In the original, Mario and his friends are flat with black outlines, to give the impression that they are drawings, rather than computer graphics. While that design is still present in the new version, you can also see a slight hint of white highlighting around the edges of the character model, much like what you’d see on real paper cutouts. It’s subtle, but omnipresent, and contributes to the feeling that these models really were cut by hand.
Every corner of the world has this kind of attention to detail. When you first enter Rogueport, there is a platform in the main plaza with a rope. In the original, the wooden steps are straight, flat and everything forms a right angle. It’s fine for a background element and the flat bow cut sways in the wind, so the effect works.
In the new version, however, the steps are a little crooked and crooked. The side pieces of the steps appear bent, as if a child accidentally forced them too hard while fitting the step pieces together. He is standing, but barely. A gentle gust of wind could ruin everything. It may seem unimportant, but details like this make it easier to dive into. paper marioThe world.
This is a situation where the improved graphics of a more modern console increased the design options of the original game. Changing the graphics may mean that Mario and his friends may look more realistic, but in this case that just means that they look more hand-crafted, like a paper craft model of the Mario from Super Mario 64.
The rich details that the new version adds (with more complex models, better lighting and reflection systems, and higher resolution textures) make the illusion much more immersive and enchanting. It’s evident in each new scenario how much effort was put into recreating every aspect of the game.
Improvements in quality of life
Faithful recreation isn’t always the most ideal way to approach a remake, and fortunately, Nintendo agrees. This new version does The door of a thousand years It comes with some features that are not present in the original, but would have been welcome.
The most useful of them, in my opinion, is Partner Ring. In the original game, you had to open a menu to trade between different members of your party. It wasn’t difficult per se, but it was tedious. In the new version, you can hold L and tilt the control stick to quickly swap partners. It’s a shortcut that doesn’t fundamentally alter the game, but it’s a welcome convenience.
Likewise, there is a new option when you fail a battle. Previously, if you lost a fight, you had to reload from the last time you saved, which could sometimes be very far from where you were. In the new version, when you lose, you will see a new “Try again” option that will take you back to the most recent section of the map, reducing enormous lots of tedious backtracking.