Paper Mario

"THE BEST Mario RPG to date!!"

This game definitely tops my list of N64 game of the year. After Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, not many people thought that Mr. Miyamoto and Nintendo could possibly produce another Mario RPG at such a high caliber. But they did. And they did it spectacularly! The plot is similar to Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars but is different. You have to collect Seven Stars to gain enough power to defeat Bowser. Why does Bowser have so much power? Because he stole the Star Rod from the Seven Star Spirits and trapped them in cards. And of course, Princess Peach is being held captive. The unique side scrolling ''storybook'' style of RPG is very intriguing. But unfortunately, like I said, it is side scrolling. The good thing is, side scrolling fits the ''personality'' and ''character'' of the game quite nicely and doesn't hurt the game much at all. But still you loose the freeness of isometric and first person and all of those, those have to offer. After you free a star spirit from the card it is being held captive in, it will give a power. They powers range from healing yourself or putting the enemy to sleep. The partner system is also different. Unlike the first game where you chose two partners to battle with at once, you only get to pick one! I was bummed out but you don't need more. Unfortunately a downfall in the game is, the difficulty. It is quite easy, so master RPG gamers like myself will be disappointed, yet thrilled. BUT, you can’t play as his fellow brother Luigi, or Bowser, who is the main boss, or Peach, who is captured by Bowser, or Geno, no appearance, or Mallow, now appereance. A small detail that got me mad, but, the game play is just a good either way. And with that, here is my review for Paper Mario!

Graphics: 10/10
Very very original. Very very very different. The characters are 2-D, but they live in a 3-D world! That is really cool and adds another taste to a constantly repetitive game market. Though sometimes a little too cutesy for some, it shouldn't be a turn-off one bit.

Sound: 8/10
Sound has definitely never been a measure of excellence for Mario games. Of course everyone die-hard fan remember some catchy tunes, but there are none to be remembered in this game. And of course a small signature of Mario games is the cute catchy little tunes and sound effects that only Nintendo produces. Still great quality, especially for the N64.

Game Play: 10/10
EXCELLENT! It is a ''storybook'' RPG that is really neat and very original. Good plot. And of course building your statistics, (which are HP FP and BP) having a partners that you can switch and upgrade (NOT level up) and most importantly... plenty of.... FUN!!! The only thing holding it back is, that it is a side scrolling. Having the limitless range Super Mario 64 was GREAT! But die-hard fans who have been playing since Super Mario Bros. first came out, should be used to side scrolling and pay it no mind. And even that, can’t hold it back from a full ten out of ten score.

Lasting Appeal: 9/10
The journey it's self is about 21 hours long or more! And then make the game perfect by adding badges making recipes doing favors, upgrading your partner, and much much more, will keep even the best gamer playing for 26 hours minimum!

Value: 8/10 (with some restrictions)
In this case value is hard to rate. For the money that it costs to buy the game, you definitely get your moneys worth. Like I said at about 26-30 hours to get 100 percent on the game completely. I am constantly looking for, and sometimes finding new things. And there are not too many improvements that I could possibly put on this game. But on the other hand, 50 dollars for ANY game is over priced. There are glitches overall in the game. Like what I call ''CGDE'' or ''Chronic Game Data Erasing.'' I recommend that if you really want your moneys worth, then you should buy the game used over the counter.

Overall: 9/10
Some of the things wrong with it are just nit picks at this point. But enough of them to hold it back from a ten. Definitely the BEST Mario RPG game ever. Superb in every aspect except difficulty. Good sound. Great graphics. Wonderful game play. Great lasting appeal. Like I said, superb in every way possible. Don't miss this game or you will be left out for sure!

This game also marks the end of Mario on the N64 dynasty. And one of the last games out. It came in 2nd for Nintendo game of the year. Of course it would be beaten out by a Gamecube game, but ironically, a game that he co-stared in, my personal favorite of all time, Super Smash Bros. Melee! So the game is pretty darn good to beat out games like Luigi's Mansion, Pikmin, and more. This game is something special and should be and will be cherished for years. I know three years after it's release I’m sure, people all over the globe are still playing or just now discovering the greatness in Paper Mario.

This is a must buy for every Mario, and Non Mario fan! This is a must buy for every RPG, and Non RPG fan! People come to me all the time and tell me they don't get RPG games, or they are bad at it, or some dumb excuse, but, this game, is GREAT for beginners, EVERYTHING is told to your and laid out right in front of you. You should have NO trouble getting used or into this game. Add this game to your library as soon as possible!! Renting would be a waste of 5 dollars! There is no excuse to not buy this game as soon as possible!

So there you have 1000 words why Paper Mario ROCKS!

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 02/01/04