Originally released in 2016, Marooners, from developer/publisher M2H, has been ported to the Nintendo Switch, bringing its chaotic party game madness to a more accessible audience in terms of local couch co-op gameplay. Marooners’ port to the Nintendo Switch feels like a natural fit for the portable device with fast-paced mini-games that are great for younger players just beginning to cut their teeth on the party game genre.

Race For The Treasure

The mechanics of Marooners is straightforward and simple: pick a character, choose a weapon, and collect as many coins and gems as possible in each mini-game while trying to be the last person standing. Rinse and repeat over a handful of mini-games to become the winner of the series. Up to six players can run and jump around each arena as they try to avoid other players to snag the most coins or gems. They can also go on the offensive by slapping other players to make them lose their precious items to steal for themselves. The slapstick, mild violence is about as innocent as it can get for this type of game, making it suitable for younger players. What's nice is that even if a player is knocked out, they are still able to interact during the round, coming back as a ghost to haunt the remaining players.

via Nintendo

Players can choose from a variety of goofy characters and weapon combinations, with leveling up unlocking even more choices (including over 70 different weapons alone). There are 25 different arenas and games to play, all of which can be played in either offline mode or online. Offline local mode comes with full bot support, but don’t think that those CPU controlled opponents will take it easy on you. The game is surprisingly difficult in that regard, as the AI knows exactly what it’s doing. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but should be considered for less experienced players.

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On that note, however, some of the loose controls add to the difficulty of the game. If I was ever on or running to the edge of an arena, I would more often than not fall right off. There seemed to be a bit of a response issue with the controls. This also happened more often than I would have liked when jumping. Of course, Marooners isn’t exactly a game that requires pinpoint accuracy, with button-mashing often being just as effective of a strategy.

via Nintendo

Online Island In The Sun

Marooners’ online multiplayer works well in terms of matchmaking, but currently seems to be having a few issues (as of launch weekend). While I was easily placed into an online match, the rounds never lasted to the end with only one person was left standing. Instead, the round would play out for 15-20 seconds before randomly transitioning to the next mini-game. While it’s likely that this issue will be fixed in a future patch, ultimately, the inclusion of an online mode is a testament to the team at M2H, especially considering that so many other recent party games on the Switch are missing that feature.

Marooners is a title that fits perfectly on the Nintendo Switch as a quick and easy way to get more of the party/mini-game action that you love. Marooners is unlikely to replace other party game staples such as Mario Party, but it’s good enough for what it is, especially for younger gamers.

A Switch copy of Marooners was provided to TheGamer for this review. Marooners is available now for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch.

Marooners

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