Paper Mario: Sticker Star (3DS)

[Detective Shadzter]

US TV commercial

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Idd6HzVCk-U

[Cola]

Gamexplain's review is up.

2/5 Stars! Harsh!

Edited November 6, 2012 by Colasaurus Rex

[Nintendoga]

Gamexplain Review (2/5)

Edit: ARGH NINJA'D BY COLA!

But yeah though, 2/5 is sorta surprising considering Gamexplain usually loves Mario games.

Kotaku Review (They say it's alright)

http://kotaku.com/59...e-kotaku-review

It's those little details that made Sticker Star stand out, even as the bigger picture felt frustrating. Even when battling enemies felt useless and unrewarding, even when it felt like the game was trying very hard to prevent me from progressing, I wanted to keep playing just to read the dialogue, to hop through the beautiful scenery, to smile at all the unexpected little twists and turns that keep the Paper Mario series so constantly fresh.

Paper Mario: Sticker Star is an experimental game, and I suspect that it will be a polarizing one. It's frustrating. It's also charming, full of heart, clever, delightful, and hard to play without smiling. Even when it makes you really mad. Sort of like a dog.

Hmm.

I like that. Paper Mario: Sticker Star is the puppy of video games.

Nintendo Life Review (8/10)

http://www.nintendol...io_sticker_star

Paper Mario: Sticker Star is often funny, thoroughly charming and a joy to play, but it is also just as often a touch too familiar, seemingly unwilling to really go out on a limb and do something crazy even if the potential to do so is immense. Despite its inhibitions, the game keeps a pace so delightful and fun that you can't help but crack a smile at the metric ton of whimsy folded into its rock-solid foundation, rendered all the more impressive thanks to beautiful use of stereoscopic 3D. Sticker Star might elicit some déjà vu, but a memory this bright is one worth remembering.

IGN review (8.3)

http://www.ign.com/a...ker-star-review

In spite of all my criticisms, Sticker Star is still compelling to play and a great deal of fun. The game’s infectious spirit and sense of humour is irresistible, and it’s big, too – you’re not beating this one in a weekend. It’s just a shame that putting stickers at the heart of the game didn’t turn out to be the master-stroke it so readily could have been. Paper Mario fans will enjoy Sticker Star, but ultimately it’s just as notable for its failures as its successes.

Edited November 6, 2012 by Nintendoga

[Cola]

Looks like a mixed bag.

[Nintendoga]

Looks like a mixed bag.

Yeah, a shame to hear that the combat isn't all that great.

What really disappoints me is how the story seems to be (excuse me for this) Paper thin. It was one of the big things I was looking forward to, and to hear that it takes a backseat in this game, is such a disappointment.

Seems the writing and puzzles are the most redeeming qualities of this game.

[Blue Blood]

Yeah, a shame to hear that the combat isn't all that great.

What really disappoints me is how the story seems to be (excuse me for this) Paper thin. It was one of the big things I was looking forward to, and to hear that it takes a backseat in this game, is such a disappointment.

Seems the writing and puzzles are the most redeeming qualities of this game.

You could see then paper thin story coming a mile off. What's that? A festival in the Mushroom Kingdom, you say? Bowser attacks, you say?!

I wonder if this is Miyamoto stepping in to keep the Mario franchise as stable stagnant as he likes it these days.

[Diogenes]

2/5? Ouch.

The game still looks interesting, but I can't deny that that worries me a bit.

[Toby]

You could see then paper thin story coming a mile off. What's that? A festival in the Mushroom Kingdom, you say? Bowser attacks, you say?!

I wonder if this is Miyamoto stepping in to keep the Mario franchise as stable stagnant as he likes it these days.

Does Miyamoto get involved with the Paper Mario titles? Don't quote me, but I don't believe he does.

[Thigolf]

Well, reading those reviews, certainly killed my anticipation. Sounds like they made the incredibly fun battles from the first 2 Paper Mario RPGs boring and kind of tedious, which is a huge, HUGE let-down for me. I'll buy and play the game regardless and judge for myself, but I'm not looking forward to it anymore.

Edited November 6, 2012 by Thigolf

[Blue Blood]

Does Miyamoto get involved with the Paper Mario titles? Don't quote me, but I don't believe he does.

