Paper Mario: The Origami King

[Catfood220]

So, Paper Mario: The Origami King came out today and seeing as no one else started a thread for it, I thought I would. The reviews for this have been fairly positive, I'm not sure if that means its an improvement on the last two games or people have accepted that this is Paper Mario now. For this is not a return to its RPG roots, though it does have turn based combat. But you don't level up that way. Which is baffling really, if you are going to go halfway, why not go the whole way? It makes no sense.

Anyway, I've played a couple of hours and am not very far in yet. The combat is fun at the moment, though even now it seems pointless. All it gives you is cash, in fact this game spews money at you at every opportunity and I'm not entirely sure why. The stuff in the shops is hardly expensive either. But, I'm enjoying it so far, the humour has made me chuckle a few times, Bowser as a folded up square is funny and I actually laughed out loud when I realised I could do something about a really irritating tune. I wasn't expecting to be able to do anything about that.

So yeah, that's what I think so far anyway. Anyone else got any thoughts? Or is everyone else playing Ghost of Tsushima?

 

[Chimpzy]

K, so a little late to the party, but yes, I've been playing the new Paper Mario and I agree with everything you've said. Regular combat is indeed a sort of pointless time sink, but boss battles are a significant step up. They're a fair bit more challenging and offer way more strategic depth. They're imo the best part of the gameplay. Controls fine. Art style is nice and used effectively, resulting in some goodlooking areas. Game also runs pretty good. Music is excellent. Some really fun tunes in there. Taken on its own merits tho, it's a fun puzzle adventure game with a good deal of charm and sense of humour.

But otherwise yeah, anyone going in expecting another Thousand Year Door will be disappointed. Now that Mario & Luigi series is also done with, sadly it seems like the Mario rpg is dead.

 

[Drathnoxis]

Kind of disappointed that this thread isn't getting more discussion. I'm always interested in the opinions of a new Paper Mario game, even though I don't have a switch.

Do the NPCs have more personality than they did in Sticker Star? It was pretty disappointing for almost all the characters to be generic toads.

 

[Catfood220]

Kind of disappointed that this thread isn't getting more discussion. I'm always interested in the opinions of a new Paper Mario game, even though I don't have a switch.

Do the NPCs have more personality than they did in Sticker Star? It was pretty disappointing for almost all the characters to be generic toads.

Yeah, whatever happened to that Yoshi guy? I thought he'd be all over this.

The NPC's that I've seen so far are Toads, you will be finding them all over the world as they've all been folded up into bits in the scenery. But yeah, they do all have something witty or weird to say when you find them. I've only just beat the first boss, so I've only seen Toad Town and the surrounding area so far, so I'm not sure if the NPC's get more varied as you visit other locations. But I do know you get partners as well, so that adds a bit more to the flavour too.

 

[Drathnoxis]

Yeah, whatever happened to that Yoshi guy? I thought he'd be all over this.

The NPC's that I've seen so far are Toads, you will be finding them all over the world as they've all been folded up into bits in the scenery. But yeah, they do all have something witty or weird to say when you find them. I've only just beat the first boss, so I've only seen Toad Town and the surrounding area so far, so I'm not sure if the NPC's get more varied as you visit other locations. But I do know you get partners as well, so that adds a bit more to the flavour too.

Yoshi was banned because he found Nick Calandra's personal Facebook and was bugging him there. And probably also because he was constantly getting into fights with people. Unfortunate, but I don't think he really seemed happy here.

Do the toads at least have distinctive sprites? Because in the earlier games you'd get toads with different hair or glasses or mushroom spots or something and they all had their own names and little description if you had the goomba describe them, but in sticker star they were all identical red toads.

 

[BrawlMan]

Yoshi was banned because he found Nick Calandra's personal Facebook and was bugging him there. And probably also because he was constantly getting into fights with people. Unfortunate, but I don't think he really seemed happy here.

I remember Nick telling us on a different topic. I'm glad Yoshi got banned. One less jerk ass we have to deal with.

 

[Drathnoxis]

I remember Nick telling us on a different topic. I'm glad Yoshi got banned. One less jerk ass we have to deal with.

It might have been Beta Feedback thread where he initially told us, that was just the easiest for me to find.

 

[Chimpzy]

Do the toads at least have distinctive sprites? Because in the earlier games you'd get toads with different hair or glasses or mushroom spots or something and they all had their own names and little description if you had the goomba describe them, but in sticker star they were all identical red toads.

