Good game, but absolutely the weaker of the Mario RPGs. Off the bat - it's a Mario RPG, so there is a certain level of quality going in. You can see how this is so different from an Intelligent Systems or Alpha Dream game, but the formula is there. Square dropping Nintendo for PS1 back in the day did wonders for the Mario RPG franchises, at least critically speaking. Unfortunately, it's more a curiosity and a blueprint than anything, though an interesting one at that.

The humor is stylistically much like Mario & Luigi, but the jokes are sparse and inconsistent that I almost wish they didn't bother. The enemy design is ok - new races are fun and there's some spins on classic Mario designs here and there, but unique characters and partners don't come close to the kind of thing you see in early Paper Mario. There's a bit too many bosses and they too often just come and go. But then you get someone like Valentina who is around for a whole chapter, claims to stick around after you beat her, but doesn't even have an alternate post-game fight let alone ever appear again. I'm glad there were some difficult optional bosses (and an extended ending for fighting them all), but they really are where I wish the original boss levels were at. The character customization is fun with some secret items, but overall it's overly simplistic combat becomes a bit too easy to steamroll.

All the good or mixed things aside, the minigames are just lame. Entirely break the pacing of the game and none of them are good in any way. Platforming challenges can be ok at times, but the perspective is so wonky that any time any precision is required, it is ruined.

Good game overall. An improvement over the original at the very least due to the clearer action commands. Due to its easy difficulty curve, length, linearity, and some extra side content (wish there was more to the post-game, but it's fun enough), it's enjoyable enough to consume and complete.