Review: Mario Luigi Bowsers Inside Story

Mario Luigi Bowsers Inside Story. The third game in the stupendous Mario and Luigi series. This game contains many of things people loved in Superstar Saga and has the witty dialogue of  Partners In Time.

Story

The game begins with a meeting in Peaches Castle. They are discussing on how to cure the blorbs (disease which makes toads fat). Bowsers (as always) breaks in half way through the meeting and attempts to kidnap the princess. He lands in a forest after getting knocked out of the castle. He then meets Fawful there and gains the “Lucky Mushroom” which gives him the ability to suck in everything. After inhaling Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach and others he falls down out of exhaustion. When he wakes up he can’t remember anything. He than meets Fawful who tells him he inhaled like a hungry syrup pig at the free pancake buffet (his words!) You then venture on a quest to take over the kingdom and crush Fawful. I’ll talk bout the dialogue in this game later on.

Graphics

The sprites in this game are stupendous. The Mario Luigi series graphical style never gets old. This is one thing enhanced graphics won’t improve. The animation when Luigi hammers is fluent and precise. The visual clarity in the images and the amount of detail in the background make for a great game. I’m glad that the background is consistent to where you are in battles (such as a Fawful Castle background in a battle in Fawful Castle). It’s sprites like these that make you appreciate videogames.

Dialogue

The dialogue in this game is amazing. Whether it’s Midbus talking about his “SUPER ULTRA WONDER ULTIMATE RUTHLESS GREAT IRON BALL” or the Fawful Train arriving at the “run-down-falling-apart-dirty-nasty-thanks-to-Bowser Castle” Do you have “fury” or “chortles’ at the awesome dialogue. Bowser has some of the most epic dialogue in the whole Mario Luigi series. Whether it’s un-knock-downable barriers or power high-fiving Fawful’s face this game will surely make you laugh. I hope you can see how awesome the dialogue in this game is by my examples.

Sound

The soundtrack in this game is pretty good but doesn’t have a memorable tune to it. The regular boss battle music isn’t catchy like Superstar Saga. Heck, even the Partners In Time boss battle music is better. Most of the music in the game isn’t annoying but it is forgettable. The final boss battle music on the otherhand is catchy and has an “epic” feel to it.

Battle/Overworld Gameplay

Overworld Gameplay

The overworld gameplay has many unique aspects to it. You can hammer Mario to a smaller size to reach small areas or dig into the ground to retrieve beans. Many of Mario Luigi’s abilities are used to enhance Bowser in some way such as hammering his nerve or digging into a hurt muscle. Bowser can do many things such as breathe fire, punch and roll around in a shell. Gameplay aspects such as mandatory minigames and “flying” use the touchscreen.

Battles

The battles in this game are different form the traditional RPG in many ways. You have the ability to counterattack your enemies attack with the correct timing. The Mario Luigi series are built in a way where you don’t have to pay attention to stats. When you level up, all your stats are raised in a way that’s equal. With Bowser, you can perform “big” battles in which you have to turn your DS in a horizontal direction and use the touch screen to fight. The “big” Bowser battles are short and seem more like a gimmick than anything else. The battles are similar to the battle system of Superstar Saga and Partners. The enemies in this game seem unnecessarily easy. It seemed like Nintendo was trying to appeal to everyone with this title but making it easier. The final battle was surprisingly easy. I was shocked because I had gotten used to the hard boss battles of Superstar Saga (Cackletta – Ghost) and Partners in Time (Princess Shroob).

Overall

Overall Mario Luigi Bowsers Inside Story is a great game that I would recommend everyone to get. If you were a fan of Superstar Saga but hated Partners In Time don’t worry. This game is more like Superstar Saga than Partners In Time. The awesome final battle music combined with the stellar gameplay results in a must have game.

Score:

Story: 9 – Great storyline but Fawful needed more fury!

Soundtrack: 8 – Decent but nothing memorable

Battle/Overworld Gameplay: 10 Stupendous just like the old games

Dialogue: 9.5 Amazing. This game made me laugh out loud at more than a few parts

Final Score: 9.1 - Worth Purchasing