Customer Reviews

Mario & Luigi: Partners In Time

5 star:		(52)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

The brothers Mario have been reunited again following the fantastic `Superstar Saga' and this time they're joined by their own baby versions. They may be tiny and they may occasionally cry fountains of tears but that doesn't stop them from being formable fighters who can hold their own with their adult counterparts. The hook in `Partners in Time' is the time traveling between the past and present versions of the Toadstool kingdom. The Kingdom of the past has been attacked by aliens, the adult princess has been kidnapped (shock) and the Cobalt Star (the McGuffin of the story) has been broken into various pieces that need to be retrieved.

`Partners in Time' carries on that tradition of legitimately funny scripting set by `Superstar Saga' and most of the play mechanics remain the same. Much like the RPG console versions the handheld games are all about timing. Fights are turn based affairs requiring the player to time out strikes and defends. Players with difficulty getting the rhythm down may find themselves having some difficulties. Each creature type has a slightly different pattern and sometimes multiple attack sequences. It can take some fast reflexes but like most Nintendo games `Partners in Time' is designed to be beaten even by players with modest skills. One of the issues I have is the fact that it can be very difficult to manage all four brothers during combat even after hours of practice. It's actually even harder when the adult and baby version are separated because the adults uses X and Y while the babies use B and A. I found it challenging to get used one set of buttons and suddenly switch to the other especially when you need to switch between adults and babies quickly.

The Mario RPG's have always taken an aesthetic minimalist approach. There are five adjustable character attributes including the enigmatic `Stache'. The brothers can wear one pair of overalls and one badge to help boost stats or give special bonus abilities. Like every RPG made since the dawn of time the brothers will have an ever increasing (and potent) selection of items to choose from as the game progresses. If complexity is your bag the Mario RPG's may disappoint. It's all about simplicity. If anything Partners simplifies the experience even more by creating a more linear experience over `Superstar Saga'. The various collectible bean types have now been eliminated in favor of the generic `bean' so no more bean drinks.

The DS system has been on such a roll of late and `Partners in Time' is just one more five star game in a growing library of great DS games. With this game and Mario Kart Nintendo has really had a great winter season.

I was a bit nervous to get this game because I am not really a big gamer and there are not two but four characters to control but I was pleasantly suprised but how informative the game was on how to control the players' different attacks.

The game also has a lot of funny parts that will definitely make you laugh and there is never a repetitive and dull moment.

The only drawback is that once you are done with the game, you can't go back and redo any of the levels.

Mario and Lugi Superstar Saga was a legendary GBA game, even though the graphics were a little grainy, me and my friend play that game almost daily at lunch time, being excited about the 2005 release, I bought it right away without thinking. Mario and Luigi Partners in Time is NOT, i repeat NOT a remake of the GBA game Mario and Luigi Super Star Saga, created in 2003. Which is a good thing, mainly.

The game has the second-most creative plots in a Mario game (The first goes to Paper Mario The Thousand Year Door), where Peach goes in a time machine back to the past, and this alien race called the Shroobs conquer the past Mushroom Kingdom. Mario and Luigi have to go save the past Kingdom from all the evil, but this time they have some... uh friends...

Their (ahem) "friends" are actually their own younger selves from the past when they were still babies (Toddlers, at least, since they can walk and jump). You will learn some moves for each team, they younger bros. will get hammers, which will work equal to the hammers in Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga.

A familar ability is in this game as well, stomping baddies before battles will give them extra damage, but if you jump on one with flames, spikes, etc. you'll actually take damage. If you've never played the GBA original, you can counter and dodge moves when foes attack, making this an actually exciting RPG, and not a boring one where it's 100% turn based.

The Bros. Points have been removed, MALSS (Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga) you had to use Bros. Points to operate special moves, which were quite tedious, since you had to get an extra power up called Syrup to recover them. MALPIT (Mario and Luigi Partners in Time) gives you Bros. Items which are like special moves, except you only need to use one thing instead of two.

The length of the game depends on how long it will take you, the game goes by faster if you actually fight enemies instead of running away (you lose coins every time you do this, quite a lot, actually, so it's not recommended) since you can level up. You can't run away from Mini-Boss or Boss fights, so fighting is recommended, since it's the easiest way to get money and the only way to get EXP to level up

You have Heart Points for health, Power for... duh, power, Defense for Defense, Speed for Speed, and wait, what's this Stache? What the (BLEEP) is Stache points? Well, Stache points are a % of how many Lucky hits you can land, Lucky hits do more damage, and Stache points also give you discounts on buying items and higher refunds for selling items.

