N64 Review: Paper Mario

Review by: bombermania24

Paper Mario was originally released for the Nintendo 64 in 2001, and has now made a triumphant return on the Wii's Virtual Console. Paper Mario is a role-playing game starring none other than Mario himself, albeit in paper form. It's just as fun to play now as it was back then, and it's definitely worth a slot in any gamer's library.

The game begins with Mario heading off to Peach's castle for a party. Soon after entering the castle, though, Bowser raises the castle out of the ground and into the sky. Using the power of a stolen star rod, the celestial item that grants wishes, Bowser defeats Mario and sends him flying out of the castle. And so, Mario sets on a quest to recover the Star Spirits, the guardians of the star rod that Bowser managed to capture, and save Princess Peach. Though the plot is nothing special, it has its moments, and is certainly full of charm. And, there is a wide cast of entertaining and oftentimes hilarious characters throughout the game, making the experience much more enjoyable.



The gameplay essentially is broken into two parts. The first is controlling and moving Mario around. The game plays out in a 3-D landscape, in which Mario can move in all directions, despite the fact that he's made out of paper. You can use hammer and jump abilities to traverse the landscape, as well as special abilities that you gain throughout the game. The controls work fine, and the game makes it fun to get from one place to another, unlike a great deal of other RPG's. There are some of the item-fetching quests that all RPG's seem to have, of course, but the developers manage to make it more entertaining than in other RPG's. The controls themselves work fine, and you'll have no problem utilizing all of Mario's abilities.

The more important aspect of the gameplay, though, is the battle system. If you bump into an enemy on the map, you'll go into battle mode. Here, Mario (and the allies he receives throughout the game) fight against the enemies in a turn-based battle system. You'll each take turns dishing damage out on each other. But, what Paper Mario does to distinguish itself is use action commands. The power or effectiveness of your attacks depend on how well you complete the action command for that attack. It can be something simple, such as tapping the A button fast enough, or timing specific flicks of the analog stick. You can also press A right before an enemy hits you to reduce the damage it does. The action commands make the battle system addictive and a lot of fun. They all work well, and they effectively make battles more skill-oriented than other RPG's do. You'll also get a wide variety of attacks and items you can use in battle, making each battle varied and different. You'll also have to play accordingly to what your fighting. For example, if you fight a spiky enemy, you need to make sure not use any kind of jump moves on it, unless you enjoy causing Mario pain. Or, you might have to specifically focus on flipping an enemy over with a jump attack before you can start dishing out the damage on it. The battles are always entertaining, and add a great more depth to the game.



The difficulty of Paper Mario isn't particularly brutal. With some skill and a little bit of luck, there should be no need to level up for hours on end in order to progress. The difficulty keeps the game flowing, with no annoying pauses in your progress just to grind. The game is also fantastically creative. You'll be fighting everything from a Shy Guy military commander to a team of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles rip-offs. The dialogue itself is flowing with this same creativity, with numerous laugh-out-loud moments in the game. The sheer creativity and originality of the game really make up for the easy difficulty, and both keep the game moving at a good pace.

The presentation of the game is very charming and cutesy. All of the characters in the game appear to be made out of paper, giving the game a fresh and original art style. The graphics themselves are solid, though not especially demanding. But, all of the game's environments are colorful and fun to look at, giving the game some real pizzazz. The music is pleasant and catchy, and never fails to sound good. Be prepared to hum some of the game's tunes throughout your day.



All in all, Paper Mario is a masterpiece of gaming. It's creative, charming, and addictive, and will last you for a good, long time. The game has a great battle style and a real personality to it. It's hilarious and clever at moments, and truly witty. Paper Mario is a game that any Wii owner should look for, no excuses. It's a masterpiece of gaming, and truly a landmark game, one that anyone can, and should, enjoy.