Updated:
09 Jun 2020
In Super Mario Party, we get the chance to play from the perspective of many of Mario’s best buds and his baddie foes alike, with a couple of new faces joining the Party. So, who’s showing up this go-round, and which star-chasing character should you choose? I’m the gamer mom who’s got your answers, and here’s my list of the Top 10 Best Super Mario Party Characters with bonus background details on each!
10. Bowser
Get on the Ball with Bowser
What’s Great About Bowser
- Playing as Bowser in any game in the Mario series is the ultimate role reversal. SMP is no exception, and there’s no denying it’s just plain fun to roar around the game boards as the big, bad Bowser.
- Bowser’s Special Dice Block showcases his power moves but also his tendency to fall hard. This dice rolls significant risk and real reward with its -3, -3, 1, 8, 9, 10.
- Bowser plus Rosalina is a beauty and the beast allyship that brings some balance to Bowser’s otherwise wild nature. Playing the pair together cancels out the coin loss risk while managing some momentum.
Bowser’s Details
- The King of the Koopas takes pity on you when you land on his ally space in SMP, “Sure, I’ll do you a favor. You look like you need one! GYAHAHAH!”, he roars.
- Mario’s most infamous foe, his eternal rival, Bowser, has been making Mario sweat the close calls in daring princess rescues since his 1985 debut alongside the forever-in-peril pair in SMB.
- The Koopalings are commonly mistaken as Bowser’s troop of little ones. However, in 2012 Nintendo officially confirmed that Bowser Jr. is the only child of the biggest baddie of them all, making the Koopalings only underlings after all.
9. Pom Pom
Don't Let Pom Pom's Cuteness Fool You! She's a Knockout in More Ways than One!
What’s Great About Pom Pom
- An unlockable character and a worthwhile challenge. Pom Pom stomps onto the scene once you sail the Salty Sea in World 5 on the Challenge Road.
- She’s a dependable ally for adding extra movement to your roll with her Special Dice Block that features 0, 3, 3, 3, 3, 8.
- Consider pairing her up with Donkey Kong for a money-making duo that just won’t stop.
Pom Pom’s Details
- In SMP, she didn’t show up in her signature pink Airship, but she’s got all her attitude. When Pom Pom becomes your ally, she says, “Hiya! I’m Pom Pom! I hate losing, so let’s make sure we win!”
- Pom Pom is a bad-girl baddie who first debuted in Super Mario 3D Land as a partner in crime and game boss with Boom Boom.
- She’s never had spoken lines before Super Mario Party, and this game is her first appearance without Boom Boom by her side.
8. Koopa Troopa
The Friendliest Foe You Know
What’s Great About Koopa Troopa
- Koopa Troopa has become such a familiar and strangely, friendly face. It’s the same in SMP. Sometimes, it doesn’t even feel like he’s a baddie anymore. Until he reminds you by showing his excitement about allying with Bowser.
- Koopa Troopa rolls an uninspiring 1, 1, 2, 3, 3, 10. You’ll move mostly slow and steady with an occasional burst of speed. Which checks out pretty spot on for a turtle.
- Ally up with Goomba for a baddie duo all set to grab the cash and improve those low numbers that Koopa Troopa rolls solo.
Koopa Troopa’s Details
- When you pick up Koopa Troopa as an ally in SMP, he’s in buddy mode, asking, “I want to go on an adventure with you! Do you have room for a Koopa Troopa?”
- Another foe who first appeared in the 1985 original SMB. Mario meets Goomba first, and then, just after, Koopa Troopa comes along. And that’s how their story begins. These two have been frenemies a long, long time.
- The infinite lives cheat from SMB was a Mario and Koopa Troopa collaboration. Mario traps a Koopa Troopa, and shell stomps him over and over into a staircase resulting in lives so numerous they can no longer be displayed as numbers and become a series of symbols instead. Now that’s teamwork.
7. Dry Bones
You Won't Collapse if You Go Racing with Dry Bones!
What’s Great About Dry Bones
- Like Pom Pom (and Diddy and Donkey Kong), Dry Bones is an unlockable SMP player. While everyone is pretty much in agreement on how to unlock the other characters, no one seems exactly sure when Dry Bones appears. The consensus is that you’ll find him on the Party Plaza after completing something in the game. Some say it’s collecting two gems, but no one can say for sure.
