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Paper Mario Color Splash review: Just don't think about the older versions

There are few franchises in video games that have seen the kinds of twists and turns that the Paper Mario series has. Originally, it was meant to provide a sort of follow-up to the Super Nintendo classic Super Mario RPG. Paper Mario for the Nintendo 64 was an instant hit with fans of role-playing games like Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest, offering a distinctly light-hearted and, for lack of a better word, "Nintendo-y" take on the genre while still giving players an epic story to follow.

The game's sequel, however, blew the original out of the water. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door for the Nintendo Gamecube is widely regarded not just as the best entry in the Paper Mario series, but one of the best role-playing games ever made. It's chock-full of side-quests, hidden secrets, and charm. For many, it was a perfect game. So when the Wii was launched, and a new Paper Mario game was announced, it was a surprise to see that the then-newest game in the series would pretty much throw everything out the window. The release of Super Paper Mario was, in retrospect, a sign that Nintendo wanted to change things up with the franchise. Though it would return later, Super Paper Mario removed the classic turn-based RPG style combat, and instead focused the game more as a platforming adventure. And despite the return of turn-based combat to the series, it's clear with the release of Paper Mario: Sticker Star and now Paper Mario: Color Splash that Nintendo isn't in any hurry to make another Thousand-Year Door.

This is where many will stop reading this review, having already made their purchasing decision. No, Paper Mario: Color Splash is not a return to the epic, sweeping, amazing RPG form that marked the series's first two entries. The story isn't particularly engaging, and you don't really feel like you're going on a big adventure to Save The World, or anything. The world map and stage select actively work to remove the feeling of cohesion, of venturing from a town to a far-off location. The much-maligned card battle system returns. In essence, it's not really an RPG anymore, despite its RPG elements.

But viewed in its own right, without the pressures that come from comparing it to its much older brother, Paper Mario: Color Splash is more than worthy of your time. The environments are lush and alive-seeming, backed by a soundtrack that is right up there with the best Nintendo has ever put together. It's a tactile world, and it's one you care about. In addition, one thing that Nintendo did keep from older Paper Mario games is the large cast of colorful characters. Despite a relatively light story focusing on, you guessed it, collecting stars in the effort to restore color to Prism Island, the inhabitants of the island are all legitimately well written and endearing. The new Paint Hammer ability is incredibly satisfying, whether you're restoring color to the landscape or turning unsuspecting toads purple.

Unfortunately, the game's flaws aren't limited to the fact that it isn't Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, which means we need to talk about the battle system. Like Paper Mario: Sticker Star, battles in Paper Mario: Color Splash all operate on a turn-based system where instead of choosing between basic attacks and magic attacks, every attack and item is represented by one-time-use cards. On the surface, this doesn't seem like that major of a flaw, but it fundamentally changes the way the game is played. Nintendo put a lot of work into creating "thing" cards, flashy attack cards that summon 3-dimensional objects like plungers and fans into a 2-dimensional world to wreak massive havoc. These cards can also be used to solve puzzles in the over world, so they're very valuable. The issue here is that because these cards are one-time use, players aren't free to use them whenever they want to, and instead are pressured into saving them for a later time which may never come. On the flip side, if you use one of these cards in battle and realize later that you need it to solve a puzzle, you either need to shell out a large amount of coins, or venture all the way back to the stage you found the card originally. It's stifling, in short. You don't feel able to use all the tools at your disposal because you can only use them once. Compare this to other RPGs where you can perform any attack you want to at any time, assuming you have the magic points or skill points to do so. It offers freedom to try things out and experiment. Paper Mario: Color Splash doesn't have that, at least in battling.

In short, you probably already knew whether or not you'd like Paper Mario: Color Splash before you read this review. If you can't get over the fact that it's not another Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, nothing I say here will convince you to give the game a shot. If, however, you can judge the game on its own merits, you'll find a wonderfully bright, varied, and above all, fun gaming experience. The game bursts with joy at every turn, and even despite its flaws, it's the kind of game that just leaves you beaming from ear to ear when you play it. So forget about its older brother and enjoy Paper Mario: Color Splash for what it is, because there is a lot there to enjoy.

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