How does Nintendo mess up a once critically acclaimed series like Paper Mario? EVERYONE loved Paper Mario on the N64. EVERYONE loved The Thousand Year Door. They did a two story drop kick right onto all their fans' faces with Sticker Star. Alright. Fine. Nintendo likes experimenting with new ideas. Fan reception to sticker star was terrible. Mixed at best. Surely, they would return to their original formula, and give fans what they want right? NO. We get a big **** YOU! in the form of Color Splash.
GONE are the diverse species and inhabitants in the first two games. All we get are TOADS, TOADS, and MORE BORING ASS TOADS. A professor? A yellow toad. A merchant? A red toad. A barista? A green toad. Where is the variety?? I had ZERO anticipation going into the next area, because I knew I was just going to meet another ****ing toad. Aside from toads. The game would have shy guys talk sometimes, maybe a koopa here and there, and that's it. It's so horrendously bland. Characters are completely forgettable.
THING stickers make a return. Omfg. WHY? I hated this in Sicker Star, and they bring it right back. Though, there was a Toad in the main town I could ask if I needed a thing card. But he wouldn't tell me what to avoid cause it would be futile without the thing card. So, I went into a boss fight with Iggy, thinking my reward would be the thing card I needed. BUT NO, turns out I needed that thing card for the fight. I wasted like 10 cards to fight him up to the point where Huey warned me that I didn't have the required card. WELL **** YOU, give me back my cards AND my time! Don't ALLOW the player to go into a fight IF they don't have what's required to win the fight. SIMPLE CONCEPT NINTENDO, ****! Now the only option was to flee the battle, or restart my console. THEN return to the battle with the required Thing card. **** that.
After this, I just gave up. I wasn't going to have my time wasted further with these trial and error bullshit gameplay mechanics. Want me to have a thing card before a boss fight? Sure. Tell me WHERE to find it, and WHO I need to use it against, BEFORE I accidentally stumble into that fight because I didn't ****ing know. Or at least make SUPER FUCKING CLEAR. Don't force me to travel back to the main town after every area JUST to ask that toad in the trash can to see if I need a thing sticker for the next area.
This game is a huge waste of ****ing time. 10 step backwards from where the series started. Don't call your paper mario games "Paper Mario". Call it Puzzle Mario or some s***, cause this AIN'T the Paper Mario I knew and loved. Why can't you be on the same page as your fans Nintendo? Stop turning your good games to s***.