An Intelligent Systems papier-mâché RPG, full of charm and humour. The flat 2D world in storybook style charms instantly, the turn-based combat folds in precision timing prompts and every recruited partner has real personality. An accessible, delicious Mario RPG.
Your verdict
Category
RPG1 player3+
Description
Innovative turn-based RPG with Mario in a flat 2D paper world, saving the Star Rod from Bowser's clutches. Published by Nintendo, released in 2000 in Japan as Mario Story and in 2001 in Europe and North America. Partners to recruit, stylized combat, humorous storytelling, and seven varied chapters.
Mario Story review
MAX
Art direction
★★★★★
"Iconic"
MAX
Music
★★★★★
"Legendary"
4/5
Story
★★★★★
"Captivating"
Characters flat as cut-out paper moving through 3D settings: the contrast gives a charming, immediately recognisable style. Vivid colours, creases and mischievous animation turn every scene into an origami theatre. This visual idea, tender and inventive, has lost none of its freshness.
Signed by Yuka Tsujiyoko, the music sparkles with playful, jazzy melodies, one per chapter, that embrace the whimsy of the paper world. Each theme, terribly catchy, makes you want to hum between battles. This witty melodic freshness is the whole charm of this singular adventure.
Gameplay
"Excellent"
Fun
"From the very first minutes"
Addictiveness
"Obsessive"
Stringing together turn-based battles punctuated by timed inputs, recruiting partners with complementary powers and rummaging through a papercraft kingdom weaves a gentle yet gripping progression. Each chapter opens up one more zone, one more ability, one more secret. The pace stays leisurely, but the mischievous writing and the variety of situations make you want to keep going.
Difficulty
"Balanced"
Lifespan
"Massive"
Saving the Star Rod alongside a paper Mario unfolds a witty turn-based RPG, rich in varied chapters. Recruiting partners, combing the scenery and taking on side quests holds you for long hours. That balance of humour, pace and generosity earns the title a lifespan dear to RPG fans.
Japanese edition of Paper Mario, distributed by Nintendo Japan in August 2000 under the local Mario Story title. The Japanese cartridge precedes the Western release by six months and keeps the original Intelligent Systems dialogue, denser and packed with wordplay later creatively rendered by the Treehouse localization team. Its singularity rests on that textual integrity, a reference for Intelligent Systems RPG enthusiasts.
Is Mario Story still worth playing in 2026?
Released in 2000 in Japan then 2001 in the West on Nintendo 64 and known in Japan as Mario Story, Intelligent Systems' project reinvents the Mario RPG in a paper cutout art direction of inimitable charm. The turn based combat, built on the timing of action commands and the use of partners with distinct talents, combines accessibility and depth. The witty writing, the varied chapters and the tender humour make for a warm adventure. The at times guided pace shows. An excellent accessible RPG, recommended for fans of rhythmic turn based combat and of charming worlds.