He gets involved with all Mario games, regardless of whether or not he'll be taking a hugely active role. I'd think it's in a sort of brand management way.

[Autosaver]

booo posted already

Edited November 6, 2012 by Autosaver

[Nintendoga]

Page before bro.

[Dantemustdie00]

It's THAT bad, Really?

Wow, I loved the 1st two games and the Mario & Luigi games, especially Thousand Year Doors. To hear so much of the stuff that made the Paper mario games so dag awesome aren't present in this title, especially how lackluster the combat in the game is makes me very sad.

[Echidna Adventurer CC14]

Nintendo Power review (8/10):

The game show segment sounds interesting.

Edited November 6, 2012 by chaoscontrol14

[Your Vest Friend]

Dayum, that King Blooper has a real pimping crown. Show over utility for him, it seems.

[#EndyGate]

Are all of the area bosses in the game just going to be Kings of basic enemy types? I mean we already know about King Goomba, King Pokey, King Blooper, and King Koopa Bowser. If so, that's really disappointing, I always loved the variety present in the bosses of the Paper Mario games, but looks like this is just another aspect of the previous games that this one will be skipping. ;3;

Edited November 6, 2012 by That Bastard Cero

[Conando]

There was variety in The Thousand Year Door but, certainly not Paper Mario. EVERYTHING in that game was just an elite or bigger variant of some enemy in the game or general Mario enemy.

[Blue Blood]

There was variety in The Thousand Year Door but, certainly not Paper Mario. EVERYTHING in that game was just an elite or bigger variant of some enemy in the game or general Mario enemy.

Well of course. You expect sequels to build on their pre-predecessors, no? I'm not sure if this is supposed to be Paper Mario 3 or 4, considering SPM was almost a spin-off of a side series. Either way, it's a step back in too many ways.

[Rinzler]

Gamesradar have their review up:

9/10

Paper Mario: Sticker Star

Paper Mario: Sticker Star review

Leaving behind RPG trappings for something better

Words: Henry Gilbert on November 6, 2012

Based on the many outstanding Mario RPGs released over the years, Nintendo’s mascot and role-playing games go together like green pipes and turtles. After years of success on consoles, the Paper Mario franchise has now moved to the portables with Paper Mario: Sticker Starfor the 3DS. The game sheds many of the trappings of the role-playing genre, streamlining the unique gameplay while maintaining the series pedigree of charming and exciting adventure.

The story moves fast in Sticker Star, with Bowser almost immediately disrupting Sticker Fest, a celebration of the arrival of the mythical Sticker Comet. He and his minions steal the wish-granting power of the comet, using their new strength to wreak havoc on the Mushroom Kingdom. Mario teams up with sassy sprite Kersti--think Ocarina of Time’s Navi, but funny instead of annoying--to reclaim the five Royal Stickers in the hopes of setting things right.

The premise of collecting a handful of magical items to defeat your arch enemy might be pretty predictable. However, Sticker Star casts away many RPG conceits like experience points, equipment, and party members, so the game feels like anything but a retread of the same.

Any attack in battle consumes a sticker, most major plot developments depend on sticker placement, and maintaining your supply of stickers is where much of the strategy comes from. Choosing when and where to use a certain sticker adds tension to every battle, because ending a mundane fight fast with a strong sticker means you won’t have it on hand for the inevitable boss battle. You can build your collection in shops across the world, but many rarer stickers are found few and far between, hidden in the corners of stages.

Underneath all the stickers, the turn-based, reactive combat of previous entries is still intact, where early hits and timing your blocks can mean life or death for Mario. Removing the frills of traditional RPGs lets that gameplay shine even brighter, and by the end of the game you’ll wonder why you ever felt like a Mario RPG needed all that extra fluff. Mario games are at their best when they focus on simple fun, and Sticker Stars proves that once more.

If players’ might have early, misguided doubts about the gameplay, they will likely feel the same about the seemingly linear construction of the map. However, while the map structure of segmenting worlds with “1-1, 1-2, 1-3” and so on may seem too straightforward, in practice Sticker Star is fairly open-ended. When the map opens up, major bosses can be beaten out of order and areas like 5-3 can be explored hours before 4-2, a flow that fits well within the limitations of portable gaming.

