowboarding, avoiding Whomps, retrieving sunken treasure, mowing grass, shooting cannons, catching notes, platforming, avoiding a giant Blooper, trapping Goombas, punching Pokeys, collecting money, golfing, riding a Chain Chomp, going down a water slide, throwing fruit, swimming, having a snowball fight, rolling a ball, avoiding electricity, popping a balloon, running on a conveyor belt, shaking a box around, blasting a light beam, dusting, launching fireballs, grabbing fruit, pulling a giant carrot, playing a slot machine, flying in a gondola, blowing a fan, building a robot, shooting targets, breaking rocks, cleaning, avoiding a bar, shooting a gun, driving a bug, stamping, rowing down a river, uncovering cakes, lighting torches, running on cogs, sumo wrestling, swinging on ropes, flying through space, using a jetpack, launching a rocket, shooting asteroids, herding Boos, navigating mist, collecting bananas, avoiding barrels, avoiding rocks, getting dizzy, avoiding fire, pulling a rope, playing Tetris, running a maze, and playing basketball.

Alright, let's see what we've got!

Characters: 

Gimmick Rep (Koopa Kid/Tumble/Brighton and Twila?): Happening Space, Chance Space, Mushroom Space, star space, plus block, minus block, speed block, slow block, warp block,  event block, parrot, No Koopa or No Boo sign, gameballs, digging, deep-sea diving, bomb, musical chairs, carving, messing with Bowser's face, inflating a balloon, hitting blocks, skateboarding, collecting coins, platforming, grab bag, bumper balls, tipping, instruments, Simon Says, fishing, key, lightbulb, jump rope, slot cars, hammers, bowling, tightrope, Crane Game, Tug of War, rowing, bobsledding, handcar, Slot Machine, biking, ground pound, limbo, Bank space, Mushrooms, Skeleton Keys, Plunder Chests, Dueling Gloves, Golden Mushrooms, Magic Lamp, Boo Bells, Bowser Suit, Bowser Bomb, pole-climbing, Dizzy Dancing, fruit-catching, windup Fly Guys, shell tank, sneaking, box-hitting, cake assembly, destroy a statue, sawing logs, magnet, Sky Pilots, Speed Hockey, Torpedoes, archery, Bob-omb cannon, fish relay, lightbulbs, Look Away, log-roll, blow up balloon, Bumper Balloon Cars, giant rake, Cellular Shopper,  Boo Repellent, Reverse Mushroom, Bowser Phone, Poison Mushroom, Lucky Lamp, Item Bag, Wacky Watch, Barter Box, Koopa Kard, Lucky Charm, golfing, ice-skating, parasol, rocking horses, snowball, drumming, become gigantic, cannon, hide, spotlights, causing waves, eat pizza, drawing, hydrant, chop wood, rocket, throwing Bowser, chasing chicken, popguns, swinging on vines, batting game, swinging, fortune space, mushroom space, warp space, Warp Pipe, MiniMegaHammer, Chomp Call, Boo's Crystal Ball, Gaddlight, Sparky Sticker, pull against a slime, ski, play dominoes, float with a balloon, ice skate, grabber, race in karts, giant tree stompers, soccer, run a maze, parasail, deliver food, catch butterflies, darts, puzzle, capsules, catch ice cream, chase Ukikis, guide a Chomp, avoid penguins, speedboat, will a plant back to life, triple jump, look under buckets, roll on a ball, drive mechs, pilot flying saucers, quilt, sled, fight with cards, defuse a bomb, open a can, clean a bus, submarine, pull a rope, blow a Tweester, miracle space, character space, springing upward, running from a rock, catching letters, snowboarding, mowing grass, trapping Goombas, punching Pokeys, riding a Chain Chomp, going down a water slide, shaking a box around, blasting a light beam, dusting, pulling a giant carrot, gondola, blowing a fan, building a robot, stamping, sumo wrestling, using a jetpack, launching a rocket, shooting asteroids, herding Boos, navigating mist.

Mario

Luigi

Princess Peach

Yoshi

Donkey Kong

Wario

Daisy

Waluigi

Toad

Boo: steal coins

Koopa Kid

Toadette

Bowser

Koopa Troopa: give coins

Thwomp

Whomp

Bob-Omb

Goomba

Shy Guy

Snifit

Piranha Plant

Chain Chomp

Mr. Blizzard

Game Guy

Millenium Star

Star Spirits

Stages:

DK's Jungle Adventure

Peach's Birthday Cake

Yoshi's Tropical Island

Wario's Battle Canyon

Luigi's Engine Room

Mario's Rainbow Castle

Bowser's Magma Mountain

Eternal Star

Pirate Land

Western Land

Space Land

Mystery Land

Horror Land

Bowser Land

Chilly Waters

Deep Bloober Sea

Spiny Desert

Woody Woods

Creepy Cavern

Waluigi's Island

Gate Guy

Arrowhead

Pipesqueak

Blowhard

Mr. Mover

Backtrack

Toad's Midway Madness

Koopa's Seaside Soiree

Goomba's Greedy Gala

Boo's Haunted Bash

Shy Guy's Jungle Jam

Bowser's Gnarly Party

Toy Dream

Rainbow Dream

Pirate Dream

Undersea Dream

Future Dream

Sweet Dream

Bowser Nightmare

Various Mini-Games

Items:

All listed above

Thanks for reading! Next up, let's go over our characters really quick and then figure out what exactly to do with all these potential reps (and another one I know is coming)!

