Retro Review: Super Mario RPG
I’ve been on an old-school SNES RPG kick recently. For some reason, I had an insatiable craving to play Earthbound, and when I’d finished with that, I moved on to Super Mario RPG. I find it quite amazing that even after almost ten years, games like these can still hold their own. I thought I’d write a bit on why exactly I can play a game like Super Mario RPG and still enjoy it.
One of the main problems with older games is that they become horribly dated due to graphic quality. Something like Final Fantasy II is probably not going to attract any new players, due to the small, blocky graphics. However, towards the end of the SNES's life cycle, developers began to make simulated 3D computer-generated graphics; the most famous example of this is probably Donkey Kong Country. Super Mario RPG takes advantage of this graphical trick, and the result is a game that doesn't show its age quite so much. Ironically, although we may say that a game's graphics are superficial, in older games I think they are quite a large part of whether a new player will enjoy the game or not.
Of course, with any RPG, the plot and dialogue determine a large part of the quality of the game. The main plot of Super Mario RPG will be nothing new for fans of the Mario series: it involves collecting stars. However, many subplots and strange situations arise throughout the game, and are superbly scripted. Add entirely new areas in the Mario universe, new characters, and viola! You get a game that is actually story driven.
Another area that propels SMRPG to high levels of replayability is the gameplay itself. The game mixes action and RPG elements quite adroitly. Most of the game takes place in a 3/4 perspective, and plays just like a Mario platformer. Holding Y makes Mario run, and B jumps. However, in this game, if Mario jumps on a baddie, a RPG-style battle starts, bringing fans of the genre into more familiar territory. Super Mario RPG also introduces the concept of "timed hits," where pressing the A button at specific times will cause a character to deal more or take less damage in battle. While mastering timed hits is not essential for completing the game, it gives the player a large advantage. SMRPG is also chock-full of interesting mini-games, which, unlike those in other games, are actually fun to play. There are so many of these games that it is almost impossible to list them all here.
Super Mario RPG also made strides ahead in the RPG genre that other games have yet to copy. One such feature is the fact that experience is given to all characters after a battle, even those not in the active party. This significantly reduces the most tedious part of RPGS: leveling up. Some of the tedium still exists, but is reduced because of this excellent idea. In addition, the maximum character level is 30, and after playing through the game normally, the average level is 25. This makes SMRPG much less tedious than most RPGs.
Of course, no game is without problems. SMRPG is the most flawed in regards to character balance. With a little work, your party can be literally invincible, even to the most difficult enemies in the game. The characters Geno and the Princess are particularly overpowered. There is also a particular area of the game which allows the player to infinitely level up and get infinite coins very quickly; this wouldn't be so bad, except that it's about half-way through the game, making the rest way too easy.
However, when it comes right down to it, these problems are rather small and trivial. Overall, the game remains extremely playable, and is one of my favorite RPGs. There have been various "spiritual" sequels to this game (such as Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga), and I would definitely recommend every to play the game that started it all.
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