Paper Mario

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Template:Articleabout Template:Infobox Paper Mario, known as Mario Story (マリオストーリー Mario Sutōrī) in Japan, is a role-playing game that was released for the Nintendo 64, and later for the iQue Player and Virtual Console.

The gameplay of Paper Mario draws many parallels to the typical style of Japanese role-playing games, but also includes Mario-esque features, such as the ability to jump. The player controls Mario through a number of locations, explores dungeons, manages stats, and battles enemies. The game derives its title from its arts and crafts aesthetic; The game environments are three-dimensional while nearly every character in the game is drawn as a flat 2D sprite, as if cut out from paper.

Paper Mario was initially in development for the Nintendo 64DD under the name Mario RPG 2[1] and intended as a sequel to Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. It later became the first installment of the Paper Mario series and would eventually receive a sequel in the form of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.

Storyline

Paper Mario promotional artwork: Group
Concept artwork of some of the characters from the game.

Paper Mario tells the story of the Star Rod, a magical staff the Stars of Star Haven use to grant the wishes of the denizens of Mario's world. Over the course of the game, the Star Rod is stolen by Bowser who, after lifting Princess Peach's Castle into the sky, uses the staff's wish-granting powers to make himself invincible.

Being unable to defeat Bowser the conventional way, Mario must travel the Mushroom Kingdom and rescue the seven Star Spirits, who are the only ones able to counter the Star Rod's power and make Bowser vulnerable again. Along the way he is helped by several characters in various ways, by becoming his partners or supporting him otherwise. All the while Bowser attempts to intervene wherever he can, by empowering his minions with the Star Rod.

In the end, Mario and his friends face Bowser atop the Princess' castle and defeat him. The Star Rod is brought back to Star Haven and the castle returns safely to where it was.

The story, from the instruction booklet:

Story: Once Upon a Mushroom

Far, far away beyond the sky, way above the clouds, it's been said that there was a haven where the Stars lived.

In the sanctuary of Star Haven there rested a fabled treasure called the Star Rod, which had the power to grant all wishes. Using this wondrous Star Rod, the seven revered Star Spirits watched over our peaceful world carefully...very carefully.

Then one day, a terrible thing happened... The evil King Bowser appeared in Star Haven and stole the Star Rod! Using its incredible power he quickly imprisoned the seven Star Spirits! Completely unaware of the trouble in far-off Star Haven, Mario was back home in the Mushroom Kingdom, eagerly reading a letter from Princess Peach. It was an invitation to a party at the castle! With much anticipation, he and his brother Luigi set off for the party, oblivious to the chaos that lay ahead...

Opening: The Stolen Star Rod

The title screen for the North American version of Paper Mario.
The title screen of the North American version.

The story opens with a place that lies far beyond the sky and far above the clouds, called Star Haven. Within the sanctuary of Star Haven lies the Star Rod, which can grant any and all wishes. The seven Star Spirits use this artifact to watch over and protect Mushroom Kingdom. Until one day, Kammy Koopa uses her magic to teleport herself and Bowser into the sanctuary and, using his fire-breath, Bowser shatters the protective seal over the Star Rod and grabs it, in hopes of using its power to defeat Mario. Kammy Koopa then traps all of the Star Spirits inside cards, then leaves.

Prologue: A Plea from the Stars

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Luigi with Peach's invitation.

The prologue of Paper Mario introduces Bowser's plan and central conflict of the game, and explains to the player what Mario must do to stop it.

It begins with Mario and Luigi receiving an invitation to one of Princess Peach's parties. Upon arriving at the castle after walking through Toad Town, the brothers find it full of guests from all over the Mushroom Kingdom. Mario then proceeds to meet with the Princess by himself, but their meeting is interrupted by Bowser and Kammy Koopa, the former of which announces his newest scheme.

Mario defending Princess Peach while Bowser attacks him.
Bowser attacking Mario in Peach's Castle.

By using a mechanism resembling a giant Koopa Clown Car, Bowser sets the Princess' castle atop his own fortress and then lifts both buildings into space. Mario attempts to fight off Bowser, but finds himself outmatched when Bowser takes out the Star Rod and uses it to make himself invincible. Mario is then cast out of a window and plummets back towards the ground, which allows Bowser to take a hold of the Princess and lock her up.

Back on the ground, the seven Star Spirits manifest over Mario, who suffered severe injuries from his fall. They use a portion of their remaining power to save his life. Mario's unconscious body is then found by a family of friendly Goombas, who carry him back to their village. While knocked out, he receives a vision from Eldstar, urging him to go to Shooting Star Summit, east of Toad Town.

After waking up, Mario meets the Goomba family who found him, including Goombario, the family's son. They explain to him that the way back to Toad Town lies through the village gate, but before Mario can leave, Kammy Koopa appears, confirms that Mario is still alive, and blocks the gate with a yellow block. After a short venture that involves Mario saving the family's grandfather and a battle with a local troublemaker called Jr. Troopa, Mario manages to break the block using Goompa's hammer. Goompa requests that Goombario join Mario on his quest and together they leave Goomba Village.

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The Goomba King, Red Goomba, and Blue Goomba.

While traveling Goomba Road, the connecting strip of land between Goomba Village and Toad Town, Mario and Goombario are confronted by the Goomba King and his two lackeys, the Goomba Bros.. After a few battles, the protagonists manage to defeat their opposition and reach Toad Town, where they continue on towards Shooting Star Summit.

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Mario conversing with the Star Spirits on Shooting Star Summit.

Atop the summit, Mario is greeted by another manifestation of Eldstar and the other Star Spirits, who tell Mario the story of how Bowser stole the Star Rod. They further explain that the cards in which they have been trapped are now divided among Bowser's forces, and that Mario must save and release them. In doing that, Mario will gain a power called the Star Beam, which can be used to break Bowser's invincibility and allows Mario to defeat him.

Meanwhile, in the sky, Princess Peach finds herself trapped in her room. Not knowing what to do, she wishes for someone to help her, which summons Twink, a Star Kid who only recently ascended to Star Haven. Though unable to help Peach deal with Bowser directly, he agrees to deliver the Lucky Star, Peach's magical pendant, to Mario and help in whichever way he can.

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Chapter 1: Storming Koopa Bros. Fortress

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The Koopa Bros., in disguise, blocking the way out of Toad Town.

In this chapter, Mario gains two new partners in Kooper and Bombette, and confronts the Koopa Bros. to rescue Eldstar.

As Mario returns from Shooting Star Summit, Twink runs into him and delivers the Lucky Star which enables Mario to use Action Commands. Upon re-entering Toad Town, Mario learns that Merlon, the local fortune-teller, has sent for him. Merlon informs Mario that his search for the Star Spirits will lead him to the fortress east of Toad Town, where the Koopa Bros. are holding a Star Spirit captive. As Mario attempts to leave town, four black-garbed Toads block his way who turn out to be the Koopa Bros. in disguise. They flee once Merlon casts a spell to reveal their true identity.

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Mario returning Kooper's shell to his owner

After leaving town, Mario finds the way to the Koopa Bros. Fortress inaccessible to him, so he follows the only path that is open to him, leading him to Koopa Village. He arrives to see the local villagers being harassed by Fuzzies, who are stealing their shells from them. One of their victims is Kooper, who asks Mario for assistance in getting his shell back. Mario then chases the thieving Fuzzies down and manages to retrieve the shell. Upon returning it, Kooper is so grateful that he joins Mario's group.

With the help of Kooper's special ability, Mario is able to reach the Koopa Bros. Fortress, where the eponymous villains are hiding out. During his assault on the fortress however, he triggers a trapdoor which drops him into a prison cell full of Bob-ombs. One of them, Bombette, explains that they were working for the Koopa Bros. but then later got locked up for revolting against them. She then helps Mario and his friends escape by blowing up a crack in the cell wall and decides to accompany him.

Mario and Bombette inside the Koopa Bros. Fortress.

Having escaped the prison cell, the group then travels to the top of the fortress where they confront the Koopa Bros.. The four villains initially try to scare Mario off by hiding inside a fake Bowser suit, but their attempt fails and the suit is destroyed. They then decide to fight Mario and his friends in a direct battle, using a teamwork attack that involves them being stacked on top of each other. Eventually Mario prevails and knocks them off the arena into the prison cell from earlier.

With the Koopa Bros. defeated, Eldstar is released and adds his powers to Mario, teaching him the ability to use Focus, as well as the special move Refresh. After a second encounter with Jr. Troopa, Mario and his friends return to Toad Town.

Peach and Twink finding Bowser's Diary

Shortly after Mario's defeat of the Koopa Bros., Peach, still trapped in her castle in the sky, remembers the existence of a secret passage that leads out of her room. She and Twink use it to leave the room and move to another place in the castle, where they found Bowser's diary. By reading it, Peach and Twink learn that another Star Spirit is being held captive in Dry Dry Desert.

At that moment, Bowser enters the room and catches the Princess reading his diary. Enraged, he summons two guardsmen to escort her back to her room, while Twink quietly leaves the scene undetected.

Storyline text

And so Mario and friends beat the Koopa Bros. at their fortress and rescued the first Star Spirit. Still, six Star Spirits remain imprisoned, and they must save them as quickly as they can. The future of the Mushroom Kingdom, Star Haven and, of course, Princess Peach... lies in the hands of Mario... and his new friends. Their adventure has just begun.

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Chapter 2: The Mystery of Dry, Dry Ruins

File:Pm chap2 k64.png
Mario riding the K64 to Mt. Rugged.

In this chapter, Mario sets out to Dry Dry Desert in search of the second Star Spirit, Mamar. Along the way he is joined by Parakarry and confronts the Koopa wizard Tutankoopa.

After returning to Toad Town, Mario is greeted by Twink, who informs him of what he and Peach have learned last chapter. Mario and his friends part ways with Twink and head towards the train station in the south district of Toad Town, where a railway leads southeast, towards Dry Dry Desert.

The group takes the train to Mt. Rugged, a mountain beyond which the desert lies. On their way over the mountain they run into Parakarry, a Paratroopa mailman in distress. He informs Mario that he dropped letters all over Mt. Rugged and asks Mario for assistance. With no other leads to go on and no way to reach the desert on his own, Mario accepts the request and locates the postman's letters. Parakarry is grateful and joins Mario's group, and with his new ally's flying ability Mario can press on towards the other side of the mountain.

After some information trading with the locals, Moustafa reveals himself to Mario.

Right after entering Dry Dry Desert proper, Mario finds the camp of Kolorado the archeologist. He reveals he is also looking for Dry Dry Ruins and has dispatched one of his assistants to a local settlement, Dry Dry Outpost. Mario follows this lead to the town where, after some information gathering, he meets with the town leader Moustafa. Moustafa hands Mario a Pulse Stone and tells him to let it guide him to the ruins' resting place.

File:Pm chap2 risingruins.png
Dry Dry Ruins rising out of the sand.

Following the Pulse Stone's signal through the desert, Mario eventually finds a stone pedestal. He sets the stone into the pedestal and the entrance to Dry Dry Ruins rises out of the sand before him. A ghostly wail greets him, warning him against continuing his descent. Mario follows the voice deep into the ruins, where he finds Tutankoopa, a Koopa wizard dressed like a Pharaoh. The wizard announces that he is holding a Star Spirit captive and engages Mario in battle.

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Tutankoopa getting chased off by his own Chomp.

During the battle, Tutankoopa keeps releasing Chain Chomps to attack Mario. After suffering enough damage, he loses control of the Chomps and they chase him out of the room. With Tutankoopa gone, Mario is free to rescue the Star Spirit Mamar and leave the desert again.

Some time after that, in Peach's Castle, Bowser visits the Princess in her room. He tells her that, with Tutankoopa defeated, he now intends to stop Mario by using a person called Tubba Blubba, who is allegedly invincible. Once Bowser leaves, Peach and Twink hypothesize that even an invincible person must have a weakness. After some investigating, their theory is confirmed by an overheard conversation between Bowser's men, though Peach never learns what the weakness is exactly.

Storyline text

Thus Mario and party unearthed the legendary Dry Dry Ruins deep within Dry Dry Desert. They smashed Tutankoopa the Wizard and freed Mamar, the second of the wish-granting Star Spirits. But the enemies awaiting Mario grow ever stronger... and the challenges more difficult. What's in store for Mario and friends... Where will their adventure take them next?

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Chapter 3: The "Invincible" Tubba Blubba

In this chapter, Mario gets enlisted by the Boos of Forever Forest to defeat the invincible Tubba Blubba of Gusty Gulch. He is joined by Lady Bow, leader of the Boos, who promises him the Star Spirit Skolar in return for his services.

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Tubba Blubba used to be sensitive.

At some unspecified point between the theft of the Star Rod and the events of chapter 3, Tubba Blubba, a timid Clubba with a fear of ghosts, is approached by Bowser. He makes Tubba Blubba invincible by removing his heart, but in exchange demands that he guard the Star Spirit Skolar. Tubba Blubba then uses his newfound invincibility to take revenge against the Boos that haunted him by eating them.

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Skolar, captured by the Boos.

A while after his imprisonment, Skolar escapes from Tubba Blubba's castle and attempts to return to Star Haven. In his weakened state he tries to reach Shooting Star Summit but gets lost in Forever Forest, where the Boos of Boo's Mansion find him and take him into custody.

Meanwhile, Mario returns from his trip to Dry Dry Desert and arrives in Toad Town again. After wandering around for a while, he hears the screams of a Toad guard called Fice T., who claims he saw an elderly-looking ghost vanish into Forever Forest. Mario investigates and meets Bootler, a servant of Lady Bow who requests Mario's presence in her mansion in the heart of the forest.

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Lady Bow and Bootler welcoming Mario.

Mario follows the ghostly invitation and eventually finds the mansion he was referred to. After overcoming the challenges inside, Mario meets Lady Bow proper on the third floor. She tells Mario about Tubba Blubba and the threat he poses, and how the suffering of her people by his hands enrages her. She then uses the captured Skolar as leverage to get Mario to eliminate Tubba Blubba. She also informs Mario that he will need her aid to do so, and thus, after an argument with Bootler, joins Mario's group.

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Tubba Blubba, about to eat Stanley the Boo

The group leaves Forever Forest and heads towards Gusty Gulch, where Tubba Blubba's castle lies. From the Boos living in the gulch, they learn that there is a secret about Tubba Blubba's invincibility, and that he is keeping a clue pertaining to that secret next to his bed. They also witness Tubba Blubba attacking the ghost village and devouring a Boo called Stanley.

Mario and his friends follow Tubba Blubba to his castle and sneak their way up to the master bedroom. Tubba Blubba enters the room shortly after them, forcing them to wait and hide behind the bed until he goes to sleep. In a chest next to the bed, Mario finds Yakkey, a talkative key who tells them that Tubba Blubba's secret is located inside Windy Mill near the foot of the gulch, and that he is the literal key to that secret. Yakkey concludes that Mario must be a thief, so he yells for Tubba Blubba to wake up. With a furious Tubba Blubba chasing them, Mario and his friends escape the castle, run all the way down to Windy Mill, and unlock it with the key.

