With 30 levels, five challenges, and five thrilling boss battles,Princess Peach: Showtime!has a lot of content to offer in terms of variety. So, even though each level of Princess Peach: Showtime! doesn’t take too long to beat, the game is still overflowing with good ideas and memorable challenges.
Thanks to Peach ensembles, each level feels somewhat fresh, as the powers and goals of each challenge change according to the costume you’re wearing. Of course, some levels stand apart for adding a surprising twist to the gameplay or showing a given costume’s true potential. Here are the best levels in Princess Peach: Showtime!
10The Dark Museum & The Purple Mystery
Detective Level 3
Since the clues and mysteries ofthe Detective levelsare mostly obvious and over-hinted, this ensemble potential is never fully realized. The closer Princess Peach: Sowtime ever gets to offering a genuine mystery is with The Dark Museum & The Purple Mystery.
In the final level of the Detective ensemble, the puzzles are still straightforward. However, they demand some observation from you, as you need to find the correct order to interact with some clues. Furthermore, when the level asks you to find out who the actual Detective Sparkla is, you’ll need to remember details from previous levels, which is a nice full-circle moment.
9The Ghostly Castle
Swordfighter Level 2
Thesecond Swordfighter levelcompletely subverts the tone of the adventure. Instead of battling a thorny plant, you now must escape the dungeons of a castle that has been overcome by spooky apparitions.
The Swordfighter gameplay is one of the least creative when considering what other costumes can do. Still, the Ghostly Castle keeps things fresh by changing the level before your eyes. Bridges fall and furniture rains on you as the castle ghost tries (and fails) to bring you down. In the end, there’s a quick battle against the revenant, in which the precise dodging of the Swordfighter is put to the test.
8A Parade On Ice
Figure Skater Level 2
A Parade On Ice takesFigure Skater Peachto a parade that the Sour Bunch is taking hostage. Like in the previous Figure Skater level, you must jump and spin at the precise time and location to take down the baddies. However, the parade structure adds another layer of challenge, as the whole level is moving forward, giving you less time to react.
After the parade section, there’s a rematch against the Darkle ice skater, in which you can basically redo the best section of the Figure Skater’s first level. As such, A Parade On Ice has everything you could wish for from a Figure Skater level.
7The Dark Ninja & The Legion Of Guards
Ninja Level 3
Thefinal level of the Ninja ensembleallows you to explore all of the ensemble’s abilities. The level starts with a stealth section that forces you to carefully choose your path while hiding in tall grass and taking down enemies. Then, it’s time to join forces with the Ninja Sparkla to escape the Sour Bunch’s dark dimension.
The Dark Ninja & The Legion of Guards also has a race section in which you must wall-kick and wall-run to survive. Finally, the level ends in a battle against a Darkle Ninja, in which you must coordinate your attacks with your Sparkla buddy before you run out of debris to jump on.
6Blight Of The Sea
Mermaid Level 2
After putting together an underwater concert, Blight of the Sea asks you to control Mermaid Peach and chase a sunken ghost ship. Thesecond Mermaid levelfinds new uses for the school of fishes that you’re able to control with your voice by having you use your aquatic pals to open shells and cure cursed Theets while you fight against the current and keep moving forward.
In a game so easy as Princess Peach: Showtime!, any minor spike in difficulty is welcome, as it helps to keep you engaged. That’s precisely what Blight of the Sea offers by reusing the exact mechanics of the first level but asking you to react faster and with more precision. Even the concert at the end of the level is more challenging, turning this into the best Mermaid adventure.
5Welcome To The Spooky Party
Patissiere Level 2
The Patissiere levelsare pretty tricky to master. They require precise coordination through a gauntlet of minigames in which you bake cookies and decorate cakes, usually while a countdown increases the pressure. Welcome to the Spooky Party finds an unexpected way to illustrate the urgency of Parissiere’s minigames by putting you in the middle of a zombie outbreak.
In Welcome to the Spooky Party, the Theets are turned into brainless creatures moved only by their hunger. Instead of human flesh, these zombies crave sugar, which means Patissiere Peach can make sweets as fast as she can to cure the Theets with some comfort food. Combining a horror trope with the most innocent costume in Princess Peach: Showtime! helps Welcome to the Spooky Party stand apart from other levels.
4A Kung Fu Tale
Kung Fu Level 1
In terms of gameplay,every Kung Fu level is similar. You punch bad guys in the face and jump on wooden poles until you face an evil master that you must parry with precise button presses. What makes them unique is the story they tell and how Nintendo designs the level progression.
On that note, the first Kung Fu Peach level is actually the best. Finding secret paths in the mountains to save an aged teacher from a Darkle threat is thrilling, and the whole thing plays like a classic Kung Fu movie. Nintendo exceeded expectations by mimicking the feel of Kung Fu stories, and A Kung Fu Tale is the best example.
3The Stolen Statue
Dashing Thief Level 2
The Dashing Thief ensembleis arguably one of the best in Princess Peach: Showtime!, and none of the three levels for this costume is better than The Stolen Statue. First, the level begins as the Sour Bunch steals some precious statues with their airship. So, it’s up to you to jump from airplane to airplane to infiltrate their flying fortress.
The Stolen Statue has good puzzles to solve, several sections dedicated to grappling hooks and overcoming the airship’s tight security, and the best escape sequence of the game. The second level of the Dashing Thief offers a spectacle like no other, making it one of the best levels in Princess Peach: Showtime!
2Mighty Mission: The Rescue
Mighty Level 2
The Mighty ensemble in Princess Peach: Showtime! is inspired by superhero media and sci-fi tropes. But Mighty Mission: The Rescue also draws from classic tokusatsu TV shows to offer one of the most spectacular levels in the game.
Mighty Mission: The Rescue starts with a shoot ‘em up section in which you are tasked with protecting a fleet of friendly spaceships. You’ll land on an alien planet to rescue kidnapped scientists from evil machine-like enemies. Finally, you’ll morph into a giant warrior to fight a gargantuan alien in the ruins of a city. It’s a fantastic way to pay homage to classic Japanese TV shows. Unfortunately, Nintendo didn’t expand on Mighty Peach’s giant transformation for this costume’s third and final level.
1Cowgirl At Dusk
Cowgirl Level 2
The Cowgirl ensemble is arguably the most fun to play with. The lace of Cowgirl Peach can be used to take down enemies or reach distant objects, offering a good gameplay variety. Furthermore, Cowgirl Peach has entire sections dedicated to horseback combat, in which the game turns into a mix of infinite runners and lane-based beat ‘em ups.
The Cowgirl levels also brilliantly use Wild West tropes, putting you in a desertic landscape where bandits run amok. The best level of Cowgirl Peach is definitely Cowgirl at Dusk, in which a train heist turns into a desperate race against the clock. In this level, you must pursue a derailed train destroying Theets’ towns, using your horse-riding skills to infiltrate the wagons and eventually take down the infernal machine.
Thanks to you, the Wild West Theets are saved, and you may ride into the sunset with a feeling of fulfilled duty.
