"This is the sequel to an amazing RPG...and I get this?"

In November of 2003, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga was released. That game was released for the Game Boy Advance, and it was an amazing RPG. Once I played it, I couldn't wait to get my hands on the sequel, Partners in Time. I was prepared to play a game as good as Superstar Saga. Once I got thirty minutes into the game, I was prepared to be disappointed. And I was right.


Story: 7/10

The story of this game takes place in the Mushroom Kingdom rather than the Beanbean Kingdom. This time, an alien race known as the Shroobs has invaded the Mushroom Kingdom. Their leader is Princess Shroob, a blue-ish dark princess. Mario and Luigi go to the throne room of Peach's castle, only to find that it has been invaded by an alien. Together, they defeat this alien. That alien is a Shroob, and that's basically where the story begins. Mario and Luigi must team up once again to stop this alien race from taking over the Mushroom Kingdom, and the entire world. However, they will not be alone. As they travel through the past, they encounter themselves as babies. These babies are rescued by the brothers, and then they ride piggyback on Mario and Luigi for the rest of the game. They will prove to be of some use, too.


Gameplay: 7/10

Gameplay-wise, this game is not all that different from Superstar Saga. Outside of battle, you can use Mario and Luigi's abilites they have learned to access certain areas and such. Not only that, but this time, Mario and Luigi can use the help of Baby Mario and Baby Luigi throughout the adventure. The babies can be thrown with X, which allows the babies to reach places the adult brothers would not normally be able to reach. In battle, Mario and Luigi use their normal attacks on enemies, and the babies help as well. In this game, instead of being able to use Bros. Attacks, you are able to use Bros. Items. These cost money to buy at the shop at Peach's castle, which is one of the reasons Bros. Attacks should've stayed. Bros. Items are used to attack enemies and deal the most damage. With each Bros. Item, you have to press a certain button at a certain time to continue the assault. Once you mispress a button, the attack ends. After awhile, the combo gets harder and harder to perform. You cannot blend drinks in this game, although the beans have stayed. This time, however, they're simply called a "Bean". There is only one type of bean in the game.

Instead of being able to blend drinks like in the last game, you use the beans to buy badges. When you're about half way through the game, you'll be able to go to a sewer where Fawful (from the first game) is. He enters a pipe and the babies can too, so that means that only the babies can meet Fawful. He sells you certain badges for a certain price of beans. Beans are generally hard to find, so the most expensive (and good) badges are too difficult to obtain, and finding beans are tedious. There are patches on the ground which the babies can use their abilities to dig under them. They contain the beans. After each level, you have to go somewhere in Peach's castle to learn a new ability for the brothers or babies. The babies do have their uses, although I still enjoyed Superstar Saga's style of only two brothers more. The downside to the gameplay (and the game, really) is that it has lost its touch; as in, there are no side quests (other than Fawful's badge shop) to do, and the game is way too short. Once you beat the game, there's really nothing else to do other than to restart a file.


Graphics: 8/10

The game is good in this sense. The graphics are neat, the colors are good, and the backgrounds and such are also nice. The graphics got a nice improvement over the previous game, and they're generally nothing bad. In fact, I like the graphics better than Superstar Saga's. A nice touch for the Mario & Luigi series.


Sound: 6/10

The sound is decent, but it's nothing special. Some sounds have been taken out, such as Mario and Luigi saying the name of the ability they've selected (e.g. "High!", "Fire!"). Not only that, but there ARE some rather annoying sounds in this game. Baby Peach's crying immediately comes to mind. When she cries, she sounds like "WAAAAAHH! WAHAHHAHAHAHH WAAAAHHHH!!!!!", and she screams really loud. This goes on for a few minutes in certain scenes, and it can get annoying. Baby Mario and Baby Luigi's cries aren't so bad, however. Other than that, there's nothing wrong with the sound.


Music: 7/10

The music is nothing special in this game. I was sad that this game did not have an excellent soundtrack like the previous game in the series. There are some good tunes, however, such as the boss battle theme, the final level theme, and a few others. However, none of them are too memorable, and other than the boss music, you'd probably have to try to remember a tune in order to even remember it at all.


Replay Value: 2/10

This is another spot where this game falls short. There are little to no side quests to do at all, and other than the main story, you have nothing else to do. As far as I remember, there were also no mini-games to play (aside from one, which was really tedious and annoying). Once you're through with the story, that's it. There's nothing left to do.


Overall: 6/10

After reviewing this entire game, I give it a score of a six out of ten. It's a fairly decent game, but it also has its fair share of flaws. If you're a hardcore Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga fan, then buy this game. However, if you've never played Superstar Saga and are a fan of RPGs, avoid this game. You'll be disappointed. Until my next review, everyone!

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 09/13/07

Game Release: Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time (US, 11/28/05)