To increase some stats, you can also buy clothes, this is a faster way, but it costs a lot of money. Only people that don't run and fight nearly every single battle will have a lot of money left over. Another thing to buy is badges, these let you do special things like recover health every turn.

Beans seem pretty useless, you dig into the ground, and pop up where there is an X mark to get one, until... you get to (SPOILER) Fawful's Badge N' Bean Shop, (Fawful was a major NPC character in MALSS) where you can trade them for badges. All of the badges (Even though they're RARE) really really suck... except for the Ulti-Free Badge, which lets you use infinite bro items, no matter what amount you have, even though it takes time to get more then 1, you can just play certain games for beans if you don't like to search.

Another issue is saving, one of the biggest complaints that I have. In order to save, you have to find something called a Save Album, you have to actually jump under it to go to the save menu, this is quite bad, if you think you don't have to save "yet" and get in a battle, lose and have to start over from your last save.
Even worse, if you run out of battery power. However, another alternative is to pause the game and put it in sleep mode (Charge it if you can) and play again when you can.

OK: Time for the comparisons

WHICH IS BETTER

MALSS: Better humor

MALPIT usually recycles old jokes, or inside jokes from the other game, i.e a really annoying character Prince Peasly is a poster on the wall. Some of the jokes are sometimes not even really funny, and just annoying (Babies crying, Baby Peach, Baby Mario, no sound jokes, where you just watch something with no music and few sound effects).
Also the dialouge is sometimes amazing, and a second later it just makes you think "What? Was that supposed to be funny?"

MALPIT: Better Action

MALSS is bland compared to MALPIT and that's a pretty bold statement. You actually control 4 guys in battle by using 4 buttons, and you need to switch frequently in some parts of the game between the pairs, doing special actions to get to secret areas, or required areas to progress through the game.

RECOMMENDATION:

I would actually getting the ORIGINAL first, so you can understand if this is your type of humor, the original is actually easier, since it's normal paced, even the fast battles, while this one is frantic, requiring you to press buttons for successive items, or skillful baddies.

TOTAL 9/10

The Bad: Some cutscenes are annoying, limited save feature, only 2 slots, no multiplayer, "fast" gameplay (not really bad after you get used to it)

if you arealdy have MALSS read a few other reviews before purchasing this excellent game to make your descision

The smash success of Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga on the GBA is now followed by another smash on the DS. The game utilizes the touch screen greatly, and gives new innovation to an already golden formula, making it platinum.

You will once again take control of Mario and Luigi and save the Mushroom Kingdom and Princess Peach from danger. The thrat this time is a race known as the Shroob. Their home planet is no longer bursting with life, and so they decided to leave and check out your home. They're all lead by Princess Shroob, and they think the Mushroom Kingdom is the perfect place to conquer.

The events that take place in the game will take place in the present, as well as the past. Using not only Mario and Luigi, but baby Mario and baby Luigi. The game is full of as much love and heart as the previous title, being funny and having some of the most engaging gameplay ever presented in an RPG.

As with the GBA version, Superstar Saga, you'll control Mario and Luigi. The A button controls Mario and the B button controls Luigi. Just the same, the X and Y buttons control baby Mario and baby Luigi. And using all four characters isn't all that bad at all. The younger versions of our heros can be given piggyback rides to speed things up a little. You may find yourself having to use the children more often than not. They can fit into places their adult counterparts can't, and they can also be flailed to places the older brothers can't reach. You'll most likely control both sets independently, and that's fine as well.

Both sets work in different ways, however. Mario and Luigi use toned down versions of special abilities found in Superstar Saga. Mario and Luigi execute the jumps, while Baby Mario and Baby Luigi use hammers, which let them hit switches and bury underground.

Shopping hasn't changed at all. The only difference is that you'll have to buy baby clothes for the younger heros. Badges, thankfully, can be equiped on anyone.

