Intelligent Systems and Nintendo have finally deemed us worthy of a pseudo-sequel to the classic Square/Nintendo SNES title Super Mario RPG. After playing about ten hours into the game, I feel confident in stating that this is easily one of the best RPGs I’ve played since the heyday of SNES Role-playing goodness (Secret of Mana, FFIII, Chrono Trigger).

Paper Mario is set up like a storybook; the game is divided into chapters, each focusing on a different area and quest. The story is familiar – Princess Peach has been kidnapped once again by King Bowser. Her castle is whisked away into the sky atop Bowser’s menacing floating stronghold, and Mario is cast down to earth after fighting a losing battle with the newly invincible Bowser. It seems that not only has Bowser captured the Princess yet again, but he’s also imprisoned the seven Star Spirits and stolen their Star Rod, which has the power to grant wishes. Mario’s quest is to recover the seven Stars, gain the power of the Star Beam and take the fight back to Bowser.

Although Mario and all of the other characters in the game are rendered in flat, 2D sprites meant to look like paper cutouts, the world itself is represented in vibrant 3D. Each "chapter" is smartly planned, allowing you to progress only to certain areas of the world, while still leaving the option for exploration wide open. This keeps the game moving along at a good pace while not stifling the player with a "point A to point B" mentality.

Battles occur when Mario touches an enemy in the field. A nifty "first strike" option encourages you to actively attack enemies. If Mario hits an enemy with his hammer, or jumps on it before the battle, he’ll get a free hit before the fight actually starts. Likewise, enemies can get a free attack in if they take the initiative and hit Mario first.

In battle, Mario and one of his collection of sidekicks face off against one or more baddie in a classic turn-based fashion. Mario can use his jump attack or the hammer, as well as any number of special attacks available by equipping Badges found throughout the game. After freeing the first Star Spirit, Mario can also use Star Power, special moves which work like spells in traditional RPGs. Although the party always consists of Mario and a single sidekick, battles never get boring because of the high level of interaction involved. Quick button presses can increase your attack power as well as reduce the damage Mario takes from enemies. Special attacks call for different combinations of the analog stick and the A button.

Battles award Mario with Star Points, the equivalent of experience in traditional RPGs. Mario gains a level each time he earns 100 Star Points. With each new level, you get to choose to add points to Mario’s HP, FP (special attacks) or BP (Badge Points for equipping special abilities). Balancing these three attributes throughout the game is a challenge in and of itself. Also, as Mario levels up, enemies in cleared areas of the game reward him with fewer Star Points, until they eventually don’t give any at all (at which point there’s an option to end the battle on the field screen without having to fight at all). This keeps the game challenging, since you can’t use the old trick of leveling up for a few hours to create a super-powerful character.

As in every Nintendo title, there are loads and loads of secrets and side trips to make in order to get the most out of the game. You’ll find and deliver letters to different characters throughout the world, search for Star Pieces to exchange for Badges, hunt for hidden items and use newfound abilities to uncover hidden areas. Judging by my progress into the game thus far, I estimate about 40 hours of game time… not bad for a cart-based RPG at all.

One area where this game really shines is the use of recognizable characters from previous Mario games. Yoshis, Toads, Shy Guys, Koopas, Goombas and Bullet Bills, along with hundreds of other characters, are well represented here. The game will also take you through instantly familiar areas brimming with little details from the world of Mario.

The only thing that will prevent Paper Mario from reaching the audience it deserves is that the game is extremely cute, from the bright graphics to the whimsical, cartoony backdrops. Even King Bowser is cute this time around. This is bound to turn some gamers off, which is a shame, as they’ll be missing out on a fun, well-made and very challenging RPG.