The final mode is Giant Jungle, which is basically a larger version of Mario’s Main Event. However, you have to obtain 10 stars spread out across the level, so it’s a lot harder to accomplish than simply going from point A to B. Despite the difficulty in accomplishing this puzzle, it was one of my favorites, since it required a lot of planning and thinking ahead to accomplish. Naturally this won’t appeal to everyone, so it’s probably for the best that there’s only three of them.
Mini Games
In addition to having all the puzzles to complete, there are also a few mini games to mess around with. These are all very gimmicky and lack lasting appeal, but they can be fun to mess around with for a couple of minutes. These include a game where you target things with the touch screen, another touch screen target game, an elevator game where you have to dodge bullet bills and finally a game where you need to grab enemies out of the sky. Like I said, they’re fairly gimmicky, but still offer some enjoyable gameplay in short bursts.
Create and Share
After you’ve seen/done it all in Minis on the Move, you can continue your adventure with user generated content. This can come as either levels you’ve created on your own (very user friendly) or you can obtain new levels via street pass. Unfortunately this makes the mode fairly limited, although it’s still better than nothing. At the very least, you can challenge your friends with your own twisted creations or look like a fool to their twisted designs.
NOT
Starts Slow
Roughly the first 30 levels of Mario’s Main Event and the first 10 of the other two modes are dedicated to teaching you how to play. Each of these levels typically contain painfully easy puzzles, which seem to be nothing more than a taste of how all these mechanics work. Not only are they not needed, they also do a terrible job of getting you interested in the game. This can also make starting other modes a drag, since these concepts are pretty easy to grasp. If you can make it past this point they get better, though it can still be very boring.
VERDICT
Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move is a fantastic puzzle game with plenty of diverse options. With roughly 230 puzzles to solve and several mini games to test your skills, it’s hard to not get your money’s worth out of this game. While the game is admittedly hard to get into, it can be quite rewarding if you’re into this genre or if you want a cheap game to pick up and play once in a while.