Battling has undergone a big change, but I assure you it's for the better. You now control four characters in battle as opposed to just two. Some of your attacks can now be enhanced thanks to the babies. For example, they can perform an attack with their hammers while standing on their respected shoulders. Special moves in battle have also changed. Instead of learning all new techs, it's based on the items you have in stock. This is also enhanced by the babies. Some of your special techniques will involve all four of your players. Others will be slightly enhanced by using the babies, meaning they'll be more powerful. You may have to do some battles without your little buddies.

The same old "timed hits" which was introduced in the SNES classic, Super Mario RPG, still exists here. In your special attacks if you mess up the button combination it could cost you to perform a watered down attack instead of a successful rock hitting assault. The same goes for dodging techniques. As in the first Mario and Luigi game, enemies will clue you in on who they're attacking and you'll have to have the correct timing to dodge them. It takes time to learn, but it presents a very good challenge to the game.

Mario and Luigi Partners in Time does not slouch on the DS capabilities. You'll find yourself using both screens. The top screen serves as a map, and as a gameplay screen when the babies seperate from the adults. The top screen also serves to present story sequences rather well. The use of the touch screen may sometimes feel a little tacked on (like wiping off a dirty picture to make a discovery), but at least you'll actually use it.

Visually, the game stays true to the look and feel of the GBA title. It's good to see it doesn't make Baby Mario and Baby Luigi look too cute either. The DS also gives us a more sharper look at thing such as special attacks. The time periods also look distinctly different. The only problem that really presents itself with the visuals, is how some angles make jumps hard, and how some of the counterattacks are hard to pull off because of the angle.

The voice acting is fantastic. With a different variety, including the babies. It also sounds really lively. The sound is pretty well done too. Some of the themes (like the battle theme) you won't find yourself humming, but the music is good where it is, and it also stays true to the situation, as well as to the original GBA game.

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time is without a doubt, one of the best DS titles out there. While it's safe to say it doesn't outdo Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga on the GBA, you can be sure this is a damn good follow up.

The Good:
+Great graphics
+Wonderful combat system
+Engaging fameplay
+Solid graphics
+Great sense of humor

The Bad:
-Camera angles make some jumps hard

A solid DS title!

mario and luigi: partners in time is easily one of the best ds
games and after a half year of playing,its still my favorite game. the story starts off with this alien race known as the shroobs looking for a new home. By cruel fate they find the
mushroom kingdom. at the same time in the future prof. e. gadd just finished creating his time machine powered by the colbat
star. peach sets off to the past to see the mushroom kingdom
of old. but somthing amiss... when the machine returns theres
no princess peach! also strange holes start appering around the castle. Now its up to mario and luigi to save the kingdom! once you find the babys Mario and luigi then the story really starts. one frequantly asked question is if i play partners in time before superstar saga(the original mario and luigi game)will I miss anything? The answer is no. The plots beetween both games have nothing in common. but i do recomend play super star saga first.

Nintendo, yet again, puts out the goods with Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time. Like Paper Mario(N64) and Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga(Gameboy Advance) before it, Partners is an engrossing RPG that is not only addictive to play but humorous as well. Mario and Luigi travel back in time to rescue Princess Peach, only to come face to face with baby versions of themselves, the princess and Bowser. Teaming up with their baby versions send Mario and Luigi on an adventure of their life as players must control both the adult AND baby versions of the Mushroom Kingdom heroes. The result is absolutely hilarious, at times. Apart from the second screen and character aspect, Partners in Time doesn't stray too far from the Superstar Saga original. It has more elaborate puzzles, and more action-based fights than the original game, though, and it's alot meatier in terms of gameplay time. Although it doesn't explore the Nintendo DS like other developers have, Partners in Time definitely approaches the system in more extremely creative ways. You'll see what I'm talking about when you play the game. It's defiitely a game that diehard and casual RPG fans should pick up.

My biggest gripe, however, with Partners in Time is the graphics. Alphadream coulda, at the very least, spiced things up a little bit in that department instead of giving us GBA visuals, which is something I've noticed lately on games coming out for the DS. Why are developers giving us GBA graphics when the Nintendo DS is capable of so much more? With games like Castlevania, I could understand the reason why but, even then, Konami made certain aspects of their latest Castlevania adventure more 3-D'ish.

Once again, though, Alphadream delivers an outstanding RPG worthy of your time. Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time is a blast.

