The whole idea of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" is true to many games series that follow a formula. Take Dance Dance Revolution, for instance. It has come out with chapter after chapter, yet the core gameplay remains the same and it's just as addictive as it's ever been. Now take the same sort of formula with Mario Party, Nintendo's long-running multiplayer party game series. Has its formula really changed? No. But is it as addictive? Yes, it has the kind of staying power to keep four-player romps ridiculously fresh. But single player? Forget it. The game lost its luster after Mario Party 2 back on the N64.

So, to introduce something new and hopefully revive a series looking a little boring, Nintendo and Hudson Soft have packaged the latest Mario Party chapter with a little peripheral that hooks into your memory card slot. It's a little microphone, allowing you to take advantage of speech commands during particular mini-games, including a quiz show mini-game that's quite fun. It allows up to four players to answer questions and recognize characters, and is a blast to play. The mini-games it works with are cool as well, including one where you yell commands to a defense vehicle, telling it what attacks to use on advancing players.

However, the use of this microphone doesn't guarantee success. First, there's only a small amount of mini-games that take advantage of the peripheral, while the rest require a typical hands-on approach. This makes the device feel gimmicky. Plus, on top of that, not all speech is clearly recognized, leading to sometimes getting the wrong answer even when you absolutely have it right. Nintendo should have fine tuned this thing for better voice recognition. It still works pretty effectively, but kids are bound to get frustrated when they have to repeat their answers because they're marked incorrect.

Past this little gameplay addition, the formula's about the same. You can choose up to four players from the Mario universe and move them across a game board, landing on "hot spots" and collecting coins and stars. The game picks up tempo once you enter a mini-game, from which there are 80+ to choose. This allows multiple players to take part in competitions that can be 3 on 1, 2 on 2 or free-for-all, where the goal is to just take first place and beat your opponents. Once you unlock enough mini games, you can forego the whole "sun-moon" board game entirely and just have a mini game competition, which is the most fun part about Mario Party 6.

Don't get me wrong, it's not that the board game idea itself isn't fun, because it has its moments. However, the formula in this part of the game is growing stale, with players awaiting their turns without much interaction until the mini-games start. You do interact with a number of characters, and the game of chance can either give you something or take it away, but, really, this needs some kind of twist to keep it interesting. The graphics haven't changed at all from the last game (aside from slight visual effects in the mini-games), and the sounds are about the same, complete with repeated voice samples from your particular character.

Worse yet, Mario Party 6 still fails to offer a crucial element, a fundamental single-player mode. The AI in the single-player mode isn't really that competitive at all, allowing you to score victories and really get yourself a high score. The fun factor suffers as a result, making the game an avoidable effort if it's just you in the house. Call over some friends to spice up the competition, however, and you've got yourself a reason to own the game.

Mario Party 6 doesn't change the fact that something needs to be tweaked in order to gather interest. The mini-games still remain a treat for four players, and the use of a microphone is a smart idea, and comes in handy at points. However, the game's single player mode remains a letdown, and the graphics and sound come across as a rerun. If you're a fan of the series or have kids that are antsy for some non-violent board gaming fun, then it's worth a purchase. Everyone else, though, will probably want to skip this party for a livelier affair.