Mario Party Jamboree Switch 2 Review: Light camera action

With its large selection of modes and high-quality mini-game roster, last year’s Super Mario Party Jamboree marked one of the best series entries to date, so it’s not surprising that Nintendo’s aiming to capitalize with a quickfire Switch 2 Edition.

The Switch 2 version of Jamboree improves resolution (1440p docked, 1080p portable) and adds various new features, including two new modes, camera support, and mouse-controlled mini-games, seamlessly integrated into the existing package.

Although the overall quality of the additions is inconsistent – especially if you don’t have ideal room conditions for the Switch 2 camera – the introduction of mouse controls and faster-paced modes, in particular, undoubtedly elevates an already great game. Whether that’s worth the $20 / £17 upgrade for existing Jamboree owners, though, will very much depend on how much you love Mario Party.

The Switch 2 Edition’s new content is housed inside Jamboree TV, a new section of the game themed like a television studio, featuring a host Toad, plus a crew and audience of Mushroom Kingdom critters. Players are first asked to set up their cameras, if you own one, and then a grainy version of yourself will pop out of warp pipe as a “contestant”, with a live feed of your grimacing face permanently tethered to your Super Mario avatar.

Further reading

Review: Super Mario Party Jamboree is one of the best in the series

Nintendo’s 18th entry excels in both volume and diversity of content

From here, you can launch into one of the two new modes, Bowser Live and Carnival Coaster, play the standard Mario Party game with a few new twists, or Free Play mini-games. The star of the package, as mentioned, are the excellent new Mouse mini-games, which intuitively make use of the Switch 2 Joy-Con’s new control method. There are around 15 of them, and they’re much more fun than they have any right to be.

Mouse controls have existed for as long as Nintendo’s been in the console space, of course, but Jamboree’s developer has come up with some fun and inventive uses for the input in 2025, empowered by the addition of force feedback and gyro, compared to what you use to click around your Excel spreadsheets.

One game, for example, has players charging toy cars by pulling them towards you and ‘feeling’ the tension with HD Rumble 2, all the while twisting the Joy-Con to aim the car towards a goal. It’s another case of various technologies combining to create an experience that feels natural, unique, and sometimes, a little bit magical.

Other highlights include air hockey, a two-player climbing game, an ice cream scooping challenge, and a contest to spray paint the most Bob-Ombs as possible. Crucially, the Mouse games require very little explanation, and the Joy-Con mouse works on most living room furniture, or even your legs. My young daughters were able to play by themselves with no assistance and had a great time.

Mouse controls feature prominently in Jamboree TV’s best new mode, Carnival Coaster, an arcade-style game, which has players travelling on a rollercoaster, shooting down enemies with mouse aiming, and competing in co-op mini-games every time you enter a pipe. You’ll receive bonuses for good performance in mini-games, which will in turn give you more time to ride the coaster, travelling further.

The other big new addition, Bowser Live, is much less compelling, mostly due to its reliance on the hit-and-miss Switch 2 camera (which, of course, must be purchased separately). In this mode, Bowser challenges 2v2 teams to compete in camera or microphone challenges, much more reminiscent of motion games of the past.

“Other highlights include air hockey, a two-player climbing game, an ice cream scooping challenge, and a contest to spray paint the most Bob-Ombs as possible”

The presentation here is great, with Bowser performing to an energetic crowd of minions, including, when it works, the players themselves via their Switch 2 camera. Unfortunately, the games are incredibly simple, challenging players to punch a block or balance Goombas on their heads, Kinect style. The microphone offering isn’t much better, with mini-games that involve players shouting to play a Bowser version of Flappy Bird or powering a remote control car (these games are also available separately in other modes).

For that reason, I can’t see Bowser TV commanding much of your Jamboree play time. That’s also because the Switch 2 camera is pretty technically disappointing for local play outside of ideal conditions, often requiring players to stand in odd positions when playing motion games, and providing poor image quality when attempting to capture multiple players on a sofa. It doesn’t track either, so if you move at all during your 90-minute Party game, your avatar inevitably ends up as somebody else’s shoulder.

As Switch 2 owners who’ve used Game Chat will know, in portable mode, with the camera placed on a table or desk in front of you, it works great, so naturally online sessions in Mario Party will be smoother than with family on the sofa. When it does work, camera support is implemented elegantly across the main Mario Party game, making the experience a lot more enjoyable for players. But based on my experience, local players are sadly in for a rough time.

In addition to Bowser Live, Carnival Coaster, and the around-20 new games, Mario Party Jamboree’s Switch 2 Edition adds two new rule sets. Tag Team rules, as the name suggests, positions Party mode for 2v2 matches. Frenzy Rules, meanwhile, is a welcome five-turn setup with frantic delivery of items and mini-games. Combined with the Coaster mode, the latter is really welcome in a game that can often command hours of your time for a single play session.

Finally, Jamboree TV allows players to GameShare to other Switch 2 owners without the game, though this is limited to 30 mini-games and only works locally.

By itself, then, Jamboree TV is a bit of an uneven expansion. However, Switch 2 does power some genuinely great new mini-games and, when it works (and if you own one), camera support does elevate the general experience, making this almost by default the definitive version of one of the best Mario Party games. Whether that’s worth the $20 / £17 upgrade, however, is very much dependent on your personal affection for the series.