Mario Party Advance is a video game developed by Hudson Soft and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance in 2005. It's the first handheld installment in the Mario Party series.
This game focuses more on single-player, though there are multiplayer modes as well. This is the only game in the series to only support two players, as well as the game with the fewest playable characters (Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach and Yoshi). There are four types of minigames: Single-Player, Duel, Bowser and Gambling. There are 50 minigames in total.
Its story mode features one big main board that the player can explore to complete quests- only one player is on the board at a time, but each character has their own starting space, incentivizing use of all four characters to reach the quests quickly. The game also features small interactive toys called "Gaddgets", similar to the souvenirs from the WarioWare series. These toys have to be retrieved after Bowser scattered them all over Shroom City, and to this end the player has to complete several jobs and sidequests by helping supporting characters or surpassing their trials; some of the Gaddgets are in Bowser's possession, so the player has to beat him in various minigames to get them back. Tumble, of Mario Party 3 fame, returns as the host for this game.
There is also a "Bonus Board" included with the game, allowing up to four players to play a physical board game with assistance from the GBA. Gaddgets are used as minigames, and the goal is to be the first player to find the star.
The game was rereleased on the Wii U via the Virtual Console.
This game provides examples of:
- Advancing Wall of Doom: In the minigame Stompbot XL, a solo player is driving the eponymous vehicle to outrun a wave of lava that is pulsating its way forward. The driver has to dodge lava pits along the way, as they can take away one heart (the player's vehicle has three); there are rocks that obstruct the path and must be dodged as well. The minigame ends when the vehicle's Life Meter is depleted, so the player has to drive as far as possible until that happens to achieve a record. In Shroom City mode, they have to make it to a goal line to win.
- Betting Mini-Game: The Gambling minigames, which also share a Theme Naming (Match 'Em, Watch 'Em, Drop 'Em, Stop 'Em, Pair 'Em and Scratch 'Em). They're based on classic casino games like Roulette and Match-Three Game, and the player can win coins with them, but the risk factor is very high.
- Blackout Basement: The minigame Tank-Down has two dueling characters drive tanks to battle against each other in a dark cave where visibility is limited. Instead of cannonballs, the tanks' cannons use large boxing gloves as ammunition for offense. Due to the darkness, each player has to stay alert of their surroundings, as they only have 5 HP each. Whoever has their health depleted first loses and renders the other player victorious (the cave will also be fully illuminated by then).
- But Thou Must!: The game has a ridiculous amount of examples of this. In the first cutscene of Bowser at the Pipe House, Bowser tells you that he has ten Gadgets and suggests you give up now. Choosing "I give up!" makes Bowser disappointed, but the game goes on as if you choose the "No way!" response. In the quests themselves, all of them except "Love That Princess!", "Dino of Mystery!", and "Game Mage" (the former two ending as soon as you accept them) put you in a "But Thou Must" situation almost immediately after you accept the quest. (The "Hey, UFO!" quest even offers the choices of "Call UFO" and "Call VFO", choosing the latter offers the same response as the former, followed by Mr. E saying, "You mixed up 'U' and 'V'!") However, the "Bowserstein!" quest subverts this — if you choose the "very scary monster", it will be revealed to be a harmless Huffin Puffin from Yoshi's Island, and you will be kicked out back to the Shroom City map screen without a chance to play the required Duel mini-game.
- Car Fu: The Bowser minigame Crushed Ice has the player use a round-shaped ice crusher to ram into all Koopa Kids present. The slippery terrain, as well as the two ice pillars in the middle and the erratic movement of the Koopa Kids themselves, make the challenge difficult (on top of that, the blue ones have to be hit twice each). Defeating them all before the time limit (99 seconds) runs out will yield a Gaddget from Bowser to the player.
- Clueless Detective: Shroomlock, the detective, claims to be great at his job, but you end up solving all the crimes he encounters before he does. Either that, or he'll find the answer but make you figure it out yourself before he'll tell you. He also never arrests anyone, always letting them go after they apologize. Including the bank robber.
- Colour-Coded for Your Convenience: In the minigame Boo-Bye, a solo player has to lure Boos into paintings that match their color: Blue, white and pink. The character earns points as they do this, and upon them being hit by any Boo the minigame ends. in Shroom City mode, the player has to achieve a certain score without being hit to win.
- Counting Sheep: One of the Gaddgets in is a sheep counter which displays sheep going by on the screen.
