Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
North American box art
Developer(s)	AlphaDream Vanpool (Mini-games)
Publisher(s)	Nintendo
Director(s)	Yoshihiko Maekawa
Composer(s)	Yoko Shimomura
Series	Mario & Luigi
Platform(s)	Game Boy Advance
Release date(s)	NA November 17, 2003 JP/EU/AUS November 21, 2003
Genre(s)	Console role-playing game
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer
Rating(s)	CERO: A (All ages) ESRB: E (Everyone) OFLC: G PEGI: 3+
Media/distribution	128-megabit cartridge

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, known in Japan as Mario & Luigi RPG (マリオ＆ルイージRPG^?), is a role-playing game developed by AlphaDream and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance in 2003. Superstar Saga is the first game in the Mario and Luigi RPG series and was followed by two sequels, Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, which was released for the Nintendo DS in 2005 and Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, which was released in 2009, also for the DS.

The game begins in Mushroom Kingdom, but progresses to Beanbean Kingdom for the majority of the game as Mario and Luigi combat Cackletta, the game's primary antagonist. The quest begins when Cackletta, with the aid of her assistant Fawful, steals Princess Peach's voice after adopting the guise of an ambassador from Beanbean Kingdom.^[1]

A role-playing game, it centers on a battle system different from that of traditional games of the genre, with emphasis on timing and more elaborate attacks.^[2] The game is whimsical in tone, with various in-game jokes and comical references to the heritage of the Mario series. Superstar Saga was generally well received by critics, and IGN named it the twelfth best Game Boy Advance game of all time in their feature reflecting on the Game Boy Advance's lifespan.^[3]

Gameplay

Superstar Saga's battle system

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga features a battle system similar to those of Super Mario RPG and Paper Mario, in which timed button presses are crucial to both increasing damage of party attacks and reducing the damage of enemy attacks.^[4] This system, however, is even more important in Superstar Saga, as well-timed button presses can not only increase damage inflicted by attacks, but also completely avoid or even counter enemy attacks as well. Unique to Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga is the Bros. Moves, which becomes available after new abilities are gained.^[2] Brothers Moves allow Mario and Luigi to attack as a combined effort with the use of Bros. Points (BP).^[5] How many points used determines the maximum amount of damage that can be dealt and the degree of difficulty required to execute the selected ability. The brother-based abilities do not affect the battle system exclusively; they can also be used outside of combat to solve puzzles to progress further into the Beanbean Kingdom.^[6]

In terms of gameplay, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga differs itself from most other role-playing games mainly due to the amount of interaction that is required between Mario and Luigi. Unlike Paper Mario, Superstar Saga requires active and continual co-operation between the two main characters in order to solve environmental puzzles as well as during battle.^[7] Where this game differs is to how much correlation there is between the two. For example, gaining an ability in the overworld will also unlock a new skill in battle.^[6] Despite the battle system, the game follows many role-playing game traditions in that the players increase power by "leveling up", in which multiple statistical values, for example speed and defense, are increased by each level gain. Superstar Saga's gameplay also incorporates collectible items that can be sold or bought at shops, such as badges and clothing that effectively boosts the player's statistics when worn.^[5] The game focuses heavily on puzzle-solving and interaction between non-playable characters to progress the storyline. Like other Mario games released for the Game Boy Advance, Superstar Saga features the classic Mario Bros. arcade game which is compatible with all games in the Super Mario Advance series.^[8] The game also incorporates the rumble feature when played using the Game Boy Player.^[7]

Plot and setting

Unlike most games in the Mario series, this game is not set in the Mushroom Kingdom.^[9] Instead, Superstar Saga introduces the Beanbean Kingdom, a neighboring monarchy to the Mushroom Kingdom. Despite this, traditional enemies such as the Goomba are present, as well as new enemies exclusive to the game. The predominant race are the "Beanish", although there are other species such as the "Hoohooligans" and the Yoshis. No locations featured in the Beanbean Kingdom, with the exception of Bowser's Castle, existed in any earlier Mario series games.

