Gameplay
There will be eight levels, each of them unique, and you will be able to play as Mario, Peach, and Bowser. A health bar and an item menu are also present in the game, something slightly different from previous 2D Mario games, but not too dissimilar from previous Mario RPG games. It is unsure whether collecting badges, a feature included in the most recent Mario RPG games, will be included. Super Paper Mario will be the second Paper Mario game to feature platforming elements. The first was Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door where Bowser has three Super Mario Bros. like levels. Bowser will once again be playable in a Paper Mario game, similarily as he was in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.
Characters
The trailer shows the player changing from Mario to Peach in a level, showing that free character swapping may be available.
Abilities
The E3 trailer showcased several new abilities. In the trailer, Mario is seen floating in space with a space helmet, shooting enemies out of his path with a gun. At another point in the trailer, Mario is seen running down a wall with the space helmet, in what some have suggested is an anti-gravity mode. [2]
Each playable character has a special character related move that they can use, as well as specific character traits. This is activated by pressing the R-button on the GameCube controller [3]:
Peach's Parasol - Princess Peach's special move: Peach can use her parasol to slowly float towards the ground, similar to the same move in Super Princess Peach. Princess Peach is also the lightest character, and can jump the highest.
View Swapping - Mario's special move: By activating this, the view of the level is turned 90°, so that you can see in front of Mario, changing the style of the game into a 3D platformer moving vertically, comparable to The Thousand-Year Door, but with a vertical direction as opposed to horizontal. This allows Mario access to places that normally aren't available (to move behind a warp pipe, or to use a ladder that was invisible because it's turned sideways, for instance).
Fire Breathing - Bowser's special move: As such a name would suggest, Bowser is able to breathe fire. Bowser himself, though, is the slowest and most sluggish character of the three.
Power ups
Mushrooms: Instead of making the player grow, mushrooms now only increase health. [3]
Giant Form: The trailer shows the character becoming very large, and turn into their Super Mario Bros. forms, as 8-bit sprites. They then can crash through the level, effectively becoming invincible, similar to the same move in New Super Mario Bros. Something like this was seen in The Thousand-Year Door when, after a chapter ended, you took control of Bowser journeying through the first few Super Mario Bros. levels. When Bowser got some sort of meat (apparently his equivalent of Super Mushrooms), the second time he received one, he would grow screen-sized and invincible. N-Sider revealed in their exclusive preview of the game that a Koopa Troopa would also be able to have the ability to grow in size. [3]
Red Flowers: Instead of making the player shoot fireballs, they make the player move faster.
Blue Flowers: These make the player move slower. This powerup is helpful when combined with Peach's Parasol. [3]
Companions
During the trailer, Mario is seen with two companions walking around with him. It was revealed that these were called Fairens. The first, which looks like a butterfly, works somewhat like Goombella from Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, and gives you information about the level. The other Fairen allows you to use special Fairy Abilities, its appearance changing with each one. For example, when you use the ability Fairy Toss, the Fairen changes into a very abstract-looking hand made of circles and squares. This ability allows you to pick up enemies and throw them. Another, called Fairy Hammer, allows you to use a big yellow mallet, and this is symbolized by the Fairen turning into a hammer.
Enemies
The trailer has shown that Goombas, Koopa Troopas, Hammer Bros. and Bloopers (including a massive one dwarfing Bowser) will make an appearance in the game.
Story
Nothing has been revealed, but there is a screenshot of Bowser and Peach being married (Peach does not look happy) by a strange, villainous-looking magician.
Development
Many of the characters look as they did in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, but the art style is different: in some of the backgrounds, the clouds in the game appear to be made from mathematical equations or problems with fictional symbols such as stars, and various rotating outlines of rectangles. In one of the pre-release screenshots of Mario, his mustache was changed from brown to black.
