Super Paper Mario Review

Platform: Nintendo Wii
Genre:Platform/RPG
Number of Players:1
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date:Q4 2007
OfficialWebsite
Writer: Media-Girl

Rating : 9.0

Super Paper Mario Review

Pros: It’s creative, incredibly fun, and as a bonus, beautiful to look at.
Cons: Difficult menu interface, limited replay-ability, and doesn’t capitalize on Wii-mote’s potential.

This game is much improved over the first Paper Mario for N64. The latter had many RPG elements, but very little fun. This time around, the game play is much more action-based, but still with a hint of RPG. The result is fun, easy, and fluid game play. The introduction of various helping objects called “pixels” (such as the aptly named “Carrie” who serves as a moving platform for Mario) adds a unique mechanic.

Graphics:
The reason the score isn’t higher is twofold. One, going back and forth to the item screen to select a pixel gets tedious, especially in the heat of battle. Where are the shortcuts? Two, though unique, the game play could have been much more innovative. For instance, shaking the remote to do more damage to enemies?

Controls:
Re-play is pretty [dull] as well. You can revisit stages, but there isn’t much bonus content. There are a few side-quests, like collecting recipes, but other than that, it’s straightforward.

Sounds:
However, though the game may be brief, the beauty and originality of its art style is quite memorable. Featuring bright and colorful worlds to explore and crisp, detailed, clear graphics, the art style of the game really looks fantastic on the Wii. There is very little blur or pixilation.

Flow:
The music isn’t quite as innovative as the graphics, but then to surpass such a high standard would be difficult. As it is, it’s certainly still quite good. It’s the usual Mario fare, with cheery tunes that suite the action but don’t particularly lend themselves to repeat listening.

Fun Factor:
From a quirky sense of humor to unique graphics and an unusually dark plot, this game is brimming with creativity. Worth a play, even if you aren’t a fan of RPGS. Like the last Paper Mario game, the writing is still overly wordy, but now that you can scroll fast and even skip dialogue, it’s not so bad. Also, the humor is hilarious! This game may not be perfect, but it’s very well-executed and tons of fun, to boot.