Mario & Luigi: Brothership
- November 7, 2024
- ACQUIRE Corp.
Mario & Luigi: Brothership may not reinvent the series but it's yet another excellent adventure filled with over the top humour featuring the iconic Mario brothers.
"Mario & Luigi: Brothership" is a 2-player co-op and single-player fantasy RPG set on the high seas. Join the brothers on an island-hopping adventure through Concordia, using their bond for Bros. Moves and attacks in turn-based combat. Meet new friends and familar faces as you save the day on Shipshape Island and beyond. Pretty visuals accompany this tropical, action-packed journey.
Nintendo Switch
Reviews
- Engaging and inventive battle system that keeps combat fun and varied.
- Beautiful and vibrant art style that captures the whimsical essence of the Mario universe.
- Charming humor and a heartfelt story that appeals to both new players and long-time fans.
- Pacing issues with excessive dialogue and backtracking that can make the game feel overly long.
- Performance problems, including FPS drops and frustrating loading times between battles.
- Some combat mechanics and puzzles can feel repetitive or overly simplistic, leading to a lack of challenge.
- story19 mentions
- 21 % positive mentions
- 63 % neutral mentions
- 16 % negative mentions
The story of *Mario & Luigi: Brothership* is characterized by its charming and humorous narrative, featuring engaging themes and expressive animation. However, it suffers from significant pacing issues, with a slow start and excessive dialogue that detracts from the overall experience. Despite these drawbacks, the second half of the story and inventive gameplay elements help maintain interest, making it a mixed but ultimately enjoyable journey for fans of the series.
“The story is sweet and funny, with some surprising themes.”
“While there are significant pacing issues that mean the game takes a while to get going, a simple but engaging battle system and an incredibly intriguing second half of the story helps to keep Brothership on course.”
“Mario & Luigi: Brothership takes this long-running RPG series to new heights in a high-seas adventure that's packed full of top-notch combat, inventive variety, a positive and thoughtful story, and lots of signature comedy from the dynamic duo themselves.”
“[The game overall seems to drag things out in favor of giving you a longer playtime; waiting for your ship to reach an island was totally not needed. The story picks up later than it should.]”
“[Sluggish pacing, tutorial-heavy dialogue, constant story goalpost shifting, Luigi is just there.]”
“[Constant stop-start conversations, the story takes a while to get going, quantity over quality side quests.]”
- gameplay11 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 36 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Mario & Luigi: Brothership" features a strong battle system and engaging exploration mechanics, complemented by vibrant graphics and a charming story. However, it suffers from pacing issues, repetitive elements, and a lack of accessibility options, which can detract from the overall experience. While the combat and puzzle design are praised, the slow interactions and bloated runtime may frustrate some players.
“The vibrant graphics and engaging gameplay create an inviting experience that appeals to both new players and long-time fans.”
“Excellent combat system, charming art style, entertaining exploration, solid gameplay.”
“Shipshape is a fun hub area that's constantly evolving, islands are wonderfully diverse, with a unique musical track and biome for each, puzzle and general level design are fun and engaging without being too easy or frustrating, engaging turn-based combat heightened by the new bros. attacks, boss fights have fresh mechanics and new Luigi logic sequences to figure out, a well-told story strengthened by its very strong thematic writing and character moments.”
“Apart from its great battle system, Mario & Luigi: Brothership is an incredibly disappointing revival that suffers from boring gameplay and dialogue, a bloated runtime, shockingly bad performance, and a fundamental misunderstanding of what made the series great.”
“Other gameplay ideas miss their target, and things become a drag far too quickly.”
“The actual current mechanic is fine but it takes some getting used to as it is so easy to miss islands and you can have a lot of downtime waiting to arrive. I just wish the game would let me get on with it; the game doesn’t offer any real accessibility options.”
- graphics11 mentions
- 73 % positive mentions
- 27 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The graphics of "Mario & Luigi: Brothership" are widely praised for their vibrant and emotive art style, which captures the whimsical essence of the Mario universe. Reviewers highlight the colorful environments, delightful animations, and excellent visual humor that enhance the overall experience, making exploration enjoyable and engaging. The cel-shaded graphics and well-executed design contribute to a visually appealing game that complements its fun and varied combat system.
“The vibrant graphics and engaging gameplay create an inviting experience that appeals to both new players and long-time fans.”
“The colourful art style captures the whimsical essence of the Mario universe, making every environment a joy to explore.”
“This is a big game, packed full of surprises and fun, and the all-new battle plug system, alongside lots of flashy specials, a fittingly emotive art style, and a world that is brimming with puzzles and challenges, make for a must-play in our book.”