Characters

The playable protagonists in the game are Mario and Luigi. Superstar Saga deviates from the series' tradition in that Bowser is not the central antagonist, but the Beanish witch Cackletta is.^[10] Despite aiding the protagonists during a period of the game, Bowser's body becomes possessed by the consciousness of Cackletta to form the creature Bowletta. The original Cackletta is aided by the assailant Fawful, who is often characterized by his comical use of language, as evidenced by his famous quote "I HAVE FURY!" and who is also the antagonist of Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story for the Nintendo DS and the owner of the bean shop in Mario & Luigi: Partners In Time. Additionally, Mario and Luigi have recurring incidents with a thief named Popple, who will engage both protagonists in conflict various times throughout the game, with his sidekick Rookie (amnesiac Bowser).^[11] But in one case, Popple will fight alone. In another, he will use an amnesiac Birdo instead of Rookie.

Throughout the game, Mario and Luigi must work with the Beanbean monarchy headed by Queen Bean. Both she and her son, Prince Peasley, offer Mario and Luigi assistance to retrieve the Beanstar. The youthful Prince Peasley is a celebrity figure in his native Beanbean Kingdom. The quest is in aid to rescue Princess Peach's voice, which was stolen by Cackletta and Fawful.^[12]

Story

The game begins as Princess Peach awaits an ambassador from the Beanbean Kingdom. The "ambassador" is revealed to be the evil witch Cackletta, who, aided by her comically-speaking henchman Fawful, steals Princess Peach's voice, replacing it with explosives. After being alerted about Peach by Toad, Mario and Luigi confront Bowser, who is attempting to kidnap Peach. Mario quickly subdues him, before being informed about Peach's voice being stolen. Bowser decides not to kidnap her at this point, and teams up with Mario in order to retrieve her true voice.

Mario and Bowser fly to the Beanbean Kingdom via Bowser's new airship: the Koopa Cruiser. Through a series of misunderstandings, Luigi is conscripted into Bowser's expeditionary force and is taken along for the journey as well. During the flight, Fawful attacks the cruiser and blows it out of the sky. Mario and Luigi survive the crash, and find Bowser. Thanks to another mishap, Bowser is separated from the brothers, who continue their mission alone.

While travelling, Mario and Luigi run into Prince Peasley, the Prince of the Beanbean Kingdom. Upon reaching Beanbean Castle Town, they find it in ruins, and proceed to the castle. There, they are confronted by Lady Lima, and dropped into the castle sewers to repair the plumbing. Eventually, they find another Lady Lima imprisoned in the sewers; the first Lady Lima was Cackletta in disguise. The group realise that Cackletta's goal is to activate the Beanstar,^[13] a dormant object that will grant the holder's wishes, with the aid of the princess's voice to rule the world. The Beanstar is described to respond to someone with a pure voice, and Princess Peach is the only known person alive with such a voice.

Mario and Luigi are too late to stop Cackletta taking the Beanstar, and she deploys a mutated Queen Bean, the ruler of the Beanbean Kingdom, against them. After defeating her, Mario and Luigi travel to Chucklehuck Woods to retrieve the Chuckola Reserve, a soda which will allow them to restore Queen Bean to her normal self. While on their journey, the brothers encounter Popple, a thief who is also after the Chuckola Reserve, and discover an amnesiac Bowser (referred to in this state as Rookie in-game) to be his accomplice. Eventually, the brothers manage to obtain the Reserve and return to Beanbean Castle Town.

