Critics single out five Mario role-playing games for combining inventive combat systems, offbeat humor and memorable characters, from the franchise’s first RPG to recent remakes and new entries on Nintendo Switch.
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004; remake 2024)
The second Paper Mario entry follows Mario as he searches for a legendary treasure and attempts to rescue Princess Peach from the X-Nauts. The game pairs exploration in a paper-styled world with turn-based battles that require synchronized player inputs for attacks and defenses.
Allies grant unique abilities, and Mario can fold and transform like paper to solve puzzles and reach new areas. Reviewers lauded its creative combat and lighthearted narrative, frequently naming it the best Mario RPG. A remake for Nintendo Switch was released in 2024.
- Platforms: GameCube; Nintendo Switch (remake).
Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story (2009; remake 2019)
The story opens when Bowser swallows Mario and Luigi after ingesting a mushroom given by the villain Fawful. The brothers must then help Bowser from inside his body to stop Fawful’s plot to conquer the Mushroom Kingdom.
Gameplay alternates between controlling Mario and Luigi inside Bowser—navigating internal challenges—and playing as Bowser in the outside world. Battles emphasize timing and precision, and the dual-world interaction uses Nintendo DS features such as the touchscreen.
Critics praised the game’s entertaining script, level design and diverse mechanics, considering it a high point of the Mario & Luigi series. A remake arrived for Nintendo 3DS in 2019.
- Platforms: Nintendo DS; Nintendo 3DS (remake).
Super Mario RPG (1996; remake 2023)
Developed through a collaboration between Nintendo and Square, Super Mario RPG was the franchise’s first role-playing entry. It introduced turn-based combat and a more elaborate plot to the Mario universe.
Mario teams up with original characters such as Mallow and Geno to confront the Smithy Gang, which shattered the Star Road and scattered seven magical stars. The game uses an isometric 3D world for exploration and blends active command inputs with timing-based battle mechanics.
Reviewers at the time praised its humor, advanced graphics for the era and Yoko Shimomura’s memorable soundtrack. The title became a cult favorite and has been re-released multiple times; a full remake with updated visuals, gameplay improvements and added content launched for Nintendo Switch in 2023.
- Platforms: Super Nintendo; Nintendo Switch (remake).
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003; remake 2017)
The first Mario & Luigi game, released for Game Boy Advance, sends the brothers to the Beanbean Kingdom to recover Princess Peach’s stolen voice from villains Cackletta and Fawful. Developed by AlphaDream, the title established the series’ signature cooperative control and active-command turn-based combat.
Combat demands precision and timing from players controlling both brothers, while exploration features puzzles that rely on their unique combined abilities. The story’s humor, quirky scenarios and memorable characters won strong reviews despite criticism of camera issues and some technical simplicity. A remake with enhanced graphics and an additional mode was released in 2017.
- Platforms: Game Boy Advance; Nintendo 3DS (remake); Nintendo Switch Online.
Mario & Luigi: Brothership (2024)
Released for Nintendo Switch in November 2024, Brothership marks the series’ return after AlphaDream’s closure. Developed by Acquire, it is the sixth main entry and the first in the franchise made for a home console rather than a handheld.
The plot takes the heroes to a chain of floating islands separated after a disaster involving a magical tree. Mario and Luigi explore aboard a living island-ship and face Glohm, a villain who seeks to spread loneliness and isolation.
Gameplay retains the series’ turn-based, synchronized battles while adding new features such as “Luigi Logic,” a mechanic that lets players solve puzzles using Luigi’s distinct reasoning. Critics praised the game’s visuals, soundtrack and narrative charm, though some reviewers noted issues with pacing and certain technical elements.
- Platform: Nintendo Switch.
