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201 of 210 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A worthy sequel to one of the best N64 games, November 10, 2004
Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars
I'm a 37-year-old husband and father; probably not the game's biggest target demographic, but more adults play these games than you may think!
I played (and completed) the excellent Paper Mario for the Nintendo 64 a few years ago, along with my young son. It was very close to a perfect game: visually spectacular, original, engaging, moderately challenging, and filled with goofy cut scenes. The episode-based play worked perfectly to keep both of us from getting bored or frustrated; it was impossible to go too far down a dead end, or "lose" the game.
I'm happy to say that this sequel is worthy of the original. There is again an elaborate plot and back-story, there are more engaging Mushroom Kingdom characters, and lots more great paper effects. The papery world can get peeled back like Post-It note, torn like a Kleenex, folded like origami, and spring out like the pictures in a pop-up book. The characters have more to say (sometimes more than you want them to say!) The game's designers paid a great deal of attention to user interface and playability, and it really shows.
The Paper Mario games are not terribly difficult. That's a good thing, especially if the game-players in your household are young or less experienced. If you're an adult and at all good at figuring out strategy-based battles, you may rarely lose a fight. This may make the game seem to easy, but in that case there are still plenty of silly cut scenes, animations, mini-games, and side quests to keep you entertained.
This is also the kind of video game that is enjoyable to watch someone else play: the beautiful color palettes, animations, and secret objects are enough to occupy two peoples' attention, so try trading off with your kids and showing off your stylin' moves (and don't bogart that joystick!)
The original Paper Mario game had a few drawbacks. The large number of battles could occasionally become tedious. This game improves on the original in giving you an audience to distract you and cheer for you during fights. The menu of available moves, badges, and items is even more elaborate than in the original, so you can focus on clever strategies. In fact, you have to pay at least some attention to careful use of your party members and special attacks: some enemies are impervious to all standard attacks, and will require cleverness to beat, just as many of the worlds contain areas that will only open to you after you've gained additional special abilities.
One last comment: these games are short. I think I finished the first one in about twenty hours of play, and I did not rush. Twenty hours may sound like a lot, but not when compared to a game like Donkey Kong 64, which might take a player ten times longer. If you are a hardcore gamer, you might want to look elsewhere, but if you have a life outside of video games, and don't have a lot of free time to spare, this is the game for you. You might find yourself, like me, wishing at the end that there were more secrets to uncover and more silly mini-games to play. I have not finished this new Paper Mario, but I've found most of the stars, so it will probably not be long. I'm looking forward to what I expect will be a spectacular ending!
P.S.: Addendum to the above, added after posting the original.
I may be mis-remembering how long it took me to finish the original Paper Mario for the N64; it may have been more like 40 or 50 hours; still, compared to some of the more elaborate platformers, it was a relatively short game. In any event, this game is proving to a bit longer than that.
I've gotten past the thousand-year door, but decided to backtrack before confronting the final bosses so I could go rack up some additional levels, find all the shine sprites and boost my party members' levels to maximum, solve "troubles," and in general extend the playing experience. In other words, I'm not in a hurry for the game to be over.
I've also decided I won't want to finish the game until I've beaten... (chilling music)... the Pit of 100 Trials. The Pit is a sadistic device designed especially to appeal to compulsive perfectionists like me. It is basically a one-way sequence of battle rooms. To finish, you must win consecutive battles of increasing difficulty. Every tenth room contains a treasure and the opportunity to bail out and return to the start. There is occasionally the chance to skip ahead a few levels or buy some items, but for the most part you just have to slog through; there are no save blocks available along the way, and if you give up, you will have to start again from the beginning.
While you start out with low-level Goombas, by the time you reach the 80s you will be confronting black steel chain chomps and magical creatures who carry many special abilities and items. You'll find yourself and your partner paralyzed, confused, or frozen, and then attacked multiple times by creatures who can do ten or twenty points of damage with a single blow. By the time you reach the 90s, your foes will make the boss fights to date look easy. Also, you can't easily pump up your experience by bailing out and restarting the series; completing a battle you've already won will only give you a single star point.
This challenge is in here just for those who, like me, want the fights to be a little bit harder, requiring a little more careful strategy and planning. But taking on the Pit is entirely optional, so as not to ruin the fun of those who don't enjoy the tougher fights. Yesterday I gave out at level 93, but I will prevail!
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32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Fair Review, October 31, 2004
Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars
Let me start off saying that this is my first review. Also this is a review about the game: Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door. That being said, this is not a biased opinion from one unrelated game to another (Cough-KarlMarxEmilioZapata-Cough).
I have played the original Paper Mario for the N64 so I will start off with some general differences of the two games. Then I will get to the Thousand Year Door review itself.
-- Differences for PM to PM:TYD --
-Controls-
A major change, but not like you think. In the first game, there would be some moves that would have you wearing your thumbs and fingers just trying to get through a boss battle. This happened because a lot of special moves called for repeatedly hitting the 'A' button over and over again. This got old fast. Other controls, like jumping and hammering are basically the same.
