Mario RPG - Part of the Paper Mario series?

[goatdan]

I'm officially now "into" the Paper Mario series of games. I am about to beat Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga after having owned it for about a week and a half. I am 4 of 7 stars through the GameCube incarnation, which I had been playing constantly until getting the GBA game. And I just ordered Paper Mario to see what that game is all about. After I complete all of those, probably by January at the current rate (Which is light speed for me playing games!), I am thinking I will get Partners in Time for the DS.

I know that Mario RPG was made by Squaresoft, and all the others were not. Is Mario RPG "officially" part of the series? Does it use the same mechanics?

Also, out of all of the ones played does it make any difference what order you play them in? I'm almost going completely backwards. Will I miss any in-jokes because of that?

Is there any one entry that I should be aware won't hold up well?

Thanks!

[InsaneDavid]

Super Mario RPG is standalone - it's kind of a celebration of the Super Mario characters and world thrown into a blender and remixed with new areas, characters, etc. I really wish a second game would be based directly off the world created in Super Mario RPG.

Personally I hated the Paper Mario game on the GameCube - the visual style, mechanics, all that was fine. However dealing with HP in the range of 50 or so for the first half of the game made it way too tedious for me.

[Gemini-Phoenix]

Well, Mario RPG is in fact officially quoted as being the prequel to Paper Mario, and subsequently Superstar Saga and Paper Mario II, and the forthcoming Mario & Luigi Ii

Paper Mario was the second game in the series, with Mario RPG being the first, although it was not initially intended to be that way. To be more accurate, Paper Mario is actually a spin off series from Mario RPG, with Superstar Saga being more of a direct sequel

[Daria]

If you're counting the Mario & Luigi games then yes, they are all part of the Mario RPG series. If you're counting M&L as a seperate series from the paper games then Mario RPG is a stand alone.

At least that's the way I see it. I doubt there would have ever been a Paper Mario if Square hadn't done Mario RPG first.

As for playing the games, I don't see how it would matter if you played in any order. Paper Mario 2 makes almost no reference to Paper Mario. In fact all the in jokes you're likely to miss are from the Mario platform games themselves. And if you tackle Super Mario RPG, then it helps to have played Super Mario.

I don't know about the Mario & Luigi Games, never played the new one.

[hydr0x]

afaik Nintendo themselves claimed it's a prequel to Paper Mario so yes, it is a part of the series. All magazines and reviewers i know consider it part of the series too.

[ubersaurus]

The development title of Paper Mario was Super Mario RPG 2-you can check early development screenshots.

This, naturally enough, says to me that all the Mario RPG games are meant to be a loose series. They do keep a number of same play mechanics between them-enemies visible on screen, timed hits, attacks that need to be done certain ways, the concept of syrup, etc.

[kevin_psx]

I know that Mario RPG was made by Squaresoft, and all the others were not. Is Mario RPG "officially" part of the series? Does it use the same mechanics?

Got it backwards. Mario RPG invented the mechanics - press button to double damage - press again to defend. Paper Mario & rest copied what Square invented.

Mario RPG's strength is better story. Better music. More fun.

Hated both Paper Marios. Boring. Loved the original Mario RPG.

[smokehouse]

I loved Mario RPG as well as both Paper Mario titles. M&L on the GBA however…I bought it and played it for about 5 hours. The tedious, repetitious mini games (the donkey Kong barrel even was the breaking point for me) coupled with all the stupid jumps you had to do made me despise the game. I haven’t played it since, what a waste of $30.

[darknut101]

Mario RPG's strength is better story. Better music. More fun.

Hated both Paper Marios. Boring. Loved the original Mario RPG.

I've never played Mario RPG and I've been debating whether I should play it first or Paper Mario first. I think I'll start with Mario RPG now.

[Lothars]

Mario RPG's strength is better story. Better music. More fun.

Hated both Paper Marios. Boring. Loved the original Mario RPG.

I've never played Mario RPG and I've been debating whether I should play it first or Paper Mario first. I think I'll start with Mario RPG now.

Good Choice Super Mario RPG is awesome one of my favorite games :D

I love it

[Famidrive-16]

Yeah, PM started out as an SMRPG sequel.

I didn't play the PM series much. But I loved Mario and Luigi, one of the very few RPGs I ever actually completed.

[Leroy]

Paper Mario, Mario & Luigi and their sequels are better Mario games as RPGs. Super Mario RPG is just Final Fantasy with Mario characters. That's my take on it. I haven't broken into M&L 2 yet but so far none of the games seem connected story-wise but it does seem that as it stands Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi are two different series as far as specific play mechanics and overall design.

