Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars is fondly remembered as one of the best games on the SNES. Developed by Square back when Square and Enix were separate entities, Super Mario RPG took the mustachioed plumber outside his platformer comfort zone into a turn-based RPG. This might seem like a risky venture, but it was so successful that it led to numerous RPGs starring Mario and company. After 27 years it was decided that the time has come for Mario to update his look. ArtePiazza is no stranger to RPGs having done a great deal of work in the Dragon Quest and SaGa franchises, and they’ve reworked Super Mario RPG for a new generation of gamers.
Super Mario RPG begins as if it were a number of classic Mario games. Princess (Toadstool in SNES, Peach in the remake) has been captured by Bowser and it’s up to Mario to once again save her from the overgrown snapping turtle. Things go about how anyone would expect; Bowser tries to keep Mario away and even employs a dirty trick or two to stop him, but the bouncy plumber is able to free the princess from her reptilian captor. Within ten minutes Mario has thwarted Bowser, saved the princess and restored order to the Mushroom Kingdom. That is until a giant sword falls from the sky, scattering the three characters to the winds. Mario lands back at his pad, and undeterred from the incident returns to Bowser’s castle to get the princess back only to see the evil sword has destroyed the bridge. Knowing that the victory against Bowser was too easy to last, Mario sets out on a new adventure to find the princess and the seven stars.
Mario is joined by four companions on his journey, two of which can be active in his party at any time. The first companion he gets is Mallow, a pale blobby fellow who claims to be a tadpole despite not remotely resembling a tadpole. Geno brings firepower to the party along with knowledge about the stars they need to recover. Geno is a doll that has come to life and grown to larger proportions, or at least that’s the form he’s chosen. Princess Peach also joins the party, proving that she can be a viable playable character and not just a damsel in distress. Due to the circumstances of there being a giant sword in his castle, Bowser forms an unlikely alliance with Mario. Of course, Bowser has to pretend the circumstances of the alliance are different than what they are, but Mario and his new pals are good sports and play along with it.
As the name states, Super Mario RPG is a role-playing game, but does maintain Mario’s platforming roots. Despite being transferred to an isometric world from the familiar 2D ones loaded with pitfalls, Mario still needs to jump around to traverse through every environment he’s in, plus there are plenty of floating treasure boxes only he can reach. Mario is so known for his jumping abilities that there are even a few interactions where he needs to jump in order to prove he is in fact “the” Mario. In between the areas he travels from point to point in a world map similar to Super Mario Bros. 3 or Super Mario World. When he’s in the quest areas enemies are visibly roaming about and contact with them initiates some turn-based combat.
When Mario and his friends enter battle it seems like a traditional turn-based affair, but there are some differences. Special attacks such as healing or fireballs consume flower points, which are pooled between all members. There’s a timing mechanic similar to the one found inSea of Starswhere properly timing a second button with an attack can inflict additional damage. This also applies to receiving damage, giving the player with a good sense of timing a chance to negate all or some of the received damage. The timing mechanic can be further implemented in not only enhancing the power of special attacks, but also taking on additional challenges, such as having Mario land 100 consecutive jumps on an enemy. The battles require strategy, but aren’t very difficult in general. One of the more enjoyable aspects of combat is watching the character animations, such as Mallow using crash cymbals as a weapon or Bowser hurling Mario as a projectile. Also like in Sea of Stars, whenever a character gains a level the player can choose to boost physical attack and defense, hit points or magic attack and defense.
