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Post by PDoogan on Jun 7, 2012 10:48:00 GMT -5
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Post by kingkoopa on Jun 7, 2012 12:33:50 GMT -5
Sadly, it doesn't seem like there are any partners, but given how the game works there could very well be stickers for "summons" or something similar. What I don't get is what happens when you run out of stickers? I'm hoping they have some sort of attack that doesn't require stickers and does enough damage to get you far enough to collect more stickers should you run out.
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Post by boodestroyer on Nov 30, 2012 14:56:51 GMT -5
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Post by Indigo on Dec 5, 2012 13:41:56 GMT -5
So I've gotten up to World 4-3 so far, and I'd like to share my impressions.
I'd like to start off by saying this game has some severe problems. I'm not even talking about the fact that it's totally different from it's predecessors; I could live with that. I'm saying that the core gameplay itself is wildly flawed. The sticker-based aspect of the game is ingenious, but it's implemented incredibly messily. Every single one of your moves is a consumable sticker; they can only be used once. Once you use up a sticker, it's gone for good. This makes battling particularly stressful for those of us who like to save our best items for later in RPGs; the game basically forces you to clear out your inventory.
So battling's sort of a mess, but as for the overworld, it's actually quite an improvement compared to that of TTYD. Despite the use of a world map a la the 2D games, everything feels pretty fairly connected like one grand world, and the lands are fun to explore, with plenty of hidden nooks and crannies everywhere. There's also a ton of clever puzzles that test your observation skills and whatnot. They're tough, but fair.
Then, there's the sticker puzzles. And those suck.
Basically, there are certain points in the game where you'll need a certain sticker in the game to progress. The problem is that you'll often have no freaking idea what the game wants you to do. For instance, in one level, you have to use a certain sticker to get rid of a sandstorm that's blocking your way. And what's the solution? A vacuum cleaner sticker. You're expected to figure out that vacuum cleaners can fight sandstorms and win. And until you can figure that out, the game will blissfully continue to eat whatever other stickers you're desperately trying to use to solve this thing.
This ridiculously obtuse brand of logic carries over to the boss fights, as well. Each boss requires you to use a certain sticker to defeat it; the problem is that, once again, the stickers you need aren't obvious at all. For instance, I thought it'd be fairly logical to use a fishhook on Gooper Blooper. Nope. The correct way to win is to use the dishwashing sponge. Because, you know, he'll spit poison at it, causing it to absorb the poison and throw it back in his face for major damage. Wait... what?
My final problem with the game? There's almost no surprises. Bowser kidnaps Peach. Mario goes to save her. On his way, he'll go through the same grasslands, forests, tundras, deserts, and whatnot that he's been traveling through in every New Super Mario game. The only friendly NPCs are Toads. Oh, and a Wiggler. Gone are the worlds of Tubba's Castle, Shy Guy's Toy Box, Glitzville, and Poshley Heights. Gone are the visually differentiable characters that populate each of these worlds.
Despite all of these issues, though, the game’s merits do carry significant weight. There’s a certain addictiveness to collecting every sticker type in the game, which is greatly helped by the fact that there’s an optional Sticker Museum that you can fill to achieve 100% completion. The aesthetics are gorgeous; the papery-cardboard-y environments especially pop out in 3D, and the game’s music, with a great focus on Broadway jazz, is infectious. (THOSE BOSS THEMES.) And despite the game’s disappointing same-y-ness, there are a few surprises here and there that will totally catch you off guard in the best way possible. Like, for example, when Mario must participate in the deadly game show “Snifit or Whiffit” that has him beating weird Minigames before the poison in the room knocks his HP down to zero.
This leads me into what is perhaps the strongest of Sticker Star’s strengths: the humor. The script, the visual gags, the weird self-awareness everyone has that they’re made of paper… it’s truly funny stuff, and it’s probably the most humorous game in the series.
Yeah, Sticker Star is really disappointing. Its gameplay is a mess. The story just isn’t there. There’s no imagination in the atmosphere. But it’s still worth a playthrough, I think, if for nothing but the experience of having a Paper Mario - in the loosest sense of the term - on a handheld.
