So uh, Nintendo waited until Friday for some kind of announcement and it's all just actual details on Paper Mario TOK
This wild experimentation reminds me of what happened to Star Fox and I don't like it. They REALLY feel the need to do all sorts of weird and different things.
Oh boy... I'm going to be honest about the PM news...
I'm just disapointed in the "Well yeah , I was kind of expecting it to be like that considering what we saw , but still..." kind of way.
I know I'm going to get murdered for my opinions
god , I forgot how divisive PM talk was before PM TOK's reveal , but this game feel like Color Splash 2 , but they try to give us a new battle system , while cattering a bit to old school Paper Mario.
Wich make for an... Okay result , I guess ? Color Splash had some strong elements , most notably some unique locals and the humor. However , the structure of the game felt more like "lot of mini funny stories" and less "one huge adventure" , and PM TOK is giving me the former vibe.
This game is clearly going to have memorable parts people are going to love , it's obvious that a lot of efforts went into these locals and scenarios. But... Ultimately...
This isn't Paper Mario at it's strongest. I don't like using "IT'S NOT REAL PAPER MARIO" because I'm going to get the "well there is 2 real paper mario , and 4 fake one then ?" , so I feel like "Paper Mario at it's strongest" is a best way to express it.
64 and TTYD were simply super fun and well made RPGs , despise the issues that plagued them. (Most notably the level design of TTYD) Super Paper Mario was very hit and miss (Super good in certain areas , but missed the point in others) and Sticker Star and Color Splash... Failed as an RPG. Fun exploration , but ultimately a rather boring world , on top of having combat that end up being too easy , frustrating , and a lack of reward.
While Sticker Star and Color Splash had their moments , I feel like the experience as a whole was less enjoyable than 64 and TTYD , and even Super to some degree.
And that's why I'm disapointed with those PM TOK news. It's a fine enough game , but when you look back at what they made before , and see the jump in quality it's... Let's say that I don't want to settle for less when IS proved they were able to make what was the most enjoyable experiences I had in the franchise.
To developp a bit on why I think PM TOK is so much like a Color Splash sequel :
-The world is made of paper. Is it gorgeous ? Absolutely. However , this is the third game in a row to play with the same two gimmicks since Sticker Star. Coloring empty spaces ? Well now , you throw confettis. It's litteraly going to do the same things than in Color Splash , but it just look different. The 1000 fold arms ? You manipulate the world made of paper to build a path to explore with a singular mechanic... Just like Color Splash did when you cutted parts of the world on the gamepad to progress on the background , as an example. Ultimately , these gimmicks accomplish the same exact things , and lack depth. It's not even like SPM when even if you had a limited ammount of characters , each pixel allowed for something unique , giving some variety to the puzzles.
-A new combat system with a Solo Paper Mario , on top of having high numbers , and a lack of FP and BPs , while making Partners trivial. The 64 and TTYD structure was basically "Easy to understand , but has a lot of depth thanks to how much you can customize Paper Mario and friends with badges and level up , as well as partners." and I loved it. On top of that , it also put an emphasis on smaller numbers , to make planning strategies easier , it's way easier to realize how big a buff or debuff is , how high or low an ennemy's HP is , so on and so on.
... This new combat system is nothing like that , and it's not what I'm looking for in a PM game. Could this combat system be fun ? Absolutely. There is a lot of potential with that 3D arena but... ultimately , I wonder...
Why ? Why throw away a combat system that worked so much and could be improved further upon , wich is one of the main things that make your franchise remember so fondly , and do something completely new when nobody asked for it ?
Sure , this combat remove stickers and ... Brought back upgraded ennemy cards from Color Splash , but it's simply not what I feel like is Paper Mario at it's strongest. It's something completely different that didn't needed to be there , but was here for the sake of having something new.
Also my stand on partners...
... They seem useless. I'm blunt , but god , they feel horribly useless in that game. The best we saw about them is a rare summon in a fight where the Bob-bomb dude did Bombette's basic charge attack. There isn't a single instance of them helping with puzzle solving on the overworld either. No exploding rocks , no hitting switch at a distance with Kamek's spell , no Bowser Jr. helping you cross gaps...
Just... Why ? Is it really that hard to get ? They help for puzzle solving on the overworld , and are super good at one job in combat , and you need to switch them around depending on the situation. That's what partners did.
It's like if the new Fire Emblem only gave you generic dudes with no dialogues as your roster. Imagine if instead of all the colorful characters we get in FE... We get a basic soldier , a basic myrmidon , a basic pegasus knight , all unamed. On top of that , they would be green units you wouldn't be able to control , have at best a D rank weapon , and you couldn't promote them.
That's how I feel about the partners currently. Sure , they're here , and it's better than nothing... But they barely do anything.
"Oh , but wait for the game to be out !"
... People told me that after the first trailer.
I waited for a second trailer.
I got a 5 minutes and 30 seconds in depth trailer to sell me on the game.
I only judge what I saw. And what I saw with partners is them being temporary party members with limited use in combat , and no puzzle solving purposes on the overworld , on top of having generic and forgettable designs.
So they simply didn't sold me on the game.
I'm sorry if I come as passive aggresive , because I really don't want to give that vibe , I really don't want to be some kind of smug guy who say "You enjoy this game ? Well **** you , here's why it's trash."
But I also want to be completely honest with how I feel about this game.
And honestly , I'm at a point where I'm strongly considering giving up on PM and just go all out with Geno and a SMRPG remake.
Alphadream is bankrupt and we don't know what happened to the staff , and Paper Mario is barely an RPG anymore...
So yeah , Geno , as cliché as it sound , is my last hope for reviving the Mario RPGs. Or at the very least , give them some proper celebration in Smash.
