Super Paper Mario: For Truth and Great Justice!

I am nearing the end of Super Paper Mario for the Nintendo Wii and I can say with certainty I wish the joy would not end. I have been vocally enthusiastic about this game since it's original announcement as a Gamecube title. The Paper Mario games have always filled a special place in my game library that no other turn based RPGs could occupy. I have never been able to play these turn based RPG games that many find so endearing. The only ones I have ever finished were Earthbound, Super Mario RPG, Paper Mario and Paper Mario: Thousand Years Door. The Paper Mario games were enthralling to me because they were so well written and filled with jokes and call backs to games of my childhood. The hilarity, quirky art style and the fact that it's Mario allowed me to see past the turn based battle system that I hated so much.

Now Super Paper Mario is some of the same things I loved about the previous Paper Mario games and some differences that could arguably be better or worse. Why don't I attack the positive qualities of the game up front. First, all of the writing and in-jokes still exist in all of their glory. Second, it's colorful and crisp graphically (though arguably not as pretty as it could be on any other system). Third, it's still mario. In addition to those wonderful qualities the turn based battle system has been removed and replaced with real time combat more akin to the Mario games of my childhood. All of these qualities bring me happiness and the stupid smile of someone who is feeling like a kid again.

There are some problems with the game and while most are nit picky on my part, some are bothersome to me on a larger level. The Wii control in this title just feels tacked on and I realize that has been a complaint many have had with Wii games as a whole but here I feel it is valid. This games would have been better served as a Gamecube title and if Nintendo hadn't chosen to move the game to Wii we would have had this in our greasy gamer hands that much quicker. My other very minor complaint is that it just feels too short. I didn't get the epic feeling from this game that I did from the past two Paper Mario titles (most especially Thousand Years Door) and that does bother me a bit. My more major concern with the title is how boring the boss battles felt to me. I never felt a sense of danger from the bosses and I rarely had to venture into the menus to engage a healing item. This was unexpected because of how difficult and huge the boss battles were in Paper Mario: Thousand Years Door. I felt as if the boss battles in Super Paper Mario were quick and easy and never left me feeling any sense of accomplishment from passing them.

Beyond my complaints though lies a happy consumer. My problems with the game were mostly minor and I did feel like I was delivered what was promised to me and what I had been looking forward to. I will say that after playing Super Paper Mario I am actually all for a move back to turn based battles if that system will reintroduce the length and danger of boss battles that were present in past Paper Mario titles. I definitely recommend Wii owners pick up Super Paper Mario, it will give you the best reason to turn on your Wii since Zelda.

Not Rolling on 20gig

So I'm sure we've all read the news, no more 20gig PS3. I'm personally surprised Sony decided to pull the cheaper model. With the recent announcment of the Xbox 360 Elite package coming in at $480 I figured Sony would keep the 20gig and tout it as being on $20 more for a Blu-Ray player.

My only thought here is that Sony is hemorraging money on the small hard drive model. They must be losing much more cash on that model because of the Blu-Ray player making it not worth it for them to keep selling that package. The problem with pulling it though is that they have increased their barrier to entry by another $100 which makes the PS3 completely out of reach for alot of folks.

In addition to that it seems to give alot of folks the impression that Sony is slipping under. While I don't necessarily think this is the case I can say that pulling a model within the first 6 months of launch is definitely not a comforting move. It will be interesting to see how this plays for Sony in the long run and if the lost 20gig will mean a price drop on the 60gig package.

Money, Cash, Woes

So by this time all of us have heard Microsoft's lovely announcement of the Elite bundle. This whole thing has gotten me thinking about console pricing as a whole right now. I got into a huge discussion with some friends about what we feel each console manufacturer should change or adjust about their pricing.

My personal thoughts on this matter are that obviously the Wii has an amazing price point right now. I feel like this is a real draw for the system and it's definitely helping Nintendo appeal to a broader market. Sony is definitely in a very different position. The PS3 is meant to appeal to a different group than the Wii. This console is just a media machine and definitely goes after the AV enthusiast almost more than it targets gamers as a whole right now. Sony is definitely thinking forward with the inclusion of a Blu-ray player. While I definitely think the price point is a barrier to entry for alot of consumers I also don't think it's unjustified. I think it's definitely too soon for Sony to adjust this price and it's almost not necessary at all right now. Those who are looking for a media machine like this are more than likely going to be willing to plunk down the cash for those extra features.

Now we come to Microsoft and the Xbox 360. While I don't think the Elite is overpriced I definitely do believe it is a step in the wrong direction. It puts the Elite into the same price level as the PS3 without even including the HD DVD drive in the price. It's tough for them to appeal to anyone except a very heavy Video Marketplace user with the Elite SKU. The Premium is at a sweet spot for MS. They packaged just the right stuff in the box and the price seems to be pretty decent. The one thing I might change about this package might be to include a year of Live in the bundle. It's supposed to be a Premium (or Pro as they are calling it nowadays) bundle so I think the consumer should get the premium service for more than just the standard month free. Finally, the Core Xbox 360 bundle. Here's where I see a lot of potential that Microsoft isn't taking advantage of. I feel that if MS could get the Core to the Wii's $249.99 price point and include at least a 64 meg MU they could gain a great deal of new customers. It seems silly to me that the Core Xbox 360 Bundle is the only current gen package that includes absolutely no packed in memory. The Wii at least has 512 meg internal memory and all the other bundles of the 360 and PS3 have hard drives. I think if MS can rectify the lack of memory in the Core and drop the price a little bit they could gain a lot of more casual players or those that only want the 360 to play a few games they are interested in.

Well that's my story and I'm sticking to it. I won't even get started on current game prices......