- Dry Bones rolls an evenly split Special Dice Block of 1, 1, 1, 6, 6, 6. Not terrible, not terrific. You won’t get stuck in one spot for too long, anyway.
- The unlockables from SMP can form a super successful ally team. DK plus Dry Bones (or Pom Pom) will net you extra coins and cancel out DK’s 0s with guaranteed movement.
Dry Bones Details
- Dry Bones dry rasp matches his name “*rattle*...*rattle rattle* (I’ll... go with you...)” is Dry Bones’ ally message.
- Dry Bones is as old school as it gets. His first appearance was in Super Mario Bros. 3 in 1988. So, he debuted a couple of years later than the original cast, but early enough that he feels like a part of the original Mario crew.
- The novel trait of Dry Bones as baddies in SMB3 and other games is their invincibility. They can be dismantled, literally into a pile of bones, but they just keep reanimating. Little skeleton Koopa Troopa zombies. The good news is, when shattered to bones, they won’t do damage to Mario.
6. Yoshi
It's a Blast to Play as Yoshi!
What’s Great About Yoshi
- What’s not great about Mario’s adorable dino pal? Playing as Yoshi in SMP is a fun way to play this character in solo mode instead of as an extension of Mario.
- Yoshi rolls 0, 1, 3, 3, 5, 7. It’s a pretty solid, middle of the road dice except for that 0 face. That’s a real bummer, in my book. But it’s only one face, so you should be just a Yoshi-style hop, skip, and jump away from the star in no time.
- If you’re missing Mario, you can go classic and pair the two up in SMP party for a decent chance at rolling double digits while flutter kicking your way over some serious game board ground. If you love Yoshi’s solo mode, pick Monty Mole’s upgraded standard dice block. You’ll have a chance to grab a coin now and again while otherwise getting around in good time.
Yoshi’s Details
- Yoshi is in cooperation mode when you land on his ally space. “Yoshi! Yoshi! (We’ll win by working together)”
- The dynamic duo that is Yoshi and Mario first teamed up in 1990 in Super Mario World.
- Why do Yoshi’s hatch from eggs? Because they’re dinosaurs, right? Wrong. The story goes that Bowser trapped all the Yoshi’s in eggs as a kind of a curse. How about a couple more fun Yoshi egg facts? Different colored spotted Yoshi eggs hatch dinos with different abilities and cracking a Yoshi egg while riding a Yoshi will earn you a 1 UP!
5. Luigi
Flyin' High with The Green Guy
What’s Great About Luigi
- They wouldn’t be the Mario Bros. if it weren’t for this gangly guy in green. Luigi always shows up to the Party, and he’s his usual younger brother self on the SMP boards.
- Luigi’s Special Dice Block bears a family resemblance to his brother’s in that it’s neither dazzling nor dismal. The plumber brothers are pretty average in this version of SMP, and Luigi rolls a 1, 1, 1, 5, 6, 7.
- Ally up with Daisy to be “Team Second in Command” while booking it around the game board with the high rolls you’ll have a good shot at, between these two.
Luigi’s Details
- Luigi first appeared in Mario Bros. in 1983 and was just an exact copy of Mario in a change of overalls.
- Luigi was originally a second player option, but two-player Mario play ended quickly. Luckily, Luigi stuck around and got his own storyline.
- Released on Halloween 2019, in his title feature, Luigi’s Mansion, Luigi can now morph into a plasma-like figure reminiscent of Slimer but in a more jello-y form. You can call up this gooey green double of Luigi at will. Gooigi, as he’s called, can move through solid objects, and his first appearance in the game is busting Luigi out from behind bars, by slurping through to the other side.
4. Rosalina
Glitter and Shine with Rosalina's Luma Magic (and All the Coins, All the Time)
What’s Great About Rosalina
- Rosalina brings her interstellar light to the SMP gameboard as a playable character once again. She’s come sailing in from the stars to join the Party in a couple of previous titles. This time, as always, she brings her enchanting magic with her. Although sadly, no Lumas.
- Rosalina’s dice block is, literally, my favorite. See my article on the Top Ten Super Mario Party Dice Blocks for confirmation. She rolls +2, +2, 2, 3, 4, 8. It’s certainly not a high risk, high reward dice, but I’ll take drifting around the board in stardust with this dice any day.