Mario Party 5

MARIO PARTY 5

Alright, Mario Party, let's go! Round Five! Mario and his friends are invited to visit a special Dream Depot by the . . . Star Spirits? Like from Paper Mario? A Mario RPG character in a non-RPG Mario game? Is . . . is that allowed? And Miyamoto's head didn't explode? What is this witchcraft?

Okay, maybe that was a little mean. All jokes aside, our full playable cast from before returns, except for Donkey Kong, who got up-, um, down-, err, sideways-graded to a special space space on the board. Instead, Toad, Boo, and Koopa Kid are added to the roster, making a total of ten. Bowser and a couple of duplicate Koopa Kids act as troublemakers throughout, with Bowser getting a final battle where he breathes fire, throws balls of magic, grows into a giant, and pounds the ground. Of course, the star spirits act as your hosts.

Blue, Red, Happening, Bowser, and Star spaces all return, alongside the brand-new DK space, where Donkey Kong will appear and either give you coins, play a special DK minigame with you, or play dice roulette. Rather than regular items like the previous games, this game featured capsules containing various items and characters that would act as these items. Contents of the capsules included: Mushrooms, Super Mushrooms, and Cursed Mushrooms; Warp Pipes; Klepto, who will pick up opponents and drop them somewhere else; Lava Bubbles, that will chase an opponent ten spaces; Wigglers, that will take the player right to the star space; Hammer Bros that will hit opponents with hammers; a Coin Block; Spinies that will steal coins; Paratroopas that will make a character drop coins; a Bullet Bill that will let the player take coins from an opponent they pass; Goombas that will switch players' coins; Piranha Plants that will take half the player's coins; a Bob-Omb that will explode after being passed three times; the Koopa Bank capsule; Kamek who will shuffle all characters' capsules around; Mr. Blizzard, who will take all the player's capsules; a Magikoopa (or Toadie, I don't know why it's called that) that will swap two players' capsules; Ukiki, who will steal an opponent's capsules; Lakitu who can steal a single capsule; a Tweester that will move a star space; a Duel minigame starter; a Chain Chomp that basically takes over Boo's old role; a Bone that is basically Boo repellent; a Bowser space creator; a Chance Time space basically; and a Miracle Capsule that will take all of the player in first place's stars and give them to the player in last.

Our boards this time include: Toy Dream, basically a toy box/amusement park-style stage; Rainbow Dream, a sky stage; Pirate Dream, a pirate-themed stage; Undersea Dream, an underwater stage; Future Dream, a space-themed stage; Sweet Dream, a candy-themed stage; and Bowser Nightmare. I think you can guess the last one. Is it ever really anything different?

Alright, on to the minigames. The new way went really well last time, so I'm going to do that again. Over the course of these minigames, the characters: catch ice cream, ground pound, chase Ukikis, guide a Chomp, avoid penguins, platform on leaves, use a flashlight, watch Piranhas sing, navigate a maze, bat a baseball, speedboat, skate, will a plant back to life, triple jump, punch Goombas, catch coins, water flowers, throw bombs, fish, look under buckets, slide around, roll on a ball, roll dice, drive mechs, avoid fire, pilot flying saucers, balance on a tightrope, quilt, sled down a hill, do math, fight with cards, match a clock's hands, defuse a bomb, open a can, jump rope, catch berries, clean a bus, toss a ball, pilot a submarine, smack a mallet, play pinball, shoot Bullet Bills, play tug-o-war with Dorries, play a slot machine, avoid Amps, inflate a balloon, duel with pistols, mash buttons, pull a rope, play hot potato, shoot each other's balloons, blow a Tweester, fly planes, punch barrels, climb vines, collect bananas, and play volleyball and hockey.

That's about it! Here's what we've got so far:

Characters: 

Gimmick Rep (Koopa Kid/Tumble?): Happening Space, Chance Space, Mushroom Space, star space, plus block, minus block, speed block, slow block, warp block,  event block, parrot, No Koopa or No Boo sign, gameballs, digging, deep-sea diving, bomb, musical chairs, carving, messing with Bowser's face, inflating a balloon, hitting blocks, skateboarding, collecting coins, platforming, grab bag, bumper balls, tipping, instruments, Simon Says, fishing, key, lightbulb, jump rope, slot cars, hammers, bowling, tightrope, Crane Game, Tug of War, rowing, bobsledding, handcar, Slot Machine, biking, ground pound, limbo, Bank space, Mushrooms, Skeleton Keys, Plunder Chests, Dueling Gloves, Golden Mushrooms, Magic Lamp, Boo Bells, Bowser Suit, Bowser Bomb, pole-climbing, Dizzy Dancing, fruit-catching, windup Fly Guys, shell tank, sneaking, box-hitting, cake assembly, destroy a statue, sawing logs, magnet, Sky Pilots, Speed Hockey, Torpedoes, archery, Bob-omb cannon, fish relay, lightbulbs, Look Away, log-roll, blow up balloon, Bumper Balloon Cars, giant rake, Cellular Shopper,  Boo Repellent, Reverse Mushroom, Bowser Phone, Poison Mushroom, Lucky Lamp, Item Bag, Wacky Watch, Barter Box, Koopa Kard, Lucky Charm, golfing, ice-skating, parasol, rocking horses, snowball, drumming, become gigantic, cannon, hide, spotlights, causing waves, eat pizza, drawing, hydrant, chop wood, rocket, throwing Bowser, chasing chicken, popguns, swinging on vines, batting game, swinging, fortune space, mushroom space, warp space, Warp Pipe, MiniMegaHammer, Chomp Call, Boo's Crystal Ball, Gaddlight, Sparky Sticker, pull against a slime, ski, play dominoes, float with a balloon, ice skate, grabber, race in karts, giant tree stompers, soccer, run a maze, parasail, deliver food, catch butterflies, darts, puzzle, capsules, catch ice cream, chase Ukikis, guide a Chomp, avoid penguins, speedboat, will a plant back to life, triple jump, look under buckets, roll on a ball, drive mechs, pilot flying saucers, quilt, sled, fight with cards, defuse a bomb, open a can, clean a bus, submarine, pull a rope, blow a Tweester.