This is an excellent sequel to Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga, where you get to control not only the Mario Bros., but their baby versions too. The only problems, and I mean ONLY PROBLEMS are that it is a little short, and ends abruptly. Once you fight the last boss, there is nothing left to do. Absolutely nothing. When you want to save before your final boss battle, the game asks you if you are sure want to save, because you cannot go back to anything from before after you save. This game is great and I definitely reccomend that you buy it, but my suggestion is: once you finish an area in the game, go back and explore. And as you near the end of the game, go back to places you hadn't gone before. For example, there are cool mini-games in Thwomp Volcano that most would probably pass to get to the end. And this is not the kind of game that you play once and that's it. There are a lot of things you can do differently. For example, badges give the Bros. special abilities in battle, so choose different badges next time and see what you prefer.

This is it. The game that proves the mettle of the DS. This is the first full-fledged adventure for the system, the first game that doesn't rely on the DS' unique features to be great. In putting Superstar Saga's sequel on the new handheld, Nintendo has made it even better.

The gameplay you know and love (admit it) from the first game is perfectly intact. Only better. Now you control four brothers instead of just two, and it makes the sweet, sweet puzzles all the sweeter. Most of the moves you'll learn are all-new, and they challenge your brain in unique ways. Plus, the great battle system now makes you think even more; careful observation and quick reflexes are greatly rewarded. Another great addition to combat is the "Bros. Items". Far from a useless gimmick, they're absolutely essential, and fun to boot.

The dual screen really adds a lot to the game. A map now appears on the top screen during gameplay, cutscenes can now show two perspectives at once, and creative boss battles and puzzles require you to quickly glance back and forth between top and bottom. The touch screen is used a grand total of one time, but that doesn't matter.

I enjoyed the fun plot from the first game, but this one is in some ways even better! I found it a lot funnier than the first--the babies of Peach, Mario, Luigi and Bowser are hilarious, and the dual Toadsworths' dialogue had me in stitches. The text dialogue is wonderful, but perhaps even better are the scenes conveyed entirely through action and limited voice-acting.

I do have a couple complaints--the game's a bit short, and bosses seem to have way too much HP. But if you loved the first game, there is no excuse not to buy this, and if you haven't played the first, buy that and then get this. This is an incredible adventure for everyone to love.

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga was a resounding success on the GBA. It was a practically flawless game that achieved excellence in every area, and it more than earned the right to have a sequel made. Partners in Time is the second installment in the series, where rather than using just Mario & Luigi, you now use their younger selves as well. Partners in Time is a really great game that has most of the elements that made Superstar Saga such a spectacular game, just on slightly lower levels of quality.

Partners in Time starts off showing a scene in which Princess Peach and a few escorts travel back in time to the Mushroom Kingdom of the past with Professor E. Gadd's recently finished time machine. However, when the time machine returns to the present, Peach is nowhere to be found, and time holes start popping up around the Princess' castle. Naturally, Mario & Luigi use these time holes to go into the Mushroom Kingdom of yesteryear in search of the princess, but they discover an alien race called the Shroobs has taken over the world and captured the princess. They also meet their baby selves while in the past, and they enlist their help and become a quartet of heroes in an effort to defeat the Shroobs and save Peach.

The story is pretty solid, and the time travel element works very nicely in it for a little added depth. The dialogue is also very likable, although not as much of a constant treat as in Superstar Saga. The game has fewer characters that come in throughout the story, which gave the writers less of a chance to show their writing skills as we saw so brilliantly in the first game. Not that the writing is bad, it still reveals each character's personality remarkably well and is pretty entertaining to read, it just doesn't quite measure up to my expectations after playing the original game. And it lacks the proper dose of Fawful (ignore that last sentence if you haven't played Superstar Saga). Partners in Time does retain a wonderful sense of personality by both dialogue and visual humor, though, as Luigi always seems to fail at calming down the crying babies and the Toadsworths also try to keep the baby princess entertained. Despite the setbacks from Superstar Saga, the story elements do their job very nicely to keep the game going strong.

The biggest change in Partners in Time over Superstar Saga is definitely controlling all four characters rather than just the adult Mario & Luigi. The babies travel on the adults' backs and they can split up to reach higher places and go into smaller spaces. The two sets of bros. each have their own set of abilities that enable them to trigger certain events and solve puzzles. Partners in Time shines brightest in the use of the four bros. all at once to solve puzzles, though. Often you must split them up and alternate between both duos to allow the other to progress, and eventually reach your goal. These puzzles are rarely very hard but they are very creative and extremely entertaining to solve. Actually, this is probably the one element of this game that beats Superstar Saga.

