Games I Played in 2024 - Mario & Luigi: Brothership

   

Console: Switch

Developer: Acquire

Release Date: November 7 2024

Mario & Luigi: Brothership is a turn-based RPG with a focus on timing, pattern recognition, and some light puzzle-solving and platforming. The latest entry in the Mario & Luigi series and the first game in the series to not be made by Alphadream (though many former devs are now at Acquire), Brothership is also the first entry in the series to be a console game, as all the other games were on handheld systems. Brothership is the third RPG in the Mario franchise to be released within a year, with the remake of Super Mario RPG releasing in November 2023 and the Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door remake releasing earlier this year. Unlike those two, however, it has the added pressure of being a brand new entry, rather than a remake. This means that while Brothership has the freedom to try something new, it also has the inevitable fate of being compared to its predecessors, for better or worse. As a fan of the Mario & Luigi games since the first instalment, I'll be making comparisons here and there to illustrate differences, good and bad.

YET ANOTHER WORLD TO SAVE!

The Mario RPGs are no stranger to plonking Mario (and usually Luigi) into a new, original world to save, and Brothership is no different. The game starts with Mario and Luigi getting suddenly transported to the broken world of Concordia, and the story revolves around connecting the world's various islands to mend the land itself and restore the order. What immediately stands out is the sheer amount of electricity-related designs, concepts and names scattered around the game. All the generic NPCs have faces that look like outlets and hair made out of wires, you sail on currents (get it?) to get to the various islands, you connect islands with giant plugs on lighthouses, some enemies resemble USB keys wielding audio jacks as weapons, it's all incredibly charming. 

The consistent theming feels stronger than in previous titles, and that almost certainly has to do with the fact that it's also relevant to the game's overall themes. Indeed, while Superstar Saga had an emphasis on jokes and laughs, and Dream Team was all about dreams, it kind of felt more like set dressing than an actual theme, if that makes sense. Superstar Saga only went as far as having characters named around laughing onomatopoeia while Dream Team merely used dreams as a gameplay mechanic for the most part. Partners in Time and Bowser's Inside Story are about time travel and alien invasions, and having Bowser playable, respectively. Brothership, meanwhile, leverages as much of its electric theming by also making it part of the story: the plot revolves around the bonds (or connections? Ha!) between people, and linking islands and villages together to allow for seamless communication. The villains? They merely wish for everyone to be lonely and separated.

In a way, this directly feels like a concept borne from the 2020 pandemic, when isolation was rampant and many found other ways to stay connected with others outside of meeting in person. However, ultimately, Brothership boasts a simple story about "the power of relationships" with a complete lack of subtlety about it... but it does it so earnestly and straightforwardly that I found myself invested nonetheless. This is helped by the pretty typically good writing you'll find in Mario RPGs: quirky, witty, amusing, and charming. As a first, at least for me, though, the new key NPCs introduced in this game actually stuck with me. From Connie, Snoutlet and Arc to Technikki and the IDLE Group, each character is given an appropriate amount of screen time both in the main story and in sidequests to create a real attachment to them; even if they're not the deepest characters you've ever seen in an RPG, they're still plenty likeable and easy to root for. Existing characters like Bowser and Peach shine as usual as well, with Bowser being his usual goofy, macho Mario & Luigi self and Peach being an active participant rather than a damsel in distress. Bowser Jr. is also great as a vulnerable daddy's boy torn between being a bad guy and having a friend. In fact, Bowser's additional characterisation as a doting dad is welcome for the few times it's present. The inclusion of Starlow from previous Mario & Luigi games is also very welcome, even if she's not the partner character this time around.

As for the antagonists, there's a recurring bumbling trio, the Extension Corps, which is a fun addition, but the main antagonists are some of the most memorable in the series for me. Cackletta and Fawful from Superstar Saga (as well as Bowser's Inside Story for Fawful) are great, the Shroobs from Partners in Time were cool but hardly characters, and Antasma from Dream Team is extremely forgettable. Zokket in Brothership is shockingly menacing, and though his focus on forcing everyone to be lonely and antisocial is a bit extreme in a cartoony way, it's shown very well by his lack of care in learning people's names and being so singlemindedly driven by his goal that he doesn't see Mario and Luigi as threats. Traits that would be funny like forgetting names or cliché like being overconfident instead come off as very cold and robotic, and it just works. Even Bowser is appropriately menacing when he's the antagonist, being portrayed as an unstoppable force of nature. There are also some fun narrative twists that, while nothing new for veteran RPG players, are executed well.

