Paper Mario: The Origami King Reviews
Paper Mario: The Origami King weighs down a fun adventure with an unsatisfying, puzzle-based combat system that misses the mark.
An endlessly enjoyable story, a unique take on combat that fuses puzzle-solving with RPG traditions, and a beautiful world full of adventure makes Paper Mario: The Origami King yet another must-play Nintendo Switch experience.
Paper Mario: The Origami King once again takes the series in a completely different direction. Mushroom Kingdom is bigger and more alive than it's ever been, but it comes packaged with a combat system that quickly becomes stagnant.
It still isn't the new Thousand-Year Door fans will have been hoping for, but it's still one of the funniest games in the series and it's got a truly likeable companion character, and while the combat is far from ideal the fact that we still thoroughly recommend the game regardless speaks volumes about every other aspect of it.
Paper Mario's heritage still floats over The Origami King, but didn't cause writer's block with this blank page, folded upside down thanks to the fantastic imagination applied to the staging and the story, decidedly audacious. Intelligent Systems' inventiveness also deploys through the ingenious architecture of this interconnected world and the tactical dimension unrolled by the battles, that become real puzzles. Such a well hammered increase of depth doesn't give headaches though, the main quest unwrapping along the realm's spread richness, so this moustached RPG asserts itself as the undisputed lord of its very own domain.
Review in French | Read full review
At the end of the day, Paper Mario: The Origami King surpassed my expectations. It isn't the RPG return to form many gamers were hoping for, but it is the best Paper Mario game since The Thousand-Year Door. The combat is unique, the writing is superb, and the world is brimming with charm.
Paper Mario: The Origami King is a great game with plenty of reasons to keep you exploring – it’s just missing that Wow factor that Paper Mario needed to put it back on top of the charts. Just don’t come in expecting it to be like the old games and you’ll have a great time.
Paper Mario is a hysterical and consistently gripping adventure that will keep you wondering what left turn it will take next. It's a game crafted with love and a willingness to subvert expectations, and its myriad charming moments will make you forget about its joyless and overly pushy battle system.
This sixth entry into the Paper Mario series is not an RPG, and although some issues linger, it's the best adventure game entry yet.
Paper Mario's latest outing on the Nintendo Switch is a very charming but shallow adventure in a gorgeous, handcrafted world.
A lot of the little puzzles and vignettes are also fun as well. However, it's hard to look past the masculinist colonialist ideals it holds onto and consider coming back again. I'm not sure I'll be able to forget the fun and laughter of Origami King, but I also won't forget its problems.
Paper Mario: The Origami King is another exceptional Nintendo game. The story is laugh out loud hilarious, the world begs you to explore it and the art style is absolutely gorgeous. Unfortunately, the battles get in the way of its successes and ultimately let it down.
Paper Mario The Origami King is a delightfully charming game, with a vibrant open world to explore and endearing characters that are genuinely funny, so long as you can handle a healthy dose of dad jokes.
Paper Mario: The Origami King is a delightful debut for the arts and crafts world of the Mushroom Kingdom on Switch by having the sharpest execution of the series’ endearing presentation and writing to date. However, developer Intelligent Systems continues to enable Paper Mario’s decade long identity crisis by failing to commit to RPG systems in addition to the inclusion of a half-baked battle system that feels irrelevant to the overall experience.
Paper Mario: The Origami King had to meet the high bar set by the classic adaptations launched to the Nintendo Switch thus far and thankfully It didn't fold under pressure.
A light-hearted, casual action-adventure game with basic of RPG elements that will appeal most to younger Switch owners and newer Paper Mario fans.
Paper Mario: The Origami King is a wonderful addition to the series. While the battle system isn't my favorite, it's challenging. The overall game is hilarious with an engaging story and fun gameplay.
Paper Mario may have shed its RPG trappings fully by this point, but that doesn't stop The Origami King from being one of the best and most memorable outings in the series' long history.
A visually beautiful and hilariously well-written experience let down by an overbearing and clunky fundamental gameplay system. Unfortunately, Paper Mario: The Origami King falls flat in its attempts to bring one too many things into the fold.
Apart from the combat part, Paper Mario: The Origami King is fun, adorable, and full of surprise.
Review in Chinese | Read full review