It took me a bit to fully log this game down, but man this was so good and I'm beyond happy this exists. (NOTE: I haven't even touched the Post Game Bosses, I do plan on doing so this year however)

First thing, the visuals. Ever since that Nintendo Direct where this game was first revealed, I was captivated by them, the adorable looking characters, the animations that played, and the environments looked so wonderful, ArtePiazza just knocked it out of the part. It also helps that the music was wonderful, I listen to them a lot (especially the boss themes and the opening theme Happy Adventure, Delightful Adventure which just fills me with joy), Probably helps that I'm a massive Kingdom Hearts fan because this game and that series share composers.

Another thing is actually the length, a game with a simple story and simple game play doesn't have to be long, so just being around 10 hours is fitting and makes this game extremely welcoming to newcomers to RPGS. Made playing this one very breezy and relaxing.

And despite me describing the game play as "simple" doesn't mean it's bad, it's very fun and works considering this game is fairly easy. It's a simple turn based rpg, but that works because battles were often quick (it feels like your in a standard battle for around 30 to 60 seconds which helps with the pacing) and because of this game being the precursor to the other Mario rpg's action commands. Sadly they weren't anyway near as fun as Mario & Luigi but I forgive this game because it was the first one. But while there wasn't much variety (hit A when character connects attack, mash A to power up attack, Hold A to charge and let go of A to release and Twirl the Control Stick in a circle) They still work and aren't repetitive enough for me to get bored or make it feel like a chore at any point. What helps is Ally buffs which become stronger when you time action commands correctly, which just feels good to keep up, especially with the right party party combo to take advantage of the buffs, Also hitting all enemies with a perfectly timed standard attack, that really felt good to pull off. I also loved using all the party members, helped with the ability to swap party members during battle, which made it easy to swap to someone who I felt could help in the current situation. Everyone felt like they had a defined role and never did I ever feel like I should just not use someone, from Bowser's defensive power and strong attacks, to Geno's insane damage output and speed, to Mallow's magic and Thought Peek helping out with finding weaknesses, and of course Peach's strong healing. I do have one small complaint being the fact that you're always required to use Mario, which I'm okay with considering he's the main character, but I would've at least liked the option to swap him out for variety's sake.

Another thing is the writing, which was fun all around with the main party getting some very memorable lines (I wished I didn't miss the scene right after you rescue Peach from Booster, you know the one), but one thing I was a bit disappointed by was the Villains, they are normally fine, in fact their great when they show up, but that's the issue, when they show up. Because a lot of these guys only have dialogue right before their boss fight which is lame. I wished you got to encounter them a few times before you fight them, and for Smithy and his gang, I wished you got some small scenes that set up the next minion when you get one of the Seven Stars, as they all have little screen time despite being the Main Villains. The other side villains get more time (mainly Booster who I love dearly) so it's a shame considering their dialogue is indeed good when you do see them and they have memorable designs.

Other than that, I don't have much else on the mind that others wouldn't be able to say better, I mostly like typing what comes to my mind with these Backloggd reviews, so all I can say is that this game is great, anyone interested in a smaller, quick RPG should check this out, I hope the next original Mario RPG is as good as this one and I hope the Thousand Year Door remake turns out extremely well, because that reveal trailer was really amazing.