The game's multitude of islands is where the theming gets lost a little; while they are generally nice and fun to explore, they don't really showcase much uniqueness related to the theme at hand either in storytelling or just in general design. There's a rocky mountain filled with artists, a rainforest, an amusement park, a business town, a fire island, an ice island... what happens on these islands is generally at least a little interesting, but the electric nature of the theming gets lost a little. Nevertheless, the NPCs usually have something charming or quirky to say, and most strikingly, the islands change as the game progresses, allowing the player to see some micro-stories play out. This all helps the world feel very connected (ha!) despite being so separate in gameplay. It's all just executed very well. Every island sort of has its own little gameplay quirk as well, which makes them more memorable than they maybe should be.

The game's hub world, Shipshape Island, is genuinely really nice. It's small, easy to navigate, and has everything a hub world could need like shops and ways to fast travel. Like the islands, Shipshape evolves as the story progresses, housing more and more NPCs from around Concordia and becoming a veritable social hub. It really makes you feel like you're actually mending Concordia. 

FAMILIAR BATTLES...MOSTLY

The battle system in Brothership is pretty much the same as the rest of the franchise: a simple turn-based RPG where Mario is controlled with the A button and Luigi with the B button. Using coordinated attacks by either jumping or using a hammer, Mario and Luigi do combos that require specific button presses depending on which brother is attacking. And as with the other games, there are powerful Bros. Attacks that require BP to execute. These Bros. Attacks see both brothers use a special item to inflict tons of damage, at the cost of BP and doing multiple inputs correctly in a sort of minigame. Unlike previous games, however, a majority of these are not actually new, but instead reused from said games. Each brother has five different Bros. Attacks, with two each being new (one is debatable, but uses a similar concept and is close enough to me to consider it returning). The returning Bros. Attacks are a good piece of fanservice, but also don't feel as exciting anymore for a veteran player. Besides the classic Red Shell and Green Shell moves, Bomb Derby is also back for a third(!) time. Bomb Derby in particularly also felt oddly difficult for me to do, to the point that I never did it with the Auto EXCELLENT Battle Plug...

Which brings me to the Battle Plug system unlocked some ways into the game. New to Brothership is the ability to equip powerful accessories called Battle Plugs that give Mario and Luigi various passive effects, from automatically using items without wasting a turn to strengthening attacks on flying or spiky enemies, or even taking extra turns and getting more loot. They can be equipped in battle, but have a specific number of Charges each, after which a large amount of turns will have to be played for them to recharge. Battle Plugs are created by using Sprite Bulbs, a collectible found in the overworld. This system is very powerful, but also optional, making it feel a little more like a helping hand for less-skilled players (outside of some puzzle-like fights in a handful of sidequests) rather than a cool mechanic that deepens the gameplay. I found them mostly useful against bosses, naturally.

The big difference between Mario & Luigi and other turn-based RPGs, however, is how active the player has to be during an enemy's turn. Every enemy has different attacks that target either Mario, Luigi, or both, and the player must react by either jumping or using the hammer to avoid or counter these attacks. In the hands of a skilled player, an enemy's turn is simply an additional turn for Mario and Luigi, especially in Brothership, where counters deal nearly as much damage as regular attacks. My memory might be failing me in relation to the previous games in the franchise, but counterattacks did not feel as impactful in them, instead dealing a little amount of damage as a bonus. I'm not sure how I feel about it, as while it further emphasises this aspect of the game, it also felt strange to me after a while when some enemies could be countered multiple times in one attack sequence.

