Mario makes a bold leap into the 3rd dimension... again.
Do I really have to rate the story? No, I don't. Hell, there's not even a single slab of text for the story, all it has is Mario running through the field at night and receiving a letter of Peach being taunted or hurt in a picture. I could care less, because the gameplay is where it gets you.
Well, it goes back to the traditional Super Mario Bros system of gaining mushrooms and various other power ups that if he loses them, he turns into small Mario which is basically the health metre. You move around with the circle pad, you use the Y button to shoot fireballs / spin your tail, etc, the B button to jump, and the R button for crouching. What really makes the gameplay unique is the 3D effects. It is directly woven into the gameplay, as if you need to grab a certain star coin (or whatever it's called), you can press an eye button on the ground to show you that the block it is hidden on is not where it appears to be. Plenty of jumps require precision with the 3D effects, like when it comes to an overhead view for playing the game, it really makes you that much more immersed in the game. This is easily one of the best Mario games out there, and by far the best 3D effects on the system that I've played so far.
To be honest, this isn't the best looking game on the 3DS in terms of graphics, but I'd say it's really the 3D effects, and the great colorful world and great atmosphere which truly make the graphics something else. It doesn't look realistic, but that's a good thing, because Mario's not about that. It looks fantastic!
There are plenty of great themes on this game, which all I can say are you have to play the levels to understand them. (Plus... I don't know the names of the themes, lol.)
This is a game I can pick up and play any day, honestly. It's got that special charm that's rare to find in a game, and none of the levels are frustrating, which is what usually draws me away from a game.
This is a reasonably long game. It took me around six or more hours to beat the main quest, but after that you still have a lot to do. There's eight worlds, but I think it goes up to eighteen or something, but there's more. You also have to collect the star coins (once again, whatever they are called) to gain access to some parts further in the game, there's three in every single level, and some of them are cleverly hidden or just plain tough to reach so I guess it can be quite a long game.
Overall, this game is a fantastic Mario game. Any 3DS owner / Mario / Nintendo fan in general should own a copy of this game, and hey, that's coming from a guy who thought he wouldn't even like the game that much.
Pros:
+Superb Gameplay
+Great level design
+Good music
+Long lifetime
Cons:
-Fight with Bowser at the end might be frustrating to some
-Too easy at times
Story: N/A
Gameplay / 3D Effects: 10/10
Graphics: 8.8/10
Music: 8.5/10
Replay Value: 10/10
Lifetime: 10/10
Overall: 9.7/10