Platform: Switch
Mario isn’t just the world’s most reliable plumber – he also has a strong background in saving the world through the noble medium of turn-based battles. It’s a line Nintendo has been keen to remind gamers of in recent months, first with the November 23 remake of the SNES classic. Super Mario RPGand now with the GameCube’s The door of a thousand years to shine
Originally released in 2001, The door of a thousand years was always a refreshing twist Mario a series of tropes and conventions. Take Princess Peach: well, someone does. She’s kidnapped again, but this time it’s not Bowser, but instead new villains the X-Nauti, who are searching for the eponymous door, long buried beneath the city of Rogueport, and the seven Crystal Stars that will allow them to open it. Peach manages to send a magical map to Mario before he can escape with it, so he embarks on a world-famous journey to brand new locations to be the first to find the stars, stop the X-Nauts and their leader Sir Grodus, and prevent them from unleashing. anything locked behind an ominous portal.
It’s further enlivened by clever breaks between each chapter, where players sign up to kidnap Peach and then play as a furious Bowser, absolutely furious that someone else caught Peach. The game is crammed with clever character touches like this, moments that only really work in these more story-driven quests. The Thousand-Year Door’s pleasure.
In 2024, it will remain a game full of charm, thanks in large part to its sophisticated papercraft aesthetic. First introduced in the original N64 Paper MarioThe visual approach allows for a world built like a pop-up storybook, each area a diorama where secrets can literally be hidden within the folds. Similarly, it roots this 2D Mario’s abilities in his ability to fold origami-style into paper airplanes or boats to reach new areas, or turn ninety degrees and slide through gaps. Together, they force players to think cleverly about depth and perspective in ways that are only possible in this branch of Mario’s RPG adventures.
Nintendo invites newcomers to experience what returning GameCube owners already know is one of Mario’s best adventures.
Along the way, Mario is joined by a number of partners drawn from the lore of the wider series, each with unique skills to use in and out of battle. For example, Goombella the Goomba (one of those walking mushrooms that you normally smack into super mario games) can scan enemies in battle to reveal their weaknesses or give hints as to your next objective while exploring the overworld, while Admiral Bobbery, a decked-out Sailor Bob-omb, can blow up enemies or smash through obstacles. Between the partner’s abilities and Mario’s own, The door of a thousand years may deviate slightly from the turn-based RPG formula and takes elements of Metroidvania games, allowing you to return to previously visited areas to gain satisfying access to secrets you’ve been able to see for a long time but not reach.
In many ways, this exploration side of the game is also the most enjoyable. While The Thousand-Year Door’s turn-based battles are far from boring thanks to a reactive real-time challenge system that allows players to boost each attack or reduce damage taken, they can feel repetitive. Each enemy falls into one of two camps – those that can be jumped on, or those with some form of spike that must be hit with a hammer blow instead. While there are plenty of collectible badges you can equip Mario with that offer more variety in hammer attacks or jumps – ones that hit more than one enemy or add an elemental effect, for example – they don’t make things much more interesting. There’s even one badge that completely negates damage from jumping on spiked enemies, making combat even easier.
Luckily, Mario is always joined by one of his new friends and their abilities liven things up a bit. Each of their skills will have a different set of inputs that you’ll need to use perfectly to get maximum effect, and having only one ally on hand forces you to think carefully about when to switch them out or whose skills are best suited to combat the current enemies. Then there’s the typical Nintendo magic that works during the battles – each fight takes place on a stage with an ever-expanding audience watching from the stands. More flashy performances attract more spectators, their cheers topped up by Mario’s star meter for special moves – but enemies can also sneak up and throw rocks or trash at the ‘performer’ if you don’t react in time to stop them. Even your own attacks can cause the stage to collapse and deal additional damage to everyone. Such tricks remain Paper Mario interesting combat encounters, although the central hero’s attacks can be stagnant and boring.
That’s pretty much how it was in the original form of the game, and “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” seems to be the motto of this remaster. It’s not nearly as much of an overhaul as Super Mario RPG got, but it never needed to do much – a testament to how well the GameCube handled its distinctive art style. The most notable visual update here is just a hint of more depth to the character models to help sell the paper style – everyone really does look like a cardboard puppet, especially when turned sideways to show the edge of the card – while improved lighting effects make everything really pop. Strangely, it only runs at 30fps now, when the GameCube managed 60, but it still looks beautiful.
Elsewhere, improvements are largely limited to the quality of life department. A quick switch tool is now available to easily switch between partners, allowing quick access to their abilities; an expanded fast travel network to return to completed areas and hunt for collectibles; and a new supporting character called the Battle Master to practice all those timing-critical special moves. The music has been remastered (though purists can find a badge that lets you go back to the original GameCube recordings) and unlock a vast gallery of concepts and music.
All nice additions, but nothing that dramatically changes the experience – but thankfully the experience remains delightful. When reopened The door of a thousand yearsNintendo invites newcomers to experience what returning GameCube owners already know is one of Mario’s best adventures.