With Queen Bean cured, Mario and Luigi travel to Woohoo Hooniversity, where Cackletta is planning to awaken the Beanstar. Upon being exposed to Peach's voice, the Beanstar goes berserk, and destroys the room it's being held in. Mario and Luigi then fight Cackletta, who ends up severely injured upon her defeat. Fawful then sucks up her soul in his "vacuum helmet" to save her life. Cackletta then commands Fawful to attack, however, he is stopped by Prince Peasley, hitting them with his sword and out of Woohoo Hooniversity. When going to retrieve the Beanstar, they run into Popple and Bowser again. After defeating the two of them, the Beanstar is accidentally exposed to Peach's voice, causing it to go berserk again. Mario, Luigi, Popple, and Bowser all grab it, and it shoots into the sky before its passengers fall off. During this, Bowser regains his memory just before he falls off. The Beanstar then explodes into four pieces, which scatter across the Beanbean Kingdom.

Mario and Luigi manage to return to Beanbean Castle, where they discover that Peach's voice had never been stolen. Peasley had learned of Cackletta's plot and warned the Princess beforehand. They disguised Birdo as Peach, who had her voice stolen in place of the real Peach, explaining the Beanstar's reaction to "Peach's" voice. Peach had been unable to tell the brothers the truth, due to Bowser's unexpected attack. Meanwhile, Bowser becomes possessed by Cackletta's soul, resulting in the twisted Bowletta.

After arriving in the Beanbean Kingdom, Princess Peach takes the brothers with her to Little Fungitown, a Beanbean community of Toad immigrants from the Mushroom Kingdom. While there, Mario contracts a disease, and Luigi, having been hypnotized by a Magikoopa into thinking he's Mario, goes on his own to find the cure. Just as he returns, Peach gets kidnapped by Bowletta, who demands the brothers retrieve the pieces of the Beanstar in exchange for Peach's return. Luigi cures Mario and they search the whole of the Beanbean Kingdom to retrieve the four pieces.

Upon retrieving the Beanstar, Mario and Luigi travel to Joke's End, an arctic palace off the coast of the Beanbean Kingdom mainland, to make the exchange, having been given a fake Beanstar by Peasley and one of Peach's spare dresses by Toadsworth. Bowletta refuses to hand over Peach, and Mario pulls off a double-bluff that results in Luigi, clad in Peach's spare dress, being taken in Peach's stead. He is taken aboard the repaired Koopa Cruiser, but manages to escape, retrieving the Beanstar in the process. Upon returning to Beanbean Castle Town, the brothers discover it to be under attack by Bowser's Castle, which has been taken over by Bowletta and Fawful. Being the most knowledgeable about the castle, the two of them go to the castle, along with Peasley, to stop Cackletta once and for all.

In Bowser's castle, Mario and Luigi battle their way past Bowletta's forces, including the Koopalings and Fawful, before making it to Bowletta. Even though Mario and Luigi were initially victorious, Bowletta tricks them by pretending to be defeated, letting the brothers' guard down. She then summons a Bob-omb to explode behind them, knocking them out in the process. Bowletta then swallows the two of them. Inside Bowletta's belly, Mario and Luigi fight Cackletta's spirit, and are able to defeat Cackletta for good, returning Bowser to normal and saving both the Beanbean Kingdom and the Mushroom Kingdom. However, afterwards, Peasley sets off a bomb to destroy the castle but the bros. are able to escape the castle before it explodes. After the explosion, the castle falls into the ocean and Bowser flies in the air. He "cracks" the Game Boy Advance screen as he is flung.

Development

The game, in development by AlphaDream, was first revealed at E3 2003, where a playable demo of the game was available.^[14] A playable demonstration was also available at the Nintendo Gamers' Summit of 2003.^[15] Superstar Saga was said to take its inspiration from the Nintendo 64 game Paper Mario, with obvious similarities in gameplay and themes between the two. To link in with the game's comic themes, Nintendo organized an official competition between October and November 2003 in which gamers would try to submit the best knock-knock joke to win a Game Boy Advance SP and a copy of the game. Nintendo employed comedienne Kathy Griffin to choose the winner.^[16]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores
Aggregator	Score
GameRankings	91%[17]
Metacritic	90 of 100[18]
Review scores
Publication	Score
Electronic Gaming Monthly	8.83 of 10[17]
Eurogamer	9 of 10[9]
Game Informer	9.5 of 10[17]
GameSpot	9.2 of 10[7]
IGN	9 of 10[19]
Nintendo Power	4.7 of 5[17]

