Nintendo's most recent Direct was one of the highlights of E3 2021, delivering some of the conferences biggest reveals and announcements. Fans of Nintendo's long-running virtual board game series were given something to look forward to when Mario Party Superstars was announced, though it might not have been exactly what was expected. Ever since Super Mario Party - the series' most recent mainline entry - released, fans have been hoping that Nintendo will bolster the game with more boards and mini-games. Unfortunately, Mario Party Superstars turned out to be a standalone game, not a much-needed expansion for the only other Mario Party game to come to the Switch.

Many fans consider Super Mario Party to be a disappointing entry in the franchise. The game only has four boards, all of which are relatively small, and didn't even have full online multiplayer support until a surprise update earlier this year. It also required the use of a Joy-Con, with the mini-games often utilizing motion controls - a control scheme to which many players aren't partial. When the trailer first started during the E3 Direct, it looked as though Super Mario Party might finally be getting more content, since the HUD in Mario Party Superstars is almost identical. Mario Party Superstars turned out to be a standalone collection of recycled content, releasing at full price in October.

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Mario Party Superstars took the pleas for a return to classic Mario Party boards and mini-games exceptionally literal. There will be five boards remastered from the Nintendo 64 era, along with 100 of the series' best mini-games. The remastered graphics look gorgeous, and the glimpses of the large boards are a reminder of what Mario Party has been missing recently, but it's hard to not feel like the $60 price tag is a bit steep.

Superstars' Content Could've Been Added to Super Mario Party

Mario Party Superstars Content Could've Been Added to Super Mario Party

It's almost a pointless complaint by now, since Nintendo has a long history of rereleasing content for full price. The upcoming Skyward Sword HD will cost players 10 more dollars than it did in 2011 when it launched on the Wii, and will also have gameplay improvements locked behind an Amiibo. Skyward Sword HD will sell regardless, and so will Mario Party Superstars. The novel appeal of Nintendo's first party titles - even its old ones - allows the company to repeatedly use pricing that can be considered anti-consumer.

Mario Party Superstars as DLC would have been the perfect way to make Super Mario Party worthy of its own price. Obviously the best case scenario is the classic boards and mini-games get added in a free update, but that's wishful thinking. This greatest hits version has more content than Super Mario Party does, so even though it's recycled game content, 20 or 30 dollars is a reasonable price to make Super Mario Party a worthy entry in the series. Mario Party Superstars looks incredible, and a lot of Switch owners are going to buy it, but it's a shame that its $60 price is completely unsurprising.

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