Mario hasn't met a genre he doesn't like, from platforming to racing to all sorts of athletic sports, and yes, even RPGs. His RPG adventures began on the SNES with the appropriately titled Super Mario RPG by SquareSoft. After the falling out between Nintendo and Square, his next RPG took a completely different form with Paper Mario on the N64 and the GCN sequel Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door.

Now he's back with an early generation Wii title (like Twilight Princess, it's amazing what happens when shifting development from GCN to Wii) named Super Paper Mario. A spin-off of a spin-off of a spin-off (after a fashion), this title actually completes a circuit in the franchise, returning to many of the 2D conventions that made it popular. It's got plenty of new tricks, however, and mixes the old and new with special Wii controls together in a gaming cocktail that many of the Nintendo faithful have found irresistible.

We managed to hold up Beth Llewelyn, Senior Director of PR at Nintendo, long enough to answer a few questions before she hit the "A" button and used the 3-D environment to sneak past us.

Lots of dollar bills for Paper Mario
According to the NPD, Super Paper Mario was the third best selling title for the April 2007 period. In total, it sold over 350,000 copies in the U.S. This made it the best selling title on the Wii system by far during that month, besting Wii Play by more than 100k.

"Pre-launch buzz had been strong for this title ever since it was first announced and the reaction from fans since it launched for Wii in April has been incredible, as evidenced by the NPD reports," said Llewelyn.

Part of the game's popularity might be explained by looking at the Wii's current game library. Right now, there are very few RPGs or even RPG-esque titles, so Super Paper Mario surely scratched that itch for a certain segment of the Nintendo community. It's also the first "true" Mario title to arrive on the Wii, discounting any Virtual Console releases, and will be sure to keep fans satiated until Super Mario Galaxy releases later this year.

"Mario games continue to be a popular choice among Nintendo fans and Mario's debut on Wii was definitely well-received by millions of fans who enjoyed the 2-D adventure and RPG elements," stated Llewelyn. "The Wii controls add another dimension to the series not previously experienced and the formula worked well."

Nintendo attempts to sneak in some calculus lessons...

Paper Platforming
Super Paper Mario is filled with enough homage, throwbacks, and service moments to make any fanboy squeal with delight. Along with many classic Mario characters, like Peach, Bowser, Toad, Luigi and the titular plumber himself, there are also item blocks to hit and certain levels that resemble classic Super Mario Bros. set ups directly or indirectly. Players also attack in a tried and true Mario fashion: by jumping on the heads of enemies. There are plenty of new characters and mechanics in the game as well, but it is likely that the old-school moments are the ones that resonate most with fans.

"The classic looks are more popular than ever," commented Llewelyn. "Millions of classic games have been downloaded from the Wii Shop Channel and the retro-styled New Super Mario Bros. for Nintendo DS finished as the No. 2 selling game for all of 2006. We expected similar demand to fuel success for Super Paper Mario, and there is certainly a lot of nostalgia felt by fans while holding the Wii Remote sideways and controlling the game in classic Super Mario Bros. style."

The gameplay takes place in a 2-D environment very reminiscent of old-school Mario titles. A literal "twist" to the gameplay is the ability to flip the environment into 3-D, which both reveals new paths and secrets and pokes fun at certain 2-D gameplay conventions. GameDaily BIZ certainly hopes the success of this 2D platformer will be a sign to publishers everywhere that there's still demand for games of this sort on home consoles.

"To play, players hold the Wii Remote sideways and control the game in classic Super Mario Bros. style and then use the motion-sensing and direct-pointing abilities for special game features. Players might shake the Wii Remote to pull off stylish moves or to break out of frigid ice or even point directly at the screen to get helpful hints from their sidekick," explained Llewelyn. "Innovation is compelling both current gamers and new gamers to experience a new way to play. Incremental graphics improvements can only do so much to enhance a franchise. Sometimes development leads to a compelling, action and graphics intensive experience, and other times fun and clever surprises are found in more familiar genres, as discovered by fans in Super Paper Mario."

Paper thick or paper thin?
Another one of Super Paper Mario's main appeals is the humorous and often sharp writing. Characters often make flippant remarks about the video game logic of the Mushroom Kingdom and even break the fourth wall. The design of one character in particular, Francis, takes swipes at "forum trolls," RPG addicts and dating sims – all in a lighthearted and fun manner.

"It's so obvious that [developer Intelligent Systems] love the Mario series as much as we do," said Nintendo of America writer Nate Bihldorff in a GameFile interview. "[They] have no problems making fun of themselves and making fun of Mario. They've got no problem breaking the fourth wall."

"Comedic writing is a hallmark of Paper Mario games, and we're glad that players find the text as entertaining as the game they play," added Llewelyn.

Overall, Super Paper Mario has been well received by critics, averaging an 86% on Gamerankings.com, with many citing the humor in the story and interesting gameplay mechanics as its main strengths. GameDaily Managing Editor John Benyamine, however, criticized the story as plodding and implementation of the 2D/3D mechanics as savorless.

"Super Paper Mario looks a lot more exciting than it actually is," said Benyamine in his review. Nintendo fans will revel in the 2-D-meets-3-D world of Mario and company, and the recent drought of good Wii games makes this a welcome addition to any library. Yet, Nintendo drowns players in boring dialog, and the ability to switch the 2-D world to 3-D makes the game too easy. It still provides some enjoyment, but nothing that'll last for more than a week."