[goatdan]

I loved Mario RPG as well as both Paper Mario titles. M&L on the GBA however…I bought it and played it for about 5 hours. The tedious, repetitious mini games (the donkey Kong barrel even was the breaking point for me) coupled with all the stupid jumps you had to do made me despise the game. I haven’t played it since, what a waste of $30.

I thought the minigames were incorporated in a very interesting way. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that I really liked it because of the wide variety of play. The tributes to Super Mario Brothers were great too.

I do know that M&L:SS is considered a sequel to something -- Paper Mario N64, I assume -- because they talk about it at the very beginning of the game. Mario goes into a battle, and the guy that is showing you what to do says, "It hasn't been long since you did this. Did you already forget how to use your jump attack? Yeesh!" or something like that.

[Leroy]

I do know that M&L:SS is considered a sequel to something -- Paper Mario N64, I assume -- because they talk about it at the very beginning of the game. Mario goes into a battle, and the guy that is showing you what to do says, "It hasn't been long since you did this. Did you already forget how to use your jump attack? Yeesh!" or something like that.
I think he's just referring to Mario's general jump ability.. not in relation to using it in a specific game.

[joshnickerson]

Paper Mario 2 makes almost no reference to Paper Mario.

http://www.themushroomkingdom.net/pmttyd_lost.shtml#partners

[ubersaurus]

If you're counting the Mario & Luigi games then yes, they are all part of the Mario RPG series. If you're counting M&L as a seperate series from the paper games then Mario RPG is a stand alone.

At least that's the way I see it. I doubt there would have ever been a Paper Mario if Square hadn't done Mario RPG first.

As for playing the games, I don't see how it would matter if you played in any order. Paper Mario 2 makes almost no reference to Paper Mario. In fact all the in jokes you're likely to miss are from the Mario platform games themselves. And if you tackle Super Mario RPG, then it helps to have played Super Mario.

I don't know about the Mario & Luigi Games, never played the new one.

Paper Mario 2 makes plenty of references to Paper Mario. They mention the Dry Dry Desert and the archealogist you travelled with there...there's cameos by a couple of your party members, there's references to places, people, from the first game all over the joint. You just have to keep an eye out.

[Daria]

If you're counting the Mario & Luigi games then yes, they are all part of the Mario RPG series. If you're counting M&L as a seperate series from the paper games then Mario RPG is a stand alone.

At least that's the way I see it. I doubt there would have ever been a Paper Mario if Square hadn't done Mario RPG first.

As for playing the games, I don't see how it would matter if you played in any order. Paper Mario 2 makes almost no reference to Paper Mario. In fact all the in jokes you're likely to miss are from the Mario platform games themselves. And if you tackle Super Mario RPG, then it helps to have played Super Mario.

I don't know about the Mario & Luigi Games, never played the new one.

Paper Mario 2 makes plenty of references to Paper Mario. They mention the Dry Dry Desert and the archealogist you travelled with there...there's cameos by a couple of your party members, there's references to places, people, from the first game all over the joint. You just have to keep an eye out.

Maybe I didn't notice them because I played the second game so far after the first. Or maybe I just don't remember.

[goatdan]

Just a random point... Someone told me the last boss in Mario & Luigi was unfairly tough to the point it made the ending of the game just crazy, and not in a good way.

All I can say is HOLY CRAP, YOU WEREN'T KIDDING.

Suddenly, this game reminds me of the remake of Planet of the Apes. I really liked it until the ending made me feel like the movie / game was laughing at me for putting so much time into it.

Lamest. Impossible Last Boss. Ever.

[joshnickerson]

Just a random point... Someone told me the last boss in Mario & Luigi was unfairly tough to the point it made the ending of the game just crazy, and not in a good way.

All I can say is HOLY CRAP, YOU WEREN'T KIDDING.

Suddenly, this game reminds me of the remake of Planet of the Apes. I really liked it until the ending made me feel like the movie / game was laughing at me for putting so much time into it.

Lamest. Impossible Last Boss. Ever.

Great. Thanks for giving me something to look forward to.

Of course, I got stuck at Ludwig's stupid minigame and I haven't played it for quite some time.

[Super Mario Fan]

Just a random point... Someone told me the last boss in Mario & Luigi was unfairly tough to the point it made the ending of the game just crazy, and not in a good way.

All I can say is HOLY CRAP, YOU WEREN'T KIDDING.

Suddenly, this game reminds me of the remake of Planet of the Apes. I really liked it until the ending made me feel like the movie / game was laughing at me for putting so much time into it.

Lamest. Impossible Last Boss. Ever.

I haven't picked up the game in almost a year, if not more because of that. It's so fucking rediculously hard, that it ruined the game for me.

[kevin_psx]

Can't you level up 'til you are ultra-strong & beat the final boss?