Mario

Luigi

Princess Peach

Yoshi

Donkey Kong

Wario

Daisy

Waluigi

Toad

Boo: steal coins

Koopa Kid

Bowser

Koopa Troopa: give coins

Thwomp

Whomp

Bob-Omb

Goomba

Shy Guy

Snifit

Piranha Plant

Chain Chomp

Mr. Blizzard

Game Guy

Millenium Star

Star Spirits

Stages:

DK's Jungle Adventure

Peach's Birthday Cake

Yoshi's Tropical Island

Wario's Battle Canyon

Luigi's Engine Room

Mario's Rainbow Castle

Bowser's Magma Mountain

Eternal Star

Pirate Land

Western Land

Space Land

Mystery Land

Horror Land

Bowser Land

Chilly Waters

Deep Bloober Sea

Spiny Desert

Woody Woods

Creepy Cavern

Waluigi's Island

Gate Guy

Arrowhead

Pipesqueak

Blowhard

Mr. Mover

Backtrack

Toad's Midway Madness

Koopa's Seaside Soiree

Goomba's Greedy Gala

Boo's Haunted Bash

Shy Guy's Jungle Jam

Bowser's Gnarly Party

Toy Dream

Rainbow Dream

Pirate Dream

Undersea Dream

Future Dream

Sweet Dream

Bowser Nightmare

Various Mini-Games

Items:

All listed above

Thanks for reading! Next up, let's cover Mario Party 6!

Mario Sports Superstars

 MARIO SPORTS SUPERSTARS

Now, going off the name, you'd think this game would be a sequel to Mario Sports Mix, maybe with more sports on top of the four already featured, maybe more Mario and Final Fantasy/Square Enix characters, so on. You would be wrong. In reality, it's more like a big combination game between all of the other Mario sports franchises. You know, the ones with sequels. You have tennis, golf, baseball, soccer/football, and . . . horse racing? Where you have to raise and train your own horse? Um . . . okay. I'm not sure where that one came from, but I guess I'm not complaining. Each sport plays pretty much the way each sport was played in the series proper, with special attacks and other fantastical elements that you would have come to expect from each. The horse racing, I guess, you could compare to Mario Kart, but much slower and generally more focused on avoiding or jumping over obstacles, as well as the simple raising and training mechanics within the pasture.

Our playable characters this time around include Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, Yoshi, Birdo, Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, Wario, Waluigi, Rosalina, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, Boo, Bowser, and Bowser Jr., with Metal Mario and Pink Gold Peach as unlockable. For the team sports like football and baseball, you also have a number of sidekicks to fill up the team. These include Toads, Koopas, Magikoopas, Shy Guys, Goombas, Hammer Bros, Spikes, and Boom Boom and Pom Pom as goalies.

Each sport has four different stages that they can be played on. Tennis has a Grass Court, Hard Court, Clay Court, and a Night Court, most of which should be pretty familiar to Mario Tennis players. Golf has Emerald Woods (a standard course), Gold Links (a rougher course), Crystal Beach (a beach), and Wild Valley (the toughest course). Baseball has a Country Field, Town Park, Big Field set in a city, and a Harbor Park. Football has a Village Stadium, City Stadium, Kingdom Stadium, and a Grand Stadium. Finally, horse racing has Green Farm (where you start out), Cobalt Lake (going around a lake), Yellow Leaves Hill (set during Autumn), and Sky Peak (a mountainous course).

That's about it. Most of the items are mostly just accessories, like the balls, baseball bats, golf clubs, tennis racquets, and clothes for the horse.

Here's what we've got so far:

Characters:

Mario: fireball, Super Mario

Luigi: green fireball, tornado, Super Luigi, vacuum

Peach: heart ball, Freeze Frame

Daisy: flower ball, Crystal Smash

Yoshi: egg ball, rainbow ball, Egg Roll, flutter jump

Birdo: weird ball, suction, Extreme Egg, egg shot

Donkey Kong: banana ball, barrel, Thunder Wham, dunk, ground pound

Diddy Kong: boomerang ball, banana, Red Card, rocketbarrels

Wario: phony ball, Gas Mask, butt bash, bomb

Waluigi: liar ball, Wall-Luigi, cyclone spin, electricity machine

Bowser: killer ball, fire breath, Fire Storm

Bowser Jr.: killer jr. ball, paintbrush, Sonic Roar

Pianta

Noki

Monty Mole: Dirt Drill

Toad: Fire Meteor, mushrooms

Toadette

Toadsworth

Baby Mario

Baby Luigi

Shy Guy: Bullet Bill Blast

Dixie Kong: barrel cannon

Goomba

Paragoomba

Koopa: Shell Smash

Paratroopa: fly

Boo: Possess, teleport

King Boo

Petey Piranha: Mud Slinger, act as hoop

Magikoopa

Hammer Bro: Hammer Throw

Dry Bones: Shocker

Lakitu: hold hoop

Piranha Plant

Klaptrap

Chain Chomp

Thwomp

Baby Peach

Baby Daisy

Baby Donkey Kong

Funky Kong

Tiny Kong

King K. Rool

Wiggler

Blooper

Kritter: goalie

Super Team: football, goalie (Robo-Kritter), electric walls, items, Super Shots, Mega Strikes, Special Abilities, metal ball

