Paper Mario 64

Realease Date:	Units sold:	System:
Aug 11, 2000	1.3 million	Nintento 64

Paper Mario 64 was the one that started it all. Its gameplay, world, and story are all very well put together, but still leave room for improvement, making this game the perfect series starter.

Plot

The story begins with Mario being invited to Princess Peach's Castle for a celebration of the Mushroom Kingdom. But then, not long after he arrives, so too does Bowser. This time, Bowser brought with him a new toy; the Star Rod which he stole from Star Haven. It has the power to grant any wish, which is dangerous in the hands of Bowser. After Mario loses to the sheer power of the Star Rod, Bowser imprisons all the guests within the castle, as well as Princess Peach. Thus, Mario has to embark on a quest to save the Star Spirits that Bowser captured, in hopes that their power can be enough to overthrow Bowser and his Star Rod.

Gameplay

Battle System
The battle system in this game is very simplistic, yet incredibly effective. While many RPGs love to inflate the numbers to extremely high amounts (Eg. "YOU DID 13356 DMG!"), this game keeps the numbers low, which I really like. It adds to the strategy of things because it makes the damage and HP numbers countable, so every turn can be completely calculated to your desires. During your turn, you can do one of five things: Jump attack, Hammer attack, Use an item, Use a star power, or Swap your partner. Choosing between jumping and hammering is very engaging, because certain enemies are too high up to be hammered, while others can be spiky, making them unable to be jumped on (without getting hurt). You can choose to spend your Flower Points (FP) to use stronger and more interesting attacks as well, adding another element of choice. In addition to Mario's turn, one of your partner characters also gets to attack. They have many unique abilities, and choosing between them all and integrating them into your strategy feels very satisfying. This game also uses action commands, allowing the player to time their button presses to maximize damage and defend against enemy attacks. The implementation of action commands in this game is flawless, they feel so good to do!
Overworld
The other main part of the gameplay is the overworld gameplay. This is where the game's world comes to life. This game's overworld gameplay has many different elements, including puzzles, platforming, and exploration. The combination of all of these elements is seamless, making it a joy to explore the world. The puzzles are all very unique, and constantly use new elements and partner abilities throughout the game. It's also very cool when you unlock a new ability, and find ways to use it in areas that you've already explored, making the exploration very engaging. The platforming is very simplistic, but I think that's what adds to the seamless nature of the overworld gameplay.
Badges
As mentioned before, the badge system is what really makes this game shine in my opinion. The amount to which you can tailor your gameplay style with the badges you pick is awesome! Basically how it works is you have a certain number of badge points, which you can allot to different badges that you acquire throughout your journey. You can mix and match, swap out, and add new badges to your loadout whenever you want, making it extremely flexible. There are three main types of badges: Move badges, Stat badges, and Helper badges. Move badges give you access to new special moves during battle. One example is the quake hammer, which generates an earthquake, damaging all enemies on the ground. Stat badges give you some sort of status effect, such as more health, more defence, more damage, or better attack evasion. Helper badges give more passive effects, for example, more coins rewarded for battling, easier action command timing, or alerts for nearby collectibles. With so many diverse choices, and more as you go throughout the game, this game is incredibly replayable. Each badge loadout completely changes your style of play, and it is incredibly fun to experiment with!

