Screenshots :.
Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time
DS
Matt
09-04-2007
"Well, do you have any better ideas?"
"Curious monsters."
"And a curious castle."
The news that there was to be a Nintendo DS sequel to the much-loved Gameboy Advance title Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga was met with worldwide rapture when it was first shown back at E3 2005, and justifiably so. Developers AlphaDream have built a reputation as a company who can fuse the wonderful world of the Mushroom Kingdom with a large dose of humour and wrap it all up wonderfully in an entertaining, addictive game. Not only does the new adventure match its predecessor, it utilises the DS’s expanded capabilities to reach fantastic new heights.
Down Mario and Luigi’s way, things aren’t good. Princess Peach has been kidnapped again, and they’ve ended up meeting with their baby selves via a slightly complicated series of events. Combining their forces they set off on a quest to not only find the Princess, but to also rid the kingdom of a menacing race of purple mushrooms who seem determined to destroy anything and everything they touch. Comedy capering ensues, and a lot of fun is to be had along the way through the approximate twenty-five hours of play.
Resuming the action RPG feel of the previous game, Partners In Time doesn’t actually require much use of the touch screen and instead concentrates on splitting the action between the two screens so you can control the babies and the grown-ups almost simultaneously. The game often presents you with a scenario whereby your motley crew come across an area which only the smaller baby Mario and baby Luigi can access, and once separated and on their own the babies action shifts to the top screen. This is far from a novelty though, and in most cases is actually useful in giving you the ability to switch between controlling both pairs of brothers numerous times in rapid succession in order to complete puzzles.
Each character has their own unique abilities which can be used either on their own or when paired with their other form, and as you progress throughout the game new abilities will be drip-fed to you in order for you to make progress across a wide variety of different dungeons and landscapes, each cleverly designed to test your skill and adaptability. Each character is assigned one of the four face buttons the DS offers, and each has their unique abilities mapped. This means that pressing the A button, for example, will make Mario jump and carry out his special ability, whereas pressing B will see Luigi doing the same. The control system sound slightly complicated at first, but it all falls together brilliantly and becomes second nature in no time at all.
Audiovisually the game will leave a smacking great smile across even the most cynical, world-weary face. Bright, vivid colours spring forth from each of the screens at your disposal, ranging from the familiar shades of red on Mario’s trusty cap to the piercing purple of the evil Shroobs. Cheerful, jaunty tunes regale you as you stroll around whilst playfully impish melodies sneak onto the stage when something mischievous is afoot. The game practically drips character out of the DS cartridge slot at every turn, something you’d expect AlphaDream by now.
In terms of plot, Partners In Time rarely strays from a tried-and-tested formula and is never particularly complicated, yet it still keeps itself interesting enough for you to want to keep ploughing through the game until you reach the very end. Thankfully the dialogue is littered with the amusing quips, silly arguments and gentle humour which marked the original Game Boy game out as one of the most genuinely entertaining titles to feature the moustachioed duo yet. Whilst most of it is not all belly-laugh material you’ll find yourself chuckling at the slapstick goings-on that play out in front of you more than once.
Criticisms are hard to come by when it comes to Partners In Time as it’s a genuinely charming experience. Perhaps you could say that as a whole the game is a little on the easy side, and perhaps you could also argue that some parts of the game feel a little similar to others. Taken as a whole though, Partners In Time is yet another triumph for AlphaDream and only serves to heighten anticipation whatever future projects they have stored in their very fertile minds.
Down Mario and Luigi’s way, things aren’t good. Princess Peach has been kidnapped again, and they’ve ended up meeting with their baby selves via a slightly complicated series of events. Combining their forces they set off on a quest to not only find the Princess, but to also rid the kingdom of a menacing race of purple mushrooms who seem determined to destroy anything and everything they touch. Comedy capering ensues, and a lot of fun is to be had along the way through the approximate twenty-five hours of play.
Resuming the action RPG feel of the previous game, Partners In Time doesn’t actually require much use of the touch screen and instead concentrates on splitting the action between the two screens so you can control the babies and the grown-ups almost simultaneously. The game often presents you with a scenario whereby your motley crew come across an area which only the smaller baby Mario and baby Luigi can access, and once separated and on their own the babies action shifts to the top screen. This is far from a novelty though, and in most cases is actually useful in giving you the ability to switch between controlling both pairs of brothers numerous times in rapid succession in order to complete puzzles.
Each character has their own unique abilities which can be used either on their own or when paired with their other form, and as you progress throughout the game new abilities will be drip-fed to you in order for you to make progress across a wide variety of different dungeons and landscapes, each cleverly designed to test your skill and adaptability. Each character is assigned one of the four face buttons the DS offers, and each has their unique abilities mapped. This means that pressing the A button, for example, will make Mario jump and carry out his special ability, whereas pressing B will see Luigi doing the same. The control system sound slightly complicated at first, but it all falls together brilliantly and becomes second nature in no time at all.
Audiovisually the game will leave a smacking great smile across even the most cynical, world-weary face. Bright, vivid colours spring forth from each of the screens at your disposal, ranging from the familiar shades of red on Mario’s trusty cap to the piercing purple of the evil Shroobs. Cheerful, jaunty tunes regale you as you stroll around whilst playfully impish melodies sneak onto the stage when something mischievous is afoot. The game practically drips character out of the DS cartridge slot at every turn, something you’d expect AlphaDream by now.
In terms of plot, Partners In Time rarely strays from a tried-and-tested formula and is never particularly complicated, yet it still keeps itself interesting enough for you to want to keep ploughing through the game until you reach the very end. Thankfully the dialogue is littered with the amusing quips, silly arguments and gentle humour which marked the original Game Boy game out as one of the most genuinely entertaining titles to feature the moustachioed duo yet. Whilst most of it is not all belly-laugh material you’ll find yourself chuckling at the slapstick goings-on that play out in front of you more than once.
Criticisms are hard to come by when it comes to Partners In Time as it’s a genuinely charming experience. Perhaps you could say that as a whole the game is a little on the easy side, and perhaps you could also argue that some parts of the game feel a little similar to others. Taken as a whole though, Partners In Time is yet another triumph for AlphaDream and only serves to heighten anticipation whatever future projects they have stored in their very fertile minds.
8/10