Fly Guy: electric spear

Moogle: dance, teleport

Cactuar: needles

Ninja: leaf veil, shadow clones

White Mage: holy magic, light beam

Black Mage: meteor, lightning

Mii: energy ball

Slime: duplicates

Rosalina

Boom Boom

Pom Pom

Spike

Metal Mario

Pink Gold Peach

Boss:

Behemoth

Stages:

Mario Stadium

Peach Garden

Yoshi Park

Donkey Kong Jungle

Wario Palace

Bowser Castle

Toy Field

Baseball Kingdom

Peach Ice Garden

Wario City

Luigi's Mansion

Daisy Cruiser

Bowser Jr.'s Playroom

The Palace

Pipeline Central

The Underground

Konga Coliseum

Crater Field

The Battle Dome

Bowser Stadium

The Vice

Thunder Island

The Sand Tomb

The Classroom

The Lava Pit

The Wastelands

Crystal Canyon

The Dump

Stormship Stadium

Galactic Stadium

Mario Stadium

Koopa Beach

Peach Field

Sunset Beach

DK Cruiser

Luigi's Mansion

Daisy Garden

Malboro Garden

Wario Factory

Jr. Street

Bowser's Castle

Glare Desert

Sherbet Land

Bloocheep Sea

Pirate Ship

Rainbow Ship

DK Dock

Toad Park

Western Junction

Bowser Jr. Boulevard

Waluigi Pinball

Ghoulish Galleon

Behemoth's Domain

Grass Court

Hard Court

Clay Court

Night Court

Emerald Woods

Gold Links

Crystal Beach

Wild Valley

Country Field

Town Park

Big Field

Harbor Park

Village Stadium

City Stadium

Kingdom Stadium

Grand Stadium

Green Farm

Cobalt Lake

Yellow Leaves Hill

Sky Peak

Items:

Bat

Glove

Green Shell

Fireball

Mini-Boo

Bob-Omb

POW Ball

Banana Peel

Lightning Bolt

Red Shell

Blue Shell

Spiky Shell

Chain Chomp

False Panel

Freezie

Mimic

Mini Mushroom

Thanks for reading! Now that we're done with all of that, let's go over our character updates one more time!

Mario Golf: World Tour

MARIO GOLF: WORLD TOUR

Today, let's finish off with the final game in the Mario Golf series, thus far. After a rather long stretch of time without a game, Nintendo put out World Tour for the 3DS. The golf mechanics are pretty much standard here, except they did add in "Item Shots" which let you use items to affect what happens to the ball. The mushroom adds extra roll, the fire flower burns through trees and obstacles, the ice flower freezes the terrain, the Bullet Bill turns your ball into one, the Bob-Omb lets you ignore terrain issues, the boomerang flower alters the draw or fade of your shot, the note block creates a block for the ball to bounce off of, the tornado sucks up coins, the Ka-Bomb drops the ball straight down, and the gold flower gives you coins for every yard it covers.

As for our characters, Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Yoshi, Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, Wario, Waluigi, Bowser, Bowser Jr., Birdo, and Boo all return to the game, alongside Toad (Wow, golf series? Took you that long?), Kamek (hey!), and a Paratroopa. The game also had a Mii option, naturally. DLC for the game also added in Rosalina, Toadette, Nabbit, and Gold Mario.

Stages include: Forest Course, pretty standard; Seaside Course, a beach; Mountain Course, a desert; Sky Island, a sky course; Peach Gardens, set in front of her castle; Yoshi Lake, based on Woolly World; Wiggler Park, one of those tiny-huge deals; Cheep Cheep Lagoon, an underwater stage; DK Jungle, a DK stage; and Bowser's Castle, a Bowser's castle stage. Most of the stages from the N64 version have also been brought back and updated to mirror New Super Mario Bros. U stages.

Here's what we've got!

Characters:

Gimmick rep (Plum/Charlie/Sonny/Harry/Maple): swing club, hole, sand traps, hazards, topspin, backspin, power shot, more fantastical hazards, mushroom, fire flower, ice flower, bullet bill, bob-omb, boomerang flower, note block, tornado, ka-bomb, gold flower

Kid/Sherry/Joe/Azalea (maybe the others): same

Neil/Ella: same

Mario

Luigi

Peach

Yoshi

Donkey Kong

Wario

Bowser

Baby Mario

Metal Mario

Daisy

Waluigi

Birdo

Diddy Kong

Koopa

Bowser Jr.

Boo

Shadow Mario

Petey Piranha

Toad

Kamek

Paratroopa

Rosalina

Nabbit

Toadette

Gold Mario

Mii

Stages:

Toad Highlands

Koopa Park

Shy Guy Desert

Yoshi's Island

Boo Valley

Mario's Star

Luigi's Garden

Peach's Castle

Marion Club

Palm Club

Dune Club

Links Club

Peach's Castle

Golf Guru's Pitch & Putt

Lakitu Valley

Cheep Cheep Falls

Shifting Sands

Blooper Bay

Peach's Castle Grounds

Bowser Badlands

Congo Canopy

Mushroom Tourney

Elf's Short Course

Coo-Coo Course

Forest Course

Seaside Course

Mountain Course

Sky Island

Peach Gardens

Yoshi Lake

Wiggler Park

Cheep Cheep Lagoon

DK Jungle

Bowser's Castle

Thanks for reading! Now, let's go over our characters once again!