The use of all four characters also plays an important role in battle, for better or worse. Solo (well, more like duo) attacks involve both the adult and the corresponding baby now, and either jumping on an enemy twice or whacking them harder with a hammer can do more damage. These attacks are fun to do, but what made the battle system in the original game so fantastic was the Bros. Attacks. Unfortunately, they have not made a full return, and have been replaced with Bros. Items, which involve such acts as kicking a Koopa shell at an enemy or jumping on a foe repeatedly. They are pretty fun to use, but when compared to the spectacular Bros. Attacks from Superstar Saga, they really have no appeal at all because they lack just about all the creativity and satisfaction. Overall though the battles are still very fun, but just slightly held back due to the change in Bros. abilities.

As a DS game, Partners in Time utilizes the two screens very nicely. The lower screen is where the action takes place and the bros. are controlled. The top screen is used as a map outside of battle, which is extremely useful, and it also shows the babies when the bros. are split up for puzzle solving. In battle it is used as an extended range for enemies to go into and attack from. There is only one instance in which touch controls are required in the entire game, but the two screens are put to such great use all the time that it's easy to forget that touch controls were even an option for the developers. The game works wonderfully with regular button controls anyways.

The overworld in Partners in Time remains pretty straightforward, and isn't all that open. Peach's castle in the present serves as the main hub of the world, and the time holes appear in various parts of the castle, each taking you to a particular area in the past. None of the areas link to each other, though, and there is never a reason to revisit any of them, giving the game a much more enclosed feel than Superstar Saga, where you had the whole world open for you to explore. The game works just fine in these boundaries, but on the whole Superstar Saga did a much better job of feeling free and open.

Partners in Time's graphics are very similar to Superstar Saga's, only slightly improved. The cartoon quality is very good as everything is bright, colorful, and smoothly animated. The graphics hit a slight quality boost from the GBA game, but not by very much. They still look pretty much the same, except maybe for slightly better overall animation quality. The main difference in graphics is definitely the 3-D effects, which are used for a few enemies' attacks, and they look very nice and add a layer of depth to the graphics on those occasions, however rarely they occur.

Sound is another strong point for Partners in Time. The sound effects are very good and fit the game's style nicely, including the babies' crying and the adults' occasional gibberish. The music is very fun and catchy, especially in battle. The sound quality is also very good, as the DS is most certainly capable of.

Partners in Time can take about 15 hours to complete, which is a pretty good length. It feels a little shorter than Superstar Saga, but it's still long enough. There really isn't anything to do once you've beaten the game, though, except play through it again, but like its predecessor it's fun enough to be worth replaying in the future.

Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time is a great game, and it succeeds in just about everything it attempts. The strong sense of personality is very evident, the puzzles are a treat to solve, and the DS' two screens are used very nicely. What holds it back from being so amazing like its predecessor is that just about all of these elements are on slightly lower levels of quality, the battles aren't as entertaining due to the change in Bros. abilities, and the world lacks the openness that Superstar Saga had. Despite the fact that it just can't measure up to its fantastic predecessor, it's really a great game.

Positive:
+ great sense of personality
+ clever puzzles are a treat to solve
+ top screen map is very useful
+ smooth, colorful graphics
+ fun, catchy music

Negative:
- Bros. Items aren't nearly as fun or creative as Bros. Attacks
- world isn't as open as before
- lacks the FURY of the original
(if you haven't played Superstar Saga, ignore that last one)

LAST WORD: Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time is a great game, just not as incredible as its predecessor. If you enjoyed Superstar Saga you will undoubtedly enjoy this game, if not then play Superstar Saga first. I can guarantee you will look to Partners in Time for more, though, and it does deliver an entertaining, wholly worthwhile experience.

SCORE: 8.8/10

This is truly a great RPG. Take this from a guy who doesn't like RPG's. But this game is so clever and fun, it simply can not be denied. There is still lot's of talking, which I am never a fan, but there is also much more action and more creative puzzles than in the last outing. This is a funny game as well. You will like this game. No you will love this game. Mario does it again. Buy this game and you will have hours of fun this Christmas.