Paper Mario: Sticker Star impressions

Paper Mario: Sticker Star is one of the more standout 3DS game available this holiday season. I personally thought the game would provide experience that no other game could offer. And I was right.

Sticker Star aced in concept and creative artistic direction. The visuals are impressive as though the entire Mario world are literally made of paper and stickers. Cranking up the 3D shows incredible layering of the game and give it significantly more depth. The 3D element really immerse the game play more than any other games on the 3DS. The concept of having stickers for multiple purpose in the over world and in battle is really quite well done. There are different attributes to different stickers that makes them useful in certain conditions, however, I rarely have the time or effort to experiment with the stickers.

The game used an over world large map that breaks down the progress of the game which is a double edged sword. For one, the player can access more resources much more easily. It takes no time at all to find a shop or go to sling a thing for more powerful stickers. This also allows the player to revisit levels and stock up on their favorite stickers to aid in combat. The downside of the this elements would be that there will be a lot of backtracking involved. Backtracking though not necessary, there are some situations where you have to find specific stickers to solve puzzles.

Some of the most frustrating elements of this game is the battle and some puzzles. Certain puzzles warrants a specific sticker without any hints being given. The paper crown could offer more helpful advice, but instead it reiterates the current situation and gave useless or no tips at all. Backtracking for the sticker is not difficult at all considering the level designs are often short and easy to remember, the problem lies in the intuitiveness of the puzzle. I would have never knew that simply jumping on a faucet turns the faucet itself. This could easily be remedied by giving more helpful hints throughout the game. More powerful stickers are always necessary to win against a boss fight even if not specifically stated.

The second and most frustrating element in this game is the battle system. While experimenting stickers with various enemies are encouraged there is often no point. For starter, the damage output of the stickers are predetermined and cannot therefore be enhanced. The only enhancement it gets is from cuing the sticker at the right time. Even pressing the right button at the right time, the damage output is too low to kill even one enemy.

Battling does not give any experience points, meaning the concept of level is completely gone. I would have liked that they keep the the leveling system and have the levels magnify the damage or most stickers. This way the weak sticker can still have some usage. Battling also yields at most two coins, this is a really small return on lost stickers are lost health. There is really small incentive for battling considering it depletes too much resources.

 Another detriment about not having the level system is that Mario will continue to have low health unless you discover upgrades. This is frustrating considering it makes Mario extremely frail for the bulk of the game. The final nail in the coffin comes in the inability for paper mario to dodge. In Mario RPGs there are typically a way to dodge and counterattack but this mechanism is completely absent. Not only is Mario low on health, low on quality sticker fire power, it also cannot avoid taking damage. All the above factors makes Mario especially susceptible to death and more so if engaged in multiple useless battles.

The reward system is completely absent given it is a turn based RPG game. Stickers serve as precious resources yet it is constantly being used on useless endeavors such as fighting weak enemies who will most likely survive one turn and inflict some damage upon you. Aside from the broken battle system, the game is visually appealing. The best advice is to avoid battling enemies and stock up on rare stickers. Put the rare stickers in the museum first and the exact location of where it is from will be on record. Rare stickers tend to respawn after you exit a level.

Game Tips: Scribblenauts Unlimited 3DS version

This is not a walk through or spoiler for the game, rather these are suggestions that should enhance the gaming experience.

1. First thing you need to learn in the scribblenauts game is learn to fly. There is plenty of ways in which this can be achieved, by writing down wings, jet pack, magic blanket etc. There is literally dozens if not hundreds of ways to achieve this, the goal is to reach every corner on the map with ease so you can find and solve puzzles. Saving your flying method of choice in the backpack is very helpful.

2. In this game, conflict could arise at any seconds. Out of nowhere a shark, zombie, or T-rex could be attacking you. Instead of writing down a weapon and risk your life fighting these fearsome beasts, try putting down adjectives. Making a beast "dead" can instantly immobilized them and stop them from inflicting any extra damage. If "dead" is too harsh a word, try words such as "tired","paralyzed" etc. this way you can go on about your business without being harassed. (you can remove the adjective "dead" and the beast will come back alive)

3. In some cases you might kill a character who needs help, thus effectively ending your ability to do the puzzle. However, simply resetting the level can return all character on the map to their default stage. Resetting the map will erase any extra objects you created inside the level, but the solved puzzles are still completed so you don't have to redo all the puzzles.

Scribblenauts Unlimited Bundle

While most people know that Scribblenauts Unlimited came out for the Wii U and PC, most people wouldn't know about Scribblenauts Unlimited on the 3DS. Granted that the PC version is cheaper than the 3DS version and most people probably would have a PC than a 3DS, there is good news for 3DS owners. The exclusive bundle from EB games or Gamestop comes with a specialized pencil stylus and Maxwell 3DS case. The case has Maxwell's face as you open the 3DS, and the stylus is the replica of Maxwell's pencil in game.

All this goodness comes at a standard price of 39.99 CAD just like any other 3DS games.