Smash Character Review: Mario Tennis Series

 MARIO TENNIS SERIES

Today, let's do another quick runthrough of all the returning characters who might receive some kind of update as a result, but probably not much. We had a few newcomers unique to this series, mainly the RPG protagonists from the handheld games and Lucien, the villain of Aces. We won't be discussing any of them here, but will touch on all of that tomorrow.

First up, we have many of the core regulars. Mario and Luigi, Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, Wario, Waluigi, Yoshi, Donkey Kong, and Toad are pretty standard regulars through basically every single game, with this series acting as the debut of Waluigi in anything. Most saw special moves in Power Tennis or Aces, though mostly its all just stuff we're used to seeing attached to them. Mario had hammers and jumping and stuff, Luigi used his poltergust at one point, Peach was a whole bunch of hearts while Daisy was the same with flowers. Yoshi used lots of eggs and rainbows, Donkey Kong used barrels and bananas, and Toad used other Toads. Wario and Waluigi were a bit more random, though Waluigi's certainly added to his rather flamboyant persona with a whole lot of ballet-style dances and such.

A few more rare ally characters we saw playable here included Rosalina and one of her Lumas, Toadette, Birdo, Pauline, Baby Mario and Baby Peach, Diddy Kong and Donkey Kong Jr., and the Sprixie Princesses. Rosalina and Luma both used star-based attacks, Pauline got to sing a bit of her famous song, and Diddy Kong swung across vines, but most of those are pretty basic.

Bowser is a constant presence in the series, most of his specials making use of his fire breath. Bowser Jr. appears a bit less frequently, but has seen specials based on his paint abilities from Sunshine and his Klown Kar in later appearances. Kamek makes one of his only playable sports appearances in anything ever here, making himself grow gigantic, and the boss characters Petey Piranha, Dry Bowser, and Boom Boom also show up as playable.

Now for our enemy characters. Boo, specifically, seemed to be a big favorite for the developers and appeared in most of the major games. I'm not sure exactly why, per se, but I'm not complaining. If I had to guess, it probably has something to do with the game tending to favor airborne characters a bit, as we frequently also saw Paratroopas and Fly Guys playable alongside their normal land-based Koopa and Shy Guy relatives. (It's kind of a shame we never saw a playable Lakitu here then). Mario Tennis Aces introduces a number of enemies we hadn't seen before in this series, including Spike, Chain Chomp, Blooper, Dry Bones, and Fire Piranha Plant, leaving only Wiggler left appearing in a different title.

Outside of that, we only really have Miis left as playable. A number of characters appear in the background as extras and audience members, but as all they do is cheer you on, I don't see too much point in really covering them at all.

Thanks for reading! Next up, we will cover the first Tennis gimmick rep, which I have dubbed Alex & Nina.

Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash

 MARIO TENNIS: ULTRA SMASH

Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash (not to be confused with Mario and Peach's favorite nighttime maneuver), is the seventh tennis game made for the Wii U. The game is very similar to Mario Tennis Open in terms of gameplay, which makes since considering they were more or less in the same console generation, with topspins, slices, flats, lobs, drop shots, simple shots, and leap shots all returning as always. The biggest new feature includes the Ultra Smash, a super move that is performed if a jump flat is used on a Chance Shot. Mega Battle also features as a new prominent mode, wherein Mega Mushrooms tend to appear on the court and make the characters gigantic frequently.

Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Toad, Yoshi, Donkey Kong, Wario, Waluigi, Bowser, Bowser Jr., Boo, and Dry Bowser all return from previous games, while Rosalina (kicking out her Luma, I see), Toadette, and Sprixie Princess (fresh off Super Mario 3D World) become new players in the game. Goombas, Koopas, Shy Guys, Lakitus, Spikes, and Magikoopas all appear in the background, so, you know, they don't do much.

Our stages this time include a hard, clay, and grass court, alongside a carpet court, mushroom court, sand court, ice court, rebound court which changes the ball's direction according to which arrow it lands on, and the morph court that switches around the floors.

That's pretty much it! Here's what we've got so far!

Characters:

Alex/Nina/Harry/Kate: serve, lob, top-spin, singles, doubles, slice, drop shot, flat shot, smash shot, charge shot, Banana, Mushroom, Lightning Bolt, Star, Green Shell, Red Shell, offensive special shot, defensive special shot, Chance Shots (fire flower, blooper, star, cheep cheep, bob-omb), Ultra Smash, Mega Battle

Ace/Clay: same as above, wall practice, ball machine, treadmill, balloon pump, jump, spin screw, duck walk, rope climb, Rock Paper Scissors, tightrope, tacklebot, memory game

Mario: Iron Hammer, Spin Jump Return

Luigi: Squeaky Mallet, Poltergust Return

Princess Peach: Super Peach Spin, Sweet Kiss Return

Toad

Yoshi: Rainbow Flutter, Rolling Egg Return

Koopa Troopa: Water Bomb, Water Shell Dash

Donkey Kong Jr.

