Super Paper Mario
Publisher: Nintendo Developer: Intelligent Systems Platform: Wii Players: 1 Release: 2007 Genre: 2D Platformer / RPG Rating: 8.4 \ 10.0: Great
Above is a 3D scene from the game's first stage
I'll assume that Super Paper Mario is a rather untraditional entry in the Paper Mario RPG series-- it's more platformer than RPG. The game begins at Mario and Luigi's house on a peaceful day. Luigi states that it's so peaceful, it's boring, and that he wished that something surprising would happen so they could go on another adventure. They're suddenly told by Toad that the Princess has been kidnapped, and probably by Bowser-- no surprise. So the Mario Bros. sneak into Castle Koopa while Bowser is plotting to kidnap Peach, and he spots Mario and Luigi. Suddenly, a mysterious, deranged figure appears out of thin air. He says that he's Count Bleck and that he's captured Peach. He casts a spell on Mario that renders him unconscious, then creates a vortex that sucks up everyone but the portly plumber. Mario wakes up to see a butterfly-like creature named Tippi who warps him to Flipside, a town in the sky that will soon be consumed by a vortex if Mario can't recover all eight Pure Hearts. After you find an ancient magician in a room behind an invisible door in the first stage, which begins in 2D, he charges you all the coins you have (or 10,000 coins, his original price, which I highly doubt you'll manage to collect) to gain the ability to "flip". By pressing A, you can "flip" into 3D. While in 3D, a meter will appear under your HP display-- your Dimension Meter. If your Dimension Meter empties, you'll take damage. In order to defeat Count Bleck, you'll need the assistance of Peach and Bowser (who will eventually escape Bleck's grasp and wind up in Flipside, and become playable.) and several ancient creatures called Pixls. The first Pixl, Thoreau, allows you to grab certain enemies and items and toss them. The second Pixl, Boomer, can transform into a bomb to destroy obstacles and activate switches. The third, Slim, lets you become so thin that all moving hazards will pass through you if you stand still. The fourth, Thudly, allows you to jump up and slam into the ground, dealing heavy damage to unshielded foes. And the fifth, Carrie, transforms into a hovering platform, allowing you to move much faster and cross pits of spikes. These are the Pixls who will find during the first half of the game, and there are even more to discover. Throughout the game, you'll play as Peach and Bowser and escape Count Bleck's fortress, and they will join Mario on his quest as fully playable characters. Peach can float with her parasol by holding down the jump button, and Bowser can breath fire by crouching. However, I sometimes think the hints you receive from Tippi to help you solve complex problems are overly cryptic, making me stuck on certain parts of single stages for a very long time (thank goodness for Save Blocks). Also, some stage segments require you to use multiple characters (you can easily swap you character out from your item menu), like flipping into 3D with Mario in order to get on top of an otherwise un-scalable object, and then gliding over a long gap with Peach and her parasol, it can be frustrating to fail and have to repeat the process. Additionally, the script is very text-heavy. The writing is hilarious, but there's just so much, and sometimes I just wish the characters would shut their mouths! Still, Super Paper Mario is a superb platforming-RPG, and I hope to see more games with its unique dimension-swapping concept.
Ups
Unique dimension-swapping concept
Creative and humorous
Variety of playable characters
Platforming focus
Pixls
Downs
Very text-heavy script
Difficult stretches
ESRB: E Content: Comic Mischief and Mild Cartoon Violence Price: $19.99 (Retail)
Above is a 3D scene from the game's first stage
I'll assume that Super Paper Mario is a rather untraditional entry in the Paper Mario RPG series-- it's more platformer than RPG. The game begins at Mario and Luigi's house on a peaceful day. Luigi states that it's so peaceful, it's boring, and that he wished that something surprising would happen so they could go on another adventure. They're suddenly told by Toad that the Princess has been kidnapped, and probably by Bowser-- no surprise. So the Mario Bros. sneak into Castle Koopa while Bowser is plotting to kidnap Peach, and he spots Mario and Luigi. Suddenly, a mysterious, deranged figure appears out of thin air. He says that he's Count Bleck and that he's captured Peach. He casts a spell on Mario that renders him unconscious, then creates a vortex that sucks up everyone but the portly plumber. Mario wakes up to see a butterfly-like creature named Tippi who warps him to Flipside, a town in the sky that will soon be consumed by a vortex if Mario can't recover all eight Pure Hearts. After you find an ancient magician in a room behind an invisible door in the first stage, which begins in 2D, he charges you all the coins you have (or 10,000 coins, his original price, which I highly doubt you'll manage to collect) to gain the ability to "flip". By pressing A, you can "flip" into 3D. While in 3D, a meter will appear under your HP display-- your Dimension Meter. If your Dimension Meter empties, you'll take damage. In order to defeat Count Bleck, you'll need the assistance of Peach and Bowser (who will eventually escape Bleck's grasp and wind up in Flipside, and become playable.) and several ancient creatures called Pixls. The first Pixl, Thoreau, allows you to grab certain enemies and items and toss them. The second Pixl, Boomer, can transform into a bomb to destroy obstacles and activate switches. The third, Slim, lets you become so thin that all moving hazards will pass through you if you stand still. The fourth, Thudly, allows you to jump up and slam into the ground, dealing heavy damage to unshielded foes. And the fifth, Carrie, transforms into a hovering platform, allowing you to move much faster and cross pits of spikes. These are the Pixls who will find during the first half of the game, and there are even more to discover. Throughout the game, you'll play as Peach and Bowser and escape Count Bleck's fortress, and they will join Mario on his quest as fully playable characters. Peach can float with her parasol by holding down the jump button, and Bowser can breath fire by crouching. However, I sometimes think the hints you receive from Tippi to help you solve complex problems are overly cryptic, making me stuck on certain parts of single stages for a very long time (thank goodness for Save Blocks). Also, some stage segments require you to use multiple characters (you can easily swap you character out from your item menu), like flipping into 3D with Mario in order to get on top of an otherwise un-scalable object, and then gliding over a long gap with Peach and her parasol, it can be frustrating to fail and have to repeat the process. Additionally, the script is very text-heavy. The writing is hilarious, but there's just so much, and sometimes I just wish the characters would shut their mouths! Still, Super Paper Mario is a superb platforming-RPG, and I hope to see more games with its unique dimension-swapping concept.
Ups
Unique dimension-swapping concept
Creative and humorous
Variety of playable characters
Platforming focus
Pixls
Downs
Very text-heavy script
Difficult stretches
ESRB: E Content: Comic Mischief and Mild Cartoon Violence Price: $19.99 (Retail)
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