Daily Debate: What Would a Zelda-Themed Mario Party Game Look Like?
Posted on May 08 2025 by Josh Wittmershaus
It’s no secret that the Legend of Zelda franchise competes in popularity with other Nintendo series — namely, games featuring Mario and his entourage. Aside from the Mario-starring games, there’s Luigi and his mansions, Wario and his wares, and, of course, the Mario Kart and Mario Party series.
While we’ve seen Link and even a Hyrule-themed track in Mario Kart 8, the lack of his presence in other Mario games is noticeable. While it would be fun to see Link in a Mario Party game, I’m keen to take it a step further and contemplate: what would a “Zelda Party” game look like?
There’s almost forty years of different maps and Hyrules to take into account when thinking of boards for Zelda Party. Naturally, there is the temptation to just draw from the regions of Breath of the Wild, with the Sky Islands and Depths from Tears of the Kingdom as bonus levels. However, I think having boards from other classic games would be the most fitting: the Forbidden Fortress from The Wind Waker, Skyloft from Skyward Sword, and Snowhead Mountain from Majora’s Mask all come to mind as places that could become creative and interactive game boards.
Then, of course, there are the characters. Super Mario Party Jamboree, the newest edition to the series, boasts over 20 playable characters. So, the question is more, “Who will the surprise characters be?” Tingle is already booked, because he takes the role on Toad (obviously). Maybe Ravio from A Link Between Worlds, or Saria from Ocarina of Time?
At this point, I don’t think I even want to broach the subject of what minigames we’d see. That could be a whole Daily Debate in itself! However, I’m ready to start drawing out and fantasizing how a Zelda Party Snowhead board would function, with the raising of the center and the Wizzrobe battle games.
What about you? What would you want to see in a Legend of Zelda version of Mario Party? What kinds of boards and characters would you include? Let us know in the comments!
Josh Wittmershaus is a writer at Zelda Dungeon. Originally from Erie, Pennsylvania, he now resides in Northern California. Aside from Zelda, Josh enjoys playing music, seeing live music, music history, and all other things music. He also enjoys skating, hockey, and the occasional political or philosophical thought exercise.
