The Four Heroes of Paper Mario: How Brightly They Shine

While Mario is a household name, there are three others that share a similar amount of spotlight, to the point that anyone who knows enough about video games to know more than Mario's face knows about them, too. I'm talking about Luigi, Peach and Bowser, and while one of those may not be as heroic as the rest, that's the collective noun Super Paper Mario goes with, and he does enough of his best to earn it. These are probably Nintendo's most valuable assets- and while Super Mario is intentionally flexible enough that Nintendo's willing to share them around, that doesn't mean they don't have some basics to adhere to. And Paper Mario is... somewhat interesting in its relationship with them. It's interesting to ask oneself why exactly Intelligent Systems grapples with an official mandate limiting their story prowess while thinking of how they used the Four Big Ones.

Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door Compilation

The reference list for Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door

• Prologue: A Rogue's Welcome
  
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Chapter 1: Castle and Dragon
  
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3
• Analysis
• Post-Chapter 1
• Intermissions
• Part 1
• Part 2
  
• Chapter 2: The Great Boggly Tree
  
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3
• Analysis
• Post-Chapter 2
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Chapter 3: Of Glitz and Glory
  
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3
• Part 4
• Analysis
• Post-Chapter 3
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Chapter 4: For Pigs the Bell Tolls
  
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3
• Analysis
• Post-Chapter 4
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Chapter 5: The Key to Pirates
  
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3
• Analysis
• Post-Chapter 5
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Chapter 6: Three Days of Excess
  
• Day 1
• Day 2
• Day 3
• Analysis
• Post-Chapter 6
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Chapter 7: Mario Shoots the Moon
  
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Analysis
• Post-Chapter 7
• Chapter 8: The Thousand-Year Door
  
• Part 1
• Part 2
• Final Boss
• Ending
• Postgame
• Part 1
• Part 2
  
• Game Analysis
• TEC-XX
  

Technological Expertise Central- Executive X-Naut: Many Call Me TEC

TEC-XX, Grodus's brainchild and greatest failure, is one of TTYD's most beloved characters, and almost certainly the most memorable. TEC is, arguably, one of the most important characters in shedding light on the X-Naut motivations, and paid a part in keeping Mario on his toes and accurately aware of the stakes of the situation he found himself in. All the while, TEC is engaged in a complex story of love with Peach, and this leaves TEC sitting at the crux of multiple different identities all at once: A many-layered contraption with multiple goals they aren't quite aware are at odds with each other until after the time comes for them to intersect.

Paper Mario Thousand Year Door: The Crystal Stars and the Legendary Treasure

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is a well-beloved entry in the anthology of Mario RPGs, and with good reason. But for as strong as the game is, it falls short of the legendary status it has been given.

So what's the plot, overall? The X-Nauts are hunting for a legendary treasure, and Mario must stop them from acquiring it at any cost. The fact that this treasure is a demon that uses Princess Peach as a vessel to awaken adds another dynamic and is an actual plot-use for Peach, but overall, the story errs closer to not being a story one might associate with Mario. The gathering of seven star-shaped collectibles is very Mario, but the characters and world Mario is surrounded by takes a step away from both Mario's iconic designs and functions. In the thick of the action, the idea is that you stop thinking you're in a Mario game and start thinking you're in an RPG, and while that isn't necessarily a problem, that is something you have to play carefully with, because if the stuff you're left with isn't good, then the immersion will be worthless.

The plot is good, especially considering the undercurrent of Grodus always considering whether the plans he has are currently viable for dealing with Mario and adopting new ones as Mario crushes the old ones. However, the ending comes dangerously close to undermining the whole adventure. Beldam, the X-Nauts and TEC should not have come back, and the fact that they did so reveals a layer of uncertainty in the writers' room that weakens the stories being told. How are we supposed to read Vivian if "she goes back to Beldam" is considered her happy ending? TEC blew themselves up specifically to deny the X-Nauts use of the Fortress- how can we admire their courage when their efforts are actively rewound? It is possible that the miraculous and unexplained revivals and redemptions are intended as an extension of TTYD's parody elements, where the joke is exaggerating saccharine endings where everyone is happy by extending that montage well past the point that everyone should be happy. The problem with this suggestion is that it is bold to attempt when the rest of the story is otherwise on the earnest end of the scale, with the parody elements confined to mechanics and the structure of the story as opposed to the content.

