The remake restores all the shine to this endearing JRPG, blending Mario's humour with a satisfying timing-based battle system. Short and easy, true, but its infectious good cheer and polished presentation make it a constant delight.
Your verdict
Category
RPG1 player7+
Description
Mario teams up with unlikely companions to recover the pieces of a star and thwart a gang of machines. Published by Nintendo, released worldwide in 2023. A remake of the classic, turn-based combat with timed hits, partners with unique powers and good-natured humour.
Super Mario RPG review
MAX
Art direction
★★★★★
"Iconic"
MAX
Music
★★★★★
"Legendary"
4/5
Story
★★★★★
"Captivating"
The SNES classic is reborn as glossy plastic figurines: rounded characters, glossy materials and sets evoking a toy box. This warm reinterpretation, faithful to Square's original spirit and brimming with charm, suits its good-natured tone perfectly.
Yoko Shimomura delivers here one of her first great scores, blending the warmth of the Mario themes with a jazzy, playful whimsy all her own. "Forest Maze" and the battle fanfares brim with mischief. That timeless melodic charm explains why so many players keep these tunes etched in memory decades later.
Gameplay
"Excellent"
Fun
"Pleasant"
Addictiveness
"Captivating"
Difficulty
"Easy"
Lifespan
"Massive"
This gentle remake keeps the original's generous spirit while enriching it: recipes to discover, post-credits challenges, formidable optional bosses and a collection of hidden items flesh out an already charming tale. The freshness of the tone invites relentless searching. That good-natured generosity, faithful to the genre's golden age, explains the warm welcome it received.
Technical info
💾6 GB📅17/11/2023
Published by Nintendo
Super Mario RPG (Nintendo Switch) price, value & rarity
Beneath its playful surface, every showdown blends turn-based timing with action commands that reward precise inputs. Smithy and his parade of oddball foes force shifting phases and surprising mechanics, while wall-to-wall humor and a sparkling score give each fight a flavor that helped define Nintendo's RPG legacy.
An underrated gem
For years it survived only in its near-inaccessible original form, and this remake does far more than tidy it up. The unlikely blend of Mario's world with RPG mechanics, the turn-based fights spiked with timed hits and the gentle humor have lost none of their charm. Often overshadowed by the action Marios, it's for anyone wanting a warm, approachable, witty adventure without crushing complexity.
Is Super Mario RPG still worth playing in 2026?
This Super Mario RPG remake honours the SNES game's charm without betraying it. The turn-based combat with timed hits keeps its flavour, and the timing system stays as satisfying as it ever was. The soft, colourful visual rework suits the adventure's good-natured humour perfectly. Its short length and gentle difficulty make it very accessible, perhaps too much for veterans. Yet as a bridge between the Square legacy and the Mario universe, the title keeps a freshness and a contagious cheer.
