Backlog Game Reviews 20: Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga (Gameboy Advance)

      Hey there, and welcome to Backlog Game Reviews.

Today let's take a look at Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga on the Gameboy Advance. It was released on November 21st, 2003 in Japan. It came to North America on November 17th, 2003 and it found it's way to Europe on November 22nd, 2003. It was very well received by fans and critics alike, and most fans claim that this game is their favorite in the Mario and Luigi series. Let's take a look and see what this game is all about.

The first cutscene in the game.

 The game begins in the Mushroom Kingdom. Two ambassadors from the neighboring Beanbean Kingdom have to come to deliver a gift to Princess Peach, but instead of doing so they steal her voice, and then go on to reveal themselves to be the evil witch Cackletta and her servant Fawful. After witnessing the event, a Toad goes to Mario and Luigi's house seeking help. Upon hearing the news Mario runs off to the castle.

Mario unknowingly brings Luigi with him.

   When Mario arrives at the castle, he sees Bowser attempting to kidnap the princess.  But unfortunately for him her stolen voice was replaced with a spell that turns all of her words into bombs. Bowser, fearing the potential damage she could do to his castle decides to leave her be. Mario and Bowser make a truce and decide to go to the Beanbean Kingdom together to recover Princess Peach's voice, thus starting a new adventure.

Bowser forces Luigi into coming along.

   I really like this game's story. It's simple, but fun and has really well written dialogue. Every character is so full of personality that you can't help but be drawn into the story.

The expressive character sprites make the story even more enjoyable.

    As for the gameplay, Superstar Saga is a turn-based RPG. You take turns attacking during a battle, if your speed stat is higher than the enemies you'll attack first. If both Mario and Luigi run out of HP then it's game over and you have to go back to your last save.

The first battle in the game pits you against Bowser and serves as a tutorial.

      It's a traditional RPG at its core but it does put its own twist on the formula. For starters, Mario and Luigi can dodge or counter enemy attacks. During the enemy's turn press the A or B button at the right time to dodge or counter. It's a little difficult at first but with enough practice, you'll be able to make it through almost any battle without taking damage.

A successful counter attack. A controls Mario and B controls Luigi.

      Encounters aren't random, as you can see the enemies walking around on the overworld map. You're free to either avoid battles or engage the enemy from the overworld by jumping on them or hitting them with your hammer. Jumping on an enemy from the overworld will deal damage to all enemies at the start of a fight, and attacking with your hammer will stun them for a couple of turns. I always found it hard to hit an enemy with the hammer, and jumping on them lets you finish the battle faster, so I almost never started battles with the hammer.

Preemptive attack with the hammer.

All of the enemies are now stunned thanks to the preemptive attack.

   While the hammer isn't great for preemptive strikes, you will need to use it from time to time, because some enemies have spikes on their heads which will cause damage to Mario or Luigi if jumped on. So the only way to beat these types of enemies is with the hammer.

Jumping on a spiked enemy will end up hurting you.

     Another unique aspect of the battle system is how it handles special attacks. All of the special attacks are team attacks, called Bros. attacks. To successfully perform a Bros. attack, you have to input a series of 3 button commands. Getting all 3 commands right will result in the attack doing a large amount of damage. Even if you mess up a button command the Bros. attack will still deal some damage, but it will be minimal.

A failed Bros. Attack.

Successfully preforming a Bros. Attack.

      If you successfully perform a Bros. attack enough times, you'll unlock its advanced version. Advanced Bros. attacks will sometimes do less damage than the normal version, but they'll allow you to do things like hit multiple targets at once or hit one target multiple times. Some advanced Bros. attacks even inflict stat debuffs, which depending on the situation they can be pretty useful.

The Adv sign signifies that you can preform the advance version of a Bros. Attack.

      The battle system isn't super deep but it's far from shallow. I feel that it strikes just the right balance between simplicity and complexity. And most importantly it’s fun and it never gets stale.

The Beanbean Kingdom is home to a wide variety of colorful and interesting enemies.

   When you're not fighting, you'll be exploring the Beanbean Kingdom. There are not very many side quests, but there are a good number of mini-games. Beating a mini-game will get you some beans that you can use to make coffee.

The first mini game you'll come across is this jump rope game.

You'll find beans throughout the game. Collect enough and you can make coffee at the cafe. Coffee will give you a permanent stat boost. 

    While this game is a lot of fun, I did have a problem with how linear it is. You'll get to explore the whole kingdom just by doing what the story demands of you. There are some hidden areas to explore, but not many. I kind of wish there were more optional things to do or places to see.

Map of the Beanbean Kingdom.

   But when all is said and done, Superstar Saga is a great RPG. It's simple enough for non-RPG fans to enjoy and has a layer of complexity to it that will appeal to avid RPG fans. The only negative thing I can think of is how linear it is. While linearity is not inherently bad, a few more side quests and optional areas or bosses would have been nice.

While linear the game offers a good number of unique locations to explore.

      Looking at the presentation it's just as good as the gameplay. The Beanbean Kingdom is a colorful world beaming with personality. The characters are overflowing with charm and all of the in-game sprites are very pleasing to the eye and do a great job of bringing the characters and world to life.

Princess Peach after losing her voice.

   The music is on the same level as any other Mario game. Every song is catchy and captures the mood of every area perfectly. My only complaint is that the music can get a little repetitive from time to time. Other than that, the music is good, doubly so for the battle theme.

   That's all I have to say about Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga. It's a great game that I would recommend to Mario and RPG fans alike. Even if you're not that big of an RPG fan give this game a try, it plays a lot differently from your standard RPG.

       Thank you for reading. Next time will be a review of an N64 game. I hope to see you again at Backlog Game Reviews.

Gameplay Video