Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars

"I know this is a lame tagline, but I just wanna inform you, this is one of the best games for the SNES!"

The year is 1996, and the Super Nintendo is on the verge to descend into our memories as the greatest console ever created on this planet. With the Nintendo 64 planning to take over this spectacular system, it seemed that the Super Nintendo was already planning its demise. However, just months before declaring the SNES an ''inactive'' system, Nintendo and Square decide to team-up to release possibly one of the most memorable RPG's in video gaming history, known as Super Mario RPG.

While many may think the story is another typical ''Mario'' tale, just like in previous games, in actuality, it is not. The story begins in a quiet, serene flower garden, where Princess Toadstool is enjoying a day of rest and tranquility. Then suddenly, clouds of darkness and impiety start to cover the clear, innocent sky, and out of nowhere, the impetuous Bowser decides to capture her once again! He just never seems to stop! Observing this unforgivable event, our favorite fat plumber decides to set out on an adventure again to save the poor Princess. What it seems to be another long and boisterous adventure for the hot-headed Mario, for some odd reason, the brave plumber ventures into Bowser's dark and gloomy dungeon in the shortest amount of time possible. Then, as he enters a mysterious chamber, Mario finally finds the Princess, hanging from a chandelier! Finally, as he gazes on the poor Princess, Mario finally meets his arch-nemesis, and challenges him to a rancorous battle. What it seems to be another victory our hero, possibly the biggest plot twist in the Mario series is about to occur. From the sky above, an ugly and frightening sword suddenly crashes through the roof of Bowser's precious Castle. This drastic impact sends Mario, Bowser, and the Princess flying into opposite directions. Furthermore, the unforgiving event causes a mass destruction of the legendary Star Road. Who's the culprit behind this tragedy you might ask? The villain is Smithy, an evil blacksmith who has taken over Bowser's precious fortress. With help from his old buddies, as well as two newcomers, Mario must destroy Smithy's evil plans and bring back the seven stars that once connected the legendary star road together.

I originally thought the story was another Princess Toadstool has been kidnapped by Bowser, blah blah blah; Mario must fight his evil foes to rescue her again, blah blah blah. However, this is only the very beginning of Mario’s adventure in Super Mario RPG. As already mentioned, Mario’s primary goal this time is the rescue the seven stars to help restore the legendary star road. I was very pleased with this outcome.

Many of Mario's closest friends featured in previous games that have made their way to Super Mario RPG include Princess Toadstool, Yoshi, Toad, and many others. Enemies such as goombas, paratroopas, bob-ombs, etc, have also made an appearance here. Aside from the returning characters, there are also many new faces that decide to aide Mario in his latest quest. Some of these newcomers include Mallow, a marshmallow looking character whose main objective is to find his parents, and Geno, a mysterious doll brought to life. Following Mario's rescue later in the game, the Princess also decides to lend a hand to the group. Lastly, the final character yet to mention who decides to join Mario's party is none other than the King of all Koopas, Bowser! These four characters are unique from one another that do not deserve to be ignored. The aspect I like mostly about all the playable characters are that they are all equally-balanced. This is a very welcomed change, since many previous RPG's, such as Dragon Warrior and Chrono Trigger feature the main character as the strongest throughout the game. One example that portrays the equal balancing of the playable characters are the unique magical attacks they can learn. Whenever challenging a specific enemy, due to his vulnerability, it is sometimes better to use Mallow's electrical attacks rather than Mario's fire, or vise versa. Since there can only be a maximum of three characters in battle, this allows me to substitute among them as often as possible, unlike in many other RPG's.

The battle system presented in this game is simplistic, but very enjoyable. Unlike in many other RPG's that feature ''random encounter'' system, the battles occur whenever you come into contact with another visible enemy. Compared to random encounter, this system is very satisfying, since you can easily avoid coming into contact with weaker enemies than you, unlike in games such as Dragon Warrior. All in all, this system can relieves a lot of stress, since you can freely avoid combat whenever your stats are running low.

After successfully winning a battle, you will earn experience points and valuable coins. Unlike in previous Mario games, where the only purpose to collect coins was to earn extra lives, the coins here are more valuable, that allow you to purchase stronger equipment from shops. Every time you slaughter an enemy, not only will the person who successfully defeated the foe will earns experience and coins, but every member in your party will receives the same stats as well. This definitely decreases the amount of tedious battles, which in turn, decreases the game's overall length. The combat system is turn-based, just like in almost every other RPG. As already mentioned, when entering battle, you can choose a maximum of three characters each time. Whenever it's your turn to participate in a specific battle, you will have four commands. You can either attack the opponent with your equipped weapon or you can use one of your special attacks that can totally brutalize the foe, or damage an entire group of enemies in the entire battle. You can also choose to use a specific item that can definitely help you complete the battle, or you can select to ''defend'' your body from opponent attacks or simply run away.

