Mario and Donkey Kong – Minis on the Move

Mario and Donkey Kong – Minis on the Move, known in Japan as Mario & Donkey Kong: MiniMini Carnival, is a 2013 puzzle game developed by Nintendo Software Technology for the Nintendo 3DS. The fifth entry in the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series, it was released exclusively via the Nintendo eShop download service on May 9, 2013, in the PAL region and North America, and on July 24 in Japan. A sequel, titled Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars, was released for both the 3DS and the Wii U in 2015.

In the main game, the player must place blocks on a grid with the goal of making a path for a Mini—a small walking robot resembling Mario or another Mario series character—to travel from a warp pipe to a star goal, while avoiding obstacles such as spike pits and Shy Guys along the way. The player can complete the additional task of collecting three colored coins along the created path, which itself may require additional tasks, such as closing the Mini within a figure-eight loop.

Players can tap the mini, which gives it a burst of speed. If the mini falls off the pathway, gets blocked, stays in the pipe after about 30 seconds, if too many pieces fill the pipe, or if the timer reaches zero, the player fails the level. Collecting all three coins for a level earns the player a star token, which unlock additional gameplay modes, levels, and toys as they are amassed. There are more than 180 puzzles over four modes of play, as well as four minigames which can be unlocked.

Additionally, Minis on the Move features a level creation mode with which the player can create custom levels using any and all pieces from the main game, as well as control the frequency of available falling tiles. Created levels can be saved and shared via StreetPass once the player is able to complete the created level. These levels can also be shared via Nintendo Network, where users can download other popular user creations. All online features were retired in April 2024.