Most reviewers had a positive reaction towards Superstar Saga.^[17] The game's comical dialog and themes in particular were lauded by critics. Eurogamer's Tom Bramwell commented that "each line of dialogue and identifiable cameo is handled with a loving sense of humour."^[9] Despite this, RPGamer's Andrew Long labelled the plot as repetitive, and the game's characters as "a tad shallow".^[20] While also appreciating references to the heritage of the Mario series,^[21] critics praised the game for avoiding clichés common in previous games of the Mario series.^[9]

The gameplay attained a mixed reception in general. Critics seemed to enjoy a battle system which deviated from role-playing game tradition.^[7] IGN's Craig Harris commented that "unlike most Japanese RPGs Mario & Luigi's turn-based battle involves the player at all times".^[19] Despite this novel approach to combat situations, some reviewers thought that the overall gameplay lacked innovation.^[10][22] GameSpy in particular criticized the game for an apparent lack of originality, commenting that "in terms of gameplay, there isn't much there that we haven't seen in the NES and SNES Mario and Zelda titles."^[10] Furthermore, some reviewers were disappointed by a perceived lack of difficulty in the gameplay as a result of targeting a younger audience.^[22] Cubed3 welcomed this approach, citing that "any gamer, be them veterans to the genre or complete amateurs, will find the title to be perfectly accessible."^[1] Gaming publications like Edge have criticized the controls for being occasionally confusing when considering the usage of jumping, hammers, and other combinations between the two characters.^[23] It was rated the 37th best game made on a Nintendo System in Nintendo Power's Top 200 Games list.^[24]

A common concern among reviewers is the overhead perspective, which critics have bemoaned for preventing them from judging pathway routes and an object's location in relation to its background.^[1][19] Besides this, the actual visuals were generally well received,^[7][9] as well as the setting and animations. The audio was commended for combining both originality and nostalgia, even though it looped frequently.^[7] In 2007, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga was named the twelfth best Game Boy Advance game of all time in IGN's feature reflecting on the Game Boy Advance's long lifespan.^[3] Superstar Saga sold 441,000 units in Japan and 1.46 million in the US.^[25][26] In 2006, the game became part of the Player's Choice label.^[27]

