Hot on the heels of last year’s excellent Super Mario RPG remake, Nintendo has seen fit to bless us with another new take on a Mario roleplaying classic. Next month, the beloved GameCube title Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door will make its way onto the Nintendo Switch complete with HD visuals, an updated soundtrack, and even a few quality-of-life enhancements.
Last week I was invited to a special online press event where Nintendo’s Treehouse team walked me through the ins and outs of Thousand-Year Door‘s peculiar storybook world. All in all, it was a fantastic return trip to a title that I originally played *gasp* two decades ago.
The game still oozes charm and makes the most of the off-kilter humor that has come to typify these wacky first-party RPGs. This is especially obvious in Rogueport, the de facto hub and setting for much of the tale’s opening act. In fact, the entirety of this hands-off presentation was limited to Thousand-Year Door‘s earliest couple of hours—Mario defending Goombella from the X-Nauts, advancing through pipes to the underground sewer environment, and eventually confronting the first boss.
In the process, I was reminded of the game’s hybrid combat, consisting of turn-based Action Commands that pair with timed button presses to create more formidable attacks while reducing incoming damage. Not to mention the unique Star Points leveling system and the special role the audience plays in each unfolding melee.
The game’s graphical overhaul was immediately evident, with its multilevel design, focus on environmental problem-solving, and some surprising lighting effects and wonderfully lush paper textures (especially in Hooktail Castle) making it look anything but dated. The newly orchestrated soundtrack, too, sounds spectacular, but old-school fans take heart; there’s a special badge Mario can equip that will allow you to toggle on the original tunes if you’re feeling nostalgic.
As much as I enjoyed getting an early peek at Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, things got even better later in the week when an early review code became available. Suffice it to say that I spent my weekend honing my rusty jump- and hammer-based attack chops, establishing a preferred badge layout to supplement my playstyle, and reveling in all the silliness this title has to offer.
I quickly took advantage of two new features that really helped me get back into the swing of things. The first is the Battle Master, a character that lets you practice various Action Commands and Special Moves safely outside the bounds of combat. The other is the ability to hot-swap Mario’s current ally. Mapped to the left shoulder button, it makes it very easy to switch up my party—which, admittedly, only includes a pair of options at this point—on the fly as I explore the world and stomp the occasional enemy.
While I’m just beginning my new adventure through this corner of the Mushroom Kingdom, it’s off to a rousing start, and I can’t wait to discover all the secrets that it holds. (Including the many I’ve long since forgotten!)
Look for additional Thousand-Year Door coverage here at GeekDad as we approach the May 23 release date, and until then, take a look at this fresh new trailer.
Access to a special preview event and a review copy of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door were provided by Nintendo of America. This post contains affiliate links. Mohawk Yoshi is the best Yoshi.
