Mario Party DS received mixed reviews, with general praise for its minigame variety and criticism for its absence of an online multiplayer mode.

[2][8][15] Once there are five turns remaining, an event known as the "Final 5 Frenzy" occurs in which Bowser aids the player in last place by giving them coins or a Star, depending on the outcome of a roulette.

[10] This detail is reflected in the game boards and minigames, in which characters ride rubber ducks, drive wind-up cars,[20] and glide across a backyard on clothes hangers.

[1][7][14][19][21] To complete the story mode, the player must defeat three other characters, all of whom are randomly selected and computer-controlled, on all five game boards,[22] in addition to clearing all five boss minigames.

[1][8][9][15] There is also a "Party Mode" that allows up to four players, human or computer-controlled, to compete on any of the five game boards, either independently or in opposing pairs; unlike with "Story Mode", the number of turns, the difficulty levels of the computer-controlled characters, and the number of Stars each player starts the game with can all be adjusted.

[1] Most of these game modes allow up to four players to play minigames that are either randomly selected, manually chosen, or part of a predetermined set.

[2][7][19] Players can view any collectibles they have unlocked and listen to in-game audio – including music, jingles, and character voices – in the game's gallery.

Bowser, planning to find the four other Sky Crystals on his own, then orders Kamek to throw the pint-sized heroes out to a distant location.

The crew treks back to Bowser's Castle, recovering the four remaining Sky Crystals along the way by defeating a Piranha Plant in Wiggler's garden, stopping a Hammer Bro from destroying Toadette's instruments in her music room, helping Diddy Kong free DK after the latter was turned to stone by a Dry Bones, and freeing a Koopa's grandfather, who had been trapped in a book by Kamek.

In a last-ditch attempt to defeat the heroes, Bowser uses another device, known as the Megamorph Belt, to transform himself into multiple different forms made up of blocks, initiating another boss minigame.

[3] The minigame variety was generally praised, while criticism was largely directed at the lack of Wi-Fi connection, which heavily restricted the multiplayer aspect.

[7][8][11][17] IGN's Patrick Kolan and Craig Harris summarized the game as "a worthwhile party outing for gamers who are new to the series" and "a solid multiplayer mini-game experience with a lot of the flaws of the previous versions", respectively.

[2][11] Response toward the design and pacing of the minigames was more mixed; GameSpot's Frank Provo stated that a majority of the minigames were engaging,[10] Game Informer's Bryan Vore wrote that they were "suitably amusing",[7] and Eurogamer's Ellie Gibson described them as "too simplistic, over too quickly or simply too dull to be enjoyable", as well as "badly designed and boring".

[14] Michael Cole of Nintendo World Report offered a less positive response toward the puzzle games, describing them as "simplistic and cumbersome".

[19] GameSpot's Frank Provo stated that the presentation "reflects the cheerful attitude you'd normally expect a game starring Mario to have".

[10] The win condition usually involving only Stars elicited criticism from reviewers,[11] with Eurogamer's Ellie Gibson referring to the system as "flawed and unfair".

[34] In October 2020, Mario Party DS became the subject of a viral fabricated anti-piracy screen uploaded by YouTuber Joey Perleoni,[35][36] who subsequently uploaded multiple other videos showing various instances in which the message could supposedly be triggered, such as when an item shop is entered or the "Final 5 Frenzy" event is initiated.

[37] The original video inspired several Internet memes as well as an online trend of users creating and uploading their own fake anti-piracy messages.