Sequels

Nintendo released Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, the sequel to Superstar Saga, on November 28, 2005 for the Nintendo DS system. The plot and setting is relatively disconnected to that of Superstar Saga, as Cackletta has been replaced by the Shroobs as the primary antagonists.^[28] Although the game is set outside the Beanbean Kingdom, there are references to Superstar Saga in Partners in Time, such as the inclusion of Fawful in the sewers of Princess Peach's Castle in the game.^[29] The Bros. Moves have been retained in Partners in Time, although they involve an item system as opposed to the Bros. Points system that Superstar Saga has.^[30] A second sequel, Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, was released in 2009 for the Nintendo DS, with Fawful reprising his role as a key villain.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Riley, Adam (2003-11-26). "'Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga – Cubed3'". Cubed3. http://www.cubed3.com/review/131/2/. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Sulpher, Brian P.. "Mario & Lugi: Superstar Saga Guide: Basics". IGN. http://uk.guides.ign.com/guides/550433/page_2.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Harris, Craig (2007-03-16). "Top 25 Game Boy Advance Games of All Time". IGN. http://gameboy.ign.com/articles/772/772284p3.html. Retrieved 2007-03-18. 
4. ^ Sulpher, Brian P.. "Mario & Lugi: Superstar Saga Guide". IGN. http://uk.guides.ign.com/guides/550433/index.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
5. ^ ^{a b} Sulpher, Brian P.. "Mario & Lugi: Superstar Saga Guide: Items". IGN. http://uk.guides.ign.com/guides/550433/page_3.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
6. ^ ^{a b} Sulpher, Brian P.. "Mario & Lugi: Superstar Saga Guide: Walkthrough". IGN. http://uk.guides.ign.com/guides/550433/page_4.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
7. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Torres, Ricardo (2003-11-19). "'Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga for Game Boy Advance Review'". GameSpot. http://uk.gamespot.com/gba/rpg/marioandluigi/review.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=gssummary&tag=summary%3Breview&page=2. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
8. ^ Sulpher, Brian P.. "Mario & Lugi: Superstar Saga Guide: Mario Bros. Classic". IGN. http://uk.guides.ign.com/guides/550433/page_6.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
9. ^ ^{a b c d e} Bramwell, Tom (2003-12-08). "'Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga – Eurogamer'". Eurogamer. http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=54044. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
10. ^ ^{a b c} Stratton, Bryan (2003-11-20). "'Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga – GameSpy'". GameSpy. http://archive.gamespy.com/reviews/november03/marioluigigba/index2.shtml. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
11. ^ Sulpher, Brian P.. "Mario & Lugi: Superstar Saga Guide: Walkthrough Part Four". IGN. http://uk.guides.ign.com/guides/550433/page_9.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
12. ^ "Princess Peach: Feminist?". Coin Heaven. 2007-05-14. http://spacepope4u.blogspot.com/2007/05/princess-peach-feminist.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
13. ^ Sulpher, Brian P.. "Mario & Lugi: Superstar Saga Guide: Walkthrough Part Three". IGN. http://uk.guides.ign.com/guides/550433/page_8.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
14. ^ Harris, Craig (2003-05-13). "E3 2003: Mario & Lugi". IGN. http://uk.gameboy.ign.com/articles/401/401886p1.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
15. ^ Harris, Craig (2003-09-17). "Mario & Luigi". IGN. http://uk.gameboy.ign.com/articles/450/450287p1.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
16. ^ Harris, Craig (2003-10-16). "Nintendo's Funny Business". IGN. http://uk.gameboy.ign.com/articles/455/455318p1.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
17. ^ ^{a b c d e} "'Gamerankings – Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga'". Game Rankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages4/914980.asp. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
18. ^ http://www.metacritic.com/game/game-boy-advance/mario-luigi-superstar-saga
19. ^ ^{a b c} Harris, Craig (2003-11-17). "'Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga Review – IGN'". IGN. http://uk.gameboy.ign.com/articles/440/440870p1.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
20. ^ Long, Andrew. "'Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga – RPGamer'". RPGamer. http://www.rpgamer.com/games/mario/mario3/reviews/mario3strev2.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
21. ^ Babin, Lee (2004-08-25). "'Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga – RPGFan'". RPGFan. http://www.rpgfan.com/reviews/marioandluigi/index.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
22. ^ ^{a b} "'Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga – 1UP'". 1UP.com. 2004-05-09. http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3112613&did=1. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
23. ^ Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga review, Edge issue 132, January 2003
24. ^ "NP Top 200". Nintendo Power 200: pp. 58–66. February 2006 
25. ^ "Nintendo GBA Japanese Ranking". Japan Game Charts. http://www.japan-gamecharts.com/gba.php. Retrieved 2007-11-09. 
26. ^ "US Platinum Videogame Chart". The Magic Box. 2008-02-05. http://www.the-magicbox.com/Chart-USPlatinum.shtml. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
27. ^ Harris, Craig (2006-03-09). "GBA Gets Player's Choice". IGN. http://uk.gameboy.ign.com/articles/694/694807p1.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
28. ^ Torres, Ricardo (2005-11-30). "'Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time'". GameSpot. http://uk.gamespot.com/ds/rpg/marioluigisuperstarsaga2/review.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=gssummary&tag=summary;review. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
29. ^ "'Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time Guide'". IGN. http://uk.guides.ign.com/guides/748543/page_5.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
30. ^ "'Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time Guide: Items'". IGN. http://uk.guides.ign.com/guides/748543/page_3.html. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 

External links

• Official European Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga site