Despite all those questionable decisions, Mario Party 9 's mini-games are generally decent. Peak Precision, Skyjinks, and Player Conveyor are all top-notch, and they are hardly the only ones.

Mario Party 9 has been given a release date. The latest in the long-running board game franchise will be released on March 9 in Europe and March 11 in North America.

Mario Party 9 for the Wii was the top-selling title for the week, with 144,585 units sold. Critics gave the party game a middling reception; check out GameSpot's full review on the title.

Mario Party 10 adds a bunch of new features including amiibo, and the second screen of the GamePad, but it also carries over some bad ideas from Mario Party 9 that continue to deflate the fun.

The gaming industry may owe a lot to the original Mario Bros., but let's be honest: it hasn't aged as well as other classic games in the series. It's in a totally different, much more arcadey class.

Even with its wide selection of mini-games, Mario Party can get a bit tiring after extended jaunts, especially when playing by your lonesome. As such, I recommend recruiting some people to play ...