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Alphadream and Nintendo have
once again given us a Mario RPG
for us to enjoy. This time, it's
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
- the sequel to the first Mario
& Luigi game.
Saving Princess Peach - the gold
standard. Take that, add a new
super villain, and the result is
a good, twisting storyline.
There's some new bad guys this
time: Shroobs, a mysterious
alien race that look like
Mushrooms. Well, they've taken
over the Mushroom
Kingdom...except, that was years
ago. No problem though,
Professor E. Gadd has created a
time machine that Mario & Luigi
can use to go to the past. Well,
the fuel source known as the
Cobalt Star has shattered.
Without it, the brothers can't
go into the past. However,
random time holes have appeared,
each having a source of the
Colbalt Star. Mario & Luigi must
now repair the star and save the
Mushroom Kingdom! It's a
different storyline, but up to
the standard of all the Mario
RPG's.
4 buttons, 4 main characters
(Mario/Luigi and their baby
counterparts). One button for
each character - simple...right?
Unfortunately, it's not. The
controls lead to a diverse
gameplay, but they can be hard
to learn at first. However, it
leads to some awesome additions
from the first game. There's
more moves for the Bros on the
map and the battlefields. It
also leads to more innovative
styles of play. Once the
controls are learned, they
become fun and easy!
Mario & Luigi DS just looks
good. Flat out good. Smooth and
crisp, the graphics live up to
expectations. The game uses the
power of the DS to make great
visuals. The levels and
characters are incredibly smooth
and detailed. The only
disappointment is the maps on
the second screen. They could
have been more detailed -
they're just very plain
The music in this game has it's
ups and downs - like a
rollercoaster. Some music is
great. Take the multiple
alterations of classic Mario
themes - they are great, very
enjoyable. But when you get to
the original tracks...that's
when you start noticing the
downs of the audio. Not all the
new music bad - there are some
standouts. I just thought that
Yoko Shimomura, the composer of
the music in the first game and
Super Mario RPG, didn't live up
to expectations.
Great games have the ability to
be replayed...and this is why
Mario & Luigi DS is not a great
game. There's very limited
areas, and no free time travel.
There's also very few minigames.
Oh yeah, then there's the boss
battles. A player can take up to
3 hours to beat certain bosses.
They aren't even hard! It's just
a bunch of repetitive-ness in
the battles. No challenge
whatsoever.
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
is a good game at best. It has
its ups, it has its downs.
Overall Score: 8.5/10 |