The ones that have actual plot relevance get their own name and sprite, but the others are just generic nameless toads, albeit in about 4-5 color variations (blue, green, red, yellow, maybe one or two more).

 

[BrawlMan]

So, Paper Mario: The Origami King came out today and seeing as no one else started a thread for it, I thought I would. The reviews for this have been fairly positive, I'm not sure if that means its an improvement on the last two games or people have accepted that this is Paper Mario now. For this is not a return to its RPG roots, though it does have turn based combat. But you don't level up that way. Which is baffling really, if you are going to go halfway, why not go the whole way? It makes no sense.

Anyway, I've played a couple of hours and am not very far in yet. The combat is fun at the moment, though even now it seems pointless. All it gives you is cash, in fact this game spews money at you at every opportunity and I'm not entirely sure why. The stuff in the shops is hardly expensive either. But, I'm enjoying it so far, the humour has made me chuckle a few times, Bowser as a folded up square is funny and I actually laughed out loud when I realised I could do something about a really irritating tune. I wasn't expecting to be able to do anything about that.

So yeah, that's what I think so far anyway. Anyone else got any thoughts? Or is everyone else playing Ghost of Tsushima?

I am too busy with Ghost at the moment. I do respect most of the games, but I never really got into the paper Mario series. I know of a few friends of mine that were really into the games. Especially a thousand year door.

Now that Mario & Luigi series is also done with, sadly it seems like the Mario rpg is dead.

No one is ever really gone. That is what so call professional critics, analyst, and certain figureheads in the industry said about to beat'em up genre. The genre never died to begin with. Sure, it took different forms and faces, or blended with other genres, but it still kept on living. And now we're in a golden age where they're flourishing again. Specifically the old school style ones mixed with elements of new school. Look at Streets of Rage 4, The Takeover, Double Dragon Neon, and River City Girls. Mario RPGs will be back at some point.

 

[Ezekiel]

I remember Nick telling us on a different topic. I'm glad Yoshi got banned. One less jerk ass we have to deal with.

If I was the moderation, I'd barely ban anyone. There's a reason this board is dead.

 

[Hawki]

Do the NPCs have more personality than they did in Sticker Star? It was pretty disappointing for almost all the characters to be generic toads.

So, what, the NPCs had personalities that were paper thin?

 

[BrawlMan]

If I was the moderation, I'd barely ban anyone. There's a reason this board is dead.

It ain't dead for me. Plus, I don't just stick to one forum. I go to others for variety and talk all kinds of different people. You can have fun and not act like a total ass for things to be "exciting/interesting". Yoshi only cared about stirring up shit, and whining when shit was thrown right back at his face. Anything else you respond with, I want you PM me. Not derailing any threads.

 

[Drathnoxis]

So, what, the NPCs had personalities that were paper thin?

Paper thin is still better than non-existent. There were a couple characters that traveled around to the new areas at the same time as you in the first two games, and it was pretty fun keeping tabs on them even though they only had a couple lines of dialogue each time.

If I was the moderation, I'd barely ban anyone. There's a reason this board is dead.

I agree, but I don't think the moderation is doing a bad job now. They were clearly ban happy in the past, but in the last year only Saelune and Yoshi have been banned, both of which have probably been a long time coming. I personally wouldn't have banned them, but I can understand why the mods did.

 

[Hawki]

Paper thin is still better than non-existent.

Someone missed the joke I think...

I agree, but I don't think the moderation is doing a bad job now. They were clearly ban happy in the past, but in the last year only Saelune and Yoshi have been banned, both of which have probably been a long time coming. I personally wouldn't have banned them, but I can understand why the mods did.

Why was Saelune banned now? I mean, much as I miss everyone on this forum being called a Nazi, I...oh. Maybe that's it.

 

[BrawlMan]

but in the last year only Saelune

Why did Saelune get banned? I did not even know she was banned. I could not exactly get along with her all the time (she had a big persecution/accusation complex), but she was more reasonable compared to certain other users. And you know what? I think I just answered my own question.

 

[Elvis Starburst]

Snip

Yoshi was banned because he found Nick Calandra's personal Facebook and was bugging him there. And probably also because he was constantly getting into fights with people. Unfortunate, but I don't think he really seemed happy here.

From what I understand, he was banned for showing in the Beta Feedback thread that he had no intention of playing nice with anyone, and even after several warnings he still hadn't learned anything and was firm in making sure to not respond kindly to those he didn't like. It was after his banning that Nick posted in the Beta thread that people should not seek his personal Facebook page to complain, which, from the context given, was probably Yoshi.

