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Mario & Luigi: Dream Team |OT| Us North Americans Don't Have Bros
- Thread starter DaBoss
- Start date
chickdigger802
Banned
Wow, I fully expected this thread to be a love-in, but damn some of the complaints sound real irritating.
I've been away from my 3DS for the summer, but plan to snag SMTIV just in time for the $30 credit promotion, and now I am having serious doubt about using it towards this game.
I've been away from my 3DS for the summer, but plan to snag SMTIV just in time for the $30 credit promotion, and now I am having serious doubt about using it towards this game.
If you've ever played a Mario & Luigi game and crave more, go for it. It's nothing you haven't seen before.
If you're new to the series, the game explains pretty much everything, sometimes to an annoying extent. You can skip most of the basic stuff and the game won't (usually) bug you about the same thing twice, but if there's some new mechanic involved, there will be a character to explain it.
It's not without merit either, there's a lot of mechanics going on at once that aren't super intuitive and need some explaining if its your first time, and they constantly throw new ones at you. It's not hard to imagine that less experienced players might shy away from it, even if it gets annoying for those of us who blow through RPGs in a couple sittings.
chickdigger802
Banned
its mostly the tutorial stuff that fuck with ya, but its quite obvious when they are happening so you can mash past them quickly.
funny enough this game feels the direct opposite of smt... where luck can really fuck ya over.
m&l games give you full control where you can dodge every single move in the game.
WiiRevolution1
Member
Well I wasn't planning on getting this at launch since I'm playing alot of RPGs already. (How many times have I said this? Lol.) But my mom just txted me saying she would pick it up since I was sorta whining that I couldn't get it. (I was really being sarcastic, since like I said, got alot of games going.) But hey, free game. I'm not complaining in the slightest and will gladly start this sucker up later today. Say yay!
Now I feel bad for fake whining, but I can't resist a free game. Just spent $400 on books so she probably knows this game wasn't on my priorty list but whatever.
Now I feel bad for fake whining, but I can't resist a free game. Just spent $400 on books so she probably knows this game wasn't on my priorty list but whatever.
Its free!
Kamek Koopa
Member
Game finished after 43 hours. Not 100% but pretty near of it.
Pros:
+ Best level design in all the series since Superstar Saga. Deal with it.
+ New mechanics during all the main story. Game is varied as hell.
+ Combat is brilliant; enemies have amazing routines, bosses are always fun and dream battles are fresh enough (not as fresh as Bowser fighting, though).
+ Music is ridiculously awesome
+ Lots of optional stuff to do. Pi'illows to save, beans to find, challenges to accomplish, several minigames to complete...
Cons:
- The first hours are killing. Too many tutorials, too much handholding.
- Areas are great but some of them are surely too big. The low variation of enemies in each zone makes the combat quite repetitive after some battles.
- Game story is flat and never blasts off. There are not enough twists to keep the story interesting, and Antasma has a great design but is a poorly developed villain. And there aren't as many memorable characters as in earlier installments.
Because of those last reasons, some people will find the game boring, but let me say something; in other M&L you kept playing in order to see how the story went on, but in Dream Team you keep playing in order to see how gameplay mechanics will keep surprising you. And they will.
I haven't enjoyed it as much as Superstar Saga or Bowser's Inside Story, which I think are more balanced, but overall it is a very good game and a solid title for Nintendo 3DS.
Pros:
+ Best level design in all the series since Superstar Saga. Deal with it.
+ New mechanics during all the main story. Game is varied as hell.
+ Combat is brilliant; enemies have amazing routines, bosses are always fun and dream battles are fresh enough (not as fresh as Bowser fighting, though).
+ Music is ridiculously awesome
+ Lots of optional stuff to do. Pi'illows to save, beans to find, challenges to accomplish, several minigames to complete...
Cons:
- The first hours are killing. Too many tutorials, too much handholding.
- Areas are great but some of them are surely too big. The low variation of enemies in each zone makes the combat quite repetitive after some battles.
- Game story is flat and never blasts off. There are not enough twists to keep the story interesting, and Antasma has a great design but is a poorly developed villain. And there aren't as many memorable characters as in earlier installments.
Because of those last reasons, some people will find the game boring, but let me say something; in other M&L you kept playing in order to see how the story went on, but in Dream Team you keep playing in order to see how gameplay mechanics will keep surprising you. And they will.
I haven't enjoyed it as much as Superstar Saga or Bowser's Inside Story, which I think are more balanced, but overall it is a very good game and a solid title for Nintendo 3DS.
GalacticMouse
Member
How long does this last into the game? I've never played a Mario & Luigi game so I could use an hour or so of this anyway, but does it go on for like 10-15 hours or something?
chickdigger802
Banned
not really a fan of the 'scrolling' attacks from bosses. takes way too long. i usually just take the hit.
They overwhelm you at the start and become less frequent, but never really go away. They constantly introduce new mechanics even in the twilight hours of the game, so they have tutorials up to there too. They're not very long after the beginning, but they're there.
chickdigger802
Banned
its not bad. some tutorials you can downright skip. others, you can mash through them in a few seconds with the a button.
Well, I do typically love the Mario RPGs. Except Sticker Star. Ugh. I couldn't even finish it.
chickdigger802
Banned
well sticker star isn't even really a rpg
i enjoyed what i played, but i kinda got sidetracked after beating the first boss... i probably should get back to sticker star someday. its quite pleasant.
