An engaging and worthy sequel to one of the GBA's finest games...
When the original was released on the GBA, I overlooked it, not because I believed it to be a bad game, but because my GBA was not my preferred system, and saw little point. Eventually, however, I found it second-hand for a cheap price, and decided to buy it. I was glued to my small GBA screen for weeks, and I am happy to say that not only does Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time (PiT) expand upon the M&L universe, but proivides the impetus for a long run in this already breathtaking series.
The story kicks off in 'Past' Mushroom Kingdom, where Yoshi's Island stars Baby Mario and Luigi find the castle under seige from a prepubescent Prince Bowser. After quickly disposing of their future arch enemy, a new threat rears its ugly head, namely the alien Shroom race. We are then catapulted into the 'future', or present or... well, whatever, and join the Mario and Luigi we all know and love celebrating the latest achievement of Professor E. Gadd - a Time Machine. Needless to say, not everything goes to plan, and the trip Princess Peach undertook fails miserably. The two iconic brothers go off in search of the Princess in the past, and inevitably meet up with their past selves, and the adventure begins.
--Gameplay--
Working on the 'If it ain't broke - don't fix it' attitude, PiT recalls the battle and overworld gameplay that Superstar Saga fans will be familiar with. However, first time players are gently lowered into the gameplay mechanics with a handy and informative tutorial (comically done twice, to echo the timeline). But unlike the first game, where many of the first enemies are easy to beat, PiT quickly pits you against harder enemies that may throw off many players.
The controls for PiT are reletively simple, with the A, X, Y, and B buttons corresponding to a certain character. The A button controls Mario, the X button controls Baby Mario and so on. In the overworld section of the game, these buttons are used to perform simple actions like jumping or using hammers, but as the game progresses you find new abilities that require two or more characters to utilise correctly. Once again, AlphaDream have included tutorials mainly delievered by Peach's overbearing carer, Toadsworth and his past counterpart.
However, its when the battles start, that the controls really take on a new dimension. Unlike many other turn-based RPG's, that simply allow the player to press a single button and watch a move play out, PiT requires extra management on your part. For example, when performing a 'jump' move, you can press the corresponding button again to do extra damage. This gameplay mechanic is, however, displayed best with the 'Bros. Items'.
The 'Bros. Items' are a different take on the Bros. Attacks that were so prominent in the first game. Instead of using up a seperate BP (Bros. Point - see Superstar Saga) meter, Bros. Items are collectable items that require two - or sometimes all - of the characters. One of my particular favourites is the 'Copy Flower', which when initiated, copies your four characters into a potentially infinate amounts of Mario's, Luigi's etc. When the move begins, the player is required to press the buttons that correspond to the certain character. Some of the moves - such as the Copy Flower - can last as long as you can keep the rhythm, others have only a limted use.
The gameplay mechanics are brilliant, and really shows what great developers AlphaDream are.
--Graphics--
Like nearly all of Nintendo's Mario spin-offs, PiT really shines in the visual department. Despite the Ninendo DS's 3D capabilites, AlphaDream decided to stick with Superstar Saga's 2D graphics. By no means is this a bad thing. The animations for the enemies and sub-characters are above par, let alone the main chatacters, and each of them have been lovingly crafted. The developers have used the DS's technical capabilities to add more animation frames to the characters, and the updates look much, much better.
The transition effects connecting the overworld to the battles are technically superior to the GBA's efforts and look better than the previous efforts, and do not interfere in the visual deptartment enough to annoy. However, it is slightly dissapointing that the DS wasn't used to its full potential.
Alongside the visuals, the presentation is also very good. The item menu is well designed and easy to navigate, and the addition of the 'Magnifying glass' gives the menu an overall polished feel.
--Sound--
As with the content and visuals of PiT, the sound effects and music stay true to the Mario universe. The music uses remixes and original soundtracks that all Mario fans will recognise, and the sound effects are spot on. However, there are some annoyances. One of them is the 'crying' sound effect, which while occassionally funny, are in some intances grating. Despite this, the overall sound effects are very good - and good quality - but arn't without their problems.
--Lasting Appeal--
One of the many criticisms that are levelled at PiT is its 'short gameplay time', however, I do not think that the fifteen hours it took me to complete, is a short time for a handheld video game. Even though the game has a very linear nature, there is a lot of content such as badges, clothes and items. With the addition of sidequests, the game could easily last twenty-plus hours. I do think that because of the game structure, the overworld map doesn't appear as open-ended as Superstar Saga. Don't let the lack of typical RPG design deter you however, as the story is well told, and more importantly funny. It isn't as good as Superstar Saga, but it is a world away from the majority of RPG's that follow the epic storylines and instead try to entertain.
--Closing Comments--
The Nintendo DS isn't devoid of good games, but PiT really stands heads and shoulders above the majority. The simple, yet engaging gameplay, a very self-referencial comedic script, and great music make PiT a worthy addition to any DS owner's collection.