Partners

Goombario
	Goombario is the first partner that accompanies you on your quest. He is always eager to help and is very knowledgeable. Mario can use his overworld ability to learn more about his environment and get hints on tough puzzles. In combat, he has the following abilities: - Headbonk (0 FP) - A standard jumping ability, behaving the same as Mario's jump. - Tattle (0 FP) - Provides useful information on the selected enemy, such as their health, damage, defence, and their behaviours. - Charge (1 FP) - Charges his attack power by 2, ready to be unleashed the next turn. - Multibonk (3 FP) - Continues to jump on the enemy until you mistime an action command.
Kooper
	Kooper is a very loyal and adventurous koopa who looks up to Mario as a great explorer. He hopes to one day go on adventures just like him. Mario can use his overworld ability to reach far away objects and switches. In combat, he has the following abilities: - Shell Toss (0 FP) - Gets into his shell and hurls himself at the enemy, but is only able to hit enemies on the ground. - Power Shell (3 FP) - The same as Shell Toss, but fires through ALL the enemies on the ground, dealing really good spread damage. - Dizzy Shell (4 FP) - The same as power shell, but instead of dealing damage, it makes the enemies dizzy, rendering them unable to attack for a couple of turns. - Fire Shell (5 FP) - A much more powerful version of Power Shell, with an added elemental bonus against snow and ice enemies.
Bombette
	Bombette is a very feisty and energetic bob-omb that is hungry for action. Mario can use her overworld ability to explode rocks and cracked walls, as well as activate switches. In combat, she has the following abilities: - Body Slam (0 FP) - Walks up to the enemy and performs a shoulder bash on them. - Bomb (3 FP) - Walks up toward a single enemy and explodes them, dealing massive damage. - Power Bomb (6 FP) - The same as Bomb but deals massive damage to all grounded enemies. - Mega Bomb (8 FP) - The same as Power Bomb, but also includes flying enemies in the massive damage distribution.
Parakarry
	Parakarry is a paratroopa that works for the postal service. He accompanies Mario on his journey to help him deliver his letters across the mushroom kingdom. Mario can use his overworld ability to hover over horizontal gaps in the environment, opening up new areas. In combat, he has the following abilities: - Skydive (0 FP) - Flies close to the enemy and dives at a diagonal angle to deal damage to them. - Shell Shot (3 FP) - Gets into his shell, aims, and fires into the enemy, dealing great damage to a single target. - Air Lift (3 FP) - Grabs an enemy and, if successful, pulls them out of the battle entirely. You do not get exp for the removal of this enemy. - Air Raid (5 FP) - Flies around wildly, dealing good damage to all enemies.
Lady Bow
	Lady Bow is a sassy Boo who is the leader of the Boos of the Forever Forest and Gusty Gulch. She joins Mario for his strength and ability to protect her fellow Boos from harm. Mario can use her overworld ability to turn invisible while standing still, which is useful to pass through otherwise impassable walls and floors. In combat, she has the following abilities: - Smack (0 FP) - Slaps an enemy silly for a maximum of 5 times. - Outta Sight (2 FP) - Makes Mario invisible for the enemies' turn, enabling him to dodge all incoming attacks. Can't be used twice in a row. - Spook (3 FP) - Attempts to scare away as many enemies as possible. It is random whether each enemy gets scared off. You do not get exp for enemies that get scared away. - Fan Smack (5 FP) - Slaps enemies silly, but this time with a fan, increasing the damage per slap.
Watt
	Watt is a baby light spark that got kidnapped and taken away from her family. Mario saved her, and to express her gratitude, she accompanies Mario on his quest. Mario can use her overworld ability to light up dark areas, as well as reveal invisible blocks. In combat, she has the following abilities: - Electro Dash (0 FP) - Dashes into an enemy, ignoring all enemy defence. This evasion of defence is incredibly useful for very strong defensive enemies. - Power Shock (2 FP) - If successful, will paralyze the target enemy, preventing them from attacking. - Turbo Charge (3 FP) - Raises Mario's attack power by 1 for 3 turns. - Mega Shock (5 FP) - Attempts to paralyze all enemies. Success or failure is different for each enemy, so you will most likely get partial success.
Sushie
	Sushie is an older fish who is strict in her ways of life. Mario meets her when she's babysitting baby Yoshis. She accompanies Mario after he helps her find the baby Yoshis when they run off into the jungle. Mario can use her overworld ability to ride across the water, giving him the ability to get to previously unreachable areas. In combat, she has the following abilities: - Belly Flop (0 FP) - Jumps into the air and lands on an enemy to damage them. - Squirt (3 FP) - Squirts water at an enemy, dealing good damage to them. This move has an elemental strength against fire enemies. - Water Block (3 FP) - Raises Mario's defence by 1 for 3 turns. - Tidal Wave (6 FP) - Splashes a massive wave of water around, dealing great damage to all enemies. Also has an elemental strength against fire.
Lakilester
	Lakilester used to work for Bowser, but later, after a battle with Mario, realized that it was better to be good, and decided to join Mario to do something good. He can be a bit full of himself though. Mario can use his overworld ability to ride across the spikes and lava, giving him the ability to get to previously unreachable areas. Lakilester is also an option to travel across the world at a faster speed. In combat, he has the following abilities: - Spiny Flip (0 FP) - Throws a spiny shell at the enemy to deal damage. - Spiny Surge (3 FP) - Hurls numerous spiny shells at the group of enemies, damaging them all. - Cloud Nine (4 FP) - Raises Mario's evasiveness for 3 turns, making him very difficult for the enemy to hit. - Hurricane (5 FP) - Generates a massive gust of wind to blow the enemies away from the battle, if successful. You do not get exp for enemies that are blown away.

Chapters

Prologue: A Plea From The Stars
The prologue is where the player gets to learn the ropes of the game. The player gets introduced to overworld gameplay as well as battling. After Mario loses his battle with Bowser, he ends up in Goomba Village, where he meets Goombario. The Star Spirits have called Mario for help and asked for him to meet them at Shooting Star Summit. On the way, Mario gets his trusty hammer and encounters the Goomba King. Once defeated, Mario arrives at Toad Town, the main hub town of the game. Mario then goes to Shooting Star Summit. There, he receives his mission to save all the star spirits from Bowser's clutches.
Chapter 1: Storming Koopa Bros. Fortress
The first real chapter is where the gameplay really gets fun. It is only after the prologue that Mario gets the ability to use action commands in battle, making combat much more engaging and satisfying. His first stop on his journey is to find Eldstar, who is locked up in the Koopa Bros. Fortress. Mario travels around the bright and grassy plains of Pleasant Path until he arrives at Koopa Village, where he recruits Kooper. Mario then arrives at the Koopa Bros. Fortress, housing many fun puzzles and challenges throughout. It's a very fun dungeon to go through, with many twists and turns. Mario also finds Bombette locked up halfway through the fortress and rescues her, and then she joins the team. The chapter ends with the boss fight against the Koopa Bros.
Chapter 2: The Mystery of Dry, Dry Ruins
Chapter 2 sees Mario travelling the Dry, Dry Desert. He begins by scaling Mt. Rugged and helping Parakarry collect his dropped letters. Mario then descends down the other side of the mountain and can engage in an optional boss fight against the vulture, Buzzar. After defeating him, or lying to him saying that you are not Mario, Mario heads toward the Dry Dry Desert, which is the largest area in the game. It consists of 49 sections, each one slightly different, and many of them housing secrets and collectibles. I always explore every single section in my playthrough, however not many of them are mandatory. After the desert, he arrives at a little town called Dry, Dry Outpost. Mario then receives an ancient stone from the legendary Moustafa that is the key to revealing the secret Dry, Dry Ruins, which have resided in the desert for generations. Mario then puzzles and battles his way through the ruins, and eventually arrives at the end, where the boss Tutankoopa awaits him. After defeating him, Mario rescues the star spirit Mamar.
Chapter 3: The "Invincible" Tubba Blubba
In this chapter, Mario heads off into the spooky Forever Forest, which is very easy to get lost in. It has a lot of branching and circular paths, causing it to be quite the puzzle to get through. After this, Mario arrives at Boo's Mansion, where, after much pranking done by the boos, Mario meets Lady Bow. She requests his help to defeat The Invincible Tubba Blubba, who has been terrorizing the boos of Gusty Gulch. The task seemed insurmountable because Tubba Blubba was known to be virtually invincible, with but one potential weakness unknown by anyone. Despite these odds, Mario agrees, and they set off through Gusty Gulch and into Tubba Blubba's castle. This is a castle that makes you feel like you're in a giant's house. The ceilings are all really high, and the furniture is larger than Mario is! To make his way through the castle without alerting Tubba Blubba, Mario has to use Lady Bow's invisible ability to avoid triggering alarms or alerting Tubba Blubba's guards. In his bedroom, Mario finds a key to a windmill that he saw earlier in Gusty Gulch. This key was very loud and woke Tubba Blubba up when Mario took it, causing him to have to run as fast as he could down to the windmill. Inside the secret windmill, Mario finds Tubba Blubba's weakness; his heart. Mario then battles and defeats Tubba Blubba's heart, rendering him invincible no longer. He then finishes the job and defeats Tubba Blubba, saving the boos and freeing the star spirit Skolar.
Chapter 4: Trials in the Toy Box
Upon return from his battle with Tubba Blubba, Mario comes back to Toad Town in mayhem. Shy Guys have begun wreaking havoc on all the townspeople and stealing their things. After much searching, Mario finds the source of the Shy Guys; Shy Guy's Toy Box. Without hesitation, Mario jumps inside to solve the next problem. Inside the Toy Box is a whole other world, filled with colorful, toy-like environments. When making his way through the toy box, Mario recovers many of the townspeople's items, which he then needs to move forward. There's a cool dynamic of going back and forth between the real world and the Toy Box. About halfway through, Mario finds a Big Lantern Ghost, which, upon defeating it, reveals Watt, who then joins the team. Mario then makes his way to the end of the Toy Box, where the final boss, General Guy (I love this guy) awaits. Watt is the key to defeating his large and defensive tank. After the battle, Mario saves the star spirit, Muskular.
