October 10th 2024.
Welcome back, my dear brothers! It's been quite some time since we last embarked on an adventure together. As you may remember, the Mario & Luigi series went on a bit of a break and sadly, its developer AlphaDream closed its doors. But fear not, because our beloved franchise is making a comeback - although some may argue it's playing it safe.
It's been almost ten years since the last installment of the Mario & Luigi series on Nintendo's handheld consoles. Sure, there were a couple of remakes in 2017 and 2018, but they didn't quite have the same impact on fans and the market. In fact, the Bowser's Inside Story remake didn't do too well and even led to the cancellation of any further projects for the 3DS. A shame, considering it was arguably the best game in the series.
Sadly, in 2019, AlphaDream filed for bankruptcy and had to shut down, leaving the future of the Mario & Luigi series uncertain. Nintendo never explicitly stated that the series was dead, but they also didn't give any reassurance that it would continue. So, you can imagine our excitement when the June 2024 Nintendo Direct started off with a bang, announcing Mario & Luigi: Brothership with a release date set for November 2024.
The initial trailer was short but sweet, showing that the game has retained everything we love about the series. Nintendo also assured fans that some members of the original development team are working on this new entry, although they are keeping the studio's name under wraps - which seems a bit unfair to the creators.
Recently, we had the opportunity to play an early version of Brothership and while it's still too early to make a full comparison to its predecessors, it looks like it will definitely please long-time fans, even though it may seem a bit unambitious.
Despite making the jump from handheld consoles to a home console, the Mario & Luigi formula remains unchanged. You control both brothers at the same time, navigating them through the new world of Concordia from a top-down perspective. Mario jumps with the 'A' button and Luigi with the 'B' button.
As usual, when encountering monsters on the field, the game switches to turn-based battles where timing button presses is crucial to dealing extra damage and avoiding enemy attacks. Just like the Paper Mario series, Mario & Luigi is a direct descendant of Super Mario RPG, with all three franchises sharing a similar combat style.
It didn't take us long to get back into the swing of things, learning enemy attack patterns, jumping on their heads, and hitting them with hammers. It felt like the series had never left, just with a much prettier look. While previous games had beautiful 2D sprite artwork, Brothership's cartoony 3D character models allow for even more expressive visuals.
We found ourselves laughing more at Mario and Luigi's animations rather than the script, which hopefully doesn't mean the verbal humor has suffered. Previous games always managed to make us chuckle with their witty dialogue, but what we've seen so far hasn't been too impressive. We can already tell that the new companion, Snoutlet's running gag of denying being a pig, will get old quickly.
The combat, on the other hand, is as satisfying as ever. Landing, dodging, and countering attacks feels just as good as it did before. Interestingly, Mario and Luigi's standard attacks have received a bit more flair. Instead of attacking independently, they now work together for simple jumps and hammer swings, utilizing both the 'A' and 'B' buttons. Nintendo did mention that the brothers would be closer than ever in Brothership, hinting at an even greater emphasis on teamwork compared to previous entries.
But don't worry, the flashy special moves, known as Bros. Attacks, are still a major part of the game. In previous installments, these moves required a combination of 'A' and 'B' button presses, and we're excited to see what new and zany ideas Brothership has in store for us. During the preview, we only got to use two basic ones that involved kicking a green or red shell back and forth, but they still ended with a powerful final kick that wouldn't be out of place in a Mario Strikers game.
It looks like Mario and Luigi will once again have unique Bros. Attacks, with Mario's red shell focusing on a single enemy while Luigi's green shell can hit multiple targets.
In addition to the familiar Bros. Attacks, there are also new Battle Plugs that seem to have replaced the badges we've seen in previous games. You can equip two at a time, and they provide passive bonuses, such as allowing the brothers to hover in the air slightly to dodge attacks more easily. However, these Battle Plugs have limited use and need to recharge before they can be used again.
We believe this was done to encourage players to experiment with different strategies, so whether it will make the game more fun or just be a nuisance is up for debate. On the bright side, you can swap out Battle Plugs during a fight, which is a welcome quality-of-life improvement.
Mario and Luigi are confirmed to be the only playable characters, and there doesn't seem to be any gimmicks like the Dream World from Dream Team Bros. Instead, Brothership feels like a spiritual successor to the original Superstar Saga, where the focus was solely on the brothers before sequels added babies, Bowser, Paper Mario, and dream clones of Luigi.
Based on what we've seen so far, the closest thing to a unique gimmick is that you can press the 'L' button on the field to send Luigi off to do his own thing. It's context-sensitive, and it allows the brothers to split up for puzzle-solving. For example, we experienced a maze where Mario could reach a platform, giving us a bird's-eye view of the maze. Meanwhile, Luigi stayed behind and could press a button to spin the walls and open up a path to the exit.
This back-to-basics approach may have been taken to ease in both returning fans and newcomers. There are also some small touches, like how Luigi automatically hops up ledges and over gaps, so you only need to worry about moving Mario around. In battle, you no longer select Luigi's actions with the 'B' button; instead, you use the 'A' button.
This isn't a major issue, but our muscle memory made us stick to old habits during the preview. We also didn't find any of the enemy encounters particularly challenging. To be fair, the segments we played were from early in the game, so things may become more difficult later on.
Even though Brothership seems to play it safe, it's still shaping up to be a solid addition to the series. And let's be honest, with remakes of Super Mario RPG and Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door released in the last year, it's refreshing to see an entirely original Mario-themed RPG. Our only real complaint is that there's a loading screen after every battle, which can be a bit of a nuisance. We may have been spoiled by games like Pokémon Scarlet & Violet and Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth, where there are no loading screens.
Barring any last-minute surprises, Brothership will most likely be Nintendo's last major exclusive of 2024. It could also be one of the final major first-party releases for the Switch before the next console is released. The series may have hit a rough patch in the past, but with any luck, this new entry will bring it back to life and give it a fresh start.
Formats: Nintendo Switch
Price: £49.99
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Unknown
Release Date: 7th November 2024
Age Rating: 7
Mario & Luigi: Brothership - Luigi is still number one, or at least two
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