Like most games in the Mario Party series, Mario Party 7 is a party video game in which players compete in a virtual board game.[1][2][3] There are 12 playable characters, 10 of whom are available from the start: Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Yoshi, Wario, Princess Daisy, Waluigi, Toad, Boo, and Toadette.[4] The two unlockable characters, Birdo and Dry Bones, are both introduced to the Mario Party series in this game.[4][5][6] Each character can be controlled by either a human player or artificial intelligence (AI).[2][3][7]
One of Mario Party 7's game modes, Party Cruise, allows up to four players to compete in Battle Royales (free-for-alls) and Tag Battles (teams of two), in addition to featuring 4-Team Battles, in which up to eight players are divided into teams of two.[8] Each ruleset involves multiple players rolling dice (numbered one to ten in Battle Royales and one to five in Team Battles)[9] to advance, playing minigames to earn coins, and sharing the goal of gathering more Stars than their opponents,[3] with each of the six game boards requiring a different method of doing so.[1][7][10] While Grand Canal and Bowser's Enchanted Inferno share the series' traditional system of reaching Stars and purchasing them for 20 coins each, Pagoda Peak sees Star prices increment by 10 every time one is obtained, Pyramid Park allows players to use coins to purchase rides on Chain Chomps to steal Stars from other players, Neon Heights involves each Star being in one of three treasure chests, and Windmillville requires players to purchase windmills to earn Stars.[1] Toadsworth serves as the host for all of the boards.[11] Regardless of which board is played, each game can last between 10 and 50 turns per player,[8] and the player with the most Stars at the end of a game is the victor.[1][2][12] If enabled, three of six Bonus Stars are given to players post-game. These Stars are based on randomly selected criteria, such as winning the most minigames or traveling the highest number of spaces.[13]
Depending on which space a player lands on during a board game, they can gain or lose coins or initiate a minigame involving a non-playable character, such as Donkey Kong (DK), Koopa Kid, or Bowser.[10] A minigame is automatically played every time each player has taken a turn, with the colors of the spaces players land on determining whether the minigame is a four-player free-for-all, two against two, or three against one.[2] For performing well in minigames, players can earn coins, which can be used to purchase items to hinder other players.[2][3] Orbs, items introduced in Mario Party 5 as "capsules", can be purchased at shops or collected on certain spaces during board games.[14][15] An orb's effects can be self-inflicted, such as allowing the player to roll more than one die in a single turn.[16] The effects can also be directed toward a rival, such as deducting coins, orbs, or a Star; these items may then be given to the player who used the orb.[17] The latter type of orb can be placed up to five spaces behind or ahead of the player, and its effects are triggered when another player lands on or passes the space.[18] Some orbs can be used only by certain characters.[19]
Mario Party 7's single-player mode, Solo Cruise,[10] differs from Party Cruise in that the player competes against one other character, controlled by either a human player or AI, to complete a set of tasks for each board.[1][20] The objectives differ from the ones in Party Cruise, such as having to collect a specific number of Stars or possess a certain number of coins upon reaching a space. Once a player has completed all six boards, they are added to the rankings section, which shows the players who took the fewest turns to finish them.[1]
