Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga

About This Game

Gameplay

The gameplay of Mario & Luigi differs from most other role-playing games due to its focus on controlling Mario and Luigi simultaneously. During overworld sections, the directional pad controls one of the brothers' movement with the other one following closely. The leading brother can be switched between Mario and Luigi with the Start button. The brothers' other actions are controlled individually with the A (front character) and B (rear character) buttons respectively. The game begins with them being able to jump independently, and they gain access to hammers and a variety of other techniques as the game progresses. For example, Luigi's hammer can be used to squash Mario into a smaller size, allowing the latter to access small gaps, while placing Mario on Luigi's shoulders allows them to act like a propeller and hover across large gaps. Various enemies roam the overworld, and coming into contact with these enemies initiates a battle. Landing a hit on an enemy while on the overworld allows the player to deal pre-emptive damage or begin the fight with them stunned. The opposite is also possible. Battles in Superstar Saga are turn-based.

History

Superstar Saga, developed by AlphaDream and directed by Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars co-director Yoshihiko Maekawa, is said to take its inspiration from the Nintendo 64 game Paper Mario; the two games have similar graphics and gameplay. The producers of the game were Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of the Mario franchise, Tetsuo Mizuno, and Satoru Iwata, the president of Nintendo. The voice acting for Mario and Luigi in the game is provided by Charles Martinet, well known for providing the characters' voice in Nintendo's Mario franchise. The game's music was composed by Yoko Shimomura, who also previously composed the soundtrack for Super Mario RPG. Superstar Saga was revealed at E3 2003 under the name Mario and Luigi, where a playable demo of the game was available.