Paper Mario (series)

The current logo.

Paper Mario is a series of spin-off games that are part of the Super Mario franchise, and the focus of this Wiki. Like the Mario & Luigi series, they are role-playing games. The series also has a signature 2D art style for the characters, making them appear as if they were made of paper, hence the name. While the characters themselves are 2D, the games take place in 3D environments, many of which also follow the theme of appearing as if they came out of a storybook.

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PaperMarioWebsiteLogo — The logo for *Paper Mario*.

The Paper Mario series are all developed by Intelligent Systems, and published by Nintendo. Every game up until Sticker Star was directed by Ryota Kawade. Paper Mario: Sticker Star and Color Splash would be directed by Naohiko Aoyama. The first Paper Mario, released in 2000 for the Nintendo 64 in Japan. The game would later be released in 2001 in North America, Europe, and Australia. Taking inspiration from the previous Mario RPG, the game featured turn-based combat and a diverse set of characters. Attack and defense moves are performed by using times button presses, and a wide variety of items can be used both inside and outside of battle. The series also includes a set of signature stat points; Health Points (HP), Flower Points (FP), Badge Points (BP), and Star Points (SP) are some of the key systems used in the first two installments. While being an RPG, Paper Mario also incorporated platforming elements, a mainstay of the mainline Mario series. Due to the popularity and success of Paper Mario, the game would receive a sequel for the Nintendo GameCube in 2004 called The Thousand-Year Door. Like the previous title, Thousand-Year Door used the same combat system and game play formula. Thousand-Year Door would gain even more positive reception than Paper Mario, giving the series a very high reputation. However, the series would drastically change in 2007 with the release of Super Paper Mario for the Wii. Instead of using turn-based combat and several other well known RPG elements, Super Paper Mario relied on the use of 2D platforming and a gimmick that allows the player to switch between 2D and 3D. Open chapters were now split into more linear levels with start and end points. The game's response was generally positive, but its quality would become subject to debate in the future, splitting the hardcore fanbase. The fourth title, Sticker Star, would become the first Paper Mario game on a handheld device. It released for the Nintendo 3DS in 2012. The game returned to the turn-based combat of the first two games, but with a more watered down system. Instead of an existing moveset, both attacks and interactions with the environment were conducted by using stickers, all of which disappear after being used. The game initially recieved mixed to positive reviews from critics, but was generally seen as a disappointment among the majority of the fanbase due to the lack of key features from the previous games (some examples being partners, a more complex story, and the original combat system). In 2015, there was another 3DS game titled Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam where it the Paper Mario series crosses over with Mario & Luigi. In 2016, Color Splash was released for the Wii U. This would feature the same system as Sticker Star, but replaced stickers with cards. Though the game was heavily criticised during its reveal, it was recieved fairly positively by critics upon release. The fanbase itself had a mixed response. On one side, people mostly criticized the striking similarities to Sticker Star and the lack of a unique story. The other side positively recieved the game, and praised its charm. In 2020, The Origami King was released on Switch.

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During development, Paper Mario was envisioned as a sequel to Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. Later on, the game was changed to have no connections to Super Mario RPG.

Paper Mario (series)

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History[]

Trivia[]

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