PLATFORM: SWITCH | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
Marking a bold departure for the series, 1996’s SNES exclusive Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars took its cues from Final Fantasy-style JRPGs, shifting Mario’s usual 2D side-scrolling platforming gameplay to an isometric 3D environment full of turn-based battles. Earning praise for its graphics and quirky humour, the game wasn’t released in Europe until it arrived on the Wii’s Virtual Console in 2008 and, apart from its inclusion on 2017’s SNES Classic Edition, has largely been hidden away on digital services since then, remaining an oddity for those outside of the USA and Japan, making it a prime candidate for a remake to help the game find the wider audience that it deserves.
After a familiar setup that finds Mario needing to rescue Princess Peach from Bowser’s clutches once again, things take a bizarre turn when a gigantic sword crashes down from the sky and embeds itself right into the middle of Bowser’s castle. This heralds the arrival of the Smithy Gang, whose armies spread their evil intentions across the Mushroom Kingdom. To stop them, Mario buddies up with a cast of quirky and colourful characters who all have their own unique powers that can be used in battle.
The turn-based combat is easy to get to grips with and allows for plenty of wacky attacks and special moves that would never be possible in a regular Mario game, and the ability to add extra hits while your attacks are in motion means that you can still interact with the game while your chosen command is in progress instead of simply watching things play out on screen and waiting for your next turn. With enemy weaknesses to figure out, items that boost your attacks or heal your party, and a special meter that allows you to unleash a devastating tag-team move, there’s a fair few things to keep an eye on during battles. A “breezy” difficulty setting is included for those who might not be on board with JRPG mechanics, making battles quicker and easier to get through.
Super Mario RPG features a particularly whimsical take on the Mushroom Kingdom. Its silly and goofy humour and unexpected encounters with all manner of unusual characters make for a truly delightful and joyous adventure, and this remake’s updated sound and visuals allow everything to shine through in a much more vibrant way than was possible in the original game. With a host of quality-of-life improvements that bring the almost 30-year-old game up to date with modern expectations, this is easily the best way to experience this once-forgotten oddity. A tremendous addition to a long line of excellent releases from Nintendo, who seem to be knocking things out of the park at an almost alarming rate days!