One of the most creative features presented in the battle system is ''timed hits''. These timed hits share similar principles compared to ''critical hits'' in other RPG's. However, unlike in most RPG's, such as Dragon Warrior , timed hits do not happen by luck. Instead, as the name suggests, these ''timed'' hits occur by pressing the correct button at a specific period of time whenever the character is about to attack the enemy or defend from his strikes. Furthermore, there are various methods for obtaining a ''timed'' hit whenever using a specific type of attack. For instance, when attacking with Mario's ''fire orb'', you must repeatedly press ''X'' whenever he is conducting the attack. On the other hand, when attacking with Mallow's ''shocker'' technique, you must simply press ''Y'' at the correct time.

One principle attribute of Super Mario RPG that stands as one of my favorite RPG's of all time, is the incongruous humor presented by the main characters. In some RPG's, like Chrono Trigger and Golden Sun, the hero is illustrated as a complete mute. Super Mario RPG is no exception. Instead of hearing Mario's goofy speech throughout the game, he often imitates his previous ventures, such as his experience in Bowser's fortress in the very beginning. I always thought Mario was a goofball after going through all his troubles, instead of simply opening his voice! Later in the game, you will encounter Booster, one of the most corny and smelly characters in the game. In one scene, Booster devours an entire cake, about five times larger than himself! The funniest part of this game has to be Bowser's attitude. In previous Mario installments, Bowser was an evil and aggressive koopa with an intention to defeat Mario into shreds. In this game however, Bowser cries like a little baby whenever he gets hurt by the smallest things, such as trying to smash a door open and eventually failing. I laughed my ass of whenever I witnessed this priceless moment! There are also many interesting sights to be observed when venturing through the landscape and towns, such as Link and Samus suspiciously hidden somewhere in this game. Hehe...

Unlike in many previous Mario games, Super Mario RPG presents a respectable number of bosses for you to pound on. Each boss shares an unique trait, such as the hilarious Booster, the tasty and delicious Bundt, the minuscule and deadly Jinx, and the laughable Axem Rangers. Even though most of them do not provide a serious challenge, each boss battle is very enjoyable to participate in.

Probably my favorite aspect of this game is the decent amount of challenging, unique, and entertaining mini-games presented throughout your entire adventure. In one mini-game, your goal is to collect as many coins as possible while traveling down a spectacular and ferocious waterfall. In another mini-game, Mario must team-up with Yoshi to successfully beat the evil Boshi in a challenging and mind-boggling race. Some of these mini-games present a lot of tactics to succeed them, like the Yoshi race, which totally infuriated me many times.

While Super Mario RPG may seem like a linear adventure, in actuality, it is not. Later in the game, prepare for a lot of backtracking especially when attempting to venture of into new areas, or hunting for rare and powerful items. Usually though, Mario and his friends will backtrack to locations previously visited to play brand new mini-games, such as the always enduring bug catching contest, or the hunt to find three mysterious flags.

Graphically, Super Mario RPG presents one of the most stunning and spectacular visuals and animations to be presented on any Super Nintendo game. I absolutely love observing the visuals whenever adventuring through Bowser's Keep, or scaling the legendary and mystical Star Hill. This game also performs a magnificent job of translating the two-dimensional characters, to the three-dimensional backdrops. My outmost favorite aspect of the graphics though has to be the magnificent visuals presented by the special attacks during battle mode, either performed by the characters or the enemies. Examples of this include, the fearsome flames coming from Mario's hand whenever he conducts the ''Super Flame'' technique, or the devastating beams of light whenever Geno executes the ''Geno Blast'' skill.

The special techniques in this game also comprise their own share of sound effects, not to mention they are amazing to hear. Performing Mallow's ''Shocker'' technique produces a triumphant roar as it crashes towards the unfortunate enemy from the heavens, or the sounds of danger and menace emerge whenever an enemy executes a ''Corona'' special attack towards you. No matter what attack the characters and enemy execute, the sound effects they produce are utterly amazing. While the sound effects are impressive, the music in Super Mario RPG is even more spectacular to listen too. Just like in many other games, different types of music are played highlighting the current situation of a specific scene. For instance, the tunes of horror and mystery are played whenever Mario enters unwanted, ''dark'' stages, such as the Sunken Ship and Forest Maze. Or music of revulsion is played whenever Mario ventures through the dreadful Booster Tower. Another great example of how music is interpreted to the current mood of the surroundings are the tunes played whenever Mario enters a specific town. When Mario explores a town for the first time, such as Rose Town, sinister, depressing music is played, which show that Smithy and his evil henchmen are planning some kind of revolt nearby. However, whenever Mario and his friends rid the evil concealed within a specific town, bright and cheerful music is played.

If there is one disappointing aspect presented in Super Mario RPG, it would have to be the overall difficulty. Believe it or not, the game is most difficult when you play the earlier stages, instead of the later ones. You could say that the difficulty hits a peak in the early stages of the games, and gradually decreases as you further progress into your adventure. While some of the bosses encountered later in the game may provide a superior challenge, overall, it's still pretty simple.

All in all, while the entire game is on the easy side, with all the great aspects introduced in this game, such as timed hits, unique bosses, or the incredible visuals, Super Mario RPG is still a top-notch RPG for the Super Nintendo system that definitely needs to be looked over, if you have not yet!

Final Score – 9/10

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 03/30/03, Updated 03/31/03