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Post by PDoogan on Dec 16, 2012 11:52:30 GMT -5
Copied from another forum cause I'm lazy: Well, I bought the digital version about a week ago and....it's actually pretty good! First off the graphics are amazing. There was obviously a ridiculous amount of effort to make everything look it was made of paper or cardboard and it looks great. As for the the battle system, sure it's pretty novel, but it doesn't make the game unplayable. It comes down to efficiency. Do you want to use that powerful sticker on this weak enemy, or save it for later where it will continue to take up room in your album? Considering everything I heard before getting the game, I'm presently surprised about how it turned out. Sure, there are some frustrating parts and several moments were you'll say "what the hell am supposed to do?" but that happens once or twice to me in most RPGs. And if you accidentally use an important sticker and waste it, you can always just close the game without saving. (It's important to save before doing anything reckless) Overall, I'd say it's much better then Super Paper Mario but slightly less endearing then the original PM. 7/10 ----- And on a totally unrelated side note that's more of a personal thing...  THEY CHANGED THE BUZZY BEETLE'S MODEL. The game uses the NSMB style beetle which really pissed me off considering how freakin' adorable the original PM style buzzy beetles were. .....But that's just me :/ |
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Post by Indigo on Jan 10, 2013 16:32:57 GMT -5
I finished this game a few days ago. I haven't finished the Sticker Museum or the Super Flags, but I've beaten the final boss (I'll give you one guess as to who it is), which I think is enough for me to be able to make conclusive statements about the game.
...yeah, not much about my opinion has changed from the last time I posted here. The game continued to do what it had been doing all along: make you beat a level and move on to the next, all while getting confused with some obtuse Thing puzzles here and there. The battle system stagnated at around World 5, where there were virtually no new types of stickers to be found. (Finding the Infinijump sticker it World 4-3, by the way, was totally awesome.)
Funnily enough, World 5 had what I consider to be the best boss in the game, since it was the only boss that didn't require a specific Thing sticker to beat, instead relying on the classic "attack-his-weak-point" strategy that's worked so well in previous Mario RPGs. It also had one of my favorite boss tracks, although I'd consider every boss theme to be the best of the music in the game.
World 6 was a complete disappointment, with a grand total of one level. The game tries to fool you into thinking it has three, but the first is a cutscene and the third is the final boss. At least the one level is challenging, fairly epic, and concludes with a neat boss battle.
Now, for the final boss. I have mixed opinions on this one. As per typical Paper Mario fashion, the final boss has two main phases: the first, introductory phase, and the second phase where everything seems hopeless until something happens that makes the boss weaker. The first phase is ridiculously annoying, and I'll admit that I eventually used a guide to tell me what the heck I was supposed to do because I was just fed up at that point. Without giving too much away, it takes what makes almost every other boss in the game so annoying and literally quadruples it. You have to know exactly what stickers to use at exactly the right time, or you're basically screwed. Not okay.
The second phase is admittedly really cool. After witnessing the closest thing this game has to a plot twist (and a surprisingly emotional one, too), you're free to whale on the boss using your most powerful stickers while being treated to some seriously awesome music. It's a fittingly epic conclusion, and although it's extremely easy if you go all out with your Thing stickers and apply just a little bit of strategy, you'll feel pretty cool after defeating him. :p
After that, it's just some chitchat, a goofy ending cutscene, blah blah blah, credits roll. I was annoyed, though not terribly surprised, to see that the game, much like Paper Mario 64, doesn't save the fact that you beat the final boss. I mean, it SAVES after the final boss, and you can watch the credits in Decalburg at any time after beating him, but you'll never have that sixth Royal Sticker in your possession except for the few minutes during the ending.
Yeah. That's basically it. I don't think Paper Mario: Sticker Star is a bad game, despite all my complaining. It has some genuinely funny and even surprising moments (Snifit or Whiffit, slapping the crap out of Kamek using nothing but floppy sandals, the awesomeness that is the Enigmansion), and the sticker system is quite clever and seems to be a perfect addition to the Paper Mario world. The game unfortunately suffers from a number of flaws, however, and I'm not talking about minor things. I'm talking about frustrating, absurd puzzles, a seriously unbalanced and even tedious battle system, and a world so starkly boring that it's a wonder it could even be in the same universe as the other Paper Mario games, which feature interesting, lively locales.
This is a very disappointing game, and it's easily the worst in the series for me. That being said, it's not terrible, and it's worth a try.
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Post by boodestroyer on Jan 10, 2013 21:52:06 GMT -5
Like I said, Miyamoto really was the reason this game turned out the way it did.
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Post by PDoogan on Jan 12, 2013 13:53:15 GMT -5
I will never get over this part  |
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Post by Indigo on Jan 12, 2013 14:20:06 GMT -5
OH MY GOSH THAT IS FANTASTIC. <3
Yeah, definitely one of the more memorable moments in the game.
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MrRean
Newest of the new
Posts: 2
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Post by MrRean on Jan 14, 2013 21:06:52 GMT -5
Sticker star is a really awesome game, in my opinon.
It has good music, and graphics. Plus, it's themes for bosses and the plot fits together perfectly.
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