![]() StreamiGo! acts as Party Central’s primary single-player mode. What’s more intriguing are the two modes I didn’t get to try. ![]() There are some sparse minigames too, like a baseball one, but likely not enough to make it a Mario Party replacement. Another mode splits songs up into five rounds, where players compete to outperform one another in the majority of them. Love Tester is a co-op mode where both players are judged together, occasionally having to work their rhythm circles meld together during songs. While the core rhythm mode is the centerpiece of the package, a collection of special modes would shake up the format. It feels like there’s just enough for everyone here, which should help keep adults entertained alongside their kids. My session was a total hodgepodge of styles, jumping between Carly Rae Jepsen, Karma Chameleon, and Sonic Adventure 2’s Escape From the City. And that’s especially helped along by an eclectic list of songs that span modern pop, 80s hits, and Latin staples. That’s frankly expected from a motion-controlled game and won’t matter much in a casual setting, but it is a little funny that we still haven’t evolved far past the Wii’s shortcomings.ĭespite those motion quirks, the core rhythm gameplay is the exact, familiar fun I was craving from a Switch party game. Other times one of my Joy-cons would just miss notes entirely. Sometimes I’d hit a “perfect” note by total accident. The bigger my movements, the more inconsistent the motion controls got. Though it does run into some problems that Wii owners might be all too familiar with. The more you throw your body into Party Central, the more fun (and funnier) it becomes. ![]() While more reserved movements will register and it supports button-only controls, I find that a game like this is best treated like a fitness game. It’s an absolute workout - or at least, it is for me. The result was a flurry of fast, complex motions that had me on the floor by the end. I concluded my demo by diving into Moves Like Jagger at the game’s highest difficulty level. ![]() Though it’s easy to pick up and play, there’s some real challenge here for rhythm game experts who want to show off. One had me running in place as fast as I could to beat my friend’s distance. In addition, players are occasionally asked to strike specific poses and complete quick minigames mid-song. I’d need to wave my arms up, down, and to the side to hit every beat as they pass through a circular grid. ![]() Like some of the Wii’s best party games, the core hook needs little explanation: shake the Joy-cons like maracas, matching beats at the right time alongside the music. My buddy and I would spend the bulk of our session shaking our Joy-cons in its standard multiplayer mode. There’s a sizable enough suite of content here for what the game is and the promise of DLC, which will bring more songs and challenges over time, should give interested players enough to dig into by the end of its support cycle. The only thing I couldn’t test was its online elimination mode, which has the potential to be its crown jewel. During my session, I’d get to choose from a massive collection of songs, try out a small suite of minigames, poke my head into its StreamiGo! challenge mode, and flip through its cosmetic shop (all purchasable with in-game currency exclusively). Though Party Central is still a few months out from its August 29 release date, the build I played was surprisingly complete. Even if it doesn’t end up being the summer’s hottest hit, Samba de Amigo: Party Central is shaping up to be a gleefully silly return to the Wii’s golden age that’s custom-built for family game nights. Within moments of firing up a song, all the joys - and frustrations - of the waggle era came flooding back. I got a glimpse of that future during a sweaty, hour-long multiplayer session. ![]()
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