As for the world itself, the main hub town being a place that doesn't belong in Mario is both a blessing and a curse. By being so novel, disconcerting and daring, the game quickly establishes its own identity, but the fact that it is inherently limited by not being allowed to go the full distance helps to defang that town. There is blood, but there cannot be a murder. There is a bar, but they must drink cola. The mafia rule the roost, but they're not allowed to put people in cement shoes. The majority of crimes that get shown are of the form "don't ask", which is the game putting forward its best effort to present the idea of this town while not actually being allowed to depict it. In addition, the other locales, with the nominal exception of the Glitz Pit, stray away from this "cutthroat lawless side of the kingdom" aesthetic and feel far safer to belong in- which means that Rogueport's dangers are limited only to NPC dialogue and the Don Pianta content. The X-Nauts being as oppressive as they are carries the tone further afield from Rogueport- that is, when they're not being comical oafs it's hard to be worried about except for the possibility they might hurt themselves. Crump has a lot to handle, being both comic relief and a vessel for drama and high stakes.

The chapters themselves, on an individual scale, do feel significantly improved over 64. That's a general undercurrent that pervades the whole game- directly compare two elements, and TTYD wins out over 64 in the vast majority of cases. Individual chapter stories have a full plot apiece, with a strong core conflict that Mario can insert himself into. Chapters in 64 were far more aimless in comparison- the town would have people in need of help, the dungeon would be inhabited by a monster guarding the Star Spirit Mario needs, and while the two are theoretically linked, the tissue doing so is nothing but sinew, with the exception of Chapter 3. Every Chapter in TTYD is a strong Town Story in its own right, with the exception of Chapter 7- which was always going to be an uphill battle anyway- and nailing this helps any problems with the overall narrative and tone. You have just enough of the X-Nauts through the TEC arc that you're still actively thinking about them, but they don't have to carry the whole story if the individual Chapter stories are picking up the slack- which is good, because the X-Nauts can't be as scary as they want to be in a game with Mario's tone and require hiding behind the black to keep up that impression.

Mechanically, TTYD's "improvements over 64" start to feel less decisive and more like sidegrades. The retooled Badge system allowing you to stack many types of power-increasing Badge, in addition to the new "ridiculously high" cap for BP means that the tight damage system fostered in 64 is quickly inflated. In practice, and also considering the easy accessibility of Power Lift and the nature of Superguards, the player doesn't necessarily know how much damage they are going to deal and take, bringing TTYD more in line with other RPGs in that you just use your most effective attacks and hope you take the enemy out. When you add the Stage on top of that, where any moment you can find loose props falling on your head to damage you, apply status conditions and in general cause chaos, fighting is overall more playful and loses the charm the low-numbers system adds. Since Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga has already come out, I have to wonder if that game had an influence on the mindset of the developers: Mario & Luigi's combat system incentivises fighting bosses without taking damage yourself, and because this is such a fun, Mario way of fighting, Mario & Luigi's core gameplay loop has remained the same throughout all five entries in spite of the changes to how it is played, something that Paper Mario cannot say the same. Even though TTYD is still using the beloved RPG formula that earned Paper Mario its accolades, the hesitance to continue doing so still tinges the corners of the setup even back here.

Overall, TTYD is a game I struggle to put a holistic label on. The story was better than I remembered it- although the 2004-era veneer of misogyny makes me uncomfortable at times- but the gameplay was much worse. It's a game that deserves much of its accolades and more, but it's also a game that isn't fun and any replay is tinged with the knowledge of all the backtracking that you're going to have to do. It's a game that's much better the first time than on the replays, which is once more in line with RPG tradition than it is with Mario. Admittedly, this particular issue also strikes the Mario & Luigi games- although instead of sluggish backtracking, Mario & Luigi suffers from extended tutorial sequences and a lack of a strong customisation system to form the backbone of the replayability. TTYD's Partners and Badges supplying the latter may be, in part, why TTYD has a stronger legacy than many of the individual Mario & Luigi games- it's easier to want to sit down and commit to a replay when you know what you want to focus on the next time. There's no one part to make you dread replaying the game- there's a hundred little moments that'll irritate you every step of the way.

TTYD Postgame Part 2: The Bottom of the Pit

I need someone to go to 50th floor of Pit of 100 Trials for me, SHA-BOOM! So I need someone pretty tough, SHA-PLOWIE! For details, please see me next to cannon statue in Fahr Outpost, SHA-BOOMITY!

Now then, you may or may not have noticed I "forgot" to finish up one of the Tattles. That's because, to finish it up, I'll need to actually go into the Pit. And I'm not going that deep without finishing the whole thing while I'm there.

This is the guy we're talking to, incidentally.

That's... an interesting myth. The Pit of 100 Trials was originally founded as a torture chamber for the Shadow Queen's enemies, and most people understand it to be not work going back to, for obvious reasons. Where would this come from?

...OK, yeah, this sounds exactly like the sort of thing some drunk idiots would dare each other to do. Nobody was exactly expecting him to do it.

In his shame, he asks that we erase his accomplishment. No one's going to verify one way or the other on this one, mate.

I mean, what's he going to do? Go down there and check? The whole point is that most people don't do that sort of thing.

I promise I'll do it. Although perhaps I should've brought a camera.