A departure from the previous games is the leveling system, which has been even more streamlined to the point of being detrimental in my opinion. Mario and Luigi have multiple stats: HP, BP, Power, Defense, Speed, and Stache (Luck). When leveling up, Mario favors HP, Power and Speed, while Luigi favors BP, Defense and Stache. In previous games, upon leveling up, the player would be able to select a stat and roll a slot to add a few points to that stat, which both allowed a small amount of customisation and player agency, as well as to ostensibly create "builds" for Mario and Luigi. In Brothership, this is completely gone and Mario and Luigi simply get stat boosts as they level up until they reach a certain rank, where a permanent passive bonus can be chosen... and I found these to be a bit boring, since some felt much stronger and more desirable than others, which led to me making Mario and Luigi essentially the same. Add in Beans, which are consumable items that boost specific stats when used with a brother, and the differences between Mario and Luigi are the slightest they have been in the series. Equipment is also simple as usual, with the brothers being able to equip boots, hammers, overalls, gloves and accessories, and progress usually gives access to better gear with little room for experimentation with secondary effects.

The boss battles, as usual, are where RPGs live or die. Bosses in Brothership are not as plentiful as you'd expect for such a long game, but they are all mostly memorable and fun to fight. The game even throws a few curveballs in the second half of the game with some more gimmicky fights that don't feel out of place and freshen up the gameplay. Their attacks are harder to dodge and counter, they have more health and often multiple phases, and most importantly, they allow the use of Luigi Logic, a new mechanic. During major boss fights, Luigi will eventually notice something in the background and come up with a plan to deal massive damage to the boss and stun it for a turn or two, requiring a minigame to be played. These are usually fun, quick, and require a bit of strategy: Luigi has to be the one to initiate it, and Mario needs to not be KO'd. Luigi Logic is a cute little addition in battles, but I don't think it's much of a game-changer or adds much to the overall game.

Something that stood out to me compared to the rest of the series in a strangely negative way, however, is the battle animations. A lot of Mario and Luigi's attacks are very smoothly animated, but lack snappiness and impact. Then, enemies move in strangely jerky ways at times, snapping into position too quickly or doing attacks with the slightest of delays that threw off my defensive inputs pretty constantly throughout the game whenever I encountered new enemies. Hitboxes also seem odd: some attacks linger a bit too long, while others can be dodged or countered a bit too early. Others feel a bit too quick to be read effectively, while some feel slower than they should be.

Brothership also falls prey to a flaw present in every single game in the series: while a lot of enemy attacks encourage reacting with either Mario or Luigi, few of them punish you for simply reacting with both at the same time, especially early on which can lead to the player developing bad habits.

OH, IT'S STILL GOING?

The main criticism of Brothership tends to be the game's pacing. Indeed, compared to every other game in the series except Dream Team, Brothership is nearly twice their length. While I understand the criticism, especially for the early parts of the game, I also think it works in the game's favor if the player doesn't disengage from the story. Mario & Luigi games tend to be a bit too quick, with little time to really take in the world and story presented to the player, as simple as they might be. Brothership's focus on bonds between people and overall worldbuilding is made more potent by its length, and the main characters end up being fairly developed and having good character arcs by the end thanks to this. The storytelling is a bit long in the tooth, with characters often either stating the obvious or repeating themselves to make absolutely sure the player understands what is going on, but I don't think it's as bad as people say. It certainly feels slower when doing the optional sidequests, but that's kind of a given. There's also a few story beats, especially in the latter half, that feel like they drag on a bit too much.

The sidequests are fun enough to do and aren't fetch quests to an annoying degree, instead being little character moments more often than not that also makes the player go back to connected islands and see the newly unlocked paths and how the NPCs are reacting. However, the rewards usually are a bit on the bland side, often being a handful of consumable items. Thankfully, the game will almost always show the rewards for a sidequest, and even highlight sidequests that will become invalid should the story be progressed, so the player can easily choose what to do and not do.

Some of the overworld mechanics can be a tad tedious as well, whether it's passing around a large object because a bro. cannot jump while carrying it, or needing to do a rhythm minigame a few more times than necessary, or even needing to do some fishing for a sidequest. The rhythm minigame present in the game is barebones and uninteresting, and the same goes for fishing. The overworld version of Luigi Logic is also nothing special, often being used to make Luigi do monotonous things like pull out turnips or hammer boxes, and sometimes being used for puzzles, where it's merely alright rather than game-defining. For a seasoned player like me, it feels like a very watered down version of what Dreamy Luigi would do in Dream Team instead of being its own Brothership thing. I think my main issue is that it's not really connected (ha!) to the game's main theme and title, and usually consists of Luigi doing something by himself to help Mario, rather than coming up with solutions that require teamwork. Some puzzles also feel frustrating, where Luigi will set off on a set path automatically and you essentially have to race him.

