Super Paper Mario (Wii) Review

Mario games are never really about the story, with flimsy plots based around Princess Toadstool / Peach being kidnapped and Mario being lumbered with the task of once again having to rescue her from the grasp of the evil, nefarious Bowser, King of the Koopas. This time round, though, there is a bit of a twist as Count Bleck is the main villain, with his scheme to take over the world...Honestly, even though this game is part RPG, the storyline has just as much fluff as other Mario adventures. The problem here is that because of that role-playing aspect, conversations and dialogue are stretch out much more than they normally would, testing your patience at many times.

Thankfully the game is extremely pretty to look at, with high quality 2D renditions of the entire cast that move smoothly around the screen, flipping nicely when changing directions and even turning into slits when the world morphs into its 3D version. Locations are full of energy, with so much going on, plus the method of turning everything into 3D is not only clever, but looks extremely impressive as the entire aspect ratio alters and new features appear that were otherwise obscured. Sadly, however, the soundtrack is severely lacking, not only in comparison to true Super Mario platform games, but also when compared to the very pleasing music found in the previous two Paper Mario RPGs. Sure, it pays homage to classic Mario tunes here and there, but they are normally mixed into bland pieces that are quite unmemorable on the whole. There is nothing particularly bad, yet in the same breath nothing really sticks out as being of the calibre we have grown used to.

And, sadly, it seems the main game itself lacks some of the spark that many had been hoping it would have. New Super Mario Bros. was a marvel to play, if somewhat stunted by its low difficulty level, so many help high hopes for Intelligent Systems' project since the team has such a strong back catalogue (Fire Emblem, Advance Wars, Metroid: Zero Mission, previous Paper Mario titles, just to name a few). However, and quite surprisingly, the game may well have worked far better if the RPG side had either been ditched or at least toned down.

The game starts off as a traditional Mario platformer, with the player controlling the moustachioed plumber in a side-scrolling action setting, running and jumping on enemies as you aim to reach the final part of the level. The first twist comes in the form of having to repeatedly hit enemies to wear down their hit points and your character can even level-up after despatching a sufficient amount of monsters. Then there is the fact that as the game goes on you can control not only Mario, but Princess Peach (who can float through the air temporarily), Bowser (who breathes fire that can kill almost anything) and Luigi (who jumps higher than the rest), switching between the four heroes freely during levels, using each ones unique abilities when necessary to progress through each stage.

One specific trait that Mario has is the ability to, as touched upon earlier, change the world from 2D to 3D, which adds a whole new element to how you play. Say you find yourself stuck at what appears to be a dead end, simply switch to 3D and you could find a hidden access pipe, switch, platforms or much more. Basically, though, because there is so much hidden in the 3D world, you end up using the feature all the time rather than sparingly, which dampens some of the wow effect the more you play. You need to be careful with your 3D usage, though, as you can only stay in the third dimension for a limited time before your health starts to go down. This is not too much of a problem, as simply slipping back to 2D means the special meter begins to refill quickly.

The other aspect of the game that is especially clever is the use of assisting characters, called Pixls. You find these creatures at varying points in the adventure and must switch between them to aid you on a frequent basis. The default one you have joins right at the start and allows you to point the Wii remote at the screen (rather than holding it side-on like a NES pad, which you do for the entire adventure) and highlight features and gain information on them. There are also many others, such as one that can grab enemies or distant objects, another which is basically a re-charging bomb, and one that gifts the ability to butt-stomp...and so on. Just like the idea of switching between 2D and 3D, as well as changing main characters to get through the game, figuring out the right Pixl to use is imperative for your progress and is an idea that is cleverly implemented.

Everything finishes slightly too quickly as well, with the game only spanning eight chapters, each split into four separate levels with boss encounters draped across the game at timely intervals. Sure, there are some side quests (such as a special dungeon where you have to work through 100 monotonous rooms without stopping...), but it is still over quicker than expected. However, this is probably for the best since although it controls well, has some clever additions and is very easy on the eye, there is a certain magic missing and the game feels liked a missed opportunity. Perhaps the strong worldwide sales will spur on a vastly improved sequel. Or better yet, Intelligent Systems will do a proper Paper Mario RPG on DS or Wii...