I'm a big fan of the mario RPGs for not just being menu battles, but actually allow you to time attacks and blocks in different ways per attack. It makes every new enemy and chapter feel like something completely new. In some RPGs I just know the best strategy or combo that will essentially take care of every battle. Here it doesn't work that way.
While the first game felt like it needed to stick to the original mario series by mostly copying it's worlds and characters. There are some exceptions like the Shy Guy Toy's Box, but I think it's fair to say it was not the game's main strength. With TTYD it finally feels like we're seeing some fresh settings and new iterations on already existing characters. Not to say that it's good because it's new. I like it more because the game as a whole feels more charming, diverse and enticing. Which it much harder to do if you're sticking to an already familiar formula.
The badge system deserves to be mentioned as probably a key reason I really love the first two Paper Mario games. Where upgrades feel more meaningful than some stat buff to a specific attack or something. They are upgrades that will change mechanics, give you new attack abilities, or increase your damage, but with a significant downside. It feels a lot more like picking a playstyle instead of just a build that simply maximizes your damage for your the playstyle you already have been using in dozens of different games. And you'll probably be changing playstyles a lot during your playthrough. Which is good since this game has a lot of very blatant padding, and allowing you to change your combat style reduces my frustration with the poor pacing a lot.
This might be my most replayed game at this point. I'd guess over the past 20 years that I've played it somewhere between 15-20 times, and it only gets better with each playthrough.
While the first game felt like it needed to stick to the original mario series by mostly copying it's worlds and characters. There are some exceptions like the Shy Guy Toy's Box, but I think it's fair to say it was not the game's main strength. With TTYD it finally feels like we're seeing some fresh settings and new iterations on already existing characters. Not to say that it's good because it's new. I like it more because the game as a whole feels more charming, diverse and enticing. Which it much harder to do if you're sticking to an already familiar formula.
The badge system deserves to be mentioned as probably a key reason I really love the first two Paper Mario games. Where upgrades feel more meaningful than some stat buff to a specific attack or something. They are upgrades that will change mechanics, give you new attack abilities, or increase your damage, but with a significant downside. It feels a lot more like picking a playstyle instead of just a build that simply maximizes your damage for your the playstyle you already have been using in dozens of different games. And you'll probably be changing playstyles a lot during your playthrough. Which is good since this game has a lot of very blatant padding, and allowing you to change your combat style reduces my frustration with the poor pacing a lot.
This might be my most replayed game at this point. I'd guess over the past 20 years that I've played it somewhere between 15-20 times, and it only gets better with each playthrough.