- Do Well, But Not Perfect: Bowser Land has you riding a Bowser themed roller coaster and trying to get to the end by playing random Bowser minigames. The catch is that if you finish too fast, or don't fail enough minigames, then Bowser won't reward you with as much coins. Fail too many minigames though, and Bowser will also cut your reward for going too slow, or even end your game before you can finish.
- Easily Forgiven: Shroomlock never arrests any of the perpetrators of the crimes in Mushroom City, including the one who robbed a bank, because they always apologize afterward.
- Fanboy:
- Mr. E is a huge fan of mysteries, and he pops up whenever one happens, usually getting in the way of the people who are actually trying to solve it. He has to be shooed away from the scene of a crime multiple times.
- The leader of the Toad Force V fanclub, Lantern Ghost, is insanely obsessive and owns way more merch for the show than is sane.
- Flying Broomstick: The minigame Broom Zoom, as its name suggests, has you flying through rings on a broom.
- Fishing Minigame: The minigame Reel Cheep has a solo player attempt to capture Cheep Cheeps from a sandy shore. Once the fishing rod's bobber is thrown at the water, the player has to move it to lure a Cheep Cheep into biting it, and then press buttons L and R in a specific sequence to successfully pull it out of the water. If the player takes too long to press the full sequence, or one of the presses is wrong, the Cheep Cheep will swim away. Only the heaviest that is captured will be accounted for. In Shroom City mode, the player must capture a Cheep Cheep that is heavier than the minimum weight required under a time limit to win.
- Food Porn: Two of the Gaddgets exist purely to show off tasty-looking food sprites. "Dessert Menu" has you select a base dessert, a fruit, and a sauce, and shows you what the resulting dish looks like. "Cake Maker," meanwhile, lets you decorate a cake however you like, with decorations like cream swirls, fruit slices, and candles you can place wherever you want.
- Gotta Catch Them All: The Gaddgets, which are miniature toys invented by E. Gadd that have to be gathered after Bowser sabotaged their supply at the start of the game (and kept some for himself, requiring the player to beat his challenges to get them back). There are 61 in total.
- Gusty Glade:
- The minigame Forest Jump has a solo player run against a strong gust while avoiding incoming tree trunks, some of which merely roll while others leap. Jumping onto a rolling trunk or passing beneath a leaping one grants points, but their varying size has to be accountd for. The strength and direction of the gust will also vary over time, making evasions more difficult. If a character is hit by a trunk, they'll be temporarily stunned, which increases the risk of the wind pushing them into the pit, ending the minigame. In Shroom City mode, the player has to score 300 points to win.
- The minigame Flingshot has a solo player launch themselves into a wide chasm with a very large slingshot. Along the way, they can find tornadoes that either boost their height (if they're placed vertically) or distance (if they're placed horizontally). The total distance traveled is determined as soon as the player stops running after touching the ground, and will make up for the final score. In Shroom City mode, the player needs to achieve at least 5000 points to win.
- Hold the Line: The Bowser minigame Mush Rush has the player use a mallet to repel all incoming Koopa Kids, who attempt to steal the mushrooms located behind. The total number of Koopa Kids to be defeated is selected randomly beforehand. Green Koopa Kids merely try to walk towards the mushrooms, Blue Koopa Kids require being hit twice to be defeated (the first hit simply bounces them back a bit, but get up for another try), and Red Koopa Kids tend to prepare a fast ram into the mushrooms. As Koopa Kids are defeated, the incoming ones will move faster, tend to switch sides to try to confuse the player, and will generally come in larger numbers to make their repel more difficult. After all of them are driven away, the player receives a Gaddget from Bowser.
- Hot Potato: The minigame Volleybomb is a variation. Two dueling characters are using hammers to play volleyball against each other with bombs instead of traditional balls. Each character has three hearts of energy, and whenever a bomb falls onto a character's surrounding ground or explodes next to them after enough time passes, a heart will be depleted for the affected character. Whoever manages to make the other lose all their hearts wins.
- I Just Want to Have Friends:
- Dorrie's sidequest has him lamenting that he's never met another dinosaur before and would just like to have a dino-friend. Playing as Yoshi and visiting him grants his wish, and the two become pals.
- Thwomp's sidequest has him calling the police and reporting a crime because he literally can't leave his house due to the door being too small, and he was getting very lonely.
- Inconveniently-Placed Conveyor Belt: The minigame Dreadmill has a solo player run through a treadmill filled with spiky traps, and dodging them is difficult because the conveyor belts mess with the character's timing (not helped by some of the spikes moving back and forth as well), and they periodically reverse their respective directions as well as their speeds. In Shroom City mode, the character must make it to the end under a time limit.