The main traversal mechanic in the game is sailing with Shipshape Island on set currents. In practice, this feels more like using a train than a boat, following set paths that go in one direction and only being able to change paths at specific intersections. It's not terribly interesting, lacks actual exploration, and can be quite slow even after the fast sailing mechanic is unlocked early on. It adds to the pacing issues the game can have due to having to wait to get to the next island. Thankfully, for connected islands, there's a handy pipe on Shipshape that lets you travel wherever you want, and there's also a return pipe that can be used anywhere.

Another pacing issue with Brothership is not necessarily a fault of the game, but moreso the series' core gameplay when experienced over such a "long" runtime. Namely, this feels like gameplay intended for a shorter handheld game that wasn't properly expanded upon for longer games; Dream Team also had this issue. After a while, the combat doesn't feel as exciting as it is at the start, especially when enemies start getting tankier and tankier. As with Dream Team, it gets to the point that I'd use Bros. Attacks to deal with regular enemies faster, and the Bros. Attacks in general ended up getting old even before that point due to the amount of time they take. Mix that with the fact that later enemies have longer attacks with multiple dodges and counters and every battle just ends up becoming more tedious than fun. Not so tedious that it's no longer fun, but noticeably duller to the point I found myself using the Auto EXCELLENT Battle Plug more and more as the game progressed to dispatch of normal enemies so I could check my phone during the animation.

Overall though, while the pacing issues are definitely there, they are not so bad that they make the game feel like a boring chore to play, and the introduction of gimmickier boss fights at some point does help. It's just a noticeable flaw, especially with the combat later on. There's just not enough depth to the combat to fill out its playtime.

On top of everything mentioned, and as is typical of a Switch game by the end of 2024, the game suffers from performance issues, though they aren't as terrible as what I've seen people say. Firstly, they almost never occur in battle, which is where it's most important. Secondly, there's never massive drops and stutters; rather, the game gets overwhelmed by some visual effects and ends up running at a lower (but manageable) framerate that doesn't feel great. This unfortunately gets worse and worse as the game goes on: Shipshape Island gets laggier and laggier the more the story progresses due to all the NPCs present.

A NEW BEGINNING MUSICALLY

Brothership marks the first time in series history that the soundtrack is not handled by legendary composer Yoko Shimomura of Kingdom Hearts fame; instead, the game's music was composed by Hideki Sakamoto, most known for contributing to some early Yakuza/Like A Dragon games as well as Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of the Sky, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's incredible main theme, "Lifelight." While Shimomura's shoes are too massive to fill, Sakamoto does an admirable job capturing the sonic feel of the Mario & Luigi series while adding in his own touches.

Brothership's soundtrack maintains the series' bouncy, wacky feel, adding touches of polka and sea shanties as well as big band jazz where appropriate. The main battle theme doesn't really get old with its loud brass hits and funky accordion melodies, both the mini-boss and boss themes are appropriately intense while staying lighthearted and catchy, Shipshape Island's theme is lovely and memorable, and almost every island has a very fitting and memorable theme that is usually bouncy and hummable. Early on in the game, however, with the first few islands, the music doesn't really feel like Mario & Luigi to me despite being catchy and bouncy.

Sakamoto's work really shines during more dramatic moments, where a full orchestra comes in to deliver a more cinematic, dramatic flair to the usual musical proceedings. He also delivers on the goofier tracks, with odd melodies and using xylophones, brass and out of place percussion to make things feel a touch more chaotic. The use of a hammond organ in some places feels very inspired and fitting. A few moments late in the game trend closer to the horror genre and Sakamoto nails it with subtle changes to the music. Most tracks also have the marching band feeling that the Mario & Luigi series' tracks tend to have.

