Donkey Kong was once obsess with stealing Mini Mario toys that were first introduce in Mario vs. Donkey Kong. In Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!, Donkey Kong is back at kidnapping Pauline and just like Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2, the Minis are the main focus.



Gameplay

In the main menu, "I’m the Owner" is another why of saying that it’s a save file, "I’m a Guest" is a demo mode to demonstrate the game to a friend without the ability to save, and "Help" is the game’s manual. The full experience is through the I’m the Owner selection which includes the Main Game, Construction Zone, and Options. Main Game starts off in the first world, which is actually known as floor 1 since it takes place in a building. Each floor has 8 main stages, a boss stage, and a special stage. The main stages are constructed as a simplistic platformer without platforming involve, instead you have a set of Minis (windup Mario toys) that march forward when activate with individual taps and you must guide them through the exit to unlock the next stage. The Minis will march in a different direction when they hit a wall and they don’t change direction even if they startle a sleepy Mini and that sleepy Mini will become a front marcher.

The Minis, unlike Mario, can’t jump over gaps or land to a more higher ground, instead you use grids to place purple blocks that are taken from their default grid placements with the stylus and form stairs in front of the approaching Minis and platforms for them to land on. Be careful, even if one Mini touches a spike, enemy, or fallen from a huge high, the Mini will be destroy and automatically start over. If one Mini enters the exit door, a timer will activate making sure that the rest of the Minis are not far behind or loss a life. Thankfully, you can plan ahead before tapping the Minis expect during Plus Mode difficulty after completing the first main 4 floors. The 8th stage in every main floors require a specific Mini to be in front of the march, that Mini contains a key to open the locked exist door. The Boss stages is where you use the Minis as a cannon ball and you must aim at Donkey Kong or land on one of the cranes to drop an object on Donkey Kong and you must defeat Donkey Kong before you he destroys all your Minis. Special stages are the most challenging stages that must be unlocked by obtaining all the MINIMARIO cards from all the previous stages and Boss stage. There are also Star achievements in a form of Bronze, Silver, and Gold. Getting a Gold Star means that you completed a stage after collecting all the goodies (you don’t need to collect the 1-up M medal) in record time. I highly recommended that you don’t worry about the Gold Stars when dealing with a stage that you haven’t completed once. Restarting or exiting a previous beaten stage removes the hassle of the “losing a life” intervals even when choose to restart the stage and the lives are pointless anyway.

After completing the first 4 main floors (Normal Mode) also gains access to the Basement and the first half stages from Rooftop. Achieving more Gold Stars will unlock more Basement stages. Completing stages from the Rooftop unlocks new types of Minis and you can replace the Mini Mario toys from the Option menu. Finally, Construction Zone is where you create your own stages to upload and download other player’s fan stages including Nintendo’s via WiFi, which the servers are still up running.



Presentation

I had download half a dozen DSiware titles on my 3DS and so far Minis March Again is the only title that doesn’t hinder it’s visual presentation when playing in full (default) screens. The Mini Mario toys, as well as unlockable Minis, are design perfectly with their glossy finish that reflects their clockwork characteristics. The real character models, however, are horrendous especially when viewing the game in shrink resolution with their matte finish design that doesn’t really fit well in a cartoonish setting. The artwork from the background and the stages themselves do an excellent job at visually seeing of what the Mushroom Kingdom would be like if it takes place in a warehouse. The sound effects are noticeably welcome with every functional windup pacing from the Minis and the plushy thumps when falling from a safe distance along with the traditional coin-a-thon charm. The music are definable with Mario and Donkey Kong’s classic tunes that are remixed into a true puzzle genre environment that represents the sound of your Nintendo obsessed thinking cap .



Conclusion

If you want a true presentation of both Mario and Donkey Kong ducking it out by settling it on a platformer, Donkey Kong ’94 is a perfect download that is also available on the Nintendo eShop and let's not forget Mario vs. Donkey that is exclusive for 3DS Ambassadors. If you’re looking for a different take in rescuing Pauline with a more causal charm, Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again! will delight you with supplies of innocent Nintendo playsets. While there are two other Mini puzzlers (March of the Minis and Mini-Land Mayhem!) for the Nintendo DS and 3DS both of which I haven’t yet experience nor how different the three of them are, it’s safe to say that Minis March Again! is a better deal with an easier access because it’s a download.

8.5 / 10 eShop points

8- Great This is a great game that might have a few flaws or could have been better, but is still a game we highly recommend!