Paper Mario, Mario & Luigi and their sequels are better Mario games as RPGs. Super Mario RPG is just Final Fantasy with Mario characters.

How's that bad? Final Fantasy is a great RPG series! Square's Final Fantasy 6 w/ Mario >>>>> than the 3rd-party "we've never made an RPG & our stories suck" Paper Mario.

Really? A computer that falls in love with peach??? Zzzzzz. Dull. Lame. Contrived. That's as bad as "spock's brain".

"He's worse than dead Jim. His BRAIN is missing!"

[Jorpho]

By the way, how do they all compare length-wise? Spectacular as it is, Mario RPG is one of the shortest RPGs I've encountered.

[badinsults]

I would put it in the series. Many of the innovations in Mario RPG (timed hits/ defence, interactive scenes) made it into the Paper Mario games. All excelent games.

[ubersaurus]

Can't you level up 'til you are ultra-strong & beat the final boss?

Paper Mario, Mario & Luigi and their sequels are better Mario games as RPGs. Super Mario RPG is just Final Fantasy with Mario characters.

How's that bad? Final Fantasy is a great RPG series! Square's Final Fantasy 6 w/ Mario >>>>> than the 3rd-party "we've never made an RPG & our stories suck" Paper Mario.

Really? A computer that falls in love with peach??? Zzzzzz. Dull. Lame. Contrived. That's as bad as "spock's brain".

"He's worse than dead Jim. His BRAIN is missing!"

Nope. Levels aren't what makes the final boss so damn hard. It's hard to describe without giving it away, but suffice it to say one point halfway through the battle is the moment where you realize Mario and Luigi are totally fucked.

Final Fantasy had like, what, 3 or 4 good installments? Mario RPG was good, but it cannot match the humor or the characterization of the Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi games. I had so many moments in Paper Mario 2 where I was laughing out loud, an experience I don't recall happening nearly as often in Mario RPG(though it did happen-mostly in Booster's part).

[kevin_psx]

Hmmmm. PM2 didn't make me laugh at all. More often yawned. Finally I quit at hour 20 - cause it wasn't fun anymore. Dull.


Please share why Mario& Lugi's boss is so hard. Why are they "totally fucked"? I don't care about spoilers. It's just a game.

Maybe gamefaws.com has an easy beat strategy?

[ubersaurus]

There isn't an easy-beat strategy. It's along the lines of "if you don't time the jump well enough, you are dead". Now think that, coupled with having to repeat said jump several times in a row. Recall that if one brother dies it screws up the jump timing for the other one, and you see how this can become an issue.

[goatdan]

Nope. Levels aren't what makes the final boss so damn hard. It's hard to describe without giving it away, but suffice it to say one point halfway through the battle is the moment where you realize Mario and Luigi are totally fucked.

All right, so I kept playing and the more that I have, the more that I understand that the final boss doesn't fuck you quite as much as I originally though, although it is still quite the fucking.

Here's what I'll say about it -- when that moment comes, it would be good if the enemy you're fighting decided to just use one attack. If he uses the attack that only goes against one of the brothers, it is easy enough to get back to taking him on. If he uses the other attack that he sometimes does, it's almost definitely game over.

I'm still annoyed by two things in it though -- the first is that it seems to take forever to defeat him. I literally was playing against just him for at least 20 minutes before, and I still managed to die before beating him. Considering every other battle in the game was 5 minutes or less, that's overkill.

The second thing is that his attacks change near the end, and become so brutal that if you screw up once, it's pretty much the end of the line. Add that to the above point that the battle takes forever, and... well, it definitely seems unfair.

I've started Lunar on the GBA for time being, but will get back to the end of Mario & Luigi soon. I feel stupid I haven't beat it yet, but damn...

[Daria]

I've started Lunar on the GBA for time being, but will get back to the end of Mario & Luigi soon. I feel stupid I haven't beat it yet, but damn...

That's always the kiss of death for an RPG when I start another game. Even if I do get back to the original game eventually I'm completely disoriented, forgeting where I am and what I was working on.

And... ick... Lunar GBA.

[goatdan]

I've started Lunar on the GBA for time being, but will get back to the end of Mario & Luigi soon. I feel stupid I haven't beat it yet, but damn...

That's always the kiss of death for an RPG when I start another game. Even if I do get back to the original game eventually I'm completely disoriented, forgeting where I am and what I was working on.

And... ick... Lunar GBA.

Well, with Mario & Luigi there really isn't a way to forget where I'm at. I know this is the final battle, and I know that when it's done the game is over... but... yeah.

So far, Lunar GBA has been 'eh'. I don't hate it, but so far I definitely haven't loved it. I'm sticking with it for now until I find something else.