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Sir Whompus's Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (SNES)
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| [January 25, 2008 08:39:43 PM]
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GAMEPLAY:
As I continued playing the Super Mario RPG, I kept in mind the question that had been concerning me since I started: would the game be able to pull off a good story that brought new, deep characters into the story? I found out soon that it did. In the next two hours of game play, the characters Mallow and Geno were introduced into the story. Now, at this point you might be thinking "Well they don't sound familiar" - and that is right. This is the first (and to my knowledge, only) game that featured these two characters. Fortunately, they are characters that fit perfectly into the Mario setting and story. For example, Geno is a puppet that is given life through the power of the stars that live in the world, while Mallow is a "cloud" (he actually is humanoid, but i guess he was bron from the clouds) that thought he was a frog until Mario's influence brought the truth to light.
Needless to say, I was thrilled to find that the game showed a sense of character development and plot; although I am not far enough in the story to say what will happen, a "cloud" coming to terms with his existence and a puppet trying to find a place in the world are excellent starting points for a deep character.
But even with a good story, I needed to see if the gameplay got repetitive or boring. I dove back into the battle system determined to make my characters powerful enough to avoid being killed in 2 hits (which did unfortunately happen a couple times; seems that whole armor thing keeps people alive better. Whoops.) The different abilities that have shown up in multiple Mario games (such as fireballs and jumps) proved to be a fun way to give Mario his special moves, while the backstory of Geno and Mallow allowed Square to put the typical magic moves in the game without breaking the feel of the world. They did a good job creating a battle system that did not destroy the feel of the overlaying world.
DESIGN:
While I was leveling up a few times, I realized something that I did not mention in my previous log: the level up features. When you gain a level in this game, you also get to choose one of 3 powerups: a physical boost, magical boost, or health boost. I realized immediately what you could do with this: focus your characters to tank, hit people good, or blow things up with magic. It was a nice little touch that lets you feel as though you control how your characters will evolve. Needless to say, most people will probably keep Mario as physical damage and give Geno and Mallow the magic upgrades (I know I did), but it still is a game mechanic that doesn't force you into a single role with each character.
The level design fit the previous versions of Mario perfectly: even though it is a RPG, Legend of the Seven Stars does show its platformer roots. The levels are 3D, where Mario needs to jump or use platforms to reach new areas on the map. Although not essential to the game, its a way for players dipping into the RPG genre through the Mario name to feel more at easy. Another way they did that was to get rid of the typical random battle system. You can see the gombas you need to fight wandering the map, and can avoid them if you wish. It makes the game resemble its platform ancestors, and keeps the game feeling like a distinct Mario game. It even rewarded you for playing it like a platformer: treasure chests weren't laying on the ground, they were in the box floating high above you or on a area of the map that you need to time a jump right to get to.
From what I've seen of the game so far, it reworked traditional RPG elements into the background it came from to make a game that truly represents Mario well. Personally, I think that if it had strayed further from its roots Legend of the Seven Stars would not be as famous and popular as it is, nor would it be on the classics list for this class.
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| [January 24, 2008 03:11:57 AM]
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SUMMARY: In Super Mario RPG, the player takes control of Mario in a way different than any other game. The battle system and reliance on healing and spellcasting abilities makes the player think more carefully about the characters than in a normal, platforming Mario experience.
GAMEPLAY:
Within minutes of picking up Super Mario RPG, I was appalled by the fact that I had not played it before. As a fan of RPG games such as Final Fantasy, seeing the Mario series recreated in the genre by the masters I respected instantly captivated me.
The first battle surprised me by flawlessly combining the typical RPG battle system with the feel of the Mario franchise. Any player who loves Mario would not be turned away from a different style of game: while the gameplay itself was changed, the game was still able to contain the Mario "feel". The unexplainable jump attack of Mario was in the game, available through the use of flower points (fp) instead of the traditional mana. Through these special skills, the player can still control Mario as in other parts of the series: jumping on top enemies, having to find their through a platform-style map, and generally enjoying the same simplistic pleasure than the games have become famous for.
However, the battle system is by no means "dumbed down" from any other RPG. The characters still rely on weapons, armor, and accessories to improve their stats and health so they can deal and take more damage. The fun of this game is tied between the battle system and the Mario style; while the depth of the gameplay does not turn away wary RPG veterans, it also brings in the people not used to this format by keeping the style and tone of the series intact.
As of right now, the games seems to be very satisfying, but I haven't advanced far enough in the plot to be sure that the style of the game was successfully brought into the dialog and story of the game. It will be interesting to see how characters such as Mario, Bowser, and Princess Toadstool (I had forgotten the change in name...) develop over an epic tale told through the medium of a RPG.
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Sir Whompus's Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (SNES)
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Current Status: Playing
GameLog started on: Thursday 24 January, 2008
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