Mario's RPGs have been known for both their humour and originality, all while avoiding the usual pitfalls and slow tempo common in the genre and although Partners in Timewas a good game it didn't quite reach the levels of the first one. Are Nintendo and Alpha Dream taking the formula too far with Bowser's Inside Story?

As usual, something's wrong in Mushroom Kingdom: the toads decided to eat mushrooms of unknown origin (cannibalism?) and are now assailed by a disease aptly named "The Blorbs", which inflates them to the point where they can't even move. If that's not enough trouble, Bowser, who by the way also ate a weird mushroom, showed up at Peach's castle and inhaled everyone there including the Princess, Mario and some dude wearing green.

Damnit, that's the third time this happens this week.

So, first order of business, does this game have chortles? It does. Every character, from the most insignificant to the main stars have lines that will have you in stitches, never afraid to make fun of the Mario series' itself or to say things that seem hilariously out of place, like French accents or hip expressions. Worthy of note is the main villain Fawful, who you might remember from the other two games due to his amazingly skewed English that gives birth to outbursts like "I have chortles!" or "A winner is you!", a reference to the old Nintendo Pro Wrestling for NES. No amount of praise for the writers and translators is enough.

That tall clumsy guy that's always following Mario around is also pretty funny, especially because he's a wuss and everyone ignores him, so he's bound to get some laughs out of you. But the real star here is Bowser, turning out to be a fantastic character with so much more to give than what we've seen from him so far, even in the other Mario RPGs. Obviously, it's nothing as deep as trying to show the man (Koopa?) behind the evil or anything like that, it's just that his foul mood and (lack of) intelligence as well as his interactions with others are brilliantly written, giving Bowser the treatment he deserves. And it's a good thing too, since you'll be controlling him most of the time.

Combat-wise, if you played the previous games, you should sort of know what to expect: no random battles and sharp reflexes needed. Will you dodge or hammer? Punch or duck? Who will be attacked? And when?
The battle system is more dynamic than ever, so keep your eyes peeled for every magnificently detailed animation and sound that might help you out, as each enemy is like a brand new puzzle you need to solve. Asides from the usual special attacks, the stomping, hammering, punching and flame throwing, there's something to spice up things a bit: Bowser can inhale smaller enemies and swallow them, transporting the battle to the lower screen where the dynamic duo must deal with them, which leads to some interesting battles.

With Mario and the other guy inside Bowser's body, they'll be on the bottom screen and their actions mapped to A and B, while King Koopa, on the top screen uses X and Y, which works out very well and adds to the overall freshness of the controls. The DS' features are much better used this time around, asides from making good use of dual screens for some grand vertical scenes and aiding with the two fronts you'll need to manage, the mic and touch screen are used too. But fear not, this isn't one of those cases where they just shove these features without much thought, they're only used in appropriate situations like Bowser's special attacks or most importantly when he grows giant, in which case, you'll have to turn the DS on its side and use the stylus to attack and the mic to breathe fire. It makes for some eccentric and dare I say it, epic battles.

Hey, the trees shrunk!

Of course that if all its originality and diversity came from the controls it wouldn't be much different from a lot of DS games. What truly sets this game apart is that it never rests on its laurels and constantly throws curve balls at you. You're punching and spitting fire on a beach in one moment and jumping inside Bowser's guts the other, where weird enemies and squishy platforms reign supreme. Then you have a myriad of crazy but awesome mini games, a lot of them involving doing something nonsensical to Bowser's internal organs so that he'll gain strength or remember something he forgot among other silly things.

While there is some predictability that you'll play as Bowser for a while and then as the bros. when something needs a-fixing in his body or when he's stumped, everything flows great and it works better than the constant multitasking with the babies in Partners in Time. With all the new things constantly flying your way, diversity is one of the biggest pros of this game. And more! The plumbers will eventually get to the outside world and all that you previoudly explored with the big lizard suddenly opens up with possibilities and opportunities to use all those crazy abilities you learn along the game. Most of the bros' abilities come from the previous entries, but even the game makes fun of that and it's hardly a big issue, if even an issue at all.

Blame the fast food industry...

The graphics are beautiful and vibrant, with all the garish colours and thick outlines adorning the levels and characters fitting right in the Mario universe and the comical tone of the game But what really stands out graphically are the animations, not only are they highly detailed in battles where they serve a purpose, outside they're just as detailed, so stay sharp if you don't wanna miss some potentially comic situations. The catchy and light hearted soundtrack keeps up with the high quality of the game and the sound effects can also help in battle, so much that sometimes one can't help but be reminded of Rhythm Paradise. The supposedly Italian gibberish that Mario talks with tall, thin and green is still as funny as it was in the first game too.

Obviously, unlike most Japanese RPGs, Bowser's Inside Story doesn't stretch infinitely, but you can get some good 25 non-stop action and laughter hours to get to the end and a few more to 100% and complete the challenges, as there quite a few things to do like collect Beans or Badges. It's of course up to you, dear reader to decide if this is just too short for an RPG, but asides from the fact that it's in line with the other Mario role playing incursions, it's this reviewer's opinion that the length is just right with no dull moments just to pad the length.

Alpha Dream has outdone itself this time, Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story just breathes a bigger-than-life charm and exuberance coupled with the rare mix of quality, diversity and humour that makes it a mandatory purchase. Go get it.