One of my favorite SNES games was Super Mario RPG - Legend of the Seven Stars. My best friend was an avid Final Fantasy player, but the slower gameplay of a turn based RPG didn't grab my 12 year old attention. I was far more interested in more action oriented games. That is, until the fateful day I received a copy of the Mario RPG. The legendary combination of Nintendo's incredible world and Square's perfected RPG experience could only end in a game worth playing.
As I pressed that cartridge into my SNES, little did I know what I was in store for. I was greeted by a cut scene the likes of which I had not seen before outside of my friend's Playstation. Princess Peach, enjoying a beautiful day...Bowser swooping down in the Koopa Clown Car...and Mario leaping into action. I couldn't wait to start this new adventure! After acclimating to the isometric screen angle, I jumped on top of my first enemy, a Terrapin, and was taken to a turn based combat screen. At first, I was very apprehensive to lose the immediate feedback of crushing my enemies beneath my boots, but with the first few battle scenes it began to make sense to me. The strategy, the timing, the choices. I liked this! I continued my magical journey through the mushroom kingdom: defeating Belome, befriending Frogfucious, awakening Geno, bringing the prince back to Nimbus Land, and destroying the Axem Rangers. Then, finally, facing and defeating the creator of weapons, destroyer of Star Road... Smithy. My adventure with Mario and his friends stuck with me for many years and inspired me to delve into many more RPG titles on many more gaming consoles. Then, one day, I heard that the Mario RPG was going to be remade and rereleased on the Nintendo Switch. I could barely hold back my excitement.
Now, 27 years after it's original release, I brought my shiny new Super Mario RPG cartridge home to my children. I watched with my cheeks aching from smiling as my children faced the same struggles I had once faced and had so much pride in seeing them embrace this new turn based way of playing and thrive. We laughed at the same jokes, the slapstick humor, and the enchanting story. As my two young adventurers charged into the Mushroom Kingdom, I hooked up my SNES Classic and started a new save file. I was going to race my kids to the end of this game. Them on the Switch Edition and me on the SNES Edition. It doesn't matter which game was beaten first. It only matters that we all had a wonderful time bonding over an incredible game. Two generations of gamers playing two generations of the same game.
While I hear frequently that companies today have run out of ideas. That they prey on nostalgia and make hollow remakes of old classics. I don't necessarily agree with that. At least not all the time. Sometimes, taking out an old favorite, dusting it off, shining it up and sending it back out into the world is a great decision. The Super Mario RPG, in my opinion, is one of those great decisions. If you haven't given this game a try, I cannot recommend it enough. It is a tight gaming package soaked in Nintendo's special brand of warm humor and beautiful storytelling. Give it a try, you'll be glad you did.....and as always...Game On
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