I received a copy of this game to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own.
Around here, we all LOVE Mario. We all grew up playing Mario games, adults and kids alike, and we’re always first in line to pick up new games featuring our favorite plumber.
We were all SO excited to find out that a new Mario game was coming out- and is now out- Paper Mario: The Origami King! We somehow hadn’t played any Paper Mario games before so we didn’t really know what to expect, but we’ve been playing it all weekend and we are super into it!
About the Game:
The kingdom has been ravaged by an origami menace! Join Mario and his new partner, Olivia, as they battle evil Folded Soldiers, repair the damaged landscape, and try to free Princess Peach’s castle from the clutches of King Olly in this comedy-filled adventure, only on the Nintendo Switch™ system.
Mario and Luigi receive an invitation from Princess Peach to attend an origami festival and excitedly hurry to Toad Town…but something’s amiss. After investigating the eerily empty town, the duo finds a fearsome (and folded) Princess Peach—she’s been turned into origami by King Olly, ruler of the Origami Kingdom! With five giant streamers under his control, King Olly binds Princess Peach’s Castle and transports it to a distant mountain as part of his plan to re-fold the world.
On his journey to liberate Peach’s Castle and repair the ravaged paper landscape, Mario meets Olivia, King Olly’s sister, and the two join forces to put a stop to Olly’s origami onslaught. Even Bowser falls victim to Olly’s plot when his minions are turned into origami Folded Soldiers and betray their Koopa king, forcing him to ally with Mario and Olivia!
Battle the Folded Soldiers in ring-based battles that challenge you to strategically line up enemies to maximize damage! Out of battle, Mario can use the arm-extending 1,000-Fold Arms ability in specific spots to interact with the landscape to pull, peel, hit, and more! Join Mario, Olivia, and their companions on a journey of laughter and emotion, thrills, and a whole lot of folding.
We recently took turns trying out the game, and here’s what everyone had to say about it:
Our Whole Family’s Thoughts on Paper Mario: The Origami King
Zac’s Thoughts {6 years old}
“I really like it. I like that it’s an outside story game. It’s very creative. My favorite thing to do in the game is get confetti. And I like that the confetti is in the trees and the flowers.”
My thoughts on gameplay for a six year old
This title has a lot of reading during some parts, so younger players might need additional assistance. There are a lot of tutorials in the beginning that shouldn’t be skipped since this is a pretty unique game and the mechanics take some getting used to.
Zac is reading above grade level so he could read it himself- however, he just “didn’t feel like it” so I kept having to remind him to slooooow down and actually read the super important info!
There are large portions of the game that require no reading, however, so if you can help your kiddo get situated then they should be able to play for decent stretches of time without needing help again.
Shane’s Thoughts {10 years old}
“I like the wave battle mechanics, that you have to line them up in a certain amount of time. The game is super funny. The battles are my favorite part of the game, and the story is also really funny.”
My thoughts on gameplay for a 10 year old
This game is perfect for Shane’s age. It had enough to keep him interested for sure! The humor is definitely his style- there’s a lot of dry humor and sarcasm- and the challenges kept him engaged.
My Thoughts {Mom}
I absolutely love this game. I can’t really compare it to any other game because it’s very much it’s own thing {again, I haven’t played other Paper Mario games- though I hear this is unlike those as well}.
I enjoy that it’s an open world, but that there are clear goals in mind. The battles are fun, although there are a lot of them and sometimes I just want to sneak past all the bad guys!
I played the game for several hours and have barely scratched the surface of the game. This game has hours of playability for sure, especially if you’re a completionist and want to save every Toad, fill every hole, collect every item, and accomplish every goal.
Buy It: You can find Paper Mario: The Origami King at major retailers on online at {affiliate link} Amazon. You can also download a digital copy from the Nintendo eShop.
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