Welcome to VC Weekly, N-Europe’s guide to the wonderful world of Nintendo’s download service. Written by Sam C Gittins

After a brief pause for celebration #VCWeek continues with a title that's incredible not just on paper but in motion where it becomes akin to an origami bird, reaching brave new heights for videogames as a creative medium. Anyway enough from me and on with the game!
 
Available for download this week we have...     

Paper Mario



Price: GB £8.99, EU €9.99
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Intelligent Systems
Released: 2001
System: Nintendo 64

Role-playing games have often followed a set formula, rigid structure and a serious storyline recreating self perpetuating situations which have been seen before, Paper Mario is different as the spiritual sequel to Super Mario RPG sticks to the template introduced by the original, of course it also has a formula but a deceptively simple one with a structure which doesn't deviate unnecessarily and as for the storyline; well it revolves around the usual princess kidnapping / rescuing scenario, the games main difference is that it doesn't take itself seriously at all and is probably the most fun RPG your ever likely to experience playing. The first thing that your likely to notice is it's completely original and quite frankly ingenious graphical style, you see the whole of the games world is like an interactive picture book being that everything is made out of paper, While it is still three-dimensional everything from the background, foreground, even Mario is entirely flat; this unique perspective brings life, charm and character into the vibrant world of the Mushroom Kingdom and like and good book it makes you always want to progress to the next page.

You play through the game in chapters as you journey from Toad Town to places such as a vast desert, a frozen mountain, and a haunted forest to name but a few in order to retrieve the seven star spirits so you can rescue Peach from the evil clutches of Bowser who has stolen the Star Rod and sealed away all of the spirits, but not content with that he then lifts Peach's Castle into the sky atop his own Castle so it's up to Mario to save the day once again.



Battle mechanics feature a splendid amalgamation of turn based combat mixed with real-time attacks requiring precision input by the player; you initiate a battle by either giving or receiving the first strike when approached by an enemy in the main game world.Once in battle mode the world around you is transformed into a stage and you have various options available to you; first off as Mario you can attack by either jumping on the heads of enemies or you can opt to use your trusty hammer on them either of which will be have more or less of an effect depending on the enemy. Also available is assistance from one of your companion characters who you will join you as you progress on your adventure; each of which have their own abilities which serve to aid Mario such as Para-Karry's airborne attacks which are useful for taking out aerial attackers.

Many other attacks are available including my favourite which is Kooper's Power Shell attack which is satisfying to pull off as you hold the control stick left, then letting go at the right moment sends him flying across the screen in his shell dealing damage to all enemies on the screen who are at ground level. There's an extensive amount of items including many you'd expect such as various Mushrooms for HP recovery, a Fire-Flower which spews sparks across the screen at your enemies, the POW block which needs no explanation plus some truly strange objects that I'll leave you to discover; then you also have the badges can be used adding plenty of different effects when in battle plus on the field which quickly becomes perhaps the most inportant element of all as correct usage of these along with managing your allies can prove crucial. Following each battle you gain Star points which you need a hundred of to level up which then lets you choose from HP, FP or BP increase, for anyone new to this series I'd advise going with mostly health upgrades but if you're feeling brave then go for badge points as much as possible with a touch of flower power every so often as it makes things infinitely more interesting.



There's much to explore along the way with mini-games, hidden areas, plus much more besides wrapped up with some genuinely witty dialogue which makes this a truly joyful experience not just in how the story is presented or in the diverse range of characters drawn upon from the mario universe complete with believable backstories, not even simply because you get to play as Princess Peach in certain sections but it's simply because it's a joy to play; such finely crafted mechanics are rarely seen in an RPG, let alone one which has already set itself apart so well from everything else available. Moving around each carefully crafted environment feels free-flowing while investigating items in the foreground is instinctive as you see an exclamtion mark appear over your head meaning you should definitely give that bush a shake, the moment you pick up a hammer it somehow just makes sense to whack every block, tree and enemy in sight not just because of the instant reaction either, it's just fun! Wherever you go you're always kept engaged as well, a simple Zelda-style block puzzle here, a switch to hit there or even an impromptu quiz when you least expect it; there's barely any time to rest, apart from when you've just visisted a Toad House of course.  



Clearly the visuals are a huge part of this title's appeal as it has a unique style which may borrow elements from some past Nintendo titles, for example some of the backgrounds have a hint of Yoshi's Island to them as do the heart and flower sprites, beyond those comparisons the way in which the whole world is seemingly like a pop-up book is impressive while the animation, in particular the way in which Mario floats down from a high drop is nothing short of amazing; it all comes across brilliantly on both the TV and the gamepad though some contrast variation has been noted when playing on the smaller screen. The audio is simply sublime from the catchy overworld themes, the intense battle music, many moments of terror in addition to wonder plus every other major conceivable emotion comes across brilliantly within the soundtrack, the sound effects are also some of the best you'll ever hear with some being familiar from past Mario titles to some really weird effects which add to its whimsical charm.

I've always maintained that Paper Mario The Thousand Year Door is my favourite in the series, but there is a huge amount to be said for the original game, especially taking into consideration its time of release; Paper Mario is still every bit the classic it has always been hailed as and it shows really well in the Wii U Virtual Console version in a way that I wasn't quite expecting, it feels at home here perhaps more than it did in any other previous release. If you have been longing for a truly original RPG or even if you haven't, Paper Mario deserves to be enjoyed by everyone as aside from everything mentioned above it has a host of memorable characters, genuine laugh-out-loud moments and more all wrapped up in an adventure which is simply unforgettable; buy it, play it, love it... even fold or crease it, just don't tear it! Paper Mario is like an ancient document which should be preserved but also enjoyed.   

Verdict : An RPG that's a (paper) cut above the rest.

I would like to dedicate this edition of VC Weekly to my dearly departed grandparents, my grandfather passed away just before the original VC release of Paper Mario nearly eight years ago while my grandmother passed away less than a year later. With my thirtieth birthday recently passing I thought it fitting to remember them especially at a time like this, not only were they the best grandparents I could have ever hoped for but they taught me to be grateful as well as to enjoy life; I'll also never forget them for buying the family our very own N64 one Christmas, without it I would have possibly never experienced such great games as the one I've just reviewed and I firmly believe that I would not be here writing this.

So to them I'd like to say "Thank You" as this one is for you both and to anyone who has lost someone, why not play a game that reminds you of the people you've loved or that keeps their memory alive? Celebrate their life and yours through the power of videogames, for in reality there are sadly no 1-up's or continues, only the experience with none of the levelling up.

Personally I intend to keep playing and reviewing as much as possible until the big 'Game Over!' but for now...

That's it for another installment of VC Weekly which will return again soon. So until then, enjoy the rest of the week and Game On!