If I was the moderation, I'd barely ban anyone. There's a reason this board is dead.

Dead? Really? Can't possibly be any worse than the V1 forum.

Why was Saelune banned now? I mean, much as I miss everyone on this forum being called a Nazi, I...oh. Maybe that's it.

Why did Saelune get banned? I did not even know she was banned. I could not exactly get along with her all the time (she had a big persecution/accusation complex), but she was more reasonable compared to certain other users. And you know what? I think I just answered my own question.

Probably the same reasons as Yoshi that I stated at the top of this comment, mixed with a little dash of both of your reasons why. But I'm not sure on that.

OT: I'm sad the combat wasn't amazing and was almost entirely pointless. I was hoping this would be a decent return to form, but it seems we're still a ways away from it. Was thinking I'd pick it up if the combat meant anything, but since it doesn't, it sounds like a half baked experience at full price. No thanks

 

[Drathnoxis]

As was pointed out in the comments for the ZP review, there was an interview with the developers that confirms that Paper Mario is being restricted as to what it can do with stories and characters from the Mario universe.

Source.

How do you make sure the story appeals to a broad audience? And what challenges does existing within the Mario franchise present to your writers?

Tanabe: In Super Paper Mario, the elaborate story led the game away from the Mario universe, so since Paper Mario: Sticker Star I’ve refrained from using stories that are too complicated. Personally, though, I like games with stories. During the production of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, we made use of a system for character settings and real conversations in order to build the story, which was a first for a game in a series. (I also wrote the text for this game.)

The Paper Mario team made paper mock-ups of the game’s characters.
To go back to Mario, in Paper Mario: Color Splash, I avoided having a complicated story so as not to veer too far away from the Mario universe, and instead aimed for a game with more memorable events. To create even more memorable experiences for players, in Paper Mario: The Origami King we’ve established some characters other than the partner character who will also journey with players through the game. In particular, I think that Bobby (Bob-omb) has turned out to be just as memorable a character as Olivia.


Mario is famous for its iconic cast of villains. Can you talk about the new villain in this game and how you design a character to stand alongside all-time greats like Bowser and Kamek?

Tanabe: Since Paper Mario: Sticker Star, it’s no longer possible to modify Mario characters or to create original characters that touch on the Mario universe. That means that if we aren’t using Mario characters for bosses, we need to create original characters with designs that don’t involve the Mario universe at all, like we’ve done with Olly and the stationery bosses.

Whether a character becomes an all-time hit or not isn’t up to us on the development side; I think it’s more the case that characters that fans truly accept naturally end up that way. I hope that the origami siblings in Paper Mario: The Origami King will stay in players’ memories, even if they do only end up appearing in this title.

Apparently all the characters are generic toads because it's "no longer possible" to modify the characters to create unique and interesting ones.

 

[Elvis Starburst]

Snip

I find it interesting he didn't specifically mention anyone behind that decision that they couldn't modify or make original characters from the Mario universe any more. They have to be "from a different universe" to be allowed. Based on the wording and context, it doesn't sound like a choice that was his. Taken from another interview...

“From the production of Paper Mario: Sticker Star onwards, we were no longer able to graphically represent individual characteristics, such as age, gender etc., in the Toad NPCs (non-playable characters), and so it has become that much more important to convey their personalities simply through text,” Tanabe said.

“Our writer, Mr Taro Kudo, has been grappling with this difficult challenge since Paper Mario: Sticker Star, but has managed to achieve giving all the texts a sense of humour,” he added. “In this instalment, Paper Mario: The Origami King we were able to include some Toads wearing an outfit to match their role, and also created original origami characters.”

What these interviews tell me is that the Paper Mario fans of the first few want is well and truly dead. No more fun and unique characters save for a small few, no more RPG combat (because apparently it's "too complex" for even casual players to understand), and they're more interested in making "memorable moments" rather than memorable stories. And to that, I say...

Boooooooooooooooooooooooooo

 

[Casual Shinji]

I'm glad Yoshi got banned. One less jerk ass we have to deal with.

Off all the people who liked to start something here, he was honestly pretty harmless.

 

[BrawlMan]

Off all the people who liked to start something here, he was honestly pretty harmless.

I'm not going to derail the thread so if you want to continue this conversation I'll private message you, but he had a habit of starting stuff. sometimes users would assume, that includes me too at times, but when you have a habit of acting like an ass, people will be expecting it. Dude had a habit of dishing it out, but can never take it. If you want to bother talking to him, he still has his user account at the Easy Allies forum. it's practically the only forumI know he would be at.