For as enjoyable as the gameplay may be, the exceptional script is Sticker Star’s strongest asset. The clever dialogue breathes life into every character, such as Kersti’s continually bossing around Mario and jumping to conclusions, or Bowser Jr.’s insufferably bratty taunts. The writing--supported by expert English localization--is incredibly funny, even by the franchise’s high standards. Also of note is the jazzy soundtrack, one of the best from the series in some time.

As cute as all that can be, a few of those sticker puzzles are also home to Sticker Star’s bigger frustrations. After collecting dozens of real world items (staplers, goats, ect), you end up with so many baubles that some puzzles that should have been amusing end up frustrating ordeals based on trial and error that often aren’t clarified by Kersti’s optional hints. The occasional off the wall solutions mix with the overly open map to cause confused players to aimless roam the map until they finally stumble upon the solution.

But those frustrations are momentary at best, hardly detracting from a can’t miss handheld game. One of the best 3DS games to date, Paper Mario: Sticker Star updates an already great series for handhelds by expertly cutting the fat to make for a digestible portable adventure. RPG lovers might balk at the changes, but after the first few hours they’ll realize that this is just the next evolution in a series that was always quietly innovating its genre.

YOU'LL LOVE

• One of the funniest games of the year
  
• Streamlined sticker combat offers new challenge
  
• Lovely graphics and soundtrack craft enjoyable world
  
  YOU'LL HATE
  • Too open at times
    
  • Not enough of an RPG for genre buffs
    
  • Occasionally frustrating sticker management
    

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Edited November 7, 2012 by Ghostfreak

[Nintendoga]

Are all of the area bosses in the game just going to be Kings of basic enemy types? I mean we already know about King Goomba, King Pokey, King Blooper, and King Koopa Bowser. If so, that's really disappointing, I always loved the variety present in the bosses of the Paper Mario games, but looks like this is just another aspect of the previous games that this one will be skipping. ;3;

That feeling when you will never have a boss or rivalry as amazing as RAWK HAWK in a PM game ever again. (for now)

[TrueBlue]

You could see then paper thin story coming a mile off. What's that? A festival in the Mushroom Kingdom, you say? Bowser attacks, you say?!

I wonder if this is Miyamoto stepping in to keep the Mario franchise as stable stagnant as he likes it these days.

Isn't that a little presumptuous when regarding Miyamoto? I've barely heard a word from him concerning this particular game.

[Nintendoga]

It's really odd how Intelligent Systems is holding back with the story in this game. I'm not too sure it's Miyamoto (I mean if it was, TTYD and SPM wouldn't have had such good stories). But it can't be all on IS's fault, I mean they made all the Fire Emblem games, and with the latest one on the 3DS, this being on a handheld can't be the reason. Either they just didn't try, or Miyamoto (or someone else) really did hold them back for some odd reason.

Speaking of which, I never knew Intellegent Systems programmed Super Metroid! Fuck, let them do the next Metroid game!

Edited November 7, 2012 by Nintendoga

[Nintendoga]

Can't embed so

http://mariopartyleg...o-sticker-star/

Five videos from Gametrailers, shows off the first appearance of the Starman in the PM series, Luigi's appearance, inside the Yoshi Spinx, Wiggler's House, and a battle with a Hammer Bros.

Man, that really sucks about Luigi. One of the best characters in the PM series, reduced to a background character. Hope you at least get to interact with him.

Also, most of the other Reviews

A- –

1UP

8.75/10 –

Game Informer

8.4/10 –

Just Push Start

4/5 –

Modojo

8/10 –

Destructoid

Recommended w/ Beard –

GoNintendo

7.6/10 –

Digital Chumps

7.5/10 –

Polygon

68/100 -

Venture Beat

6.5/10 –

EGM

Edited November 7, 2012 by Nintendoga

[Carbo]

I'm actually kind of surprised how I'm hearing the game is rather hard. The sticker management thing is making this sound like it has a lot of roguelike/hoarding game elements.

One thing I'm curious about - I actually wonder what Yahtzee will think of the game. He's said in the past that the Paper Mario franchise is his favorite RPG series of all time and felt that Super Paper Mario was the weakest in the series despite feeling that abandoning turn-based combat was a plus.

[Blue Blood]

Isn't that a little presumptuous when regarding Miyamoto? I've barely heard a word from him concerning this particular game.