Daisy: Wonder Flower, Flowerbed Return

Baby Mario

Birdo

Donkey Kong: Barrel Cannon Blast, Boomerang Banana Return

Wario: Thunder Cast Shot, Ultra Hand Return

Waluigi: Whirluigi, Swimming Return

Bowser: Fire Breath, Spinning Shell Dash

Boo: Boo Blast, Boo Brigade Return

Shy Guy: Lightning Spear, Spear Dance Return

Paratroopa: Energy Ball, Sky Dive

Diddy Kong: Acrobatic Banana, Barrel Jet

Bowser Jr.: Magic Paint, Rolling Brush Return

Fly Guy: Tornado Twist, Tornado Return

Wiggler: Anger Management, Flutter Return

Petey Piranha: Sludge Racket, Piranha Swingback

Luma

Baby Peach

Dry Bowser

Mii

Metal Mario

Rosalina

Toadette

Sprixie Princess

Piranha Plant

Lakitu

Goomba

Magikoopa

Stages:

Tennis Court

Open Court

Hard Court

Clay Court

Grass Court

Composition Court

Bowser's Stage

Royal Academy

Castle Court

Tropics Court

Jungle Court

Star Court

Warehouse Court

Peach Dome

Luigi's Mansion Court

Delfino Plaza Court

Wario Factory Court

Gooper Blooper Court

DK Jungle Court

Bowser's Castle Court

Mario Classic Court

Mario Stadium

Mushroom Valley

Wario Dunes

DK Jungle

Peach's Palace

Penguin Iceberg

Bowser's Castle

Galaxy Arena

Super Mario Tennis

Carpet Court

Mushroom Court

Sand Court

Ice Court

Rebound Court

Morph Court

Thanks for reading! Next up, let's cover the final game in the series, Mario Tennis Aces!

Mario Tennis Open

MARIO TENNIS OPEN

Today, let's cover Mario Tennis Open, the sixth tennis game, this one made for the Nintendo 3DS. We skipped a handheld generation, but that's okay. The tennis mechanics here are a lot of the basics we've seen before, with topspins, slices, drop shots, flat shots, lobs, serves, and charges. The biggest new mechanic is the Chance Shot, which will appear if the character performs a bad rebound, giving them a chance to make up for it. These include a Fire Flower, giving you a flaming topspin; Bloopers, that make the receiving character spin out; a Star, which gives you an even stronger smash shot; a Cheep Cheep, that bounces at the back of the stage; and Bob-Omb, which gives you an even lower drop shot.

Our characters this time around include returning veterans Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Yoshi, Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, Wario, Waluigi, Bowser, Bowser Jr., Boo, and Baby Mario, with the added newcomers of Luma (without Rosalina? Is that allowed?), Baby Peach, Dry Bowser, and Mii. With a few DLC Yoshi color variations and Metal Mario, just for fun. Various enemies and allies appear on various stages, like Toads and Lakitus, in the roles you'd expect of them. No RPG protagonists here, sorry. (I'm actually kinda sad about that.)

Our stages this time around include the main arena, Mario Stadium, with a grass, hard, and clay variant to it, as well as: Mushroom Valley, situated on top of a giant mushroom (awesome); Wario Dunes, a desert level; DK Jungle, a DK stage; Peach's Palace; Penguin Iceberg, a snow level; Bowser's Castle as it has appeared previously; and two Galaxy Arenas, one with a crystal floor and one with a "morph" floor that changes around and causes mayhem on the court. There are also four minigames set on these that I bring up purely because "Super Mario Tennis" is awesome. We have Ring Shot, where you shoot the ball through rings over the net; Super Mario Tennis, which lets you use a tennis ball to help an 8-bit Mario complete a level from the original Super Mario Bros.; Galaxy Rally, which has a black hole in it you have to keep the ball away from; and Ink Showdown, which has three Piranha Plants spitting balls at you.

That's about it for now! Let's see what we've got:

Characters:

Alex/Nina/Harry/Kate: serve, lob, top-spin, singles, doubles, slice, drop shot, flat shot, smash shot, charge shot, Banana, Mushroom, Lightning Bolt, Star, Green Shell, Red Shell, offensive special shot, defensive special shot, Chance Shots (fire flower, blooper, star, cheep cheep, bob-omb)

Ace/Clay: same as above, wall practice, ball machine, treadmill, balloon pump, jump, spin screw, duck walk, rope climb, Rock Paper Scissors, tightrope, tacklebot, memory game

Mario: Iron Hammer, Spin Jump Return

Luigi: Squeaky Mallet, Poltergust Return

Princess Peach: Super Peach Spin, Sweet Kiss Return

Toad

Yoshi: Rainbow Flutter, Rolling Egg Return

Koopa Troopa: Water Bomb, Water Shell Dash

Donkey Kong Jr.