- Journey to the Sky: The minigame Cloud Climb, as the name suggests, has a solo player hop across bouncy Solid Clouds to climb from the ground to the high skies, reaching the upper layer of the atmosphere from which the stars of outer space can be seen. Along the way, the player can use springboards to jump higher, but must also avoid electrified Amps. In Shroom City mode, the climb is shorter (the goal is located in a lower spot), but must be performed under a strict time limit.
- Le Parkour: The minigame Flippin' Out has a solo player moving rapidly across a dungeon by hopping between pegs in each section to reach a gold-colored peg that grants access to the next section. The other pegs are either static (green), prone to appear and disappear periodically (red), or subject to move among rails (blue), so learning to deal with each of them is vital to avoid falling into the lava. Each time the player reaches a new section, extra seconds are added to the current time limit. If that time expires or the player falls onto the lava, the minigame ends (it's endless, however, so the challenge is based on how far the player will go). In Shroom City mode, the player simply has to clear a section by reaching its gold-colored peg.
- Matchmaker Quest: There are two:
- One has you finding seashells at the beach that Goombob can use to impress Goombetty, a girl he likes from school. She happily accepts, and the "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue states they're thinking of moving in together.
- Another set of quests involves a Love Triangle between a Flutter who has a crush on a Mr. I, and a Petal Guy who has a crush on Flutter. Mr. I doesn't accept Flutter's feelings because he has a crush on Peach, and Flutter doesn't return Petal Guy's, leaving them all a bit lonelier but ready to move on with their lives.
- Mini-Game: What's the mini-game equivalent of a mini-game? The game is already a mini-game game, but includes even smaller games (more like toys) called "Gaddgets." Some of them are actual mini-mini games (like one where you try to pick the right-colored wire to not blow up a bomb, one where frogs race to catch a fly, and others), but others are more just for fun. One, for example, lets you decorate a cake, one translates messages into Morse, one creates different foods based on the ingredients you pick, and one lets you smash things for fun.
- Mobile Shrubbery: The minigame Barrel Peril has a solo player wear a barrel and use it to cross a street guarded by several Chain Chomps, which are sleeping. As soon as the Chomps hear the player's steps, they'll ram onto them. The player can hide within the barrel to block the ram and then continue moving; if they do not hide in time before the hit, they'll be stunned and waste precious time. The player has to reach the goal as fast as possible to attempt a record break. In Shroom City mode, the stroll is shorter, but the player has to reach the end under a time limit.
- Pass Through the Rings: The minigame Broom Zoom has a solo player flying through rings on a Flying Broomstick until reaching the goal line. Passing through many of them in a row provides a combo that boosts the score. There are obstacles like blocks and Amps that must be avoided, as they stun the player and make them waste time. In Shroom City mode, at least 5000 points must be scored to win.
- The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: All the Bob-ombs in Shroom City belong to a mysterious Bob-omb gang. However, despite the shady implications, they're all shown to be nice people who don't really do anything "ganglike" aside from having secret passwords.
- Pop Quiz: Mechakoopa's sidequest has him ask math-related questions to the player. All of them have to be answered correctly in order to receive a Gaddget.
- Punny Name: The Gaddgets, being a play on Gadd (as in Elvin Gadd, their inventor) and gadgets.
- Racing Minigame:
- The minigame Chomp Walker has a solo player ride a Chain Chomp across a grassland racetrack. Along the way, there are bones which can keep the Chomp distracted and thus have to be avoided, as well as steaks that give it a boost of energy so it moves rapidly forward. Each time the player and the Chomp pass by a checkpoint, extra time is added to the limit, so they can go as far as possible and set a new record. In Shroom City mode, the player has to take the Chomp to a specific goal line under a time limit.
- The minigame Sled Slide has a solo player drive a sled to race through a slippery course. Since they aren't racing against anyone, the challenge consists of performing three laps as quickly as possible to achieve a record. In Shroom City mode, the player must perform a lap in 30 seconds to win.
- Real Men Wear Pink: Bowser Pad. It's decorated in pink and purple, and Bowser asks you to get him a ring, a necklace, or a bracelet.
- Recycled Soundtrack: Several minigame themes are lifted from Mario Party 3 and 4, albeit adapted to the GBA's lower audio capacity.