- Goomba’s no Luma, but these two make an excellent pair. They both have extra coin rolls and similar movement capacity, so you’ll rake in shining coins and stars. To be fair, Rosalina pairs well with anyone because she’s so benevolent and bright, but the above is true for Rosalina paired with any of the characters who also have a coin bonus roll.
3. Mario
Get Fired Up with the Guy the Named the Game After
What’s Great About Mario
- Our namesake and well-loved hero. Since you’re playing a Mario game, it feels like you should give the guy at least one go ‘round the game board.
- Mario rolls like a pretty regular bro in SMP. Like his brother above, his dice block isn’t a disaster, but neither is it a delight. A standard dice with 2 and 4 swapped out, Mario rolls 1, 3, 3, 3, 5, 6
- Let Mario and Peach get out on the town together for a star-crossed pair that will run right along with decent digits.
Mario’s Details
- Mario hasn’t always been after Bowser. In fact, his original and oldest foe is actually DK. That’s right, Mario’s first appearance was in Donkey Kong in 1981.
- Neither has plumbing always been Mario’s profession. In that first DK game, Mario was a carpenter. Kinda makes you feel like there’s so much more to Mario than meets the eye!
- The iconic overalls, mustache, and cap that have come to symbolize this classic character were originally just graphic design limitations that resulted in the need for each element. The game designers needed the color contrast of overalls to show movement, the mustache solved the problem of no space for a mouth, and the cap meant they didn’t need to figure out what to do with Mario’s hair.
2. Peach
Peach Stays Poised in the Toughest of Trials
What’s Great About Peach
- The Princess who got empowered in Super Mario Odyssey, Super Mario Party Peach is wiser in her ways now. She merely waves at you demurely when you choose to party princess style around the game board.
- Her Special Dice Block rolls 0, 2, 4, 4, 4, 6, which gives you decent odds of getting around reliably.
- Peach pairs best with unlikely ally Hammer Bro. Strange maybe, but with HB’s +3 roll and the princess’ decent numbers, the couple is an admittedly awkward, match made in heaven for scooping up coins while traipsing around the board at royal speeds.
Peach’s Details
- In SMP, when you pick up Peach as an ally, she’s sassy, spouting off, “I can play the hero when I need to, you know.”
- Peach first appeared as the damsel in distress in the original Super Mario Bros. in 1985. She and Mario have been in a “complicated relationship” now for 30+ years.
- In said debut, she was called Princess Toadstool, and because her name is also prone to change based on translation, there’s been all kinds of gossip, all around the globe, about how exactly one should address her royal highness.
1. Hammer Bro.
Hammer Bro. for the Win!
What’s Great About Hammer Bro.
- Hammer Bro. is another well-known baddie that we love to hate. When he’s hurling hammers at you, you might trend more toward hate. Although nobody’s denying that flipping it around and having a go at those hammers is a lot of fun! That neat trick, and the fact that my six and four-year-olds picked him, is why he gets #1 on my Best Super Mario Party Top Ten List. (Not an impartial list then, but my kids are gonna adore me forever, and I sure love those little dudes, too.)
- Another bonus, Hammer Bro. rolls for real. To give my kids’ pick some merit, his Special Dice Block will hit +3, 1, 1, 5, 5, 5, and he’s the only character in SMP who can boast a +3 coin boost.
- HB makes an excellent allyship with obviously everyone. There’s not a character you could pick who’s dice block wouldn’t be better together with HB’s. Cancel out the loss with Waluigi, get all the gold with DK, Rosalina, or Goomba and go, go, go with the likes of an ally like Shy Guy. The possibilities are endless!
Hammer Bros. Details
- HB packs a punch even when allying up, but to be fair, he’s just being honest when he asks, “Someone call for Hammer Bro? Careful you don’t get slammed!”
- Yet another of the SMB ’85 crew, HB, was almost a sort of mini Bowser in that first go-round, back when they were both slinging hammers at our hero.
- We got to meet three additional species of this baddie in SMB3, where we encountered different versions of HB who could spit fire, throw boomerangs, and immobilize Mario with a ground pound.
- There you have it! These are my (and my little dudes’) personal picks for the Top Ten Best Super Mario Party Characters. Now you’ve got the deets on all the best party guests, and you can go rockin’ around the game board like a Super Mario Bros. pro. Plus, if you love Super Mario Party, you can party on by checking out these additional articles from gamersdecide.com.
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