GameCube Preview | Paper Mario The Thousand Year Door

By Adam Riley 14.10.2004 1


Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door
RPG hi-jinx, ahoy!

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Preview by Rory Renehan < Redking :: Freelance >



Game Information


Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Intelligent Systems
Genre: RPG
Players: 1
Origin: Japan

Game Page

Click the title's box art to view this <br />product's C3 Game Page.



Mario, Nintendo's plucky plumber mascot has starred in a vast array of game types including platformers, puzzlers and even beat 'em ups. Unbeknownst to most, though, he has also starred in some fantastic RPGs that have unfortunately never been as heavily pushed as his other genres, or enjoyed by nearly as many people as they deserved. Paper Mario 2 looks to cahnge matters, with it being touted as one of the strongest titles in the run-up to Christmas and one that looks like proving action and role-playing can be mixed to produce spectacular results.

Flat as a pancake, yet so deep!

A[/b]t first glance, the game may seem to be a step backwards in what is widely believed to be the traditional RPG form. When compared to the super realistic Final Fantasy, Paper Mario may, initially, pale in the visual department. It is not until you begin to experience the game first-hand, however, that you are stunned into silence, well, from what we have seen so far, anyway. It is the element of vibrant, abstract beauty that we find so refreshing; the game is proof Nintendo can be intelligently original and still make a damn stylish game. Forget the realistic RPGs of old, Paper Mario 2 looks to show us a new way to step forward with role playing games.

Apart from a unique aesthetic approach, Paper Mario 2 can also boast some smart gameplay mechanics, such as the very well implemented paper theme. Mario can now take full advantage of being two-dimensional, folding himself into an aeroplane in order to cross seemingly impassable gap and, more frequently, use this ability to turn side-on and slip through prison bars and other small spaces. The paper idea is also set to introduce lots of magnificent set pieces. For example, pages turn to put into play environmental effects such as raising bridges and when Mario jumps up and literally slides between the sheets of tavern beds. These are just some of the highlights of what sort of shenanigans Mario

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