The firstPaper Mariotitle released in 2001 for the Nintendo 64 and delighted fans with its RPG elements and adorable paper-like graphics. It was a critical success and went on to become a firm fan-favorite out of the entireMariofranchise, and has remained thehighest-ratedPaper Mariotitle on Metacriticto date, including the recent release ofPaper Mario: The Origami Kingfor Nintendo Switch.
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ThePaper Mariofranchise now has six main titles in total, as well as a cross-over title with theMario & LuigiinMario & Luigi: Paper Jamfor 3DS. Even if you are a long time fan of the series, there may be a thing or two that you didn’t know aboutPaper Mario, so check out these interesting facts.
10Super Mario RPG 2
Paper Mariowasn’t Mario’s first foray into theworld of RPGs, as Nintendo had previously releasedSuper Mario RPG:Legend of the Seven Starsfor the SNES in 1996. Interestingly, when development began forPaper Mario, it was initially planned to be a sequel toSuper Mario RPGand was titledSuper Mario RPG 2, but it was eventually changed into its own series.
Other than sharing some RPG gameplay elements, such as turn-based battles, and the obviousMariotie-in, there are no connections betweenPaper MarioandSuper Mario RPG. To date,Super Mario RPGhas never received a direct sequel, with Nintendo moving on to focus on the other RPG series it created,Paper MarioandMario & Luigi.
9Darker Side to the Mario Franchise
Super Mariois considered to be one of the most family-friendly franchises out there, so it was surprising whenPaper Mario: The Thousand-Year Doorcontained a number of darker elements. For example, in the middle of the plaza in Rogueport, there is randomly a gallows set up, likely prompting many a child to ask their parent what is is.
Additionally, in the Japanese version, you could even find a murder scene where a toad character has apparently been killed, complete with blood splatter and chalk outline. However, this was censored out of the western release.
8Bowser’s Crush on Peach
Paper Mariowas the first title outside of Japan to explain Bowser’s true motives for constantly kidnappingPrincess Peach- he has a crush on her. This is evident from a diary of Bowser’s that states: “I kidnapped Princess Peach! I couldn’t be happier, diary! I hope she likes me…”.
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This idea is also emphasized in later titles, with just a couple of examples being that Bowser tells his son, Bowser Jr. that Peach is his mother, before admitting it’s untrue inSuper Mario Sunshine, as well as forcibly trying to make Peach marry him in various titles, with the most recent beingSuper Mario Odyssey.
7Separate Canonical Universe
It would appear that thePaper Marioseriesis in a separate canonical universe from that of theSuper Mariofranchise as a whole. This is evident inPaper Mario: Sticker Star, which was the firstPaper Mariotitle to feature both Bowser Jr. and Kamek.
When Mario first meets each of these characters, though they know of him from his reputation, they make it clear that they haven’t met before. Of course, Mario has encountered both Bowser Jr. and Kamek in many titles that released previous to this, but they were not of thePaper Mariouniverse.
6The Fuzzy Mistake
The Gold Fuzzy featured inPaper Mario: The Thousand-Year Dooras amini-bossin Shhwonk Fortress. Unlike the normal Fuzzies who drain the player’s HP, the Gold Fuzzy uses melee attacks and can also summon normal Fuzzies to attack Mario.
Interestingly, a Gold Fuzzy appeared on the back of the strategy guide forSuper Paper Mariofor the Wii, but the game didn’t actually feature any Gold Fuzzies. It’s unknown whether this was just a graphical mistake, or whether there were plans to include a Gold Fuzzy in the game but it was later cut.
Paper Mariowas the first Mario RPG title to featureBowseras the main bad guy. Though this seems rather obvious, as Bowser is the recurring enemy throughout theSuper Mariofranchise, he surprisingly was not the antagonist in the previously releasedSuper Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. Instead, in that title, he teams up with Mario to help get rid of their common enemy - Smithy.
Additionally, Bowser didn’t reprise his role as the main bad guy in thePaper Marioseries again until its fourth title,Paper Mario: Sticker Starfor 3DS.
4The Super Mario Bros. 3 Connection
InPaper Mario: Color Splash, a talking black paint can who calls himself Huey enlists Mario’s help to recover the six Big Paint Stars in order to stopBowserand his cronies from draining the world of color. Including Huey as the color black, there are seven colors in total with the Big Paint Stars consisting of red, yellow, blue, violet, orange, and green.
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Many fans don’t realize that these seven colors directly correlate to the colors of the Koopalings' Magic Wands that first appeared inSuper Mario Bros. 3and that have also made other appearances in later titles.
3Paper Mario Inception
There are a few occasions within thePaper Mariofranchise where the games reference the series itself. For example, inPaper Mario, during the party scene at the end, it is revealed that the novelist character named Hemmingway thatMariomet earlier in the game is now writing a new book called “Paper Mario.”
Additionally, inPaper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, there is a blue toad character who lives in Rogueport who writes aPaper Marionovel that then gets adapted into a play.
2Enemy Redesign
With the release ofPaper Mario: Sticker Star, Nintendo decided to revamp the original enemy designs and instead bring them in line with the newer models that were currently being used in theNew Super Mario Bros.games.
Originally, as shown in thePaper Marioimage in the top left, enemygoombashad pink feet and koopas wore sunglasses. However, the next image on the bottom left shows theSticker Starredesign where the goombas have brown feet and the koopas have lost their cool, as taken from the designs from theNew Super Mario Bros.enemies, shown on the right.
1Missing in Action Partners
One of the fan-favorite features of thePaper Mariofranchise is the use of partners. These are NPCs that Mario befriends throughout his journey and who can join him on his quest, with them being helpful both in battle and in the overworld. All of the partners have their own unique skills. For example, in the overworld Koopa can withdraw into his shell so Mario can launch him at switches, enemies, or items.
The firstPaper Mariotitle featured eight different partners, but many fans don’t realize that there was originally going to be an additional three NPC partners included: Twink, Goompa, and Goombaria. Despite being a popular feature, partners were replaced with “pixls” inSuper Paper Marioand then scrapped entirely for the next two titles. Fortunately, partners have returned in the recent release ofPaper Mario: The Origami King.
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