Going into the Pit, I have packed... a lot of Jellies and Ultras. Scoff at the philosophy of "I might need it later" as you please, this is that later.

Of course, we can't go without Power, Power, Power. At first to wipe out the easier hordes, and then to keep up with the later ones. Quick Change, of course, to keep up a diverse portfolio of attacks to launch per round, Flower Saver to help spam powerful herd-hitting moves, and Heart Finder to make sure we can brush off scratches as we get them.

TTYD Postgame Part 1: Take a Bow

Reopening the game on a completed save file shows the "Mario faces spinning" animation associated with reopening the game on a file that saved after clearing a Bowser intermission. Not sure why, but also not sure why not.

Our semi-public, semi-private ferryman is happy to bring us back, although he can never be summoned to "finish" the post-game. Mario is stuck here in the world of Rogueport forever, or at least until you stop touching the save file.

Yep, Goombella was awaiting our return at the docks. We went partner-less for the first Crump fight and a few parts of Chapter 4, so the game can handle that state, but I do kinda wonder if Goombella being here for us is the game denying a potential crash.

And with nothing but a "I'm sure he knows what he's doing", he's happy to leave.

Welcome back to Rogueport. There's not that much to do around here narratively, but it's nice to be able to finish up everything we didn't get around to before taking out the Shadow Queen.

And this is a mention of the game having not done something that was set up by Goombella's email and hinted at in optional dialogue:

The whole party is by our side immediately. There were clues that, originally, we had to pull them from their respective endings to lend a hand, and the most likely reason they removed that was to make sure you didn't get into any situations you couldn't get out of. I don't think there are any such situations to worry about, but the devs were clearly more cautious.

Thousand-Year Door Ending: All's Well That Ends Well

The ending starts back up in Rogueport. This is the bittersweet farewell theme they go with.

Mario and Peach have a home to go back to. With the threat of the Magical Map neutralised, there's no more need for us to stick around here, and we have Toads back home who have huge separation anxities from the absence of our presence.

...

Nobody tell them where we were.

TTYD Battle with the Shadow Queen: The Sinister Spectre

Welcome to the deepest, dankest part of the Palace of Shadow.

And Grodus is standing in front of a crypt, like he's a villain in a normal RPG and not a walking computer-alien in a Mario game.

Nothing good.

Grodus reached the treasure before us. We don't exactly have much of a counterplay. We lose.

TTYD Chapter 8 Part 2: Large and in Charge

Around this point, the Palace of Shadow's theme changes to a more intense mix, with the proviso that "more intense" than it already was doesn't mean that much.

Ah, there we go, some proper Dark Wizzerd fights.

TTYD Chapter 8 Part 1: Shadow's Call

The final chapter sharing a name with the game is nice and fitting symbolically within the context of itself, although it will always be innately hilarious. In non-English translations, the Chapter is instead titled "the Legendary Treasure" or similar (The Japanese and Italian titles reference the Crystal Stars. In Spanish, it is the far more dramatic "El destino en sus manos".)

...

ECHO!

Echo... echo... echo... cookie... echo...

Koops: Um... OK, this place is scary... but I guess we don't have a choice, huh? We have to power through and save Peach before things get out of hand! Let's go, Mario!
Flurrie: My, what an unpleasant place... but I suppose we have no choice! We must go onward and save Peach before this situation spirals beyond our control! Let's move on, darling!
Dr. Agon: Whoa, this place is nasty... but we don't have a choice! We've gotta cruise through and save Peach before this whole cataclysm happens! C'mon, Gonzales!
Vivian: Uh... This place is unsettling... but we have no choice! We have to get in there and save Peach before things get any more out of control! Let's go, Mario!
Bobbery: This place is rather ugly... but we haven't a choice in the matter, old boy! We must get in there and save Peach before this hullabaloo goes any further! Let's go, dear boy!
Ms. Mowz: What an unpleasant place... but we don't have a choice in the matter! We have to get in there and save Peach before this gets any more out of hand! Let's go, dearie!

That is one hell of an introduction.

This is the entrance to the Palace of Shadow. It's seen no visitors for 1,000 years... It's so big... It kind of overwhelms you, doesn't it? And that treasure is here... Treasure or no, I don't like the vibe from this place... Maybe it's just my nerves...

The Palace of Shadow is the final dungeon of TTYD, and the sole location we will be exploring for Chapter 8. It's shorter than the other chapters, and admittedly has a bit of an issue of being entirely linear- something maps in TTYD have minorly suffered from but managed to mask in other ways. It's a final dungeon in gameplay mainly, and not one you're expected to have trouble navigating.

The music that plays here is a very ambient sort of track, drawing on the classic 1-2 theme as well as Super Mario World's Castle theme. They really are trying to set a mood, although it's a very impressive aim when the song they're remixing already sounds pretty spooky.

