Wow, the average score on this game is low. I realize that I’m going to be a bit controversial with some of the things I say here, but I do believe that this game in general takes an unfairly harsh criticism from the community for simply being the first to majorly screw up the paper Mario formula; I think it’s a genuinely better game than color splash, which tends to see at least slightly less scathing reviews.

For one, I think the sticker mechanic is far more fun and engaging than the color card mechanic from that game. Peeling unique attack stickers from the overworld is just such a satisfying thing! And I think the graphics look good on the smaller screen, whereas I find color splash to be far more bland visually. Obviously, this game is entirely lacking story. It’s simply a ‘collect all the pieces’ game without nearly anything else going in. Even so, there are some interesting set piece moments to enjoy even if they’re kind of moot without a story, such as losing Kersti (stupid name) and your hammer to the poison big forest and wiggler’s antics that ensue, or climbing an ancient desert tower, or the haunted mansion. I also think that the ‘Things’ have the best implementation in this game compared to any other paper Mario game that has used them. A lot of the game is lacking though, in intrigue and variance compared to paper Mario games past. The bosses are generally uninspired, typically being a regular Mario enemy enhanced with the power of one of the sticker crowns.

Though, I think if you can get past how much of a step back it is from the other predecessor games, you can actually find a decently fun time in this game! Don’t let all those hate reviews bring your perception down; and that’s coming from a diehard Super Paper Mario fan.

The infamous one. Yeah, I went into this game not expecting too much, but I wanted to look at it for what it was, not what it could’ve been. Needless to say, that’s easier said than done, and a lot of the time, I just saw it as a complete downgrade to what came before it.

First of all, the battle system, absolutely terrible, I genuinely avoided every fight I could as I wanted to not use stickers, and I usually love battling in games when I can. Aside from that, the thing stickers are absolutely atrocious, the fact that you need a specific thing sticker for certain situations could’ve been handled so much better, because god forbid you guess the wrong thing sticker to use, because you LOSE IT FROM YOUR INVENTORY, and have to go and get it again, and you have to pray that it isn’t a tedious level. Mind you, that never happened to me, but the fact that it so easily could is ridiculous.

I gotta say, this game just felt really soulless, like I especially noticed this around World 2. In Paper Mario 64 when you’re in the desert, you have to go through Dry Dry Outpost, and you go through all sorts of fun scenarios in the town, you talk to interesting characters, who reveal the way to get to Dry Dry Ruins. In this game, the desert area has almost zero dialogue….you’re just walking through different areas, some more tedious than the last. The lack of dialogue in this game is laughable, like there is NO personality here outside of a few circumstances. Bowser, the MAIN VILLAIN, doesn’t even talk ONCE, in the past games, he had so much personality and character, which is all stripped away here?? Why??

As much as I like to talk shit about the game, it also isn’t the bane of my existence, it wasn’t the most dreadful thing ever, it did have SOME redeeming qualities, which is what makes it a 4/10, as opposed to it being lower. World 4 is an obvious highlight, mostly every level is at least decent, Enigmansion, 4-5, and 4-6 are all great, they cooked there. I dig the royal sticker stories after you defeat a boss, they add some character to the bosses, and that’s actually cool. Kamek gets some good characterisation in this game, whenever he shows up he's actually kinda cool, and his presence is much more felt than Bowser's. The levels can be decent at times for sure, although when it’s the “less than 5 minutes” levels that are the best usually, it’s probably not a good thing outright. Oh yeah, Snifit or Whiffit is the best thing about the game, probably.

Overall, does it deserve the hate? Is it THAT bad? Yes, but it does have some redeeming qualities that make it fun at times.

This game does have Petey Piranha, the best Mario character of all time, so that’s also a positive, of course.

Tô ficando louco jogando jogo merda pós jogo merda, nesse ritmo vou virar o AVGN, nada nessa merda de jogo funciona, se o jogo fica muito repetitivo ou injusto ele tem o benefício da teimosia como foi com o Super Paper Mario se a história e gameplay forem divertidos, já quando uma MÍDIA é entediante não tem história, tem Personagens chatos, e uma gameplay sem ALMA e pouco inspirada eu já considero um produto ruim. Eu tanko muita coisa, esse trem acabou com tudo de Paper Mario, não foi por limitação de hardware.

Esse é o mesmo console que roda:

Shin Megami Tensei 4
Link's Between Worlds
Final Fantasy Type 0
Resident Evil Revelations
Monster Hunter Ultimate 3.

WHAT WERE THEY THINKING!?!?!?

One of the only RPGs where you want to AVOID combat. It punishes you for playing the game.

This game isn't broken. The game isn't rushed. They WANTED to make the game this way. I will never understand how, or why.

Не смотря на то что в игре постоянно происходит что-то интересное и весёлое, а музыка радует настолько, что хочется добавить её себе в плеер, игра невыносимо скучная и фрустрирующая.

Система наклеек это полная жопа, как боевая часть, так и часть с исследованием мира. А самое невыносимое - это как раз таки его исследование.

Неспешно пройдя один из биомов я полный надежд перешёл во второй, надеясь на чудо, но его не случилось. Сложно представить кому именно игра казалась весёлой во время разработки.

Maybe half a star is too harsh considering the undeniable production values, but this was such a massive step down from the previous three Paper Marios. It's bland, generic, safe, predictable, all words I had previously never associated with the series.

And maybe I could stomach the watered-down story and level themes if the gameplay was good. After all, Paper Mario 64 is a relatively straightforward Mario vs. Bowser story. But Sticker Star's gameplay is just not very fun, and the world is nowhere near as charming as 64's. Combat is shallow and easy despite consumable attacks on paper being an interesting idea, bosses all require specific "things" to beat, there's only nameless toads to talk to, Bowser has next to no personality when he used to be the star of the show in the previous games (and in Bowser's Inside Story), the list goes on and on. Forgettable, yet unforgettably disappointing.