- optimization5 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
The optimization of "Mario & Luigi: Brothership" has received mixed reviews, with some players noting significant performance issues, particularly towards the end of the game, leading to sluggish pacing and occasional choppy gameplay. While the combat system and world design are praised for their creativity and engagement, the overall experience is marred by repetitive elements and a lack of wit in the writing, contributing to a bloated and underwhelming revival of the series.
“The combat system keeps the core while adding lots of smart new features, excellent enemy variety, and countering attacks is great fun as a result. The smart world design offers a great mix of puzzling and platforming to offset the battles, and the art style is fantastically emotive, connecting us to the characters. There is lots of replayability, and it looks and sounds great with good performance all around.”
“Apart from its great battle system, Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story is an incredibly disappointing revival that suffers from boring gameplay and dialogue, a bloated runtime, shockingly bad performance, and a fundamental misunderstanding of what made the series great.”
“Combat starts to feel samey during such a lengthy campaign; elements to inject new life, like plugs and plot twists, take too long to appear; performance occasionally dips, especially near the end.”
“Sluggish pacing, poor performance, writing is devoid of wit, overloaded with gimmicks.”
- humor5 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is characterized by clever writing, engaging visual gags, and a charming art style that enhances the comedic experience. Players appreciate the blend of verbal and physical humor, alongside heartfelt storytelling and expressive character animations, which contribute to a delightful and entertaining atmosphere. Overall, the game successfully combines humor with engaging gameplay elements, making it a standout feature.
“The writing is clever, funny, and punny, making the battles engaging and keeping you on your toes.”
“The story is sweet and funny, with some surprising themes that add depth to the humor.”
“The game is heavy on humor, both verbal and physical, with Luigi's logic being just wonderful.”
- music3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music in "Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story" is highly praised for its excellent quality, enhancing the game's charming atmosphere and engaging gameplay. Each area features unique musical tracks that complement the diverse environments, contributing to the overall enjoyment of exploration and combat. The soundtrack is consistently noted as a standout element, adding depth to the game's whimsical and humorous tone.
“What saves Mario & Luigi: Brothership from sinking completely is the strategically engaging and fun battle system, delightful animations that go hand-in-hand with the cartoony art style, and the excellent soundtrack.”
“Shipshape is a fun hub area that's constantly evolving, islands are wonderfully diverse, with a unique musical track and biome for each.”
“The excellent soundtrack enhances the overall experience, making the gameplay even more enjoyable.”
- emotional3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by a blend of humor and heartfelt moments, creating a wholesome experience that resonates with players. While some reviews note that the emotional depth may not be entirely fulfilling, the game's charming characters, engaging story, and satisfying side quests contribute to an overall delightful journey.
“Mario & Luigi: Brothership is a wholesome, cheerful, and simply wonderful experience that is deserving of both Mario and Luigi's names.”
“Heartfelt story, easy-to-understand combat system, beautiful worlds with lovable characters, side quests feel satisfying, heavy on humor, both verbal and physical, Luigi logic is just wonderful.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players appreciate the high replayability of the game, citing dynamic changes in connected islands and a combat system that evolves with new features and enemy variety. The blend of puzzles, platforming, and engaging art style further enhances the experience, encouraging multiple playthroughs.
“Connected islands will trigger changes in the island, adding replayability.”
“The combat system keeps the core while adding lots of smart new features. The excellent enemy variety and countering attacks are great fun as a result. The smart world design features a great mix of puzzling and platforming to offset the battles. The art style is fantastically emotive and works well to connect us to the characters. There is lots of replayability, and it looks and sounds great with good performance all around.”
Critic Reviews
Mario & Luigi: Brothership Review
Apart from its great battle system, Mario & Luigi: Brothership is an incredibly disappointing revival that suffers from boring gameplay and dialogue, a bloated runtime, shockingly bad performance, and a fundamental misunderstanding of what made the series great.
50%Explore the Currents in Mario & Luigi: Brothership
The brothers return for a brand-new adventure on the high seas! When the Uni-Tree is destroyed and the world of Concordia is broken apart, Mario and Luigi must try to reconnect a fractured world, one island at a time. Switch version reviewed. Review copy provided by company for testing purposes.It took us some real adjustment to accept Mario & Luigi: Brothership for what it is, but once you do, there’s genuine enjoyment to be found here.
70%Mario & Luigi: Brothership Review – Sailing a Sparkling, Sometimes-Listless Sea
Mario & Luigi: Brothership brings back one of the plumbers’ more underappreciated series, offering plenty of visual pizazz, an impressive array of inventive maps, and a solid amount of RPG depth. It’s not a perfect relaunch, as Brothership’s writing lacks the snap of the best entries in the series and some unfortunate padding results in a game that arguably overstays its welcome, but overall, those still on board the aging Good Ship Switch ought to find this a charming-enough twilight cruise.
75%
