Buy it. NOW.
Buy it. NOW.
Don't ask me why, but I bought this game knowing nothing about it and had no idea what scores it got. It was $20, I had the online order webpage ready for me at the click of the mouse, and so I bought it. Probably the best $20 I spent. I would've paid much, much, much more than full price for this game. It's just that amazing. Paper Mario TTYD is one of the few games I have given a score of 10/10 to.
Paper Mario TTYD begins as Mario (it's Paper MARIO, so that's you) is sitting quietly in his home with Luigi. They receive a letter from Princess Peach saying that she got a map, which she thinks is a treasure map, in a town called Rogueport. Enclosed is the map. So Mario heads to Rogueport, where he meets a young Goomba girl named Goombella. She leads him to a Goomba named Professor Frankly. They head into the Rogueport sewers (Yeah) where they end up at the Thousand-Year Door. People say that behind the door lies lots of valuable treasure, and that the door can only be opened by the 7 Crystal Stars, which are what the game revolves around: getting the 7 Crystal Stars. So, then it turns out that the map is a map for getting the Crystal Stars, so you and Goombella or off with the map to go and get the stars.
Paper Mario TTYD has turn-based battles, but luckily no random encounters. You would see an enemy and then try to hit it to initiate a battle with some damage already dealt, or try to get away. When you're in a battle, you will see that the game uses a unique battle system. When you choose to attack, you choose your target(s), and then you participate in a quick minigame to get the most out of your attack. The minigames range from simply pressing "A" at the right time, to rapidly pressing buttons, to hitting a series of buttons, to drawing circles around your enemy. You'll notice that battles are like a play, at the beginning a curtain draws and you see you're on a stage with your enemy. Also, there is an audience that has effects on the battle. Someone may throw stuff at you. You can dodge it by pressing "X". But you don't always want to dodge it, because it may be something good like a mushroom. Also, when you attack, you will see that the audienece lets out stars. Those add to your Star Power (not the kind from GH). Star Power lets you use special moves that you earn by progressing through the game. These moves can heal you or can deal massive damage.
The game will take you around 30-40 hours to complete on your first playthrough. But if you take the time to complete the game's several sidequests and try to accomplish everything else the game has to offer, then it will take you even more. Through the playthrough, you will go through lots of hilarious dialogue. Trust me, I have laughed many, many times playing this game. You will also go though 8 huge levels that are all very fun and unique. You'll become are wrestling champion, 1st class passenger on a luxury express, and even become shipwrecked on a faraway island. These levels also offer a challenge: the fun kind of challenge, not the frustrating kind. You'll also notice that Paper Mario TTYD is really, really addicting, just like Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life. Even if you play the game for 5 minutes, you'll soon find yourself playing the game all the way through.
Paper Mario TTYD also puts the theme of 2-D characters and everything being made out of paper to very good use. The game is half RPG and half platformer, so you will earn new moves that will help you both in the RPG and platforming parts of the game. You will eventually learn how to turn sideways to slip through bars or cracks in the wall, become a paper airplane to cross gaps, and a few more.
RPG's usually have great music, and Paper Mario TTYD is no different. The music ranges from the really catchy, to the really dramatic, to the "holy crap, why don't they have this on iTunes?" The music fits its environment very well, it emphasizes on the mood everything is supposed to be in. For example, when your in the last level, everything is dark, so the music is just quiet, but tense.
Also, at the end of every level (the game calls them Chapters) you get to play as more than Mario. You'll get to explore your environment as Princess Peach, or go through an original Super Mario Bros. level with up-to date graphics as Bowser.
Speaking of graphics, Paper Mario TTYD has unique graphics. Of course, everything is made of paper, and the graphics are animated, and look really good. Nintendo really put the theme of paper to good use. For example, when you hit a switch to make a staircase to appear, instead of the staircase just appearing, you'll see a piece of paper unfold to make a staircase.
RECAP
Paper Mario TTYD is a masterpiece. It expertly succeeds in every field there is to a game. It's one of those games that is hard to explain how good it is.
Pros-
-Gripping story
-animation looks really good
-Very lengthy
-Amazing music
-Fun battles & battle system
-Well-written dialogue
-Challenging
-Great variety of enemies
-Awesome boss fights
-A bunch of sidequests
-Memorable characters
-Dialogue is funny
-Mix of platforming and role playing
-Worth more than when it was at full price
-Great controls
-Huge variations in areas
-No random encounters
-You play as more than Mario
-Quite atmospheric at times
-Highly addictive
-No cons
-Amazing Sequel
-You'll want to play it again and again
-the theme of paper is put to good use
Score: 10/10
Thanks for reading!
-red0584's Reviews