In the new game, there is almost none of that repeatedly tapping a button. There are some cases where you have to tap the 'R' button a few times, but it's so much easier to do than the original. Holding down the 'A' button has replaced the constantly hitting of the poor 'A'. Overall the controls have greatly improved.
-Graphics-
A minor change. The graphics on the GC version are crisper and cleaner than the 64, but not much else has changed. I am fine with this as it usually means that it is a bigger game, which in this case is true. it took me around 50 hours to get through the game trying to do everything. This is a lot of time for someone who goes to college. (Gasp! I go to college, I'm 20 years old, and I like this game! I gasp again and perhaps a third time. Gasp!! Gasp!!!)
-Battles-
In the GC version you get an audience to please. At first, I thought that this would be stupid and more for atmosphere than anything else. Boy, was I wrong. If the audience is unhappy with you, they may start rooting for the enemy. Which that means they will start throwing rocks and garbage at you in an attempt to hurt you or break your concentration. If the audience likes you the will throw good items at you and may even drop sandbags on the enemy. Trying to get the favor of the audience and stopping any body from throwing rocks at you is like a mini-battle in the actual battle. Always keep an eye on the audience.
Now, the review of the game itself.
--Paper Mario: Thousand Year Door--
-Story- 5/5
Basically, this follows the old Mario Bros. storyline. Princess Peach calls for help, gets kidnapped, Mario comes and saves the day. Except, Bowser didn't do it. In each chapter you play mainly as Mario, but have a little time playing as Peach(like PM64) and Bowser. The Bowser levels are great and any true Mario fan will have a blast playing them. Even though the basic plot has been done time after time, Nintendo does a great job putting little tweaks here and there that make it fresh and enjoyable.
-Graphics- 4/5
There will be some out there that hate these graphics, but you have to remember: it's called PAPER Mario. Everything has to use a paper like quality. There is the occasional thing that I think could have been done a tad better, like when you come to a 'new' area it would open like a pop-up book, but that's just wishing. Like I said earlier, I would gladly sacrifice graphics for a longer game.
-Gameplay- 5/5
The controls are great and the battles are awesome. If you forgot what I said about those two, check above for a more detail. The badges and party system has remained relatively unchanged. That's fine, they worked well to begin with. Everything else has improved.
-Sound- 4/5
The music is vibrant, especially on a good stereo system. There is so many little background, side music stuff that you'll never hear without a good stereo. You can play witout them easily enough, but it just sounds so... crisp. The only reason I gave this a 4/5 was because of the sound effects. Some of them can get a little cheesy, but it really boils down to whether love them or hate them. The music is the shining star here, though. Very memorable classic gaming tempos.
-Overall- 5/5
I love this game, but I am not everyone so I won't say that you should buy it. You shouldn't just let this game pass you by either. I suggest renting it, see if it is your cup of tea, then buy it. If you happen to be me, though, I suggest buying it.
I hope my review does this game justice.
---A little something I would like all Amazon reviewers to do though: Post the games that you like playing so the reader will get an idea of where the reviewer comes from and what kind of games he or she likes.
My Games:
-Mario Bros. series (most of them anyway)
-Zelda series
-Metroid series
-Halo (Yes I like X-Box and Nintendo, gasp away if you like)
-Rome: Total War
-Megaman original series (not the exe or battle network stuff, just the original)
-Warcraft series
-Half-Life and their assorted mods (Natural-Selection mostly anymore)
-Battlefield series
-Fire Emblem
-Pikmin series
-Command and Conquer series (Tiberian Sun is still my favorite)
-Gauntlet series
-Neverwinter Nights series
-Super Smash Bros. series
There are more but you get the general idea of what games I enjoy and I hope that it gives you an understanding of why I find this game so appealing.
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26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
You have to remember, it's an RPG..., October 19, 2004
Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars
If you're looking for a new Mario 64, this is NOT the game for you. Of course, the fact that it features the world's most famous plumber has seemed to mislead many to think you're going to get the same "action" as a Mario platform game. Let me make this clear early on: You're NOT.
This game is an RPG. It can be slow at times, with much dialogue. However, if you are sincerely engrossed in the story (which really just depends on if you're interested in it and aren't only out for action) this game WILL NOT bore you. Honestly, I don't believe this is a game for your average 7 year-old. Perhaps it was marketed as one, but it certainly requires a lot more thought than Mario 64, for example.
The gameplay itself is excellent though. The battles are incredibly innovative, and Intelligent has taken the "paper" aspect to the next level. It's not ONLY that Mario is in a flat world now. The interactions and secrets and thought patterns of playing a "flat" game have greatly evolved since the original Paper Mario. This isn't to say that the game rides on this "paper concept," but it certainly helps make Paper Mario one of the most original Nintendo titles (even with respect to it's
predecessor)
The game does follow the basic "mission style" format, but as you get farther into it you do not have to stick to the linear style. There are enough badges and "tattles" and recipes and items to collect to REALLY keep you busy if that's what you're looking for.
In closing, if you buy this game, you MUST remember it's an RPG. It's an incredibly original and deep RPG, but IT IS AN RPG! It shouldn't be judged on any other basis. You haven't played anything like it before--even if you played the N64 Paper Mario.
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