Perfect retro-style graphics
Now at this point it’s worth mentioning the graphics which, at first glance, aren’t exactly inspiring. In fact, if you compared Super Paper Mario to something like Super Mario Sunshine you might be forgiven for thinking that Super Paper Mario is a step backwards in the graphics department. But it has to be said that whilst the graphics in Super Paper Mario do lack the polish of full 3D Mario games, there’s bags more playability here.If I’m honest, I think that Super Paper Mario’s graphics are downplayed to fit in with the storyline of the game. Yes, they’re cartoony and have a retro, Super NES feel, but there are graphical touches here that hint at there being more power under the hood on the Wii which is delicately throttled to give you effects when they’re necessary and not just thrown in as superfluous eye candy.
Overall the visuals are smooth and allow for clutter free gameplay. It’s classic Mario, stripped back to what made the originals so good. (You even get original NES mini-Marios as one of the power-ups). Certainly, there are places where I’m wondering if the levels have been designed around the limits of the Wii and I wouldn’t pick Super Paper Mario as a game to show off what a Wii can do graphically. But what you have here is perfectly suited to a Mario game… no extras, just pure Mario fun.
Similarly, the sound and music are functional and serve their purpose. One nice touch is the use of classic Mario tunes and sound effects in certain areas of the game, something which long time gamers will appreciate.
The WiiMote and its motion sensing abilities are, like the graphics and sound, put to use in a sensibly restrained manner. Most of the time you’ll be holding the WiiMote sideways, using the d-pad to move and the 1 and 2 buttons for actions. But on occasion you’ll need to flip it around and point it at the screen.
This will pause the game and bring up a set of cross-hairs which you can position over enemies to discover more about them. This is incredibly handy as some of the later enemies can be real basts and knowing a weak spot or two can really help.
You’ll also use the WiiMote to power-up some of the items you can use, either offensive or defensive. If you opt to drink a health restoring mushroom shake, you’ll have to tip the WiiMote side to side which affect how long the shakes regenerative powers last for. Or you might use it to set a path for a baddie-eating mushroom or perhaps just end up shaking it frantically as a Lazy Dazy’s song send you to sleep and you need to wake up fast.
