It has been an age since I last played a Mario & Luigi game. I’ve thought of maybe getting to the remakes, but in the days of the Switch, the 3DS was very sidelined. Any game I tried to give time to quickly became forgotten. And so now it is time to return to the series with this new game. Mario & Luigi Brothership has looked to be full of joy just from its first trailer, with a lot of charming animations providing the bulk of that joy.

After all, seeing the smoothness of them, the bounce of them, always brings a smile to my face. No matter how many times I see them now that I am playing it. And in playing Mario & Luigi Brothership, I’m happy to find the involved nature of the battles is here. These battles, just like with Paper Mario, are all about timing. Attacking, dodging away from attacks, and the special attacks known as Bros. Moves, there’s plenty to be aware of in battle.

To start with, Mario and Luigi are in the Mushroom Kingdom when their brotherly love seems to activate some form of magical tornado, which pulls them and the rest of the Mushroom Kingdom inhabitants into a vortex. The two brothers are separated within it, with Mario appearing on a small island. His first thought is to find Luigi, and it seems Luigi has the same thought, with Mario hearing his voice.

There’s a lot of introductions with the first few hours, with the battle system being explained while Mario is still on his own. This is nice, as it allows for a contrast to when the two brothers are reunited and battling together. They are stronger together, meaning that being aware of their health and using items to keep them standing means more damage dealt to enemies.

The other introductions concern the story and gameplay loop. This place that Mario and Luigi find themselves is Concordia, a land that has become numerous drifting islands after the Uni-Tree that connected them was destroyed. Shipshape Island, where Luigi landed, is looked after by Connie. A new Uni-Tree is being grown on the island, with Connie and Snoutlet (who is absolutely NOT a pig) asking the two brothers to help them reconnect the islands once again.

And so Mario and Luigi sail the seas on an island (let’s not question the logic), hunting down other islands caught in various currents, using the cannon to fly over to them. Then it is a case of searching for the lighthouse which holds the Connectar Plug. Along the way, the brothers will be battling against enemies and helping with issues that have sprung up on the islands since the split.

Each island has a unique theme to it, with Rumbla Island, the first visited, being full of artists and crafters of tools. The various inhabitants of the island offer tips, or have fun things to say. Such fun even extends to the descriptions of the art pieces that can be found around the town. There are plenty of great interactions to discover around these islands, with dialogue changing after certain events.

Mario & Luigi Brothership has a classic levelling system in play, with experience earned after battles that will increase the level of the brothers. And thus increase certain stats. There’s the typical ones such as attack, defence, and health, along with stache. Which increases luck. After certain levels, a bonus can be applied to the character, with me taking the 20% increase in earned experience for both.

Boss battles follow much the same process as regular ones, though bosses have a larger health bar. In first approaching my first boss battle, certain inhabitants were saying how it’s best to prepare. One even stated that if I’m having issues with a boss to level up some more before trying again. Firstly, I just rolled my eyes at that, since I was very close to Lv:8 anyway. And secondly, enemies only respawn upon leaving an island, so there was no way I was going to be doing that to grind out some more levels.

But really, there’s no need to be doing that. If you’ve been facing off against every enemy seen during the adventure, you’ll most likely be close to where you need to have an exciting fight against them. Understanding the moves bosses make, and how best to utilise your own against them, helps more. And there’s plenty of variety to the moves bosses can make.

From what I’ve played of it so far, Mario & Luigi Brothership is sure to be a grand adventure through to the end. Lovely interactions, a nice battle system, and full of charm in its visuals and animation. Even the music is catchy. Mario & Luigi Brothership is a great return for the series, and one I can easily recommend.

Images Taken From:
Mario & Luigi Brothership | Nintendo Switch [Docked]