Yeah, there is no quick save or anything like that. Whatever you feel like doing works. I know, its odd.
It's really no different than any past M&L game, but the Pi'illo people dialog is cut and dry versus some of the amusing dialog of past characters.
Linkstrikesback
Member
The blocks are placed mostly at the entrances/exits to areas and just before boss fights, so that you know if one is coming without the game having to have an npc yell "YOU SHOULD SAVE".
Beats the Shroobs not saying anything, at least.
chickdigger802
Banned
pretty much. its weird how this and xillia that does something similar, came out in the same week.
True. I think it's kind of amusing how serious their dialog is given the fact that they're people with pillows for heads.
The USGamer review says that the game is constantly pointing out secrets and puzzle solutions to you so that you can't miss anything. I loved how Superstar Saga had Metroidvania-type elements where you could return to past areas (mostly connected to the world map, not old dungeons) and access new parts with new abilities.
So, is that review accurate about that part, or is that just in the first 6-10 hours? I really don't want to get this if I can't use my brain even once.
Also: I'm glad to hear that the level design is good. It was really awful in PoT and BIS and I liked what I saw in the DT demo.
evilromero
Member
Seems odd they would go so heavy with the tutorials when Bowser's Inside Story knocked everything out of the park for the series. I'll probably skip this one like I did with M&L2 if that's the case.
I love that this game actually makes good use of 3D in battles. Especially in the dream world.
Bowser's Inside Story has tons of tutorials. I admit that I'm only an hour and a half into this one, but this one does not seem all that different. And in this one, they have all been skippable so far. Perhaps I'll see what people are talking about as I get further, but I'm really not seeing much of a difference at this point.
This is just factually inaccurate. Maybe I'm misunderstanding what they're saying, but the game doesn't "point out" anything but new mechanics and how to control them. The world is still littered with secrets, from the attack pieces to the Pi'illo folk, the majority of which are off the beaten path and often inaccessible on the first visit to an area.
It doesn't stop you to point out where blocks are or how even how to beat most enemies, you're still left on your own to figure out what to do with the tools you're given. All the game does is stop you periodically to tell you how to ground pound/high jump/copter, not when and where. The game also doesn't tell you anything about beating enemies unless you're killed in battle and willingly choose to read up on it.
Bashing the game over tutorials gets more and more ridiculous the further I get into the game.
In regards to your other point, the overworld is still open and interconnected like Superstar Sage and Bowser's Inside Story, more like the former than the latter. I'm not sure how often you do since I'm still playing through it, but you return to areas from time to time, if only to connect to new ones, and there's more secrets hidden on the way that require abilities you've acquired after the first visit.
Well, that's a huge relief. Thanks!
I can't help but wonder if anybody who's read the reviews, then plays the game might be more likely to be ticked off about tutorials than they would have been if they hadn't read the reviews. I don't think I'd mind them myself, but with all the reviews I've read, I feel like I'd be practically primed to groan when a new tutorial pops up.
Kamek Koopa
Member
The game is not "constantly pointing out secrets and puzzle solutions". However, there are two or three situations that I thought the explanation/tutorial was crossing the line that separates "explaining how to use something" from "pointing out ALL the consecuences you can produce using something". So yes, sometimes I felt the game was ruining some great puzzles. But as I said, those were two or three specific moments of a +35 hours adventure.
The handholding is there, specially in the very first seven hours or so, but anyone who says that Dream Team can't offer a discovery feeling is lying. There are plenty of secrets to find, and they are quite well hidden. Each stage has tons of little rewards for exhaustive exploration (special attack pieces, beans, pi'illows, or simply blocks with mushrooms and coins) and the level design is definitely huge and great. And yes, you will have to revisit some areas in order to reach new places using the new habilities you learnt elsewhere and the world map is closer in design to Superstar Saga (not as great as that one, though) than to the other installments.
Once you can access to every area of the map, the feeling of "oh god, there are so many places I have to go to get that token before going on with the story" is quite satisfying.
If this is a relief for you, I didn't think the handholding or the tutorials were an issue after the first 7 hours. On the other hand, the flat story and some too-huge (huuuuge) areas were a bit of a problem for me, and the reason to not enjoy this game as much as Bowser's Inside Story or Superstar Saga.
I'm stuck in Wakeport...
I am searching for that tour guide in his dream, and I beat 2/4 mini bosses. The third mini-boss area has me using the Luigi stack to hit the button, and I know I have to hit the bomb into the wall, but every time I come back up to hit it, it doesn't even come close. How do I do this?
Sleeplessnights
Banned
Came here to post this, I hope so too.
Others have said that it is just the demo.
QisTopTier
XisBannedTier
Is this game really as long as the game informer review is saying it is?
40 plus hours
Just the demo for me too. Full game has no audio problems (download version here).
Also I really enjoy the running away 3D boss segments. Just really fits great with the music...kinda like watching a cartoon show lol.
Went ahead and spoiled myself.
Really missed opportunity here.
When the game asks you to do a tutorial, say "no." Tada.
Might want to brush up on that with the tutorial skipping tutorial.
So, Dreamy Wakeport. New Luiginary Work. No tutorial, though Dreambert clarifies some of its effects. I wish I could say that puts that to rest and the reviewers that bring it up as a concern are full of it, but my voice wouldn't be heard. I have to wonder what passes as a tutorial in their eyes.
Well, I'm 45 hours in and the tutorials are already pissing me of......not even a joke
Well if it took that long to bother you they must not be a big deal.