Release
The game is scheduled for a fall 2006 release. [citation needed] ;078;
ATTE: SECO! ^^;136;
There will be eight levels, each of them unique, and you will be able to play as Mario, Peach, and Bowser. A health bar and an item menu are also present in the game, something slightly different from previous 2D Mario games, but not too dissimilar from previous Mario RPG games. It is unsure whether collecting badges, a feature included in the most recent Mario RPG games, will be included. Super Paper Mario will be the second Paper Mario game to feature platforming elements. The first was Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door where Bowser has three Super Mario Bros. like levels. Bowser will once again be playable in a Paper Mario game, similarily as he was in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.
Characters
The trailer shows the player changing from Mario to Peach in a level, showing that free character swapping may be available.
Abilities
The E3 trailer showcased several new abilities. In the trailer, Mario is seen floating in space with a space helmet, shooting enemies out of his path with a gun. At another point in the trailer, Mario is seen running down a wall with the space helmet, in what some have suggested is an anti-gravity mode. [2]
Each playable character has a special character related move that they can use, as well as specific character traits. This is activated by pressing the R-button on the GameCube controller [3]:
Peach's Parasol - Princess Peach's special move: Peach can use her parasol to slowly float towards the ground, similar to the same move in Super Princess Peach. Princess Peach is also the lightest character, and can jump the highest.
View Swapping - Mario's special move: By activating this, the view of the level is turned 90°, so that you can see in front of Mario, changing the style of the game into a 3D platformer moving vertically, comparable to The Thousand-Year Door, but with a vertical direction as opposed to horizontal. This allows Mario access to places that normally aren't available (to move behind a warp pipe, or to use a ladder that was invisible because it's turned sideways, for instance).
Fire Breathing - Bowser's special move: As such a name would suggest, Bowser is able to breathe fire. Bowser himself, though, is the slowest and most sluggish character of the three.
Power ups
Mushrooms: Instead of making the player grow, mushrooms now only increase health. [3]
Giant Form: The trailer shows the character becoming very large, and turn into their Super Mario Bros. forms, as 8-bit sprites. They then can crash through the level, effectively becoming invincible, similar to the same move in New Super Mario Bros. Something like this was seen in The Thousand-Year Door when, after a chapter ended, you took control of Bowser journeying through the first few Super Mario Bros. levels. When Bowser got some sort of meat (apparently his equivalent of Super Mushrooms), the second time he received one, he would grow screen-sized and invincible. N-Sider revealed in their exclusive preview of the game that a Koopa Troopa would also be able to have the ability to grow in size. [3]
Red Flowers: Instead of making the player shoot fireballs, they make the player move faster.
Blue Flowers: These make the player move slower. This powerup is helpful when combined with Peach's Parasol. [3]
Companions
During the trailer, Mario is seen with two companions walking around with him. It was revealed that these were called Fairens. The first, which looks like a butterfly, works somewhat like Goombella from Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, and gives you information about the level. The other Fairen allows you to use special Fairy Abilities, its appearance changing with each one. For example, when you use the ability Fairy Toss, the Fairen changes into a very abstract-looking hand made of circles and squares. This ability allows you to pick up enemies and throw them. Another, called Fairy Hammer, allows you to use a big yellow mallet, and this is symbolized by the Fairen turning into a hammer.
Enemies
The trailer has shown that Goombas, Koopa Troopas, Hammer Bros. and Bloopers (including a massive one dwarfing Bowser) will make an appearance in the game.
Story
Nothing has been revealed, but there is a screenshot of Bowser and Peach being married (Peach does not look happy) by a strange, villainous-looking magician.
Development
Many of the characters look as they did in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, but the art style is different: in some of the backgrounds, the clouds in the game appear to be made from mathematical equations or problems with fictional symbols such as stars, and various rotating outlines of rectangles. In one of the pre-release screenshots of Mario, his mustache was changed from brown to black.
Release
The game is scheduled for a fall 2006 release. [citation needed] ;078;
ATTE: SECO! ^^;136;