Daisy: Wonder Flower, Flowerbed Return

Baby Mario

Birdo

Donkey Kong: Barrel Cannon Blast, Boomerang Banana Return

Wario: Thunder Cast Shot, Ultra Hand Return

Waluigi: Whirluigi, Swimming Return

Bowser: Fire Breath, Spinning Shell Dash

Boo: Boo Blast, Boo Brigade Return

Shy Guy: Lightning Spear, Spear Dance Return

Paratroopa: Energy Ball, Sky Dive

Diddy Kong: Acrobatic Banana, Barrel Jet

Bowser Jr.: Magic Paint, Rolling Brush Return

Fly Guy: Tornado Twist, Tornado Return

Wiggler: Anger Management, Flutter Return

Petey Piranha: Sludge Racket, Piranha Swingback

Luma

Baby Peach

Dry Bowser

Mii

Metal Mario

Piranha Plant

Lakitu

Stages:

Tennis Court

Open Court

Hard Court

Clay Court

Grass Court

Composition Court

Bowser's Stage

Royal Academy

Castle Court

Tropics Court

Jungle Court

Star Court

Warehouse Court

Peach Dome

Luigi's Mansion Court

Delfino Plaza Court

Wario Factory Court

Gooper Blooper Court

DK Jungle Court

Bowser's Castle Court

Mario Classic Court

Mario Stadium

Mushroom Valley

Wario Dunes

DK Jungle

Peach's Palace

Penguin Iceberg

Bowser's Castle

Galaxy Arena

Super Mario Tennis

Thanks for reading! Next up, let's cover the next game, Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash!

Mario Power Tennis

 MARIO POWER TENNIS

Today, let's cover the Game Cube entry in the Mario Tennis series, Mario Power Tennis! As tends to be the case, each consecutive game adds a little more to the complexity of the tennis mechanics, but the basics are all there, mostly based on top spins, slices, and lunges, with combinations one can make off of them. All of the items from before return, including the Green and Red Shells, Mushrooms, Bananas, Stars, and Lightning. The biggest new feature takes a bit after the Mario Kart's Game Cube entry and gives each player two special shots, one an offensive shot and the other a defensive shot.

Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Wario, Waluigi, Bowser, Donkey Kong, Yoshi, Koopa, Boo, Shy Guy, and Paratroopa all return from previous games as they are joined by Diddy Kong replacing Donkey Kong Jr., Bowser Jr. and Petey Piranha fresh off their debut in Super Mario Sunshine, Wiggler, and Fly Guy. Mario uses a hammer and spin jump in his special moves, Luigi a squeaky mallet and his poltergust, Peach a spin and a kiss, Daisy a whole lot of flowers, Wario thunder and an Ultra-Hand, Waluigi spinning and swimming in the air, Bowser his fire breath and shell, Donkey Kong a barrel and a banana, Diddy adding his jetpack, Yoshi an egg and flutter jump, Bowser Jr. his paint brush, Koopa a whole lot of water for some reason, Boo the standard ghostly powers, Shy Guy the spears of Spear Guy, Fly Guy tornadoes, Paratroopa energy and flight, Wiggler his anger and butterfly wings, and Petey Piranha his sludge. A lot of it is pretty standard stuff normally tied to the characters, although there's a couple surprises.

As for stages, we have the Peach Dome acting as the central tennis arena, with hard, clay, and grass courts available. Then we have a bunch of gimmick courts that get a bit more creative. These include Luigi's Mansion Court, based on Luigi's Mansion; Delfino Plaza Court, based on Super Mario Sunshine; Wario Factory Court, based on typical factories with conveyor belts moving and stuff; Gooper Blooper Court, with moving platforms that drop you into the water below; DK Jungle Court, based on the Donkey Kong country series; Bowser's Castle Court, just like the Bowser's Castle Court in the previous game; and Mario Classic Court, based on the original Super Mario Bros. game.

That's about it. Let's see what we've got:

Characters:

Alex/Nina/Harry/Kate: serve, lob, top-spin, singles, doubles, slice, drop shot, flat shot, smash shot, charge shot, Banana, Mushroom, Lightning Bolt, Star, Green Shell, Red Shell, offensive special shot, defensive special shot

Mario: Iron Hammer, Spin Jump Return

Luigi: Squeaky Mallet, Poltergust Return

Princess Peach: Super Peach Spin, Sweet Kiss Return

Toad

Yoshi: Rainbow Flutter, Rolling Egg Return

Koopa Troopa: Water Bomb, Water Shell Dash

Donkey Kong Jr.

Daisy: Wonder Flower, Flowerbed Return

Baby Mario

Birdo

Donkey Kong: Barrel Cannon Blast, Boomerang Banana Return

Wario: Thunder Cast Shot, Ultra Hand Return

Waluigi: Whirluigi, Swimming Return

Bowser: Fire Breath, Spinning Shell Dash

Boo: Boo Blast, Boo Brigade Return

Shy Guy: Lightning Spear, Spear Dance Return

Paratroopa: Energy Ball, Sky Dive

Diddy Kong: Acrobatic Banana, Barrel Jet

Bowser Jr.: Magic Paint, Rolling Brush Return

Fly Guy: Tornado Twist, Tornado Return

Wiggler: Anger Management, Flutter Return

Petey Piranha: Sludge Racket, Piranha Swingback

Piranha Plant

Lakitu

Stages:

Tennis Court

Open Court

Hard Court

Clay Court

Grass Court

Composition Court

Bowser's Stage

Royal Academy

Castle Court

Tropics Court

Jungle Court

Star Court

Warehouse Court

Peach Dome

Luigi's Mansion Court

Delfino Plaza Court

Wario Factory Court

Gooper Blooper Court

DK Jungle Court

Bowser's Castle Court

Mario Classic Court

Thanks for reading! Next up, we will cover the game's handheld counterpart, Mario Tennis: Power Tour!