- Rise to the Challenge: The minigame Stair Scare has two dueling characters run upstairs after the tower they're in suffers an earthquake. The characters have to run by rapidly tapping A to avoid getting caught by the crumbling stairs and falling down. Whoever gets first into the hot-air balloon to escape wins.
- Score Multiplier: The minigame Bill Bounce has the players jump onto Bullet Bills shot from cannons to score points. The more Bills are stomped in succession before landing back into the ground, the more points will be gathered. It's necessary to do this when the minigame is played in Shroom City mode, as the required total score to win is 1000 points.
- Shooting Gallery: The Bowser minigame Splatterball has the player use a paintball weapon to shoot a randomly-designated number of Koopa Kids in 99 seconds or less. The player's weapon has five slots, requiring a reload by holding R so it doesn't run out of paint; if a Toad picture is accidentally hit, one of the slots will be removed, making the shooting rate less effective and the minigame more difficult. Winning this minigame is necessary to win a Gaddget from Bowser.
- Show Within a Show: Toad Force V, which is about a robotic Toad named Jack and his partner, the heroine Britney, who is more popular. Together, they fight villains such as the Spore King and Toxic Toad Z. The show is so extremely popular that there are a few quests related to this show. It is also mentioned several times in the game.
- Squashed Flat:
- During the game's prologue in Shroom City mode, poor Toad gets crushed this way multiple times by Bowser while he's throwing away the Gaddgets.
- In the minigame Chicken!, two dueling characters have to try to stay in the center of the area for as long as possible but before the big blue Thwomp squashes them (meaning the characters have to step aside before that happens). Whoever gets flattened will be disqualified and render the other victorious; if both avoid that stomp, then whoever stayed on the center for longer wins. If both are flattened, the minigame ends in a tie.
- In the minigame Chain Saw, two dueling characters are respectively sawing chains that keep Thwomps hanging right above them, making it so whoever manages to fully cut the chain first will make the Thwomp above the other character fall onto them and squash them, making them lose the minigame.
- Stealth-Based Mission: In the Bowser minigame Peek-n-Sneak, the player has to make their way within a castle passageway without being seen by any of the Koopa Kids present, and they must reach the end in 99 seconds or less. The player can hide behind pillars so the Koopa Kids don't see them. The Koopa Kids will periodically turn around, so patience is key for the player to pass between pillars without being seen. From time to time, the player gets extra seconds in the time limit after passing by a certain number of Koopa Kids. Being spotted by just one of them will make the player lose the minigame. Raching the end will reward the player with a Gaddget from Bowser.
- Super Title 64 Advance: This game came out on the Game Boy Advance and contains "Advance" in the title.
- Tertiary Sexual Characteristics:
- Played straight with Goombob and Goombetty, a pair of Galoomba school friends. Goombob looks like a regular Galoomba, but the female Goombetty wears a bow.
- Downplayed with Bob-omba. She's pink and she's a girl, but she's specifically a Bob-omb Buddy, who are always pink regardless of gender. However, she also has a male Bob-omb friend who's a regular black-colored Bob-omb.
- Averted with Akiki. She's a female Ukiki, but she has the same sprite as her uncle.
- That Satisfying "Crunch!": There's a Gaddget called "Stress Press." The entire purpose of it is to smash various objects with an enormous hammer, for the express purpose of making you feel better.
- "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue: After doing all the quests in Shroom City, you get an epilogue that shows you what happened to all the people you've helped.
- White Bunny: A special case in a franchise like Mario where bunnies do come in different colors. The minigame Grabbit has a solo player catch as many white rabbits, which are mischievously running within a prairie and hiding in their burrows, as possible. If the player fails to capture a rabbit and clashes against a wall, they'll be stunned and waste precious time. Every captured rabbit grants points and adds extra seconds to the time limit. In Shroom City mode, seven rabbits have to be captured under a time limit.
- Who Wants to Be "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?": Mini-Game Attack. 15 mini-games in order to win coins, 3 special items (Switch, Replay, and Practice). If the player wins five games, they can win 1,000 coins, ten games results in 10,000 coins, and 100,000 coins for all fifteen games. The player can stop and quit at any time, because if they fail, they will lose everything.
- Wolfpack Boss: The Koopa Kids who challenge the player in the Bowser minigames. Defeating them all is the only way to win the challenges and receive the Gaddgets from Bowser in Shroom City mode. Usually, the number of Koopa Kids present will be chosen randomly, but in Free Play mode the total is always set to 99, thus overlapping these minigames as Marathon Boss gauntlets.