Aside from the changes to the graphics and music, there are notable changes to the gameplay of Super Mario RPG. This was never a game that was known for its high level of difficulty, and this version wants to make Mario’s journey as easy as possible. An easier Breezy difficulty mode has been added, but the default difficulty setting is easier with new additions. Visual cues have been added in battle to show the player when they need to press a button for the timed hit bonus, which makes it even easier to deflect and inflict extra damage. Additionally, when the player successfully lands a timed hit, there’s a chance that it will inflict some damage on all enemies and not just the target, which can be strategically used to take out multiple enemies with a single basic attack. Landed consecutive timed hits can add cumulative bonuses to make attacks even more powerful. If this wasn’t enough, each timed also fills a gauge which when full can unleash a powerful triple attack, and if things aren’t going the player’s way, they can swap out party members mid fight. These changes do lessen the challenge, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Using the splash damage against multiple enemies was a tactic that was exploited at every opportunity. To offset these changes that make Mario’s life easier, there are now special enemies that randomly show up in battle. These are more powerful versions of regular enemies, but defeating them can grant greater rewards which can include frog coins. Mario can only carry so many items, but a nice quality-of-life improvement now has it so if Mario collects an item that he is at his limit, it’s automatically sent to storage. And there’s a change with no real practical impact on gameplay, but Mallow’s Psychopath ability has been renamed Thought Peek.
One area where Super Mario RPG hasn’t aged particularly well are some of the minigames and challenges. One of the drawbacks in technology advancements is that it’s easy to get spoiled by modern convenience. Movable cameras were not the norm in 1996 and the isometric camera is still static in this remake. This isn’t an issue for the vast majority of the game, but trying to land a jump on a teeter totter that can’t be seen or navigating a 3D maze where the player is invisible doesn’t rank high on the fun meter. The controls on some minigames such as making sharp turns on a mine cart are just as nightmarish as they were in the original. But these criticisms are minor blemishes on an otherwise amazing game.
Super Mario RPG was a great title for the SNES and remains so on Switch. As far as RPGs go this one is straightforward and linear. Those looking for a challenge won’t find one here, but difficulty was never its selling point. Super Mario RPG is a game that is as simple as it is fun. Mario’s adventure is filled with humorous dialogue and expressive comedic animations, with one of the best lines in gaming being delivered by some frustrated shark pirates. The timed hits were a novel mechanic back when it was originally released and today they still make battles feel more involved. The difficulty and relatively short length of this title suggest that it would be appropriate for younger players or those new to the genre. But because of how entertaining it is, this is a title that can be enjoyed by players of all ages and skill level. In recent years there have been several different approaches to remaking classic RPGs. While the specifics of each type varies, the goal seems to be capturing the feelings of nostalgia in old timers while making them feel contemporary for the younger generation. The team behind Super Mario RPG struck that balance perfectly.
The biggest and most obvious change in Super Mario RPG is the quality of the graphics. Everything has been rebuilt from the ground up into one of the best-looking games on Switch, especially in the newly-added cinematic cutscenes. The lighting and shadow effects combined with the highly-detailed environments create a world that realizes how players imagined the 16-bit version was supposed to look back in 1996. There were great enemy designs in the original and they look even better now. The soundtrack has been reorchestrated with the new arrangements being supervised by original composer Yoko Shimomura. Her reworked compositions sound great, but there’s the option to select the original 16-bit soundtrack for those who want the extra layer of nostalgia. Super Mario RPG was never an overly-long game and the remake feels even shorter where an expected completion time of a dozen hours give or take isn’t unreasonable, but these hours are generally free of filler. There isn’t a whole lot of additional content here with the exception of some new challenging post-game boss battles.
Closing Comments:
Super Mario RPG was one of the best titles of its era, and based on the Switch remake, is just as good today. The remade graphics maintain all the charm of the original while transforming a decades-old game into one of the better-looking titles on Switch. The quality-of-life improvements such as splash damage from timed hits are fun additions, though some may criticize that this makes a game with a rather low challenge level even easier. Aside from those additions talked about earlier, this is the same game players loved back in 1996 with a fresh coat of paint. Super Mario RPG succeeds at invoking feelings of nostalgia for the 16-bit era while looking good enough to pass for a modern game. It’s short and simple compared to many RPGs, but while the time with it may brief, there are no wasted hours.
Super Mario RPG
Reviewed on Switch
