Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is an amazing throwback to iconic Nintendo storytelling and I'm almost glad I missed it the first time around

May. 23, 2024

Opinion | Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is Nintendo storytelling at its best, and even better playing it now

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Aside from the Paper Mario series itself, I struggle to recall the overall beats of the Mario series' stories. Super Mario Odyssey boils down to a magic hat and a quest to, once again, save the princess and stop Bowser. Super Mario Wonder is again a tale of putting a stop to Bowser’s antics. It’s really only the remake of Super Mario RPG and the most recent Paper Mario: The Origami King that have injected some spice into Mario’s otherwise pretty standard tales. To be fair, the same can be said for modern Zelda games too. Although there is a compelling narrative in games like Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, it takes a backseat to the exploration and experimentation that forms the core gameplay experience.

Laughter unfolds

But as much as the game has been a visual treat, it’s the story and its characters that will stay with me for some time. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is a game for adults as well as kids, with the narrative starting in the run-down town of Rogueport where there’s literally a hangman’s noose set up in the center of the main square. There are more hooligans and violence in the opening minutes than I think I’ve ever seen in a Mario game. It really doesn’t mess about. Later on, there are other darker moments too, like the town where a curse is turning people into pigs, Spirited Away-style, which makes the overall tone of the game much more appealing to Nintendo’s range of audience ages.

The companions that join Mario on his journey are excellently rounded and do well to add even more personality to the story. There are seven in total - one for each chapter of this unexpectedly lengthy adventure - and each are given unique abilities and thoughtful backstories. Possibly the most memorable is Madame Flurrie, a voluptuous cloud spirit actress with oversized lips and ample bosom. Not a character design you’d expect from a Mario game, especially not when combined with attacks with names like Lip Lock, Body Slam and… Dodgy Fog. But they’re all brilliant in their own way, whether that’s an elderly sailor Bomb-omb or the sweet, nervous Koopa who continually gets roasted by his girlfriend until Mario swoops into his rescue.

What I also love about Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is that, although Princess Peachtechnicallyneeds saving, she’s given her own autonomy and drive to free herself from her captors. At the end of each chapter you’re put in control of first Peach, and then Bowser to see what they’ve been up to. With Peach dealing with a super-powerful computer wanting to learn how to love, you maybe won’t be surprised to hear that she ends up naked multiple times as part of the story. Some of these moments haven’t agedquiteas well, but Peach’s determination and moments in the spotlight help balance out some of the creepy cringe. It’s a pleasant change to see her trying to change her own circumstances rather than the only vision of her we get being through Mario’s perspective. Of course, Princess Peach Showtime has tried to give  her time in the spotlight of late, but I’m not sure it’s the feminist narrative our long-suffering princess deserves.

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Of course, that’s not even really touching on the actual gameplay either. Each chapter is a completely different theme and challenge, even if the actual goal is the same - finding one of seven Crystal Stars in order to unlock a door that’s been locked for a thousand years. Whether it’s a series of mad wrestling-inspired matches where Mario becomes ‘The Great Gonzales’ or figuring out what’s turning all the aforementioned villagers into pigs in a Rumplestiltskin-esque tale, every chapter is a surprise.

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