It's no Shimomura soundtrack, but Sakamoto pretty much nails it on the first try, barring some oddities that are good, but lack the spirit of the series in a vague way I can't exactly describe. Where the game's soundtrack falters is honestly in some of its lack of variety; many cutscenes play out with the area's theme playing rather than a generic cutscene track that can apply to a mood or atmosphere. Some story beats also feel foreshadowed as twists due to the lack of unique music surrounding them when it feels like they should have something special playing. I must say, though, the epilogue theme is genuinely wonderful and made me well up.

PROS AND CONS

PROS

• Straightforward and simple story that nonetheless is well-executed and focused to an admirable degree; you know what you're getting and it's thematically rich as far as a Mario game goes.

• Good character writing all around that supports the main themes of the game; it's not too hard to get attached to the main characters, and all the new NPCs are likeable and memorable.

• Great soundtrack with few misses and a fair amount of stand-out tracks that overall doesn't feel like the black sheep of the series it could've been.

• The best feeling of progression in the series, with multiple changes to areas you've already been to as the story progresses, including in the pretty great hub world.

• Some really cool twists that, while nothing new for an RPG, are well-executed and could be pretty shocking to some.

• Some great animation, especially during cutscenes and Bros. Attacks.

• Lots of little references to previous games in the series shows a love and reverence for the past despite being made by a different company.

• The most memorable and threatening antagonists in the Mario & Luigi series.

CONS

• Pacing issues can make the game feel a bit dragged out, especially since the story, while good, is nothing particularly special that warrants a long runtime.

• Luigi Logic is a bit of a nothingburger mechanic, even if modestly fun.

• Some overworld minigames feel half-baked and add nothing to the overall experience, such as the rhythm game and the fishing minigame.

• Small but persistent performance issues that unfortunately get worse the more the story progresses.

• A long playtime that ends up stretching the combat design to its limit, leading to tedium and a lack of excitement with time.

• The removal of the level-up mechanics from previous games in the series makes it weirdly less interesting to level up Mario and Luigi.

• Uninteresting equipment leads to mostly linear equipment upgrades rather than having to make strategic choices.

• A little easy overall; just from doing sidequests along the way I ended up pretty overleveled for the final boss.

WORTH PLAYING?

I'm about as close to a lifelong fan of Mario RPGs as one can be, so it shouldn't be surprising that I thoroughly enjoyed Mario & Luigi: Brothership. In fact, I think I might've enjoyed it so much that I consider it my favorite in the series, even if it's got some negatives. Dream Team was really fun to play, but I don't really remember much about it. Superstar Saga and Partners in Time are really fun games, but they lack a certain depth to make them all-timers for me. And I'm not a big fan of Bowser's Inside Story, as rare of an opinion as that might be. And the less said about Paper Jam, the better. But I don't see myself really forgetting about Brothership's story and characters like I have with the rest of the series. I won't forget the twists, the characters I grew attached to, the really solid theming across the entire game, the soundtrack, or even some of the jokes. There's some pretty unnerving moments in the game as well when considering the fact that it's a Mario game, and I can see younger players finding it actually scary. I even think the simple story and theming can be reflected upon at a deeper level, and there are a myriad of details within the game that makes it feel bigger and better.

For me, the pacing issues aren't really issues and are simply a way to get a deeper attachment with the world of Concordia and its denizens. The longer playtime not really suiting the combat mechanics doesn't bother me much because I like the Mario & Luigi gameplay enough that it doesn't matter. Some of the changes to the series don't bother me enough to make playing the game a negative experience, and the performance issues don't bother me so much... especially with the next Nintendo console being backwards compatible leading me to believe a lot of the latest Switch games will run close to perfectly on it.

Brothership is, to me, worth playing even if I don't think many will enjoy it as much as I did. The slower pace might cause some to check out early, while the simpler story might lead others to not find it interesting enough to care. But I think the Mario & Luigi gameplay is solid enough to keep people interested. And for the many who haven't played the series, I think this is a great first entry, especially since it's the only one available for purchase anymore.

Is Brothership a perfect game? Of course not. But it's the first new Mario & Luigi game in nearly 10 years, a series that was thought to have died with its original creators Alphadream. It's a great step in the right direction, and I can only hope more are on the way.

Mario RPGs are so back! 

Now... let's hope they stay.