Thousand Year Door Chapter 7: Mario Shoots The Moon

Chapter 7 was very clearly a special chapter going in- regardless of whether Mario was informed, the player knew this would be the big siege on the X-Naut Fortress. And yet, at the same time, we also knew we weren't going to stop them there.

The opening segment in Fahr Outpost is two screens to put in the game's ice enemies before getting to town. Practically the only reason they get you backtracking to open the cannon (other than game padding) is to give the ice enemies spotlight. Remember to treat them seriously- Frozen is serious business, and if you die, you may not have saved all the backtracking because you didn't think there was any risk involved. I swear, if that was an intentional layer, that would almost be cool enough to forgive them for the General White errand. That's only funny if you're not the one doing the walking. I think the problem is the game already has such a huge backtracking issue that even the casuals are getting bothered- if this was the first, or even the second egregious case, the joke might've landed a little better. Still, though, if you're in this for the narrative haul, seeing that cannon fire made it all worthwhile.

Once we're on the Moon, it's a short walk through a sluggish, repetitive map of the surface (as Goombella lampshades, this is basically what exploring the Moon would be like and sucks for her, too), we finally get into the X-Naut Fortress. The cool theme carries into a relatively normal dungeon, gathering a bunch of keys to find our way to Crump while also fiddling with the diversions of a crane game and the quiz show of a robot Thwomp. Thus far, Grodus has only got one general, and that's Crump. He wonders how he is losing. The fact that Crump can be the only boss encounter we find may be responsible for taking the wind out of the chapter's sails: other RPGs might've used this chapter as an opportunity to throw a few more bosses our way, although the part of the story where Grodus doesn't seem to entirely care about who he's left behind to defend the Crystal Star certainly affects things. Perhaps Grodus intentionally left it easy for us. Would explain why his Key Card was on his desk and not burrowed in his stash.

"After" the Chapter, but still rather clearly a part of it, is the escape sequence, where Mario gets to meet TEC. Because Peach was so guarded about them thus far, Mario has only heard about their involvement once, and overall the tone of the conversation feels more like a first meeting on Mario's end as well as TEC's. TEC's job is to tell Mario about Grodus's plans- or, more accurately, where to find Grodus. After having been stabbed shut down, they know they can't stop and go over the details, especially if they want enough power to send Mario to safety and blow up the fortress behind him. TEC blowing up the fortress, too, has another layer in addition to merely keeping it out of X-Naut hands: They are the Fortress. Its functionality is tied to them- hence why they're still operational even after Grodus shut them down and all our escapades that probably used a lot of power. But TEC doesn't want to be a part of that anymore. If they can't leave the Fortress, then better they be destroyed than continue being party to the X-Nauts. A surprisingly dark outlook, but one mostly driven by the fact our heroes are not yet technologically advanced enough to figure out how to download a backup of TEC's system memory to a thumbdrive. And even then, I'm not sure portable saves in 2004 were advanced enough to store something on TEC's scale- nor do they own a computer in the Mushroom Kingdom that TEC could occupy. If they own any computers.

Mechanically, Chapter 7 is honestly kinda harder in Fahr Outpost than the X-Naut Fortress? The Frozen status allowing the icy enemies to combo you is a real kick in the teeth, while the X-Nauts usually won't survive long enough to use buffs if they spend a turn applying them. X-Yux can end disastrously, but they don't spawn in groups with other things, so you can always focus fire them. ...Unless they Stop you. Magnus von Grapple 2.0's audience cannon is highly dangerous without Power Lift, admittedly, but this is a trick that works once. It's certainly a magnificent way to combine Crump's comic relief with the fact he can actually be dangerous when he's trying. A fitting send-off for the comic relief villain: A boss that's just hard enough to be threatening, but easy enough you start to wonder if Grodus wasn't packing everything he could.

TTYD Post-Chapter 7: A Bad Feeling About This

We start the aftermath of Chapter 7 with Bowser. Peach, of course, has been taken away for Secret Reasons the game is having a lot of fun keeping from you, and telling you what she's doing would a) spoil the surprise and b) not be very fun.

Again, I wish we had Bowser comic relief after escaping the X-Naut Fortress, we just came off beating up Crump.

Surprisingly, if we were going in the pattern of Bowser always being two chapters behind, Poshley Sanctum is where he should be this time. I always assumed they had abandoned the "two chapters behind" thing by now and were just sending him to fake Crystal Stars.

Spoilers, Pennington had another one.

All we've gotta do is walk right up to Poshley Sanctum.

No reason not to terrorise the locals. And Kammy, too, who probably decided to take herself up on this suggestion and retire to Poshley after this game.

...The people of Poshley Heights seem surprisingly impervious to Bowser's presence.

...Toodles what the fuck

Toadia is more Bowser's speed. Although I don't think the Toads normally call for their parents when Bowser arrives.