Chapter 5: Hot, Hot Times on Lavalava Island
Next up on his journey, Mario embarks across the ocean to the faraway island, Lavalava Island. With him on this journey is Kolorado, a famous Koopa archeologist, whom Kooper idolizes heavily. Kolorado is looking for his next great treasure find. They arrive first at Yoshi Village, where everyone is living happily. Mario also meets Sushie, who is babysitting the baby Yoshis. After exploring ahead a bit and coming back to the village, the baby Yohsis have all run off into the Jade Jungle, causing Mario to brave into the jungle after them. The Jade Jungle area is one of the best-looking in the game. It's so lush and alive. It is also a very substantial area to explore, with many branching paths. After rescuing the baby Yoshis, Sushie fully accompanies Mario on his quest, and they, along with Kolorado, enter into the volcano, Mt. Lavalava. With Kolorado bumbling along through the volcano, providing a great deal of comic relief, Mario encounters the most difficult enemies he has so far. I think this section is where the difficulty and strategy takes a big step up from previous chapters. Mario and Co. then arrive at the end of the volcano, where the Lava Piranha boss resides. With Sushie's water abilities helping out, Mario defeats the Lava Piranha and saves Misstar. However, just as they begin to relax, the volcano begins to erupt, resulting in a fast-paced escape sequence that is very thrilling, and almost has Kolorado lose his life trying to retrieve a treasure that he finds while escaping.
Chapter 6: Dark Days in Flower Fields
In my opinion, this chapter is the weakest of the bunch, but it's still not bad. In this one, Mario heads into Flower Fields through a magical door. As opposed to all sunny and lively, this land is very dry and dull. This is due to clouds covering the entire sky. Mario spends this chapter solving the problems of various flowers of Flower Fields in to the ingredients he needs to grow a beanstalk up into the clouds, to find the source of them all. On the way, Mario has a run-in with Lakilester, whom he battles first before Lakilester decides to join him on his heroic journey. It is up the beanstalk where he finds the boss, Huff N. Puff, high within the Cloudy Climb. Huff N. Puff is a truly formidable foe, probably the most difficult boss so far. After the fierce battle, Mario frees the star spirit, Klevar.
Chapter 7: A Star Spirit on Ice
As opposed to the previous chapter, this one might be my favourite of the bunch. It starts off with Mario arriving at Shiver City, inhabited by penguins. Not long after his arrival, Mario finds the mayor lying still on the floor of his room. Because of this coincidental timing, Mario gets himself accused of murdering him! Thus Mario has to first settle this debacle before moving forward on his quest. Luckily, it turned out the Mayor was just unconscious from dropping an item on his head. With that out of the way, Mario makes his way to the Crystal Palace, which not only is one of the best dungeons in the game to explore but also has fantastic and atmospheric songs and visuals! This chapter is also where combat is at its absolute best in my opinion. Every playthrough I do, the enemies of this chapter provide a great challenge. But at this point in the game, you have so many badge points, making crafting badge loadouts and seeing them work against these enemies incredibly enjoyable. After making his way through this labyrinth of a castle, Mario comes face to face with the Crystal King, who is another formidable opponent. After fighting the hard fight, Mario defeats the Crystal King and saves the final star spirit, Kalmar.
Chapter 8: A Star-Powered Showdown!
After recovering all the Star Spirits, Mario might finally be able to stand up against Bowser and his Star Rod. The chapter begins with him ascending up to Star Haven, where he will then pursue Bowser by taking flight using star power. We have seen that many of the chapters in the game conclude with Mario storming some kind of fortress, often housing some of the most fun puzzle-solving and combat challenges the game has to offer. In this chapter, Mario is storming Bowser's Castle for the entirety of the chapter. This adds to the feeling of stakes. It truly feels like everything is on the line as you slowly make your way through this gauntlet of a chapter. All your skills are spectacularly put to the test in combat as well as using all your overworld abilities. After leaving all of those trials behind him, Mario confronts Bowser in a spectacular final battle of epic proportions. With both Mario and Bowser fighting with all the star power they have accumulated through this game, as well as Bowser becoming huge thanks to his wizard assistant, Kammy Koopa, it has such a large and climactic finale worthy of the great game that it concludes.