Paper Mario is a Mario RPG that was released in 2000 and 2001 for the Nintendo 64. It was the first game in the famous Paper Mario series. It brought a new way to look at Mario, actually, that's literally true because as said by the title, Paper Mario was a montage of many things paper.
The story starts with a place called Star Haven, which is home to a magical rod known as the Star Rod, which grants its user any wish. Then the day hit where Bowser swiped the rod for himself.
The story then begins to unfold with Mario and Luigi receiving a letter from the princess, inviting them to a party at the castle. It goes pretty well until an adorable paper Bowser wrecks it, using his castle to lift Peach's castle into the stratosphere.
Mario takes on Bowser and has the upper hand, until Bowser uses the Star Rod to make himself invincible and easily defeating Mario. He kick Mario out the castle window and leaves him falling for his doom. He lands in Goomba Village, where he meets Goombario, an educated Goomba and a huge Mario fan.
On his adventure, Mario must find the Star Spirits, seven powerful spirits who Bowser has imprisoned and put under the guard of some of his most powerful underlings. Only then can Mario stop Bowser in his tracks. He also will meet many new travel partners, each one with a unique ability that will help Mario later on.
Paper Mario is a turn based RPG that works very well.
In battle, you are given many choices to make. You can jump on enemies, hit them with Mario's hammer, or use badge attacks,which involve flower points. If you run out of flower points, then you can't use badge attacks. When Mario gets a new Star Spirit, he can summon it to attack the enemy he chooses. These powers run off of Star Energy, which you gain more of the more Star Spirits you collect. Like most RPGs, you explore an open and free world and when you enter a battle you are temporarily isolated from the overworld. Overall, Paper Mario has excellent gameplay.
It is a Paper Mario game, so I'm going to say the same thing again. The graphics are a definite yes. Everything in the game is paper, which makes the game look different than most other Mario series. It also makes nearly every character look adorable, like I probably said about Bowser already.
There's not much more I can say about the graphics, but they are excellent. They may not look as good as the game's sequels, but they are still excellent, here is another sample photo.
Not much I can say about the music, but it is good. It may not be the best, but it is still fun to hear. Each song fits its theme very well. From casual, to creepy, to even fun and whimsical, each song fits perfectly. The sounds in the game are silly and have cartoon characteristics, which are always welcome in my book.
Paper Mario is a very well designed game. I do admit that SOME of the controls in the game may be a little confusing, but it just takes a little adjusting. I recommend this game for anyone that loves Mario or just games in general. It is definitely worth the points it costs on the Wii Shop.
Gameplay-5
Graphics-5
Music-4
Sounds/Voices-5
Controls-4
Overall-9.6
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