Nintendo seems to have a thing with three’s at the moment. First we had Tri Force Heroes with its three player cooperative play and now we have three plumbers in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam Bros. This blend of two Mario RPG series is an odd one to stomach certainly, but the two also have relatively similar gameplay mechanics that play off each other.
A lot of the charm with Mario RPGs is down to the writing and characterisation. Just a few hours in and there’s some great interaction between both Paper and 3D forms of classic Mario characters; the competitiveness between the two Bowsers works particularly well.
Like all Mario & Luigi RPGs, you control the characters using a dedicated button, with Mario on A and Luigi on B. This includes making your attack selection, get extra hits or damage per attack, and how you dodge attacks. The Bros. Attacks from previous games that require both Mario Bros. make a return, making combat an involved process.
As the third wheel in the partnership, Paper Mario takes up the Y button and comes along with several new tools in his arsenal. His copy block allows him to not only make multiple Paper Marios to enhance his attacks, but also prevent damage. Trio Attacks are also now possible, requiring all three plumbers to be alive to initiate, but have the potential to deal massive damage to your foes.
Enemies attack in a manner that allows each brother the chance to avoid attacks, but in instances that are usually reserved for boss battles, you will need more complex inputs to avoid damage. For example, the Petey Piranha boss fight shown in the E3 footage has an example where Paper Mario has folded into paper airplane that the 3D Mario Bros. must grab onto avoid Petey’s mud bombs.
At this point you’re probably thinking there’s a lot more Mario & Luigi than Paper Mario in the combat, but there is also a mechanic that uses Star Power. You’ll get given a deck of cards to use in battle for Star Power that is accumulated by attacking foes. These usually have hugely beneficial events such as raising a stat temporarily.
For those wondering about Amiibo and where Nintendo’s NFC-laden figures fit into all of this, compatible figures can be used to augment and increase your attacking options in a fight. Blank cards can be obtained in game through play or visiting Toad’s shop, which can then be converted into attacks themed around the Amiibo character of your choice. Once determined – and an Amiibo can be attached to several different attack cards at once – you can then call upon these abilities once per battle!
Paper Jam Bros. does go outside the conventions of the traditional RPG, and even moreso thanks to the blended universe. While blocks sometimes have context sensitive presses to maximise loot obtained, there are also secret areas that only Paper Mario can traverse into and obstacles requiring all three plumbers to get past.
Side quests usually involve capturing or rescuing Paper Toads, who are then sent off to Peach’s Castle to come up with contraptions to help you progress further in the game. Some of the more bizarre versions of this are the gigantic cardboard ‘Papercraft’ versions of classic Mario characters.
Their appearance heralds a real-time battlefield mini-game, where you must control these large and cumbersome creations and defeat a couple of waves of enemies before a boss turns up to defeat. You can try to stun enemies by out-manoeuvring them and dashing, or throw your Papercraft to attempt a high-damage stomp. All of this uses energy, so you can retreat to recharge stations which require precise rhythmic button taps to refuel, allowing for more attacks on the foes ahead.
As far as combinations go, Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam Bros. seems like it’s onto something with some interesting, engaging ideas. The 3DS seems to be having an off year with very few standout titles, but maybe this unlikely candidate, a late bloomer in the season of blockbuster releases, will whet the appetite of those looking for a decent 3DS game for the Christmas stocking.