4 Pulses

Genre: Action

Super Paper Mario is the new 2D platformer for the Nintendo Wii which combines classic gameplay of the original Mario titles with the quirky role-playing elements of the Paper Mario series.

For those of you familiar with the Paper Mario series from the N64 and Gamecube, Super Paper Mario will still give you the feel of a role-playing game but now with the action of an original Mario classic. The game’s story is much of the same as other Mario titles, Princess Peach gets kidnapped by Bowser, again, but this time a new villain named Count Bleck has a plan to destroy all worlds. I won’t get too much into the story, but eventually you’ll be able to team up with Princess Peach and, surprisingly, Bowser as playable characters on an attempt to take down Count Bleck and his minions.

The game is played holding the Wii remote horizontally with the D-pad on the left and the 1 and 2 buttons on the right. The game doesn’t use too much of the Wii’s motion sensing abilities other than being able to point at the screen to reveal hidden secrets or shaking the control up and down at different times in the game. Oh, and combat takes place in real time, so it’s back to the good old head-stomping days of Mario, but just with a little twist.

The best thing about this game is the fact that you can flip from 2D to 3D to help get through the various chapters of the game. “Flipping” allows Mario to go from a 2D side-scrolling gameplay to a 3D point of view. A lot of the times you’ll seem to be stuck in a level, but just a press of the A button will flip Mario into 3D mode showing another route or secret door to advance.

Throughout his adventure, Mario will have the abilities to use Pixls, little floating creatures that give Mario abilities such as revealing hidden secrets or grabbing objects and enemies. There are many different Pixls in the various worlds that Mario will need to find to complete his journey.

Super Paper Mario does an excellent job at combining the old school gameplay of original Mario titles with the role-playing elements the Paper Mario series has been famous for. Although the game doesn’t use as many of the innovative controls the Wii remote is capable of, it still fits right at home on the Wii and should give Wii owners their Mario fix until this summer’s Mario Party 8 and fall’s Super Mario Galaxy.