Character Sheet: Boo (Revision)

 BOO

This will largely be our last run of revisions, for the Mario series at least. Now that the RPGs are over, pretty much every game left is either something we've already covered for the most part (Remakes, etc.), or run on a core game mechanic not unique to any one character (the Sports games). So, once these are done, I will do character sheets for new characters added and just a general sum up for everyone else. With all that said, let's get into it:

1. Mario 
2. Luigi 
3. Professor E. Gadd 
4. Princess Peach 
5. Toad 
6. Toadette 
7. Bowser 
8. Dry Bowser 
9. Bowser Jr. 
10. Koopalings 
11. Koopa Troopa 
12. Dry Bones 
13. Goomba 
14. Piranha Plant 
15. Boo 
16. Cheep Cheep 
17. Blooper 
18. Bob-Omb 
19. Lakitu 
20. Monty Mole 
21. Spike 
22. Hammer Bro 
23. Chargin' Chuck 
24. Wiggler 
25. Chain Chomp 
26. Birdo 
27. Petey Piranha 
28. King Boo 
29. Paper Mario
30. Yoshi 
31. Baby Mario 
32. Baby Bowser 
33. Kamek 
34. Shy Guy

Strangely, Boos don't really appear all that much in this run of games. I suppose it's not that weird. Outside of Paper Jam, the Mario & Luigi games tended to populate themselves with their own unique enemies each time based on the concept behind the game. As such, Boos don't have too much to offer here.

Here is the moveset:

Standard B: Obake Candlestick

Side B: Bomb Boo

Up B: Boo String

Down B: Vanish

Final Smash: Boolossus

Entrance: Appears out of nowhere

Taunts: Just the basic cover-your-face animation. That screech of theirs needs to be included too. When they flash and show off a blue coin for sure. Maybe Bow's haughty laugh behind her fan.

Next up: Let's cover the Cheep Cheeps!

Character Sheet: Boo (Lady Bow)

BOO

Today, let's let the floodgates burst forth. The RPGs, being RPGs, have proved a wellspring of brand-new characters and possible major revisions of pre-existing characters. Since there are so many, I will start by covering all of the revisions first. Here they are:

1. Mario
2. Luigi
3. Princess Peach
4. Toad
4e. Toadette
5. Bowser
6. Bowser Jr.
7. The Koopalings
8. Koopa Troopa
8e. Dry Bones
9. Goomba
10. Piranha Plant
11. Boo
12. Blooper
13. Lakitu and Spinies
14. Monty Mole
15. Hammer Bro
16. Wiggler
17. Chain Chomp
18. Birdo
19. Petey Piranha
20. Yoshi
21. Kamek
22. Shy Guy
23. Bandit

Today, let's cover the Boo enemy, or more specifically, your one Boo companion from the first Paper Mario game, Lady Bow, and any other major Boo appearances throughout these games. Lady Bow is a wealthy heiress living in a haunted mansion in the middle of a dark forest. Her moves in the game include the ability to make herself and Mario disappear, making them impervious to harm. She can also smack you a lot, either with her own little ghost-hand-thing or with a large fan. Both of these seem to have more to do with her being an heiress than being a Boo, but there you are. Finally, she also has a move where she jumps out and jumpscares the enemy, similar to what the ghosts of Luigi's mansion do. Other Boos appear frequently throughout the games, although for some reason, most of the early games seemed to avoid making them fightable enemies, mostly having them swarming around ghostly areas but never fighting you directly.

Here is their moveset:

Standard B: Obake Candlestick

Side B: Bomb Boo
The fan smacking works better as a jab.

Up B: Boo String

Down B: Vanish
Much like her utility of it in Paper Mario.

Final Smash: Boolossus

Entrance: Appears out of nowhere

Taunts: Just the basic cover-your-face animation. That screech of theirs needs to be included too. When they flash and show off a blue coin for sure. Maybe Bow's haughty laugh behind her fan.

Next up: Let's cover the Bloopers!

Character Sheet: Boo (Side Character Spinoffs)

BOO

Today, we begin our next round of character sheets, with updates for every major character who appeared in the Luigi's Mansion series, Super Princess Peach, or Captain Toad's Treasure Tracker. Most of these should be fairly simple, with only four newcomers to speak of. They are:

1. Mario
2. Luigi
3. Princess Peach
4. Toad
4e. Toadette
5. Bowser
6. Koopa Troopa
6e. Dry Bones
7. Goomba
8. Piranha Plant
9. Boo
10. Blooper
11. Lakitu
12. Hammer Bro
13. Chargin' Chuck
14. Wiggler
15. Chain Chomp
16. Petey Piranha
17. King Boo
18. Kamek
19. Shy Guy
20. Vacuum Luigi (New)
20e. Professor E. Gadd (New)
21. Perry (New)
22. Ghost (New)

This one should be a bit meatier than previous entries here. Boo appears in every single entry this time around, as a basic enemy in Super Princess Peach and Toad's Treasure Tracker, acting about as they normally do, but then play a significant role in the Luigi's Mansion series. Not only is King Boo a major player in all three games, acting as the main villain across the board, but the Boos themselves have a unique role where they hide out in levels requiring Luigi to track them down and capture them. There's not much to say from there, with them just hiding out for the most part until they are revealed, sometimes tossing out bombs or balls if you guess wrong. In later games, you could use your vacuum to grab their tongues before releasing them and sending them bouncing around the room to do some damage.

Here is their moveset:

Standard B: Obake Candlestick

Side B: Bomb Boo

Up B: Boo String

Down B: Vanish

Final Smash: Boolossus
For sure, Big Boo is an important character to represent here.

Entrance: Appears out of nowhere

Taunts: Just the basic cover-your-face animation. That screech of theirs needs to be included too. When they flash and show off a blue coin for sure.

Next up: Let's cover the Bloopers!