"Not only is it horrible compared to its prequel on the GBA, it's horrible even on its own. My advice? RENT IT, unless you're an extreme fan."

I, as much as anyone else, probably loved the first Mario & Luigi game on the GBA. While the story wasn't lacking, people wanted more... a sequel. This game isn't to satisfy those people. It's to give them a slap and tell them "lol owned". Also, this game is proof that while gameplay can be good, the other aspects can bring it totally down. Therefore, it's only logical I'd begin with gameplay, then the rest. Read on. (though you may wanna read the story section first)

- Gameplay: 8/10

- Ok. It's the same battle system as the first game. It's an RPG, but there are action commands (somewhat like Paper Mario, if you played that) that lets you deal more damage. If you're attacked, you can dodge attacks or even counter, depending on the timing or on the attack itself. On the world map, you can move around, jump or use other commands.

- Now that I've got the basics of battle & navigation down, I'll list the differences and the downsides. (there ARE no upsides compared to SSS, its prequel). First of all, they removed BP (Bro points). In other words, you can no longer use Bro attacks, which were cool & pretty useful. Instead, they replaced them with Bro Items. So you have to actually BUY them. How stupid is that? I'll tell you how stupid. By making other items (some badges) that let you use those items INFINITELY. Yep, limitless stock. Not only that, there's a certain Bros Item that has a chance of giving you mushrooms or MORE Bros items when used. Does it get dumber than that? Yes it does. In this game, only the BABIES have hammers, and the babies aren't very strong compared to the adults. While fighting as four (piggybacked) you can use piggyback attacks. They deal MORE damage, and guess what? 90% of the time, you're piggybacked. So there goes the difficulty... or does it? Read on.


- Difficulty: 6/10

- Alright let's see. Some enemies have hard clues to guess, but you can jump/hammer with both and not get punished. (until near the end of the game, only 2-3 enemies do that). Enemies also get a tremendous boost in attack power and HP each "chapter". That's not the only thing. Let's talk about bosses. Ok, most bosses DO punish you for making mistakes. But let's get back to my last point in the gameplay section. More damage must mean easier right? Same with (almost) infinite Bros items? Well, yes, it's easy, but it's also long and boring. Bosses end up having VERY VERY HIGH HP, so much you'll be bored from using Bros Items too much. There goes the challenge, poof.


- Story: 7/10

- In some day, in some place (peach's castle obviously), Princess Peach got kidnapped! ...Correction, BABY Princess Peach was ABOUT to gt kidnapped by Baby Prince Bowser, if it weren't for Baby Mario's help. After that, you hear weird noises outside. It's an alien invasion! What the heck? ...The rest is skipped and you're back with the present time. Dr. Elvin Gadd (what's HE doing here?!) just invented a time machine (whoop-dee-do..) and Peach volunteers to be the first to test it out along with 2 toads, as they wanna know how the kingdom was in the past. She's just asking for trouble, right? Right.

- As soon as Peach and the 2 toads go back in time, they get captured by the Shroobs, the alien race that's picked the Mushroom Kingdom as their new home. After waiting for a while, the Mario Bros., Toadsworth and E Gadd were surprised the time machine came back... broken. To their surprise, a monster from the Shroob army was in there! After Mario beats it, a timehole appears in the garden because the time machine caused a time paradox. Mario (and Luigi) decide to travel to the past to rescue Peach, only to have trouble befall them...


- Visuals and Sounds: 7/10

- The graphics are as good as GBA graphics at most. They're slightly smoother and... that's about it. The music is questionable, however. Some parts are boring and repetitive, but the boss music is great, just not as great as its prequel's. Nothing special here...


- Replay value: 5/10

- This game is too short. Believe me, you can beat it in less than a day. It also has NO sidequests. What kind of an RPG has NO SIDEQUESTS?! I'll tell you: crappy ones. They also took out the Arcade Mario Bros. game, which its prequel (and other GBA Mario remakes) had, so no multiplayer for you!


- Final words...

- I'm gonna say this and you'd better believe me, this game was either rushed badly or the developers didn't put much effort into this. You'll thank me if you rent it for 3 days at most. Buy it, and you'll regret wasting your money. I'm sorry Nintendo, I'm sorry Alpha Dream, this game just doesn't have enough "oomph".

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 10/06/08

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