Stickers invaded Paper Mario's world last year. A few months later, how do we all feel?
http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/feature/33980/paper-mario-sticker-star-review-revisit
Anticipation for Paper Mario:Sticker Star reached a fever pitch as we neared its November 2012release. Since Nintendo did their best to hide specifics about thegame, a lot of our staff discussed and speculated about what exactlyit would be. It's level-based? What's with the sticker stuff? How dothese real-life objects work? Well, the game came out and we foundout all about it, and Sticker Star became pretty divisive. ScottThompson said in his7.0 review: "I want to love Sticker Star. Thegame looks great, the localization is top-notch, and, when things aremoving along, it all feels so right. The sticker economy is wellrealized and forces you to manage your sticker collection well. Butthe game's obsession with "things" brings it to ascreeching halt all too often."
To sort out our feelings onMario's latest papyrus escapade, we went to the Review Revisit, whereseveral staffers weighed in with their scores for the game. Check outwhat some of us had to say below, and let us know your thoughts onPaper Mario: Sticker Star.
You can also check out ourGunman Clive Review Revisit, and chime in if you want us to talkabout any other recent release in this manner.
Review from Justin Berube,Staff Writer
Sticker Star manages to retain thecharm found in the previous Paper Mario titles. The humor, goodmusic, interesting graphics, and fun characters are all here. Theproblem is the game is flawed. The reward for winning battles isalmost nonexistent, and I sometimes found myself stuck when trying tofigure out what specific special stickers to use in order to proceed.Despite these problems, Sticker Star still manages to be a fun game.It's just a shame the title couldn't be as great as the two moretraditional RPG entries in the series.
Review from Neal Ronaghan,Site Director
While my expectations were probablya little too high, Paper Mario: Sticker Star was a crushingdisappointment for me. It's tough, because the graphics,presentation, and audio are so superlative. Even the sticker-basedbattle system is great, too! But the game progression so woefullyneeds a freaking strategy guide by you at all times to avoidcrippling frustration and tedium. What was at first joyous quicklybecame a struggle to get through because I simply wasn't enjoyingmyself. Sticker Star gets a lot right, but unfortunately, it isn'treally that great of an experience in totality.
Review from Andrew Brown,Australia Correspondent
Despite a confuseddirection behind the battle system reworkings and some poorlyannounced boss battle necessities, Paper Mario Sticker Star is a goodgame. The inclusion of stickers fits perfectly into the establishedworld of paper craft prevalent in the series, and with some propermanagement and preparation, it works well in battle. The art style isas cheerful and inventive as ever, and we're graced with not only thebest soundtrack in the Paper Mario series, but some of the best musicon the handheld. Certainly not the best in the series, but you coulddo far worse.
Review from Daan Koopman,Europe Correspondent
Paper Mario: Sticker Star isa beautiful looking game that exceeds many Nintendo 3DS games. Theadventure is, however, less interesting to play, as some of the moreengaging elements have been removed. It is not as hilarious as theprevious installments and the gameplay took some turns for the worst.The sticker-based battle system well put-together, but it lacks anend-of-battle reward. It is also not always clear how to solvecertain puzzles, which causes some frustrating moments throughout theride. If you can forgive the missteps made, Sticker Star is certainlynot a bad title, but it could have been so much more.
Review from Tyler Ohlew,Features Editor
When the "What Game'sPotential Was Hampered By One Feature?" thread pops up on yourforum of choice, make sure to link Scott's review. Paper Mario:Sticker Star is defined by its poorly implemented "Things"stickers, a mechanic that is comparable to the one rotten lobsterthat spoils the whole catch. Problem is, Nintendo didn't give up andsteer the ship home, it went ahead and served us poisonous lobster.How crappy is that?
While the idea of puzzles andbosses solved by using the right combination of Things isinteresting, it wasn't delivered properly. Heading into an area blindoften leads to backtracking to the main town and obtaining the neededThing to progress. An FAQ is a necessity to avoid giving upaltogether. Does this ruin what could have been a terrific game?Absolutely. It flies in the face of what we expect from Nintendo, andmars an otherwise fantastic title and franchise (yes, Super PaperMario is a better game).