File:Pm chap3 tubbasheart.png
Tubba Blubba's Heart

Inside Windy Mill they find Tubba Blubba's secret, which turns out to be his heart. The heart reveals that the body at the castle is just a puppet and that the heart has been controlling it remotely the whole time. It then starts a battle with Mario, but is forced to flee after he proves to be superior. The group chases the heart outside the mill, where Tubba Blubba's body has caught up with them. Heart and body re-unite and attempt to fight Mario again, but with the heart being back inside Tubba Blubba's body, he is back to his old, timid self. Now vulnerable again, Tubba Blubba starts crying and releases all the ghosts he has eaten. He then runs away.

Lady Bow, pleased with this outcome, holds up her part of the bargain and orders Bootler to release Skolar. She also informs Mario of her intention to follow him for a while longer.

A while later, in Peach's Castle, Twink and the Princess decide to sneak out of the bedroom again. They immediately run into Bowser and Kammy Koopa, who are discussing how Mario's next target will be Shy Guy's Toy Box, and pondering what the best way to defeat him there would be. Bowser then tries to coax Peach into telling him about Mario's secret weaknesses, and sends Kammy Koopa to impede his progress using this information. Peach is then escorted back to her room.

Storyline text

After solving the secret of "Invincible" Tubba Blubba, Mario and party set free Star Spirit Skolar. Now, with Tubba Blubba just a bad dream, the Boos are free to haunt to their hearts' content. Even the lonely wind echoing through Gusty Gulch seems to be celebrating the victory... at least for now. With newest party member, Bow, in tow, Mario and friends are ready to take on their next challenge.

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Chapter 4: Trials in the Toy Box

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Throughout all of Toad Town, people's belongings are stolen.

In this chapter, Mario challenges General Guy of Shy Guy's Toy Box in search of rescuing the Star Spirit Muskular. He rescues and is joined by Watt.

After returning to Toad Town from his trip to Forever Forest, Mario finds the town overrun with Shy Guys stealing people's belongings. Moments later Twink arrives and informs Mario of the existence of a place called Shy Guy's Toy Box, as well as that a Star Spirit is held there. Mario and his friends are able to trace the source of the Shy Guy attacks to one of the vacant houses in the residential area. By hiding inside with Lady Bow's ability, Mario is able to observe one of the Shy Guys open a hidden door to a secret back room. Mario follows behind and locates Shy Guy's Toy Box in said room, which he enters.

Shy Guys in Shy Guy's Toy Box
Mario finds the stolen items inside the toy box.

Mario then finds himself at Blue Station, one of four train stations within the toy box. Throughout, Mario fights several Shy Guys, retrieves items that were stolen from Toad Town citizens, and returns them to their previous owners. At certain points, Kammy Koopa appears and attempts to execute Bowser's plan from last chapter by summoning obstacles relating to Mario's weaknesses. The effectiveness of this depends on the answers Peach gave to Bowser's questions.

While facing the toy box's challenges, Mario continuously runs into obstacles he cannot overcome by himself, such as the railway system missing a train, or a massive hungry Shy Guy blocking the way. In these cases the citizens whose items Mario returned help Mario advance, be it by giving him a Toy Train that can be used as a real train inside the toy box, baking him a cake to give away, or other things.

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The light source of the lantern turns out to be Watt.

Eventually, after passing Pink and Green Station, Mario reaches Red Station, where he, following some exploration, enters a dark area. There he encounters a ghostly entity wielding a lantern, the Big Lantern Ghost, who engages Mario in battle. During the fight, the ghost attempts to evade Mario's attacks by hiding in the darkness, but Mario and his friends strike the lantern, which brightens the room and keeps the ghost visible. After enduring enough hits, Big Lantern Ghost drops his lantern and flees. A voice calls out to Mario from inside the lantern, asking to be let out, with which Mario complies. The person trapped inside turns out to be Watt, a Li'l Sparky who was captured by the Shy Guys and used as a light source. Being grateful for being rescued, Watt joins Mario's group.

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General Guy, ready for battle.

Soon after that, Mario locates the Shy Guys' central base of operations, where he meets a Shy Guy wearing a white military uniform: General Guy. The general rallies his men and sends several waves of Shy Guy infantry against Mario and his friends, who dispatch them one after another. With all of his soldiers taken out, General Guy takes the field himself, driving an armored tank. The tank's defenses prove effective against normal attacks, but fail to protect the general from Watt's electric attacks. After a while, the tank is destroyed and General Guy and his Shy Guys are forced to flee, leaving Mario able to rescue Muskular, the fourth Star Spirit.

Peach, Twink
Peach and Twink inside the castle kitchen.

A while later, up in Peach's Castle, the Princess encounters Gourmet Guy during one of her secret trips outside of her room. The Shy Guy tells Peach that he is technically obligated to let the guards know he saw her wandering around, but that he might look the other way if she went into the castle kitchen and baked him a cake. With no other options at that point in time, Peach complies and, with Twink's help, bakes a strawberry cake, which makes Gourmet Guy ecstatic. Once he regains his composure, he informs Peach that the next Star Spirit is being held on Lavalava Island, an island to the south. Twink then leaves to relay this information to Mario, while the Princess ends up being spotted by Kammy Koopa and escorted back to her room.

Storyline text

To save the fourth Star Spirit, Muskular, Mario and team disbanded the gang of Shy Guys toughs. Slowly, it seems as if the life force is returning to the once bleak night sky... But the stars won't truly shine until the Star Rod is wrested from Bowser's evil grasp. Three Star Spirits still await rescue. Where in the world are they being held?

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Chapter 5: Hot, Hot Times on Lavalava Island

Whale
Mario riding the whale to Lavalava Island.

In this chapter, Mario travels to Lavalava Island to find and rescue the Star Spirit Misstar. He is joined by Sushie the Cheep Cheep and battles the Lava Piranha of Mt. Lavalava.

Right after Mario exits Shy Guy's Toy Box with Muskular, Twink arrives and informs Mario of what they have learned from Gourmet Guy. Mario must go to Lavalava Island to find the next Star Spirit. After they part ways, Mario heads to the Toad Town harbor where he meets Kolorado and a whale.

The whale offers to carry Mario and his friends over the ocean, but only if Mario enters its belly to cure a stomach ache it has been having, to which Mario agrees. Inside, Mario finds an angry caterpillar called Fuzzipede who is causing a ruckus and irritating the whale's stomach. Mario resolves the problem and retrieves Fuzzipede. Mario's group and Kolorado then ride the whale to Lavalava Island, Mario to rescue the Star Spirit, and Kolorado to find treasure.

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Mario and Kolorado in front of Mt. Lavalava.

On the island, Mario and Kolorado head to the entrance of Mt. Lavalava, which is inaccessible due to a lava pit. Kolorado suggests visiting the nearby Yoshi settlement to ask the locals for information, but the village is in a state of panic because their kids went missing in the Jungle. Mario heads into Jade Jungle in search of the missing children and finds their caretaker, Sushie, stuck in a tree. After being freed, she joins forces with Mario and together they locate all of the missing Yoshis and bring them back to their parents.

With the kids returned and the villagers pacified, Mario is able to talk to the Village Leader about reaching Mt. Lavalava. The Yoshi suggests seeking out Raphael the Raven in Jade Jungle and gives Mario a Jade Raven, which he explains is the key to finding him. Sushie initially objects to Mario's wish to enter Mt. Lavalava because of the danger, but relents after Mario tells her it is to rescue the Princess. Together they return to Jade Jungle once more to talk to Raphael.

Raphael the Raven
After constructing the ropeways, Raphael hands Mario an Ultra Stone.

Mario finds Raphael the Raven on top of a large tree in an area accessible only with the Jade Raven. Raphael tells Mario that he has foreseen their meeting and offers his assistance. He summons his Raven followers and heads to the foot of Mt. Lavalava, where he has them construct a set of ropeways to help Mario across the lava river. Kolorado catches up with them, and him and Mario enter the volcano together.

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Mario narrowly escaping the volcanic eruption with Misstar's help.

Inside, Mario and Kolorado explore the caverns of Mt. Lavalava, with the former doing most of the work and the latter suffering various injuries while trying to be useful. Deep inside the mountain they meet Lava Piranha, warden of the Star Spirit, who identifies Mario as an enemy and attacks. Mario defeats the hostile plant and releases Misstar, but their moment of triumph is interrupted by the volcano starting to erupt. As they attempt to flee, Kolorado gets distracted by a treasure chest which he presumes contains the treasure he has been looking for. Before the lava reaches them, Misstar grabs him and Mario's group and escapes the volcano through the caldera. Behind them, the treasure chest gets blown out of the mountain and into Jade Jungle.

In the meantime, Peach encounters three of Bowser's minions setting up a quiz show. Since they are one player short, they ask Peach to participate. During the show, several of the questions reveal that there is a Star Spirit held captive in a place called Flower Fields. For her participation in the game she is handed a Sneaky Parasol, an item that can copy the appearance of whoever the holder is facing. But before she can make any use of it, Bowser enters the room, spots the Princess, and has her escorted back to her room.

Storyline text

Venturing deep into the steamimg[sic] Mt. Lavalava, Mario and friends plucked the Lava Piranha... and rescued the fifth Star Spirit, Misstar, from a fiery fate. But the "treasure" Kolorado is looking for is yet to be found. Wherever could it be? What's that...? Something...strange...is going on around here...

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Chapter 6: Dark Days in Flower Fields

Mario and Lakilester in Flower Fields.
Mario and Lakilester in Flower Fields after the clouds are dispelled.

The sixth Star Spirit is hidden in beautiful Flower Fields. After Mario finds the four Magical Seeds from the four Bub-ulbs from Mt. Rugged, Forever Forest, Toad Town, and Lavalava Island, he opens the portal to Flower Fields in Toad Town. When Mario enters, he sees clouds and withering plants. The Wise Wisterwood tells Mario that the clouds are the result of the truly evil Huff N. Puff, who is using his Puff-Puff Machine to cover Flower Fields in clouds. Mario then meets four different flowers who help him create a beanstalk to reach the Cloudy Climb where Huff N. Puff is hiding with his Star Spirit. Mario first meets Petunia, who gives him a magic bean for clearing out some Monty Moles. Mario then encounters Posie, who gives him fertile soil so his nose can grow bigger like hers. Mario then visits Lily, who is in a state of crisis; her pond has dried up because Lakitus stole the Water Stone, the stone that produces the water known as Miracle Water. To keep her alive, Mario vows to find the stone. Mario then searches for it, eventually finding the Lakitus and besting them in battle.

He then meets a self-absorbed flower by the name of Rosie. She holds the Water Stone and won't give it to Mario unless he finds something more beautiful. Mario asks Posie for a Crystal Berry which she gives him. He then presents this berry to Rosie who immediately falls in love with it, and lets Mario have the Water Stone. Mario then takes it back to Lily. After the Water Stone is back in place, she gives Mario some of the Miracle Water. Mario now has everything for his beanstalk except the Sun. Mario meets with the Sun who says that it is impossible for him to return to the sky in its current state. Mario then sets off on a quest to destroy the Puff-Puff Machine. On the way, he meets a very confused Lakitu who hates his name and challenges Mario. After the Lakitu is defeated, he uses his real name, Lakilester, and joins Mario's party. Mario then proceeds to destroy the machine, after which the Sun is able to rise into the sky again. Flower Fields then rejoices, but Huff N. Puff is still at large. To finish the job, Mario grows the beanstalk and heads to Cloudy Climb and defeats Huff N. Puff for the sixth Star Spirit, Klevar.

Back at the castle, Peach uses the Sneaky Parasol she won at the quiz show to turn herself into one of the guards, allowing her to move around the castle without fear of getting caught. Peach then learns that Kammy Koopa is building a weapon designed to defeat Mario. Before she can find out what it is, however, Kammy notices a peculiar smell coming from her disguise. Kammy then casts a spell on her, reverting her to normal. She is then taken back to her room yet again.

Storyline text

So it is that Mario and party defeat cruel cloud Huff N. Puff and set free the sixth Star Spirit. The thick clouds that once cast dark shadows have gone, and Flower Fields is bathed in sunshine again. A single Star Spirit waits to be rescued, waits to take its place in the Star Sanctuary. Perhaps you will see Princess Peach soon... Perhaps... Just wait and see. Kammy Koopa, who watches impatiently from Bowser's Castle, is waiting, too... for you to try to save them...

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Chapter 7: A Star Spirit on Ice

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Mario and Bombette deep inside the Palace.

The seventh and final Star Spirit is said to be held in the ancient Crystal Palace. After being given advice by Merlon and a Ninji, Mario heads to Shiver City. When Mario arrives via the sewers, he finds a Bumpty blocking the way to Starborn Valley. The Bumpty says he will not let anyone pass unless the mayor gives permission. Mario then seeks the mayor out so he can leave the city. When Mario visits the mayor's house, though, he finds him knocked out on the floor. His wife then comes in and assumes that Mario killed him. Mario's partner at the time is horrified and objects by pointing that Mario wouldn't murder the mayor. A police bumpty says he'll let Mario go only if he finds the real murderer. Mario notices that there is a crumpled note in his hand with a single word written on it: "Herringway". Mario then goes out into town looking for Herringway and finds him, who is currently writing his future novel in his house. Mario tells Herringway the story, after which Herringway agrees to go to the mayor's house to help with the investigation. Mario then tells the police about the note. The police then starts accusing Herringway instead, with the mayor's wife still thinking Mario did it. Suddenly the mayor starts twitching and he pops up. The mayor's wife screams for help yelling out that he's a ghost. The mayor explains he was unconscious and gives a present to Herringway, the same present that fell and knocked him out. The mayor then allows Mario to go to Starborn Valley.

Once he gets attacked again by Jr. Troopa and reaches the outskirts of Starborn Valley, an odd monster called Monstar appears. Mario defeats it and reveals it to actually be a bunch of very protective Star Kids. Mario then meets Merle who tells Mario to go to the Crystal Palace where the seventh Star Spirit is being held. He then gives Mario a scarf, telling him to use it on something special, then telling Mario to go and ask Mayor Penguin for the other special item. Mario then receives a bucket from the mayor who tells him he has no idea what it does. Mario then goes a line of snowmen on the path between Shiver City and Starborn Valley, Two, however, are missing something: One is missing a scarf and the other is missing a a hat. Mario gives the items to the respective owners. The snowmen thank him and open the way to the Crystal Palace. Along the way to the palace, they meet Madam Merlar, who gives Mario the Star Stone, letting him reach the palace. Once inside, the group realizes that it contains many traps and puzzles involving Duplighosts and fake mirrors with real mirror effects. Once they reach the Crystal King at the palace's back, Mario defeats him for the final Star Spirit, Kalmar.

The final segment at Peach's Castle is simply a cutscene, as opposed to a playing experience. Bowser enters Peach's room and tells her that if Mario comes, he will destroy him. Kammy informs him that Mario now has all seven Star Spirits. Bowser orders the Koopa Troop to their battle stations and threatens to kill them if the princess escapes their vision. He has the princess tied up to keep her out of mischief; Twink, furious, jumps out and tries attacking him, but it doesn't work. Bowser hisses at Twink through bared teeth and swats him out of the window. Soon he, Kammy, and the princess go upstairs to where Bowser first defeated Mario.

Storyline text

Mario has saved the last Star Spirit, Kalmar, from the Crystal Palace at the edge of the world. Now, with the seven Star Spirits together, he has the power to challenge Bowser...and the Star Rod. At last, it is time for Mario's showdown with Evil King Bowser. Can Mario rescue Princess Peach and recover the Star Rod? Or will wishes forever go ungranted?

Names in other languages Template:Foreignname

Chapter 8: A Star-Powered Showdown!

Mario, Goombario, Bowser, Princess Peach, and Kammy Koopa on the Power Platform.
Mario, Peach, and Goombario watch as Kammy Koopa uses the Power Platform to make Bowser stronger, as the final battle begins.

With the help of the seven Star Spirits, Mario and the team reach Star Haven, acquire the Star Beam, and use the power of the Star Spirits to travel to Bowser's Castle. After going through the castle, falling for traps, solving puzzles (and possibly fighting three Anti Guys), and getting attacked by Jr. Troopa one last time in the process, they finally find Princess Peach. Bowser fights Mario in the same exact spot where they fought at the beginning, but the Star Spirits' combined power now lets Mario stop Bowser's invincibility. Bowser takes Peach and flees, and the group follows him up to the castle roof to reclaim the Star Rod. Kammy then uses her Power Platform to pump Bowser up in both power and size; when he powers up with the Star Rod, Mario finds that the Star Beam is now uneffective.

Meanwhile, Twink frees the Princess, and the two start to battle Kammy. Twink's attacks start out ineffective, and it falls to the Princess to help him. She uses her "Focus" power and makes wishes, which give Twink more power with each turn, to the point where Kammy's attacks become ineffective. Kammy remembers the secret of all Stars before her defeat - they get their power from the wishes of ordinary people. Twink urges the Princess to make a wish for "everyone in the Mushroom Kingdom". The Princess concentrates and prays her hardest; this action fills the Star Spirits with more power than ever. Twink joins them to create the almighty Peach Beam, which cuts through Bowser's enhanced power. After a long and hard battle that leaves Bowser snarling in pain, Mario recovers and returns the Star Rod to the Star Spirits, lets Bowser's Castle self-destruct and restores Peach's Castle to its spot and the rest of the world to its former peace. To celebrate, the Princess throws another party a few days later with a parade, featuring characters from the whole game.

Names in other languages Template:Foreignname

Ending

Mario and Peach riding a float at the end of the game.

Mario walks in to the castle and is greeted by the Toad Minister who says that Princess Peach is coming out. As Peach comes out she says that, thanks to Mario and his friends, the Mushroom Kingdom is now at peace once again. Then an eight minute staff credit parade starts. Luigi walks on screen, dressed somewhat like a British guard, and signals the parade to start. A group of 2X3 Toads march on screen. The first two are playing trumpets. The second ones are the drum line. The last row is holding big banners in the air. Then the Star Ship used to travel to Bowser's castle appears, holding all of Mario's partners on it. Then three Toad girls who are twirling sticks walk by, followed by Chuck Quizmo and Vanna T.

After Chuck Quizmo and Vanna T., the Koopa Bros. are seen on a parade car similar to the Bowser tank, possibly made from the remnants of the Bowser??? but four Bob-ombs explode on them. Professor Kolorado and his wife are seen on top of the whale in the background, and Moustafa runs into Rowf and Rhuff. Tutankoopa is being chased by a Chomp (like in the game) and manages to avoid it. Meanwhile, in the background Buzzar is seen on a mountain, with three eggs in his nest, and they hatch. Tutankoopa then runs by being chased by three Chomps. Bootler enters the screen and Tubba Blubba appears to fly by behind him, but is really being carried by Boos. His heart frantically chases after his body. Afterward, a tree slides by with the Goomba King stuck upside-down in it, and the Goomba Bros. circling it. Goomba King falls out of the tree, stands up and joins the parade with his minions.

Afterward, a Lavalava Island float slides by, with all the adult Yoshis on it (including the chief) except the red and purple adults. Raphael the Raven and Lava Piranha alternate between peeking out from behind Mt. Lavalava. After the island goes off the screen, the five Yoshi kids jump off. Huff N. Puff and Gourmet Guy walk by them, and the Yoshi kids attack them with their tongues, shrinking Huff N. Puff, and leave. Gourmet Guy then pulls out a knife and fork and chases Huff N. Puff, intending to eat him. What appears to be the Crystal King appears next, but another Crystal King comes and reveals the first to be a Duplighost. The real Crystal King reveals the second as another Duplighost, but is then carried away by his Crystal Bits. Finally, Jr. Troopa and Kammy Koopa come onscreen, fighting using magic. Bowser rides by in his Koopa Clown Car between two juggling Hammer Bros. and two Koopatrol flagmen, and Jr. Troopa and Kammy Koopa's attacks collide on him, blowing him up and making the surrounding minions flee. He chases them off the screen, then an explosion can be seen, and a charred Jr. Troopa and Kammy Koopa are sent flying onscreen to the ground.

Afterward, the parade shifts to nighttime, in which a parade car is shown with the Star Spirits. Penguins are seen skating, followed by Mayor Penguin and his wife, as well as a second band of Toads (with the Chanterelle), two Amazy Dayzees, the sun, and Merlon, Merluvlee, Merlee, Merlow, Merle, and Madam Merlar on a stage with the Wise Wisterwood. Then, a stage slides by with General Guy, two Shy Guys of the Shy Squad, and four Groove Guys dancing. Following up are 16 more Shy Guys in the Shy Squad, and after they walk by, the straggler Shy Guy runs after them in his usual fashion. The parade ends with the same Toads from the beginning of the parade (with their spots flashing), followed by a float with Mario and Princess Peach on it. Twink comes down, now a full-grown Star Kid, and Mario and Peach leave the float to go to Mario's house. Three more stick-twirling Toad girls and two more Toad flagmen are seen before the camera cuts to Mario's house, where Mario and Peach watch a fireworks display, and a THE END screen comes on. After a while "The End" shrinks and sits in the lower-right hand corner of the screen, and the fireworks continue until the game is shut off.

General gameplay

File:BooMansion.png
Mario, his partner Lady Bow, and a Boo NPC.

For the majority of the game, the player controls Mario through various locations in the overworld. The game is divided into chapters, each of them generally being set in a new area. Other characters can frequently be found roaming these areas. Some of them are friendly and can be talked to or bartered with, some will join Mario's team, others are hostile and will start a battle if approached.

On his way, Mario and his friends can rely on several abilities that help them progress. Mario can jump to reach higher ground, traverse gaps, or reach blocks floating above his head. Early on he also gains a hammer that can be used to break larger blocks or other obstacles. At later points the player can find special items that upgrade Mario's jump and hammer and give him new abilities to work with.

At the end of each chapter, an interlude occurs in which the player controls Princess Peach instead of Mario. Peach does not have access to Mario's abilities, party members, or inventory. Items picked up as Peach can be deposited in the mysterious treasure chest in the castle storage room. The items can later be picked up by Mario from the chest's counterpart at Merluvlee's Place.

Controls

Overworld

  • Control Stick – Move
  • A Button – Jump / Talk / Investigate
  • B Button – Hammer
  • Z ButtonSpin Dash
  • Up C Button – Toggle HUD
  • Right C Button – Open partner menu
  • Left C Button – Open inventory
  • Down C Button – Partner ability
  • START Button – Open game menu

Menu

  • Control Stick – Move cursor
  • A Button – Confirm
  • B Button – Cancel
  • Z Button – Move to left register
  • R Button – Move to right register
  • START Button – Open menu

Battle

  • Control Stick – Move cursor
  • A Button – Confirm / Guard (during enemy attack)
  • B Button – Cancel
  • Z Button – Change attack order
  • Down C Button – Used for some action commands

As Princess Peach

Mario's stats

Stat Initial value Min. value Max. value Function
File:Go Mario.PNG
Mario
File:Pm icon level.png Level 1 1 27 Indicates Mario's progress overall. With every new level, the player may increase HP, FP, or BP.
File:Pm icon hp.png Heart Points (HP) 10 5 50 Denote Mario's health. If they reach zero, the game is over.
File:Pm icon fp.png Flower Points (FP) 5 5 50 Allow Mario and his partners to perform more potent attacks.
PaperMarioBP.png Badge Points (BP) 3 3 30 Determine which and how many badges Mario can equip.
File:Pm icon se.gif Star Energy 0 0 7 Used to fuel Special Moves. Unavailable until at least one Star Spirit has been rescued.
Image of a Star Point, from Paper Mario. Star Points 0 0 100 Denote Mario's progress towards the next level. They are awarded after battles and collecting 100 of them make Mario level up.
Sprite of a Coin, from Paper Mario. Coins 0 0 999 Dropped by enemies, found in ? Blocks and other places. They are used to purchase items.
A Star Piece, from Paper Mario. Star Pieces 0 0 160 Can be found in hidden places or received from NPCs. Mario can exchange them for badges with Merlow.
File:Pm icon time.png Play Time 0:00 0:00 99:59 Measures for how long the player has played the game. It has no effect on gameplay.

Upgrades

Item Location Effect
File:Pm itm boots1.png
Boots
Available from the start The Boots allow Mario to use the jump command in battle. His jump attack deals 1 point of damage (twice if timed correctly).
SuperBoots PM.png
Super Boots
Boo's Mansion The Super Boots allow Mario to use the Spin Jump which can break through wooden floor panels and reveal hidden panels containing Star Pieces. They also upgrade the strength of his jump attack, making it deal 2 points of damage (twice if timed correctly).
UltraBoots PM.png
Ultra Boots
Toad Town Tunnels The Ultra Boots upgrade the Spin Jump to the Tornado Jump which retains its previous ability and allows Mario to get some extra height for his jumps. They also upgrade the strength of his jump attack, making it deal 3 points of damage (twice if timed correctly).
File:Pm itm hammer1.png
Hammer
Goomba Village The Hammer allows Mario to break yellow blocks and use the hammer command in battle. His hammer attack deals 1 point of damage (2 if timed correctly).
File:Pm itm hammer2.png
Super Hammer
Dry Dry Ruins The Super Hammer allows Mario to break stone blocks and upgrades the strength of his hammer attack power to 2 (4 if timed correctly).
File:Pm itm hammer3.png
Ultra Hammer
Mt. Lavalava The Ultra Hammer allows Mario to break metal blocks, reveal hidden panels on the ground, and upgrades the strength of his hammer attack power to 3 (6 if timed correctly).
UltraStone PM.png
Ultra Stone
Jade Jungle The Ultra Stone enables Mario to use Super Blocks to upgrade partners to Ultra Rank.
File:Sneakyparasol.gif
Sneaky Parasol
Princess Peach's Castle With this item, Princess Peach can copy the appearance of any NPC she is facing.

Objects

A list of reoccurring devices that Mario can encounter during his quest. Some of them are beneficial and help the player by making traveling easier, containing items, or making Mario and his friends stronger. Others serve as obstacles and require a specific ability, item, or party member to overcome.

Beneficial objects

Object Effect
File:Saveblock PM.gif
Save Block
Hitting this block with a jump allows the player to save the game.
A Heart Block.
Heart Block
This block refills Mario's Heart Points and Flower Points when activated. Unlike Toad Houses though, it does not refill Star Power.
File:Pm obj superbl.png
Super Block
There are 16 Super Blocks in the game in total. They can be used to upgrade party members and making them stronger in battle.
File:Pm obj chest.png
Treasure Chest
Treasure chests contain valuable items, badges, or keys. The bigger variants contain upgrades for Mario's jump and hammer abilities.
File:Paper Block.pngFile:Pm obj itemblred.png
? Block
Mario can reveal the contents of these blocks by jumping beneath them or hitting them with a hammer. The yellow ones contain coins or items, while the red ones contain badges.
File:Pm obj hiddenblock.png
Hidden Block
The same as a regular ? Block, except it is invisible. Mario can use Watt's overworld ability to make them visible. A list of all 47 hidden blocks can be found here.
PaperMarioBrickBlock.png
Brick Block
These can be broken by jumping beneath them or with the hammer. Some ? Blocks are disguised as Brick Blocks.
A trampoline from PM.
Springboard
By jumping on a Springboard, Mario's jump gains some extra height. The blue ones allow the player to retain control of Mario's jump while the red ones launch him towards a fixed location.
File:Pm obj warppipe.png
Warp Pipe
Warp Pipes can be used for traveling between certain areas. Blue pipes serve as shortcuts to remote towns and have to be unlocked in Toad Town Tunnels before they can be used.

Obstacles

Object Effect
File:Yellowblock.gif
Yellow Block
Requires Hammer to break.
File:Pm obj stoneblock.png
Stone Block
Requires Super Hammer to break.
File:PM MetalBlock.gif
Metal Block
Requires Ultra Hammer to break.
File:Pm obj floorboard.png
Floor barricade
These can be broken with the Spin Jump or Tornado Jump.
File:Pm obj switchblue.png
! Switch
Switches trigger various events when hit or jumped on and are often involved in puzzles. The blue ones vanish after being triggered, while the red ones can be activated multiple times.
File:Pm obj lock.png
Door lock
These can be found on certain doors. They require a key to be unlocked.
File:Pm obj crackrock.png
Cracked object
Walls or other objects with visible cracks in them can be blown up by Bombette's Bomb ability.
File:Pm obj woodplat.png
Wooden platform
These can be found on the edges of bodies of water. When near them, Mario can use Sushie's overworld ability to swim.

Mario's Partners

An important part of Paper Mario is the partner system, which features characters who join Mario at certain points of his journey and assist him on his quest. Every partner character has an overworld ability that can be used by pressing Down C Button and usually serves to aid in traversing the landscape in some way. Additionally they can aid Mario in battle by using various moves.

Ranking up partners

Each partner joins Mario at their most basic rank, able to choose from two moves in battle. If the player manages to locate a Super Block, they may upgrade one of their currently available partners to the next rank, which increases the damage output of all their attacks and lets them learn a new move.

The first time a partner is upgraded, they advance to Super Rank. To upgrade them even further, Mario needs to be in possession of the Ultra Stone, which allows partners to reach Ultra Rank. At Ultra Rank, each partner has four moves and cannot be upgraded further. There are 16 Super Blocks in the game in total, enough to advance every partner to their final rank.

List of partners

Name Info Overworld ability
Goombario from Paper Mario.
Goombario
  • Goombario is a young Goomba from Goomba Village and Mario's self-proclaimed biggest fan.
  • Very eager to impress his idol, he joins Mario immediately after his grandfather Goompa requests it.
  • Joins in: Goomba Village
  • Goombario can be asked for information about the area he and Mario are standing in at the time.
  • When this is used while Mario faces someone else, Goombario shares his knowledge or impression of the character.
Goombario's Battle information
Headbonk
(0 FP)
  • Attacks 1 enemy with a headbutt.
  • Spiked or burning enemies will injure Goombario.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button just before making contact with the enemy.
Tattle
(0 FP)
  • Provides information about the targeted enemy type.
  • Displays HP of all subsequently encountered enemies of that type.
Charge
(1 FP)
  • Raises Goombario's next attack power by 2.
  • Stackable.
Multibonk
(3 FP)
  • Attacks one enemy consecutively until the action command is failed.
  • Spiked or burning enemies will injure Goombario.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button every hit just before making contact with the enemy.
    • Missing a button press cancels the attack.
Kooper from Paper Mario.
Kooper
  • Kooper is an aspiring adventurer from Koopa Village.
  • He greatly admires his neighbor Kolorado and joins Mario to follow in the archeologist's footsteps.
  • Joins in: Koopa Village
  • Kooper withdraws into his shell and allows Mario to launch him forward in a straight line.
  • This ability can activate switches, attack enemies, and grab items remotely.
Kooper's Battle information
Shell Toss
(0 FP)
  • Attacks one enemy on the ground.
  • Can only target the first ground-bound enemy.
  • Action command: Holding Control Stick left until the red star mark appears, then releasing it.
Power Shell
(3 FP)
  • Attacks all enemies on the ground.
  • Action command: Holding Control Stick left until the red star mark appears, then releasing it.
Dizzy Shell
(4 FP)
  • Targets all enemies on the ground and has a chance to inflict dizziness.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button repeatedly to fill up gauge.
Fire Shell
(5 FP)
  • Attacks all enemies on the ground.
  • Does two points of bonus damage to ice enemies and permanently defeats Dry Bones.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button repeatedly to fill up gauge.
Bombette from Paper Mario.
Bombette
  • Bombette is a rebellious Bob-Omb who was thrown into the Koopa Bros. Fortress dungeon after violently disagreeing with her poor work conditions.
  • She joins Mario as thanks for helping her escape her predicament.
  • Joins in: Koopa Bros. Fortress
  • Bombette walks forward for a while and then explodes.
  • The explosion can destroy cracked walls or boulders and can also attack enemies.
Bombette's Battle information
Body Slam
(0 FP)
  • Attacks 1 enemy on the ground.
  • Can only target the first ground-bound enemy.
  • Action command: Holding A Button until the red star mark appears, then releasing it.
Bomb
(3 FP)
  • Attacks 1 enemy on the ground.
  • Can only target the first ground-bound enemy.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button repeatedly to fill up gauge.
Power Bomb
(6 FP)
  • Attacks all enemies on the ground
  • Action command: Pressing A Button repeatedly to fill up gauge.
Mega Bomb
(8 FP)
  • Attacks all enemies regardless of their position.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button repeatedly to fill up gauge.
Parakarry from Paper Mario.
Parakarry
  • Parakarry is a Paratroopa mailman working for the Toad Town post office.
  • He has a reputation for being slow and tends to drop the letters he is supposed to deliver.
  • He joins Mario in exchange for help with looking for his lost letters.
  • Joins in: Mt. Rugged
  • Parakarry grabs hold of Mario and carries him over gaps that are too wide for him to jump over by himself.
Parakarry's Battle information
Sky Dive
(0 FP)
  • Attacks one enemy regardless of position.
  • Spiked or burning enemies will injure Parakarry.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button just before making contact with the enemy.
Shell Shot
(3 FP)
  • Attacks one enemy regardless of position.
  • Action command: Holding Control Stick left until targeting reticule lines up with the enemy.
    • Failing the action command causes this attack to miss.
Air Lift
(3 FP)
  • May remove one enemy from the battle.
  • Bosses and spiked or burning enemies are unaffected by this attack.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button repeatedly to fill up gauge.
Air Raid
(6 FP)
  • Attacks all enemies regardless of their position and ignores their defense rating.
  • Action command: Tapping Control Stick left repeatedly to fill up gauge.
Lady Bow from Paper Mario.
Lady Bow
  • Lady Bow is an aristocratic Boo who owns the mansion in Forever Forest.
  • She first enlists Mario's help against Tubba Blubba by blackmailing him and then stays with him because she feels like it.
  • Joins in: Boo's Mansion
  • Lady Bow can make Mario and herself intangible and undetectable.
  • This can be used to sneak past enemies or in some cases move through solid objects.
Lady Bow's Battle information
Smack
(0 FP)
  • Repeatedly attacks one enemy regardless of position.
  • Action command: Tapping Control Stick left repeatedly to fill up gauge.
Outta Sight
(2 FP)
  • Makes Mario and herself immune to all enemy attacks.
  • Using this move renders her unable to act during the following turn.
Spook
(3 FP)
  • Targets all enemies and may remove them from the battle.
  • Bosses are unaffected by this attack.
  • Action command: Tapping Control Stick left repeatedly to fill up gauge.
Fan Smack
(5 FP)
  • Repeatedly attacks one enemy regardless of position.
  • Action command: Tapping Control Stick left repeatedly to fill up gauge.
File:Watt Paper Mario.png
Watt
  • Mario holds Watt in front of him, which illuminates dark areas and reveals the positions of hidden blocks.
Watt's Battle information
Electro Dash
(0 FP)
  • Attacks one enemy regardless of position.
  • The attack ignores the enemy's defense rating.
  • Action command: Holding A Button until the red star mark appears, then releasing it.
Power Shock
(2 FP)
  • Targets one enemy and may immobilize it.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button repeatedly to fill up gauge.
Turbo Charge
(3 FP)
  • Temporarily raises the damage of all of Mario's attacks by one point.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button every time a red star mark lights up.
Mega Shock
(5 FP)
  • Targets all enemies and may immobilize them.
  • Action command: Pressing both A Button and B Button together repeatedly to fill up gauge.
File:Sushie Paper Mario.png
Sushie
  • Sushie is a mother Cheep Cheep who lives on Lavalava Island and serves as a caretaker for the local Yoshi children.
  • Enamored by Mario's quest to rescue his love interest, she decides to accompany him.
  • Joins in: Jade Jungle
  • When standing at a wooden platform near water, Mario can jump on Sushies back and ride her through the water.
  • Pressing Down C Button again makes her dive underwater.
Sushie's Battle information
Belly Flop
(0 FP)
  • Attacks one enemy on the ground or in the air
  • Action command: Holding Control Stick left until the red star mark appears, then releasing it.
Squirt
(3 FP)
  • Attacks one enemy with water.
  • It causes 2 points of bonus damage to fire-based enemies.
  • Action command: Holding A Button to fill up gauge without letting it overflow.
Water Block
(3 FP)
  • Temporarily raises Mario's defense by one point.
  • Raises Mario's defense by two for fiery attacks.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button every time a red star mark lights up.
Tidal Wave
(6 FP)
  • Attacks all enemies regardless of position.
  • It causes 2 points of bonus damage to fire-based enemies.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button, B Button, and Down C Button as shown.
Lakilester from Paper Mario.
Lakilester
  • Lakilester allows Mario to ride on his back.
  • His cloud can transport them over hazardous surfaces such as spikes or lava.
Lakilester's Battle information
Spiny Flip
(0 FP)
  • Attacks one enemy regardless of position.
  • Can only target the first ground-bound enemy.
  • Action command: Moving a cursor with Control Stick and aligning it with the enemy.
    • If the cursor is not properly aligned, the attack fails.
Spiny Surge
(4 FP)
  • Attacks all enemies regardless of position.
  • Action command: Tapping Control Stick left repeatedly to fill up gauge.
Cloud Nine
(4 FP)
  • Temporarily boosts Mario's evasiveness, making enemy attacks miss randomly.
  • Action command: Pressing A Button every time a red star mark lights up.
Hurricane
(5 FP)
  • Targets all enemies and may remove them from the battle.
  • Bosses are unaffected by this attack.
  • Action command: Pressing both A Button and B Button together repeatedly to fill up gauge.

Battle system

The battle interface of Paper Mario.

Paper Mario uses a turn-based side-view battle system. Enemies are visible on the overworld and initiate a battle if the player makes contact with them. The manner in which this happens also determines whether the battle starts in Mario's or the enemies' favor; Successfully attacking an enemy on the overworld nets Mario a preemptive hit on an enemy, whereas getting hit by an attack lets one enemy damage Mario before the fight starts proper.

On the battle screen itself, Mario and one partner of his choice find themselves on the left side of the screen, with the enemy group occupying the right side. What kind of enemies Mario faces is determined by which type of enemy initiated the battle on the overworld, with several different formations being possible.

Mario with low health.

To win a battle, the player must eliminate all enemies on the opposite side, either by defeating them or by making them run away. An enemy counts as defeated if their Heart Points (HP) are dropped to zero. Likewise, if Mario's HP drop to zero without a Life Shroom in his inventory, the battle is lost. The player can keep track of Mario's HP and various other stats with the battle statistic on the top side of the screen.

During battle, the player and the enemies take turns attacking. The damage an attack will do is determined by the attack's power minus the target's defense rating. During the player's turn, Mario and the currently active partner each get an action, the order being changeable by pressing Z Button.

Mario's action

Mario's main attack options all fall into the two categories of "hammer" and "jump". The condition of the targeted enemy may make one or both of these options either inaccessible or inadvisable. Hammer attacks have a limited range and can only attack the first ground-bound enemy of a group. Jump attacks on the other hand can reach past enemies standing in the way, or attack enemies flying out of reach, but jumping on a spiked or otherwise hazardous foe cancels the attack and makes Mario take 1 HP of damage.

Both hammer and jump attacks can be customized by outfitting Mario with certain badges. Custom hammer or jump attacks usually consume Flower Points (FP) and cannot be used if the required amount is not available.

Mario using the special move Star Storm

Once unlocked by finding the correlating Star Spirits, Mario is also able to use special moves. These can have a wide variety of effects depending on the move used, but all of them consume a certain amount of Star Power (SP). Mario's SP is represented by a series of colored bars at the top of the screen, and each bar equals one unit. A small amount of SP is regained with each turn, but more may be restored by using the Focus command.

Aside from hammer and jump attacks or special moves, Mario can also use items from his inventory, do nothing, or attempt to run away. During an escape attempt, a bar appears that may be anywhere between empty and completely full, depending on the number and level of enemies. The player can slowly fill the bar by repeatedly tapping A Button. While escaping is in progress, an indicator slides back and forth between the right and left side of the bar until it stops. If it stops on the filled portion of the bar, the escape attempt is successful and Mario returns to the overworld (while losing a few coins in the process). Otherwise Mario wastes his action and the battle continues.

Partner action

Goombario using his Tattle ability

The partner's options are more limited than Mario's, but can be increased by equipping badges. Under normal circumstances, a partner can either attack or do nothing, the latter of which skips their action. Depending on their level, a partner can have up to four attacks in their repertoire. At least one of these attacks is always free to use, whereas other, more potent attacks cost Flower Points.

The partners do not have their own FP and instead draw from the same pool as Mario does. Special care has to be taken with partners who use jump-type attacks, because they are susceptible to the same hazards as Mario's jump command, which means the partner can get injured by jumping on certain enemies.

Only one partner can be used during battle, but the currently active one can be swapped out for a different partner during battle. This wastes an action unless the Quick Change badge is equipped.

Enemy action

File:Pm btl 02.png
Mario being hit by an attack.

After both Mario and his partner have taken their actions, all able enemies will then attack one after another. In most cases, enemies will target Mario, but some attacks can hit the partner, either separately or additionally to Mario. Since Mario's partners do not have HP themselves, every time they get injured, it disables them for a set amount of turns, one turn for each point of damage.

Once all enemies have attacked, the current turn ends and the next one starts from the beginning again, with the player choosing Mario and his partners' actions.

Status effects

Some items and attacks afflict their targets with conditions that affect their battle performance. In most cases, these status effects are temporary and the number of turns they will last is denoted along with an icon that indicates what the status effect is. Status effects only apply in battle and wear off once the player returns to the overworld.

Regular effects

Appearance Name Effect
File:Pm stat atkup.png Attack power up Boosts the damage of all attacks by the specified amount.
File:Pm stat defup.png Defense up Reduces damage from incoming attacks by the specified amount.
File:Pm stat dizzy.gif Dizzy The target is unable to execute actions until the effect wears off.
File:Pm stat frozen.gif Frozen
File:Pm stat immobilized.gif Immobilized
File:Pm stat paralysis.gif Paralyzed
File:Pm stat sleep.gif Sleepy
File:Pm stat electrified.gif Electrified If the target is hit by a contact attack, the attacker receives one point of damage. If the attack is part of a sequence, it will be canceled after the first hit.
File:Pm stat invisible.gif Invisible Forces all attacks against the target to miss.
File:Pm stat poison.gif Poison The target's sprite gets a green tint and they take one point of damage every turn.
File:Pm stat tiny.gif Tiny The target is shrunk and the power of their attacks is cut in half.

Unique effects

Appearance Name Effect
File:Pm stat cloudnine.png Cloud Nine Mario is encased in a cloud which randomly causes enemy attacks to miss.
File:Pm stat danger.png

Tired (Danger/Peril) Mario in the game Paper Mario.
Danger This state triggers when Mario's HP are equal to or less than 5. It has no immediate effect on battle, but some badges require him to be in this state to work.
File:Pm stat flipped.png Flipped A state unique to shell-wearing enemies and Clefts. An enemy that has been flipped upside-down has reduced defense and may not be able to attack for one or more turns.
File:Pm stat injured.png Injured This state is exclusive to partner characters and triggers every time they take damage. An injured partner is immobilized and cannot be switched out until the effect wears off.
File:Pm stat peril.png

Tired (Danger/Peril) Mario in the game Paper Mario.
Peril This state triggers when Mario's HP drop down to 1. It has no immediate effect on battle, but some badges require him to be in this state to work.
File:Pm stat stone.png Stone Mario becomes impervious to all enemy attacks, but also cannot move.

Action Commands

After Mario receives the Lucky Star at the foot of Shooting Star Summit, the player is able to use action commands in battle. From then on, whenever Mario or his partner execute an attack, a prompt shows up and input from the player is required. If the action command is successful, attacks will do bonus damage or have other additional effects.

Likewise, if during an enemy's turn the player presses A Button right before an attack connects, Mario will guard against it and the damage will be reduced by 1. Additionally, if an enemy attack would cause a status effect, successfully guarding against it cancels the effect.

End of battle

File:LevelUp!.png
With every 100th Star Point comes a new level.

Once all enemies have been eliminated, Mario receives experience in form of Star Points. The amount of Star Points received depends on the levels of the defeated enemies as well as that of Mario himself, and may be anywhere between none and 100. Whenever Mario's Star Point count reaches 100, his level increases by one and the player gets to choose whether to increase Heart Points, Flower Points, or Badge Points.

After the battle ends, the game shifts back to the overworld. The enemy that triggered the battle disappears and leaves behind coins, hearts or flowers that restore HP and FP respectively, or items.

Items

Items in Paper Mario come in two categories: Regular items and key items.

Regular items are helpful goodies with a variety of effects, like restoring HP or FP, or dealing damage to enemies. This type of item is commonly sold in shops. They also occasionally get dropped by defeated enemies, can be found in ? Blocks, or acquired by having Tayce T. cook.

Mario can carry up to ten of these items, and they can be used by pressing Left C Button. If an eleventh item is picked up, one of the other 10 has to be discarded before it can be added to the inventory. Up to 32 regular items can be stored by using the check system in shops.

Key items are unique objects that are used to progress through the story, or for the completion of sidequests. They are listed separately from regular items and do not affect Mario's carrying capacity. If a situation requires a key item and Mario has said item in his possession, a prompt shows up and the item can be given away. Key items stay with Mario until they are needed; They cannot be dropped, sold, or stored.

Regular items

Item Effect
A red apple from Paper Mario.
Apple
Restores 5 HP.
Apple Pie that appeared in Paper Mario
Apple Pie
Restores 5 HP and 15 FP.
A Big Cookie that appears in Paper Mario
Big Cookie
Restores 20 FP.
PaperMario Items BlandMeal.png
Bland Meal
Restores 10 HP and FP.
PaperMario Items BlueBerry.png
Blue Berry
Restores 5 FP and is necessary to pass through the blue flower gate in Flower Fields.
PaperMario Items BoiledEgg.png
Boiled Egg
Restores 8 HP and FP.
PaperMario Items BubbleBerry.png
Bubble Berry
Restores 5 FP and is necessary to use the Bubble Plant in Flower Fields.
PaperMario Items Cake.png
Cake
Restores 15 FP and is necessary to get past Gourmet Guy in Shy Guy's Toy Box.
PaperMario Items CakeMix.png
Cake Mix
Restores 1 FP. Synergizes well with other cooking ingredients.
A Coconut
Coconut
Deals 3 HP of damage to a single enemy.
PaperMario Items CocoPop.png
Coco Pop
Restores 3 HP and 15 FP.
PaperMario Items DeluxeFeast.png
Deluxe Feast
Restores 40 HP and FP.
PaperMario Items DizzyDial.png
Dizzy Dial
May inflict dizziness on all enemies.
A Dried Fruit that appears in Paper Mario
Dried Fruit
Restores 15 HP.
PaperMario Items DriedPasta.png
Dried Pasta
Restores 3 HP and 2 FP.
PaperMario Items DriedShroom.png
Dried Shroom
Restores 1 HP.
PaperMario Items DustyHammer.png
Dusty Hammer
Deals 1 HP of damage to a single enemy.
An egg in Paper Mario
Egg
Restores 5 HP.
An Egg Missile that appears in Paper Mario
Egg Missile
Deals 6 HP of explosion damage to a single enemy.
PaperMario Items ElectroPop.png
Electro Pop
Restores 15 HP and electrifies Mario if used in battle.
PaperMario Items FireFlower.png
Fire Flower
Deals 3 HP of fire damage to all enemies.
PaperMario Items FirePop.png
Fire Pop
Restores 20 FP, but deals 1 HP of damage to Mario when used.
PaperMario Items FriedEgg.png
Fried Egg
Restores 10 HP.
PaperMario Items FriedShroom.png
Fried Shroom
Restores 6 HP and 2 FP.
PaperMario Items FrightJar.png
Fright Jar
Targets all enemies and may make them flee.
PaperMario Items FrozenFries.png
Frozen Fries
Restores 15 HP.
PaperMario Items Goomnut.png
Goomnut
Restores 3 FP.
PaperMario Items HealthyJuice.png
Healthy Juice
Restores 40 FP.
PaperMario Items HoneyCandy.png
Honey Candy
Restores 20 FP.
PaperMario Items HoneyShroom.png
Honey Shroom
Restores 5 HP and FP.
PaperMario Items HoneySuper.png
Honey Super
Restores 10 HP and 5 FP.
Honey Syrup from Paper Mario.
Honey Syrup
Restores 5 FP.
PaperMario Items HoneyUltra.png
Honey Ultra
Restores 50 HP and 5 FP.
PaperMario Items HotShroom.png
Hot Shroom
Restores 15 HP and 5 FP.
PaperMario Items IcedPotato.png
Iced Potato
Restores 5 HP.
PaperMario Items JamminJelly.png
Jammin Jelly
Restores 50 FP.
PaperMario Items JellyPop.png
Jelly Pop
Restores 64 FP.
PaperMario Items JellyShroom.png
Jelly Shroom
Restores 5 HP and 50 FP.
PaperMario Items JellySuper.png
Jelly Super
Restores 10 HP and 50 FP.
PaperMario Items JellyUltra.png
Jelly Ultra
Restores 50 HP and FP.
PaperMario Items KookyCookie.png
Kooky Cookie
Restores 15 HP.
PaperMario Items KoopaLeaf.png
Koopa Leaf
Restores 3 FP.
PaperMario Items Koopasta.png
Koopasta
Restores 7 HP and FP.
PaperMario Items KoopaTea.png
Koopa Tea
Restores 7 FP.
Item Effect
PaperMario Items Lemon.png
Lemon
Restores 1 HP and 2 FP and is necessary to get past Sheek in Dry Dry Outpost.
PaperMario Items LemonCandy.png
Lemon Candy
Restores 5 HP and 15 FP. It can be used to bribe Anti Guy and get access to his Power Plus badge without a fight.
PaperMario Items LifeShroom.png
Life Shroom
Restores 10 HP. When Mario runs out of HP with a Life Shroom in his inventory, it gets used automatically.
PaperMario Items Lime.png
Lime
Restores 3 FP.
PaperMario Items LimeCandy.png
Lime Candy
Restores 20 FP.
PaperMario Items MapleShroom.png
Maple Shroom
Restores 5 HP and 10 FP.
PaperMario Items MapleSuper.png
Maple Super
Restores 10 HP and 10 FP.
PaperMario Items MapleSyrup.png
Maple Syrup
Restores 10 FP.
PaperMario Items MapleUltra.png
Maple Ultra
Restores 50 HP and 10 FP.
PaperMario Items Melon.png
Melon
Restores 15 HP.
Mistake from Paper Mario.
Mistake
Restores 1 HP and FP. Mistakes result from Tayce T. cooking with invalid or incompatible ingredients.
PaperMario Items Mushroom.png
Mushroom
Restores 5 HP.
PaperMario Items Mystery.png
Mystery?
When used in battle, it takes on the effects of one of several items or cause 5 HP of damage to Mario.
PaperMario Items NuttyCake.png
Nutty Cake
Restores 10 HP.
PaperMario Items Pebble.png
Pebble
Deals 1 HP of damage to a single enemy.
PaperMario Items PotatoSalad.png
Potato Salad
Restores 10 HP.
File:POWBlock PM.png
POW Block
Deals 2HP of damage to all enemies. It also causes enemies with shells to flip over.
PaperMario Items RedBerry.png
Red Berry
Restores 5 HP and is necessary to pass through the red flower gate in Flower Fields.
PaperMario Items RepelGel.png
Repel Gel
Makes Mario invisible for three turns.
PaperMario Items ShootingStar.png
Shooting Star
Deals 6 HP of damage to all enemies.
PaperMario Items ShroomCake.png
Shroom Cake
Restores 10 HP and FP.
PaperMario Items ShroomSteak.png
Shroom Steak
Restores 30 HP and 10 FP.
PaperMario Items SleepySheep.png
Sleepy Sheep
Targets all enemies and may cause them to fall asleep.
PaperMario Items SnowmanDoll.png
Snowman Doll
Deals 4 HP of ice damage to all enemies.
PaperMario Items Spaghetti.png
Spaghetti
Restores 6 HP and 4 FP.
PaperMario Items SpecialShake.png
Special Shake
Restores 20 HP.
PaperMario Items SpicySoup.png
Spicy Soup
Restores 4 HP and FP.
PaperMario Items StinkyHerb.png
Stinky Herb
Restores 5 HP.
PaperMario Items StoneCap.png
Stone Cap
Inflicts Stone status on Mario for three turns.
File:PaperMario Items Stopwatch.png
Stopwatch
Immobilizes all enemies.
PaperMario Items StrangeCake.png
Strange Cake
Makes Mario either Electrified, Invisible, or Sleepy.
PaperMario Items StrangeLeaf.png
Strange Leaf
Restores 5 HP.
PaperMario Items SuperShroom.png
Super Shroom
Restores 10 HP.
PaperMario Items SuperSoda.png
Super Soda
Restores 5 FP.
PaperMario Items SweetShroom.png
Sweet Shroom
Restores 30 HP and 20 HP.
PaperMario Items TastyTonic.png
Tasty Tonic
Removes all negative status effects from Mario.
File:PaperMario Items Thunderbolt.png
Thunder Bolt
Deals 5 HP of electric damage to one enemy.
PaperMario Items ThunderRage.png
Thunder Rage
Deals 5 HP of electric damage to all enemies.
PaperMario Items UltraShroom.png
Ultra Shroom
Restores 50 HP.
PaperMario Items VoltShroom.png
Volt Shroom
Electrifies Mario for four turns.
PaperMario Items WhackasBump.png
Whacka Bump
Restores 25 HP and FP.
Yellow Berry
Yellow Berry
Restores 3 HP and FP and is necessary to pass through the yellow flower gate in Flower Fields.
PaperMario Items YoshiCookie.png
Yoshi Cookie
Restores 15 HP and FP.
PaperMario Items YummyMeal.png
Yummy Meal
Restores 20 HP and FP.

Key items

Item Location Effect
Artifact PM.png
Artifact
Dry Dry Ruins Can be brought to Kolorado in exchange for a Star Piece.
Sprite of Luigi's Autograph
Autograph
Mario's House Luigi's signature, requested by Koopa Koot as one of his favors.
Sprite of Merluvlee's autograph
Autograph
Shooting Star Summit Merluvlee's signature, requested by Koopa Koot as one of his favors.
PM BlueKey.png
Blue Key
Crystal Palace Opens the blue door inside Crystal Palace.
Boo'sPortrait PM.png
Boo's Portrait
Boo's Mansion A sentient painting of a Boo. Mario needs to return it to its picture frame to access the mansion's third floor.
Bucket PM.png
Bucket
Shiver City These two items are necessary to open the path to Shiver Mountain.
File:PM Scarf.gif
Scarf
Starborn Valley
Calculator PM.png
Calculator
Shy Guy's Toy Box Stolen from Rowf, the owner of the badge shop, during the events of chapter 4. It can be returned for an I Spy badge.
A Castle Key from Tubba Blubba's Castle.
Castle Key
Tubba Blubba's Castle Opens a door in Tubba Blubba's Castle.
The Castle Key used in Peach's Castle in Paper Mario.
Castle Key
Princess Peach's Castle Opens a door in Princess Peach's Castle.
File:Castlekey2.gif
Castle Key
Bowser's Castle Opens a door in Bowser's Castle.
Sprite of Cleanser, from Paper Mario.
Cleanser
Princess Peach's Castle Used by Princess Peach to bake a cake for Gourmet Guy during one of her interludes.
File:Cream.gif
Cream
An egg used by Princess Peach after Chapter 4 of Paper Mario
Egg
File:Milk.gif
Milk
File:Salt.gif
Salt
A Strawberry from Paper Mario.
Strawberry
File:Sugar.gif
Sugar
Sprite of Water, from Paper Mario.
Water
File:Dictionary.PNG
Cookbook
Shy Guy's Toy Box Once this book is returned to Tayce T. during chapter 4, it allows her to cook with two ingredients at once.
The Crystal Ball from Paper Mario
Crystal Ball
Dry Dry Outpost Involved in one of Koopa Koot's favors. Mario needs to fetch this item from Merlee to get Merluvlee's autograph.
CrystalBerry PM.png
Crystal Berry
Flower Fields
(Posie area)
Given to Mario by Posie during chapter 6. Mario can bring this item to Rosie and exchange it for the Water Stone.
DiamondStone PM.png
Diamond Stone
Dry Dry Ruins A set of stone carvings that act as keys to Tutankoopa's chamber.
LunarStone PM.png
Lunar Stone
PyramidStone PM.png
Pyramid Stone
UltraStone PM.png
Ultra Stone
Jade Jungle The Ultra Stone enables Mario to use Super Blocks to upgrade partners to Ultra Rank.
File:Sneakyparasol.gif
Sneaky Parasol
Princess Peach's Castle With this item, Princess Peach can copy the appearance of any NPC she is facing.
The Dictionary from Paper Mario.
Dictionary
Shy Guy's Toy Box Stolen from Russ T. during the events of chapter 4. It can be returned for a Star Piece.
Diploma.png
Diploma
Toad Town Dojo Documents that certify Mario's victory over the challenges of the Toad Town Dojo.
Fourth-DegreeCard PM.png
Fourth-Degree Card
Third-DegreeCard PM.png
Third-Degree Card
Second-DegreeCard PM.png
Second-Degree Card
First-DegreeCard PM.png
First-Degree Card
PeachDoll PM.png
Dolly
Goomba Village Goombaria lost this doll before the events of the game. It can be returned to her for a Star Piece.
File:Emptywallet.gif
Empty Wallet
Koopa Village Dropped by Koopa Koot during a shopping trip. One of his favors involves returning it to him.
Some Fertile Soil from Paper Mario.
Fertile Soil
Flower Fields
(Posie area)
Used to grow a giant beanstalk and access Cloudy Climb, where Huff N. Puff is fought.
MagicBean PM.png
Magic Bean
Flower Fields
(Petunia area)
MiracleWater PM.png
Miracle Water
Flower Fields
(Lily area)
FortressKey PM.png
Fortress Key
Koopa Bros. Fortress Opens a door in the Koopa Bros. Fortress.
File:Fryingpan.gif
Frying Pan
Shy Guy's Toy Box Stolen from Tayce T. during the events of chapter 4. Returning it is necessary to get a Cake for Gourmet Guy.
GoldCredit PM.png
Gold Credit
Koopa Village Allows Mario to play the game Smash Attack in the Toad Town Playroom.
JadeRaven PM.png
Jade Raven
Yoshi's Village Given to Mario for finding the Yoshi kids in Jade Jungle. Must be placed inside the Raven statue in Jade Jungle to meet Raphael the Raven.
KoopaLegends PM.png
Koopa Legends
Koopa Village Involved in one of Koopa Koot's favors. Mario needs to fetch this item from Kolorado's Wife.
Kooper'sShell PM.png
Kooper's Shell
Koopa Village One of the shells stolen during the Fuzzy attack in Koopa Village. Kooper needs this item before he can join Mario.
LuckyStar PM.png
Lucky Star
Shooting Star Summit Allows Mario and his friends to perform action commands.
Lyrics PM.png
Lyrics
Toad Town
(Club 64)
Involved in the quest to make Chanterelle sing again. Mario must deliver this item to the Composer in Dry Dry Outpost to receive the Melody in return.
Sprite of the cyan seed from Paper MarioSprite of the cyan seed from Paper MarioSprite of the cyan seed from Paper MarioSprite of the purple seed from Paper Mario
Magical Seed
Toad Town
Mt. Rugged
Forever Forest
Yoshi's Village
Four seeds given to Mario by the Bub-ulbs strewn about the Mushroom Kingdom, as well as Kolorado. They open the path to Flower Fields when planted in the Toad Town garden.
Mailbag PM.png
Mailbag
Shy Guy's Toy Box Stolen from the Postmaster during the events of chapter 4. It can be returned for a Star Piece.
File:Paper Melody.gif
Melody
Dry Dry Outpost Involved in the quest to make Chanterelle sing again. Mario receives this item in exchange for the Lyrics and must return it to the Master Poet in Club 64.
The icon of Yakkey from Paper Mario
Mystical Key
Tubba Blubba's Castle A sentient key that guards the secret to Tubba Blubba's invincibility. It unlocks Windy Mill.
OddKey PM.png
Odd Key
Toad Town Unlocks the house next to Tayce T.'s.
Sprite of Package from Paper Mario
Package
Boo's Mansion Involved in one of Koopa Koot's favors. Mario must fetch this item from one of the Boos in the mansion to complete it.
The Palace Key from Paper Mario
Palace Key
Crystal Palace Opens the last locked door in Crystal Palace.
PulseStone PM.png
Pulse Stone
Dry Dry Outpost Given to Mario by Moustafa. It is needed to enter Dry Dry Ruins.
Record PM.png
Record
Boo's Mansion A record for the phonograph on the mansion's second floor. It is necessary for using the phonograph to obtain the Weight.
File:Redjar.gif
Red Jar
Dry Dry Outpost Involved in one of Koopa Koot's favors. Mario must travel to Little Mouser's shop and buy a series of items to obtain the jar.
File:Redkey.gif
Red Key
Crystal Palace Opens the red door in Crystal Palace.
RuinsKey PM.png
Ruins Key
Dry Dry Ruins Opens a door in Dry Dry Ruins.
File:Silvercredit.gif
Silver Credit
Koopa Village Allows Mario to play the game Jump Attack in the Toad Town Playroom.
StarStone PM.png
Star Stone
Shiver Mountain Opens the way to Crystal Palace. Mario receives this item from Madam Merlar after meeting with her.
OddKey PM.png
Storeroom Key
Shy Guy's Toy Box Opens the door to the storage room in Harry's Shop.
Tape PM.png
Tape
Goomba Village Involved in one of Koopa Koot's favors. Mario must fetch this item from Goompa to complete it.
ToyTrain PM.png
Toy Train
Toad Town
(Harry's Shop)
Received during chapter 4. Mario must place it into Shy Guy's Toy Box from the outside to be able to ride it.
UltraStone PM.png
Ultra Stone
Jade Jungle Given to Mario by Raphael the Raven. It allows Mario's party members to reach Ultra Rank.
VolcanoVase PM.png
Volcano Vase
Jade Jungle Originally hidden in Mt. Lavalava, it lands in Jade Jungle after the volcano erupts. If given to Kolorado, he will trade it for a Magical Seed.
OddKey PM.png
Warehouse Key
Shiver City Opens the door to the Shiver City warehouse.
Water Stone
Water Stone
Flower Fields
(Rosie area)
A gemstone that was once situated in Lily's pond and supplied her with water. Mario needs to retrieve it from Rosie by giving her a Crystal Berry, so he can return it to its original owner.
Weight PM.png
Weight
Boo's Mansion Stored inside a treasure chest on the mansion's second floor. It must be attached to the main room's chandelier to open the door to the basement.

Badges

Main article: List of badges in Paper Mario

Badges are helpful items that grant Mario and his friends a number of active or passive bonuses when he equips them. The effects can range from changing the way Mario's overworld abilities work, to affecting his stats or giving him new attacks, to increasing the versatility of his party members.

Mario has a stat called Badge Points (BP), which affects how many badges can be equipped at the same time. Every badge has also a BP rating, which tells the player how many free BP are needed to equip the badge in question. Equipping a badge will disable an amount of Mario's BP equal to the badge's BP rating, and unequipping it will free those BP up again. Mario starts the game with three BP and gains an additional three every time the player chooses to upgrade BP during a level up.

Badges can be found in red ? Blocks, in some treasure chests, or lying around in dungeons. They can also be purchased from Rowf's Badge Shop in central Toad Town, gotten as rewards from side quests, and traded in exchange for Star Pieces by Merlow at Merluvlee's Place.

List of Badges

Star Spirits and Special Moves

The seven Star Spirits live in Star Haven as the guardians of the Star Rod. The story of Paper Mario begins with their fall from power, when Bowser and Kammy Koopa attack Star Haven, steal the Star Rod, and capture the Star Spirits. Rescuing them is one of the main objectives of the game, as they are the only ones who can counter the Star Rod's power and help Mario triumph over Bowser.

The captured Star Spirits are kept separately and spread all over the Mushroom Kingdom. Mario rescues one Star Spirit at the end of every chapter, bar the final one, after defeating the chapter boss. With every Star Spirit returning to Star Haven, Mario's Star Power increases by one and he learns a new Special Move.

Once every Star Spirit has been rescued, Mario gains access to Star Haven, where he obtains the ultimate star power: the Star Beam. The spirits also permit him to use the Star Ship, a vessel able to reach Bowser's Castle in the sky.

Regular powers

Special Moves gained at the end of every chapter, excepting chapter 8.

Special Move Star Spirit Chapter Boss Effect
Refresh
(1 SP)
Eldstar PM.png
Eldstar
Chapter 1:
Storming Koopa Bros. Fortress
Koopa Bros. Restores 5 HP and FP, and cures status effects.
Lullaby
(1 SP)
Mamar PM.png
Mamar
Chapter 2:
The Mystery of Dry, Dry Ruins
Tutankoopa Puts enemies to sleep for a few turns.
Star Storm
(2 SP)
Skolar PM.png
Skolar
Chapter 3:
The "Invincible" Tubba Blubba
Tubba Blubba Attacks all enemies and deals 7 HP of damage.
Chill Out
(2 SP)
Muskular PM.png
Muskular
Chapter 4:
Trials in the Toy Box
General Guy Decreases enemies' attack power by 3.
Smooch
(3 SP)
Misstar PM.png
Misstar
Chapter 5:
Hot, Hot Times on Lavalava Island
Lava Piranha Replenishes Mario's HP by 20 with a kiss.
Time Out
(2 SP)
Klevar PM.png
Klevar
Chapter 6:
Dark Days in Flower Fields
Huff N. Puff Immobilizes enemies for a short time.
Up and Away
(2 SP)
Kalmar PM.png
Kalmar
Chapter 7:
A Star Spirit on Ice
Crystal King Turns enemies into stars, removing them from battle. Does not work on bosses.

Special case powers

Special Moves that cost no SP to use and serve a unique purpose.

Special Move Star Spirit Chapter Circumstance Effect
Focus Eldstar PM.png
Eldstar
Chapter 1:
Storming Koopa Bros. Fortress
Usable after receiving the ability to use Special Moves. Used to refill SP at a faster rate.
Star Beam File:StarSpirits-PM64.png
All together
Chapter 8:
A Star-Powered Showdown!
Granted by the Star Spirits in Star Haven Removes any status buffs on all enemies, and negates the effects of the Star Rod after Bowser uses it.
Peach Beam File:StarSpirits-PM64.pngFile:Twink.gif
All together
+ Twink
Chapter 8:
A Star-Powered Showdown!
Upgraded form of the Star Beam, obtained after Twink defeats Kammy Koopa. Negates the combined effects of the Star Rod and the Power Platform.

Enemies and Bosses

Main article: Paper Mario bestiary

Chapter bosses

Enemy Heart Points Attack Defense Location
Assembled sprite of Bowser, from Paper Mario.
Bowser
10 1 0 Princess Peach's Castle
(pre-prologue)
50 6 1 Princess Peach's Castle
(Chapter 8)
99 8 2 Princess Peach's Castle
(rooftop)
Model of Bowser???, from Paper Mario.
Bowser???
10 1 1 Koopa Bros. Fortress
Sprite of Red Ninjakoopa, from Paper Mario.Sprite of Black Ninjakoopa, from Paper Mario.Sprite of Yellow Ninjakoopa, from Paper Mario.Sprite of Green Ninjakoopa, from Paper Mario.
Koopa Bros.
5 1 1 Koopa Bros. Fortress
File:Tutankoopa PM.png
Tutankoopa
30 3 0 Dry Dry Ruins
Sprite of Tubba Blubba, from Paper Mario.
Tubba Blubba
10 4 ? Tubba Blubba's Castle
10 4 0 Gusty Gulch
File:Tubba'sHeart PM.png
Tubba's Heart
50 6 0 Windy Mill
GeneralGuy PM.png
General Guy
30 4 2 Shy Guy's Toy Box
Sprite of Lava Piranha, from Paper Mario.
Lava Piranha
40 5 0 Mt. Lavalava
40 7 0 Mt. Lavalava
Sprite of Huff N. Puff, from Paper Mario.
Huff N. Puff
60 5 0 Cloudy Climb
Sprite of the Crystal King, from Paper Mario.
Crystal King
70 6 2 Crystal Palace

Minibosses

Enemy Heart Points Attack Defense Location
Jr. Troopa from Paper Mario.
Jr. Troopa
5 1 0 Goomba Village
File:Jr. Troop 2.png
Jr. Troopa (2)
15 2 1 Pleasant Path
File:Jr. Troop 3.png
Jr. Troopa (3)
40 5 1 Forever Forest
File:Jr. Troop 4.png
Jr. Troopa (4)
20 6 1 Toad Town port
File:Jr. Troop 5 6.png
Jr. Troopa (5)
50 8 1 Shiver Snowfield
Jr. Troopa from Paper Mario.
Jr. Troopa (6)
60 8 2 Bowser's Castle
File:BlueGoomba.png
Blue Goomba
6 1 0 Goomba Road
2 1 0 Goomba Road
(at Goomba King's fort)
File:RedGoomba.png
Red Goomba
7 1 0 Goomba Road
2 1 0 Goomba Road
(at Goomba King's fort)
Sprite of the Goomba King, from Paper Mario.
Goomba King
10 1 0 Goomba Road
Big Lantern Ghost
Big Lantern Ghost
40 5 0 Shy Guy's Toy Box
Fuzzipede PM.png
Fuzzipede
20 3 0 Toad Town
Lakilester from Paper Mario.
Spike?
50 4 0 Flower Fields
File:Monstar.PNG
Monstar
20 1 0 Shiver Snowfield
Sprite of Kammy Koopa on her broom, from Paper Mario.
Kammy Koopa
10 4 0 Princess Peach's Castle
Sprite of Buzzar, from Paper Mario.
Buzzar
40 3 0 Mt. Rugged
File:Anti Guy2.png
Anti Guy
50 10 0 Shy Guy's Toy Box
Bowser's Castle
Sprite of Kent C. Koopa, from Paper Mario.
Kent C. Koopa
70 10 6 Pleasant Path
(After chapter 5)
PaperMarioBlooper.png
Blooper
30 3 0 Toad Town Tunnels
File:Electro Blooper.PNG
Electro Blooper
50 4 0 Toad Town Tunnels
File:Super blooper.PNG
Super Blooper
70 5 0 Toad Town Tunnels
Chan PM.png
Chan
15 2 2 Toad Town Dojo
Lee PM.png
Lee
20 5 0 Toad Town Dojo
TheMasterFirst PM.pngThe Master Second.png
The Master
50 6 0 Toad Town Dojo
75 8 0 Toad Town Dojo
99 10 1 Toad Town Dojo

Flunkies

Enemy Heart Points Attack Defense Superordinate enemy
Chomp from Paper Mario.
Chain Chomp
4 3 3 Tutankoopa
Sprite of the Shy Squad, from Paper Mario.
Shy Squad
15 1 0 General Guy
Sprite of a Stilt Guy, from Paper Mario.
Stilt Guy
7 4 0 General Guy
Sprite of a Shy Stack, from Paper Mario.
Shy Stack
10 1 0 General Guy
General Guy's tank
Toy Tank
8 0 1 General Guy
Sprite of a Lava Bud, from Paper Mario.Sprite of a flaming Lava Bud, from Paper Mario.
Lava Bud
8 4 0 Lava Piranha
8 0 0 Lava Piranha
Sprite of a Petit Piranha, from Paper Mario.
Petit Piranha
1 6 0 Lava Bud
Sprite of a large Tuff Puff, from Paper Mario.
Tuff Puff
1 2 0 Huff N. Puff
Sprite of the sphere Crystal Bit, from Paper Mario.
Crystal Bit
1 0 0 Crystal King
BlooperBaby PM.png
Blooper Baby
6 2 0 Super Blooper

Regular Enemies

Enemy Heart Points Attack Defense Location
PaperMarioGoomba.png
Goomba
2 1 0 Goomba Village
Goomba Road
Pleasant Path
Shy Guy's Toy Box
File:SpikedGoomba PM.png
Spiked Goomba
2 2 0 Goomba Village
Goomba Road
Pleasant Path
Sprite of a Paragoomba, from Paper Mario.
Paragoomba
2 1 0 Goomba Village
Goomba Road
Pleasant Path
KoopaRed PM.png
Koopa Troopa
4 1 1 Pleasant Path
Koopa Bros. Fortress
Sprite of Paratroopa, from Paper Mario.
Paratroopa
4 1 1 Pleasant Path
Koopa Bros. Fortress
A Fuzzy from Paper Mario
Fuzzy
3 1 0 Koopa Village
Shy Guy's Toy Box
Sprite of a normal Bob-omb, from Paper Mario.
Bob-omb
3 1 0 Koopa Bros. Fortress
Sprite of Bullet Bill, from Paper Mario.
Bullet Bill
2 2 0 Koopa Bros. Fortress
Sprite of a Bill Blaster, from Paper Mario.
Bill Blaster
4 0 1 Koopa Bros. Fortress
Monty mole pm.png
Monty Mole
3 2 0 Mt. Rugged
Sprite of a Cleft, from Paper Mario.
Cleft
2 2 2 Mt. Rugged
BanditRed PM.png
Bandit
5 2 0 Dry Dry Desert
A sprite of Pokey from Paper Mario.
Pokey
4 2 0 Dry Dry Desert
Shy Guy's Toy Box
File:Pokey Mummy.PNG
Pokey Mummy
4 2 0 Dry Dry Ruins
A Buzzy Beetle from Paper Mario.Sprite of an upside-down Buzzy Beetle, from Paper Mario.
Buzzy Beetle
3 2 2 Dry Dry Ruins
Toad Town Tunnels
SwooperPM.pngSprite of a roosting Swooper, from Paper Mario.
Swooper
4 2 0 Dry Dry Ruins
File:Stone Chomp.PNG
Stone Chomp
4 3 1 Dry Dry Ruins
PiranhaPlant PM.png
Piranha Plant
5 3 0 Forever Forest
Sprite of a Forest Fuzzy.
Forest Fuzzy
6 1 0 Forever Forest
A sprite of a Bzzap!.
Bzzap!
3 6 0 Forever Forest
Flower Fields
HyperGoomba PM.png
Hyper Goomba
7 1 0 Gusty Gulch
Sprite of a Hyper Paragoomba, from Paper Mario.
Hyper Paragoomba
7 1 0 Gusty Gulch
Sprite of a Hyper Cleft, from Paper Mario.
Hyper Cleft
4 3 3 Gusty Gulch
A sprite of Clubba.
Clubba
8 3 0 Tubba Blubba's Castle
Shy Guy's Toy Box
PaperMarioGloomba.png
Gloomba
7 2 0 Toad Town Tunnels
Sprite of a Paragloomba, from Paper Mario.
Paragloomba
7 2 0 Toad Town Tunnels
Sprite of a Spiky Gloomba, from Paper Mario.
Spiked Gloomba
7 3 0 Toad Town Tunnels
Sprite of a Dark Koopa, from Paper Mario.
Dark Koopa
8 3 2 Toad Town Tunnels
Paper Shy Guy.png
Shy Guy
7 2 0 Shy Guy's Toy Box
GrooveGuy PM.png
Groove Guy
7 2 0 Shy Guy's Toy Box
Sprite of a Sky Guy, from Paper Mario.
Sky Guy
7 3 0 Shy Guy's Toy Box
Sprite of a Spy Guy with a slingshot, from Paper Mario.Sprite of a Spy Guy with a hammer, from Paper Mario.
Spy Guy
7 2 0 Shy Guy's Toy Box
MediGuy PM.png
Medi Guy
7 1 0 Shy Guy's Toy Box
Sprite of a Pyro Guy, from Paper Mario.
Pyro Guy
7 4 0 Shy Guy's Toy Box
Sprite of a Jungle Fuzzy, from Paper Mario.
Jungle Fuzzy
7 2 0 Jade Jungle
File:Jungle Guy.PNG
Jungle Guy
7 3 0 Jade Jungle
File:Hurt Plant.PNG
Hurt Plant
8 2 0 Jade Jungle
Sprite of an M. Bush, from Paper Mario.
M. Bush
8 3 0 Jade Jungle
File:Putrid piranha2.PNG
Putrid Piranha
12 3 0 Jade Jungle
Mt. Lavalava
White Magikoopa (flying)White Magikoopa (grounded)
White Magikoopa
11 3 0 Jade Jungle
Mt. Lavalava
Flower Fields
Crystal Palace
Sprite of a Lava Bubble, from Paper Mario.
Lava Bubble
9 4 0 Mt. Lavalava
SpikeTop PM.png
Spike Top
4 3 4 Mt. Lavalava
Toad Town Tunnels
Red Magikoopa (flying)Red Magikoopa (grounded)
Red Magikoopa
11 3 0 Mt. Lavalava
Flower Fields
Crystal Palace
CrazeeDayzee PM.png
Crazee Dayzee
8 4 0 Flower Fields
Amazy dayzee.png
Amazy Dayzee
20 20 1 Flower Fields
Sprite of a green Monty Mole, from Paper Mario.
Monty Mole
12 3 0 Flower Fields
RuffPuffPM.png
Ruff Puff
10 4 0 Flower Fields
Sprite of a Spiny, from Paper Mario.
Spiny
5 4 3 Flower Fields
Toad Town Tunnels
Sprite of a Lakitu, from Paper Mario.
Lakitu
12 3 0 Flower Fields
File:PMGRMagikoopaFlying.pngFile:PMGRMagikoopaGround.png
Green Magikoopa
11 3 0 Flower Fields
Crystal Palace
Yellow Magikoopa (flying)Yellow Magikoopa (grounded)
Yellow Magikoopa
11 3 0 Flower Fields
Crystal Palace
Sprite of a Frost Piranha, from Paper Mario.
Frost Piranha
10 4 0 Shiver Snowfield
Shiver Mountain
Sprite of a Gulpit, from Paper Mario.
Gulpit
14 2 0 Shiver Snowfield, Shiver Mountain
Duplighost PM.png
Duplighost
15 4 0 Shiver Mountain
Crystal Palace
Bowser's Castle
WhiteClubbaPM.png
White Clubba
12 5 0 Shiver Mountain
Crystal Palace
Sprite of a SwoopulaSprite of a roosting Swoopula, from Paper Mario.
Swoopula
8 2 0 Crystal Palace
Gray Magikoopa (flying)Gray Magikoopa (grounded)
Gray Magikoopa
11 3 0 Crystal Palace
Sprite of an Ember outside of battle, from Paper Mario.
Ember
10 4 0 Star Way
A Koopatrol from Paper Mario
Koopatrol
8 4 3 Shy Guy's Toy Box
Bowser's Castle
Sprite of a Hammer Bro, from Paper Mario.
Hammer Bro
12 5 1 Shy Guy's Toy Box
Bowser's Castle
Magikoopa (flying)Magikoopa (grounded)
Magikoopa
8 3 0 Shooting Star Summit
11 6 0 Bowser's Castle
A sprite of a Bony Beetle from Paper Mario.Sprite of a spiked Bony Beetle, from Paper Mario.
Bony Beetle
8 3 4 Bowser's Castle
BombshellBill PM.png
Bombshell Bill
3 6 0 Bowser's Castle
A sprite of B. Bill Blaster
Bombshell Bill Blaster
10 0 4 Bowser's Castle
Sprite of a Dry Bones, from Paper Mario.
Dry Bones
8 4 2 Bowser's Castle

Unused enemies

Enemy Heart Points Attack Defense Location
AlbinoDino PM.png
Albino Dino
8 4 4 N/A
Dark Paratroopa as it would've appeared in Paper Mario.
Dark Paratroopa
8 3 2 N/A

Friendly NPCs

File:Mort T..png
Mario talking to Mort T.

The overworld of Paper Mario is filled with many characters that Mario can talk to. When approached, a speech bubble icon will appear above their head which signifies they can be spoken to.

List of named / notable NPCs in Paper Mario

Goomba Village

Toad Town

Mario's House

Shooting Star Summit

Koopa Village

Mt. Rugged

Dry Dry Desert

Dry Dry Outpost

Forever Forest

Boo's Mansion

Gusty Gulch

Tubba Blubba's Castle

Shy Guy's Toy Box

Yoshi's Village

Jade Jungle

Flower Fields

Shiver City

Starborn Valley

Shiver Mountain

Bowser's Castle

Roaming characters

Locations

Template:PMmap

Paper Mario takes place in the Mushroom Kingdom, spanning several different areas around Princess Peach's Castle. Toad Town serves as the game's central hub and gives Mario a place to return to after every chapter.

Settlements

Transitional Areas

Dungeons/Boss arenas

Side activities

Star Pieces

Mario getting a Star Piece from Goombaria in Paper Mario
Mario earning a Star Piece from Goombaria.
Main article: List of Star Pieces in Paper Mario

Star Pieces are golden octahedral star fragments that can be found all over the Mushroom Kingdom. There are 160 in total. They can be collected and brought to Merlow at Shooting Star Summit in exchange for Badges.

A lot of Star Pieces can be found lying around in the overworld, usually hidden behind objects. Some Star Pieces are buried beneath hidden floor panels that require either the Spin Jump or the Ultra Hammer to collect. Star Pieces are also often given away as rewards or sold as wares by NPCs.

Chuck Quizmo's quizzes

Mario and Kooper playing on Chuck Quizmo's quiz show
Chuck Quizmo's trivia quiz.
Main article: Chuck Quizmo

Chuck Quizmo is a character who can randomly be encountered in one of the game's many towns. Upon finding him, the player has the opportunity to partake in a quiz show. Chuck Quizmo will ask the player a trivia question about the game and present them with three possible answers. If the correct choice is selected, the player receives a Star Piece. Otherwise Chuck Quizmo has to be found again for another try. There are 64 questions in total the player can answer.

Toad Town Dojo

Toad Town Dojo
The Toad Town Dojo.

After Mario talks to the Star Spirits on Shooting Star Summit and obtains the Lucky Star, the Toad Town Dojo opens. The dojo is located on the second story of the Shroom Grocery building. Here Mario can fight against Chan and Lee, as well as the dojo's Master himself.

Fighting in the dojo does not give Mario Star Points, but with each win the player receives a degree and unlocks the next fight. Defeating the Master's third form earns Mario the Diploma for besting the strongest enemy in Paper Mario.

Koopa Koot's favors

File:PM qst koot.png
Koopa Koot requesting a favor from Mario.
Main article: Koopa Koot's Favors

Once the player reaches Koopa Village in chapter 1, they have the opportunity to meet Koopa Koot. Koopa Koot is an elderly Koopa Troopa infamous among his acquaintances for asking favors of people.

When speaking to Koopa Koot after resolving Koopa Village's Fuzzy problem, he will ask Mario for a favor, which usually entails obtaining a specific item and bringing it to him. Upon completion of the favor, Koopa Koot will usually reward Mario with a single coin. In some cases however, the reward will be three Star Pieces in a bulk, or an item that unlocks new minigames in the Toad Town Playroom.

Tayce T.'s recipes

File:Mariotayce.png
Mario visiting Tayce T..
Main article: List of Tayce T. recipes

Tayce T. is an elderly Toad woman who lives in Toad Town. She is initially inaccessible due to debris blocking the road to her house, but can be talked to after the Koopa Bros. have been defeated.

Mario can give Tayce T. ingredients which she will turn into new items by cooking them. At first only one item can be given to her at a time, but after bringing her the Cookbook from Shy Guy's Toy Box in chapter 4, the player unlocks the ability to have her use two ingredients. The blackboard in Mario's house is keeping track of how many recipes have been found and can be checked at any time.

Letter delivery

Main article: List of letters in Paper Mario § Normal Letters

In various locations of the Mushroom Kingdom, Mario can find letters that have been dropped by Parakarry. Once Parakarry has joined Mario's group, Mario can deliver these lost letters to their intended recipients by talking to them while Parakarry is the active partner. Doing so rewards the player with Star Pieces, or other items.

Services

A lot of different vendors, establishments, and merchants can be found all over the Mushroom Kingdom. Most of them offer their services for coins which can be found inside ?-Blocks or earned from battling enemies.

Toad Houses

Toad Houses are establishments that can be found in all major towns featured in Paper Mario. They can be recognized by their signs which show a picture of a Toad's head. Toad Houses serve as hotels and Mario and his friends can rest in them to restore Heart Points, Flower Points, and Star Power. Unlike inns in traditional RPGs, they do not charge money for this service.

Almost all Toad Houses are managed by Toads, the sole exception being the one in Star Haven which is owned by a Star instead.

Item Shops

Image of Mario and Goombario in Shroom Grocery in Toad Town, in Paper Mario.
The Shroom Grocery in Toad Town.
Main article: List of shops in Paper Mario

Scattered across the Mushroom Kingdom are various common goods stores, identifiable by their Fire Flower sign. Here the player can take their coins to buy items that cause different effects in and out of battles. Additionally, they may get a coin refund by selling items they do not want.

Most items can be sold to the shopkeepers for a set price at every shop, however, some items will sell at a higher price depending on the location of the shop and the item itself. Mario can make a profit by purchasing an item at a low price from one store and selling it to another that will buy it at a higher price.

Item Shops also offer a check system that allows the player to store and withdraw items. This storage space is shared by all stores, which means the player can store an item in one shop and then later withdraw it from another. Up to 32 items can be stored that way.

Merlon's house

Inside Merlon's house.

Merlon is Toad Town's local fortune-teller. His services become available after Mario has visited Shooting Star Summit and gotten the Lucky Star. For a fee of five coins, Merlon will foresee Mario's future and give the player a hint about the next game objective.

Merluvlee's Place

Merluvlee introduces herself to Mario in Paper Mario
The magic treasure chest to the left of Mario that belongs to Merluvlee.

Merluvlee is another fortune-teller who lives at the foot of Shooting Star Summit. She will divine the locations of Star Pieces, Badges, and Super Blocks. She charges 5 coins, 20 coins, and 30 coins for each of them respectively.

Her house also contains the counterpart to the mysterious treasure chest in Peach's castle. Any items that Princess Peach puts into the chest on her end can be retrieved by Mario here.

Merluvlee's brother Merlow can be found on the second floor of the house. He informs Mario that he collects Star Pieces and is willing to trade Badges for them. Getting Badges from Merlow is the main purpose of collecting Star Pieces.

Toad Town post office

Main article: List of letters in Paper Mario
Mario inside the Post Office.

The Post Office is a building located in central Toad Town, across the street from Merlon's house. Over the course of the game, letters addressed at Mario's partners arrive there, written by different characters Mario met on his journey. The player can visit the post office at any time and talk to the postal worker in charge to view the letters. There is no benefit to reading the letters, but the service is free and reveals what became of the sender after their encounter with Mario.

Mario himself also receives letters during the game. These letters are not stored at the post office and can be found in the bedroom of Mario's house.

Badge Shop

Main article: Rowf and Rhuff
Rowf and Rhuff
Badge Shop.

The Toad Town badge shop is an open-air store located in the central part of Toad Town, across the street from the gate to Flower Fields. It opens for business after the Koopa Bros. have been defeated in chapter 1. The player can purchase badges in exchange for coins.

Sixteen different badges can be purchased from the badge store, although only three will be available at a time. The selection changes randomly over time until all badges have been bought.

Oink-Oink Farm

File:Lil Oinks.PNG
Lil' Oinks in their pen.
Main article: Li'l Oink

Once the Koopa Bros. have been defeated and the road to the southern part of Toad Town has been cleared of debris, Mario can visit Oink-Oink Farm. For 10 coins the player can purchase an egg that will hatch into a Li'l Oink and move into the nearby pigpen.

The pen can hold a maximum of 10 animals. If an additional egg is bought while the pen is full, the oldest Li'l Oink will escape and leave behind an item correlating to its color. The player can use this to obtain various items, including ones that are hard to obtain otherwise.

Merlee's tent

Merlee's tent in Dry Dry Outpost.

Merlee is a wizard who set up her shop in the back alley of Dry Dry Outpost. For a fee of either 5, 20, or 50 coins she can cast a magic spell on Mario that has a variety of positive effects. The amount of coins paid determines how long the spell is going to last; The more coins were paid, the longer the spell remains.

From the moment it is cast until it runs out, the spell will randomly take effect before or after certain actions, mostly during battles.

  • If it takes effect before Mario attacks, the damage of his attack will increase by three.
  • If it takes effect during the enemies' turn, Mario's defense will increase by three.
  • If it takes effect once all enemies have been defeated, it doubles the amount of Star Points received.
  • If it takes effect right after a battle, it will increase the amount of coins dropped by the enemy.

Once the spell has ran out, the player has to return to Merlee and pay her again if they wish to keep the beneficial effects.

Chet Rippo

Chet Rippo is a pudgy bird-like creature located in the residential area of Toad Town. When talked to, he informs Mario that he is able to increase one of his stats for 39 coins. If the player decides to use Chet Rippo's services, the stat they selected will increase by two stages, while the two stats that weren't selected each drop by one stage. This service can be used to re-adjust Mario's stats in case the player does not feel content with their past level up choices.

Rip Cheato

Rip Cheato is a merchant living underneath the blue house next to Tayce T.'s. Initially the front door to his domicile is locked and thus it has to be accessed through Toad Town Tunnels by having Bombette destroy a wall. After Rip Cheato has been found, his house can be unlocked from the inside for easier access.

The merchant's services are similar to that of a regular item shop, offering wares in exchange for coins. However, Rip Cheato only sells one item at a time, all of his goods cost 64 coins, and the player does not know in advance what is being offered. Rip Cheato's offers follow a certain order and once his stock is exhausted after ten purchases, he only sells Dried Shrooms from then on.

Virtual Console differences

The Wii Virtual Console version has more framerate drops than the Nintendo 64 version, but also loads more quickly when moving between areas. Special effect attributes have been altered to reduce the risk of seizure: fire/explosion effects are solid colors, magic/transformation wave effects no longer have flashing colors of white and yellow and are waves of purple and pink, and the brightness of light effects from Super Blocks have been reduced.

The Wii U Virtual Console version is darker, but has a smoother framerate not unlike the Nintendo 64 version. Fire/explosion effects match that of the original version (albeit darker), but the magic/transformation wave effects are still altered. Loading is as fast as the Wii version.

Wii Shop Description

Paper Mario is a graphically innovative game that breaks the confines of the RPG genre. Now slimmed down, everyone's favorite plumber flips, spins, jumps, and hammers his way through scads of exotic worlds that teem with a huge and hugely entertaining supporting cast. Players control numerous characters, both old and new, in a complex, nonlinear story that follows different scenarios depending on player choices. A dizzying collection of spells, attacks, skills, and special items can be collected by players willing to thoroughly explore the lush 3-D environments!

Wii U eShop Description

After Bowser™ steals the Star Rod and kidnaps Princess Peach™, Mario™ plots to rescue the seven Star Spirits and free the Mushroom Kingdom from the Koopa's rule. As Mario travels from the tropical jungles of Lavlava Island to the frosty heights of Shiver Mountain, he'll need all the help he can get.

Master the abilities of the seven Star Spirits and the other allies joining the adventure to aid our hero on the battlefield. There are over 50 Badges to locate that, when equipped, will grant special abilities and powerful attacks. The turn-based battle system will make fighting Bowser's baddies equal parts strategy and timing. Discover over 100 items, mix them together, and cook up fantastic creations that will send your enemies' spinning and fleeing.

Close the book on Bowser's story before his evil deeds turn the world upside down and only his wishes come true!

Relation to other games

Similarities with Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars

Paper Mario shares many elements with its spiritual predecessor Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. These similarities include:

  • Paper Mario was originally going to be called Super Mario RPG 2, but was later renamed "Super Mario Adventure" (while still in development) due to legal reasons. Eventually, it received its finalized international title to emphasize the unique graphical style of the game.
  • As with Super Mario RPG, Bowser is the very first boss to be fought in the game.
  • After the cutscene that takes place when Mario is defeated by Bowser, the Paper Mario logo is displayed in a similar manner to how the Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars logo is displayed after Exor crashes into Bowser's Keep and destroys the Star Road.
  • Redesigned versions of Star Hill and the Chancellor from Super Mario RPG reappear, although this is lost in translation in the international versions.
  • The Shy Guy riot in Toad Town is similar to Mack and the Shysters' takeover of the Mushroom Kingdom in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars.
  • Both Paper Mario and Super Mario RPG contain karate dojos.
  • The Master is Paper Mario's equivalent of Jinx, as they are both powerful senseis that are fought three times (with each battle getting harder), and are completely optional. The Master also shares the role of an optional boss harder than the final, main boss, like Culex.
  • Both games have plots that involve finding seven stars, and have something to do with wishes not being granted due to what the games' main antagonists have done.
  • The opening storylines of both games begin with the usual "Mario battling Bowser to save Peach" scenario, when Mario suddenly becomes overpowered and sent hurtling a great distance away. In Super Mario RPG, as Mario goes to free Peach after defeating Bowser, Smithy's gang sends Exor crashing into the castle, the impact sending Mario flying, landing back at his house. In Paper Mario, as Mario is fighting Bowser, Bowser makes himself invincible with the Star Rod, then dispatches Mario out a window, and he crash lands in a field just outside Goomba Village.
  • In both games, Bowser's castle is unreachable throughout most of the story. In Super Mario RPG, it cannot be reached because the bridge is down; in Paper Mario, the castle is all the way up in the sky. Also, both games feature a special vehicle that is used to reach the castle.
  • Mario uses jump and hammer attacks, which in both games have regular, super, and ultra variations. Both have the three hammer variants, but the jump variants in Super Mario RPG are special moves Mario learns, whereas Paper Mario has these variants as the boots Mario finds to improve his jumping ability.
  • The Power Bounce badge is reminiscent of Mario's Super Jump ability in SMRPG.
  • Mario's first partner in both games has a special move that identifies the enemy (Mallow's "Psychopath" and Goombario's "Tattle").
  • Both games feature a special area where Mario can turn into 8-bit Mario, complete with 8-bit sounds and music.
  • In both games, Mario can travel to an island where Yoshis live.
  • During the second boss battle with Bowser, he has the ability to temporarily disable some of Mario's commands, similar to how Bowyer disables certain button commands during his battle in Super Mario RPG.
  • When Lava Piranha re-emerges from the lava after the first phase of the battle, it resembles Czar Dragon's resurrection as Zombone.
  • Both games feature a volcano as a location where a star is hidden. Both areas have an escape sequence after locating the Star, though the reason behind it is different (in Super Mario RPG, the Axem Rangers are escaping with the Star; in Paper Mario, the volcano is erupting).
  • The endings in both games feature a parade that is led by Luigi and ends with a fireworks display.
  • Both Super Mario RPG and Paper Mario feature a Hammer Bro who hosts a quiz game.
  • During the parade in the ending of Paper Mario, Twink flies by with Mario and Peach waving at him on a starlit float, as Geno does in Super Mario RPG.
  • Both games feature antagonist groups that are based on characters from TV series (the Koopa Bros. are based on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, while the Axem Rangers are based on the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers).
  • In both games, the battle for the sixth star takes place in the sky (the Axem Rangers battle and the Huff N. Puff battle).
  • Both games have a party member who fights against Mario first before joining him (Bowser and Lakilester).
  • Both Super Mario RPG and Paper Mario have three-headed Piranha Plant bosses (Lava Piranha and Smilax).
  • Neither game features an Endless Play mode, so if the player wants to collect something or accomplish a task, they must do so before facing the final boss.
  • The battle systems of both games contain a feature where correctly timed player input makes the protagonists perform better overall. Super Mario RPG has "timed hits", while Paper Mario has "action commands".
  • Both games were released towards the end of their respective console's life. SMRPG was released for the Super NES in May of 1996, four months prior to the launch of the Nintendo 64. Paper Mario was released for the Nintendo 64 in February of 2001, and the Nintendo GameCube was released in November of that year.

References to other games

In addition to the many elements it lifts from Super Mario RPG, Paper Mario has elements that reference the following games:

  • Super Mario Bros. - By entering a vase in Boo's Mansion, Mario can assume his appearance from this game's sprites, albeit with the color scheme used for him in the game's artwork. Also, if the player waits fifteen or more seconds when a chapter title is shown on screen, the overworld theme will play. There is a pillar with eyes on Pleasant Path which will give free hearts and play the invincibility theme if Mario runs around it.
  • Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels - At the end of the game, when Peach thanks all of the friendly characters for helping restore peace to the Mushroom Kingdom, the music that plays is this game's ending theme.
  • Super Mario Bros. 3 - When the Koopa Brothers fire Bullet Bills at Mario and his partners, a cover of the Koopalings' Airship theme plays. The Koopa Bros. fight theme is a cover of the Hammer Bros. theme from this game. The level up music is a cover of the overworld theme from World 1. When Mario wins the Star Rod back from Bowser, the "King Saved" theme is played.
  • Dr. Mario - When Mario defeats the Fuzzipede boss, the Whale exclaims that "they should call [him] Dr. Mario!"
  • Super Mario World - The Attack FX E badge makes the same sound that Yoshi makes when jumping on his back. Also, the overworld/underwater theme is a cover for Paper Mario's title screen music. The song that plays on the Golden Oldies station of the radio is a cover of the credits theme.
  • Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island - Paper Mario contains several references to Super Mario World 2. Bandits (the red kind, that only take coins), Bumpties (simply called "penguins" in-game), Shy Guys, Spear Guys, Chain Chomps (using their designs from Yoshi's Island), a Lantern Ghost, forward-facing Piranha Plants (who appear from the ground, as opposed to only pipes), and Crazee Dayzees appear as enemies. Sushie's coloration and Squirt attack favor the appearance and abilities of the Spray Fish, Spy Guys wear flowers on their heads like Petal Guys, and Boos have faces and eyes similar to those of the Caged Ghosts from Yoshi's Island. Poochy appears in one of the game's early builds. The music used for Yoshi's Village is a cover of this game's title screen music, and the Ravens (includinig Raphael) make an appearance. Finally, snowmen who wear the same attire as Dr. Freezegoods appear in Shiver Snowfield.
  • Super Mario 64 - Peach's Castle returns and is near identical inside, but without the paintings, and both games begin with a letter from Peach. Also, Mario jumps into a painting to access the third floor of Boo's Mansion similar to the way he accessed areas in this game.
  • Mario Kart 64 - When riding the K64 train, a cover of the Kalimari Desert theme plays. Also, the concept of a train running through a desert and the train itself originates from this game.
  • Mario Golf, Mario Tennis, and Mario Party series - In one of the pages of Luigi's diary, it says, "I remember the carefree days when we played Golf and Tennis and had Parties." The capital letters specifically hint at their respective games.
  • The Legend of Zelda series - If Goombario uses tattle on Sheek after he reveals his true identity, he will start his tattle with "da da da dum", a reference to the "item get" theme from this series. Also, Sheek himself is a reference to Sheik from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

References in later games

File:Mkscrainbowroad.png
The castle in the background of Rainbow Road.
  • Mario Kart: Super Circuit - Peach's castle is seen on top of Bowser's castle just like in Paper Mario, located in the background of the course Rainbow Road.
  • Super Smash Bros. Melee - Paper Mario appears as a trophy.
  • Mario Party 5 - The Star Spirits return as hosts.
  • Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door - Parakarry makes a brief cameo at the beginning of the game, and delivers a letter to Mario from Peach, just like the previous game. Lady Bow also makes a cameo appearance, and makes a direct reference to Boo's Mansion, as well as the adventure they had. There is also a random Toad at the Excess Express (after Chapter 6 is completed) that will ask Mario a quiz question, ("What did Bowser steal in the first Paper Mario?"), and the answer is, "Star Rod". The video game-obsessed Toad kid from Petalburg also mentions that he's been playing this game, describing Bow as the "cutest Boo of ALL TIME!!!" Jr. Troopa also appears in the background in the picture that Zip Toad attached to his e-mail. The Goomba King is also mentioned in Luigi's travels, although this was lost in translation.
  • Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga - A block from Paper Mario appears in Woohoo Hooniversity, along with blocks from other games. The name of the game is even mentioned in the block's description.
  • Mario Pinball Land - Koopatrols appear as enemies in Bowser's castle.
  • Super Mario 64 DS - The Goomba King returns in this game, renamed to Goomboss.
  • Super Princess Peach - Koopatrols appear as statues in Bowser's Villa.
  • Mario Kart DS - Goomboss also appears in this game's Mission mode.
  • Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time - Star Hill appears once again and is north of the castle just like in this game.
  • Super Paper Mario - Every partner here returns as a Catch Card in this game. Francis also has posters of Lady Bow and Bootler in his castle. Tubba Blubba was also mentioned, and had his own TV show called, "The Blubbening". At the beginning of this game, all of Mario's partners, as well as his ones from Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, are all seen together in a photo.
  • Super Mario Galaxy - Both games begin with a letter from Peach to Mario, also Bowser's way of kidnapping Peach (by lifting her castle into the sky) is reused here.
  • Super Smash Bros. Brawl - Kooper, Lady Bow, General Guy, and Kammy Koopa appear as Stickers. Three of the Star Spirits - Eldstar, Muskular, and Misstar - are also represented by Stickers, but use their Mario Party 5 artworks.
  • Paper Mario: Sticker Star - Similar to Bowser's role in this game, Bowser ends up being the main villain as well as being superpowered by a wish-granting object. Unlike in Paper Mario, however, his gaining the object was completely accidental.
  • Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS: In the Paper Mario stage the Whale from chapter 5 appears under the S.S. Flavion variation of the stage lifting the ship up above the water.

Trophy information from the Super Smash Bros. series

Super Smash Bros. Melee

Type Image Description
Paper Mario File:Trophy203.PNG The Star Rod: Bowser stole it, and Mario wants it back. Bowser vs. Mario is familiar for Mario aficionados, but Paper Mario is novel. What this game brings to the 3D polygon-filled gaming world is its art style: everything is wafer thin! What the visuals lack in realism, they more than make up for in unique artistry.

Media

Staff

Main article: List of Paper Mario staff

Chief director game design

  • Ryota Kawade

Director

  • Toshitaka Muramatsu
  • Takahiro Ohgi
  • Hironobu Suzuki

Script writers

  • Kumiko Takeda
  • Kaori Aoki

Art director character design

  • Naohiko Aoyama

Graphic designers

  • Chie Kawabe
  • Hitomi Nakano
  • Tokuko Hirose
  • Takeshi Ando
  • Shigeyuki Asa
  • Sachio Kurita
  • Kiyoshi Mizuki
  • Jun Takamura
  • Shinko Konishi
  • Michiko Ishida
  • Rumiko Matsumoto
  • Misa Nagai
  • Gou Matsuda
  • Takahiko Shimada
  • Hiroko Watanabe

Quotes

Main article: List of Paper Mario quotes
  • "Welcome to Boo's Shop. How can I scare you today?"Igor
  • "Hm! You have great hidden strength for one clothed like a plumber."The Master
  • "I'm actually a really sensitive guy, trapped in a huge body. I don't wanna be invincible anymore if I have to fight guys like you!"Tubba Blubba
  • "You!! You ignored all those very scary warnings! Don't you have the common sense to get scared and run away? What's wrong with you!?"Tutankoopa
  • "Oh no! I can't believe I left my secret diary lying out! It would be totally embarrassing if someone were to read that thing."Bowser
  • "Kaaaa-wiiiizzz! It's everyone's favorite quizmaster, Chuck Quizmo!"Chuck Quizmo
  • "Shucks! First I think I get away from that ol' fishin' man... and then I get all swallowed up by some huge fish... and then this fella with the mustache goes upside my head."Fuzzipede
  • "Nyeah heh heh heh!!! Ooh, I can't wait until Mario gets here! He's gonna get beaten so bad! He'll probably start crying!"Kammy Koopa
  • "Old man, you are simply the cat's meow!"Kolorado
  • "I see. Great, just great. You're on an exciting adventure with Mario. Talk about unfair."Luigi

Pre-release and unused content

Main article: List of Paper Mario pre-release and unused content

Early screenshots of this game showed that Poochy was going to play some sort of role in the game, and another screenshot showed that Nep-Enuts were going to be in this game also (indicating that Lavalava Island was going to be more like Yoshi's Island). Also, the early version of Forever Forest showed that it would be much smaller, with all the forest's trees having sinister faces.

Glitches

Main article: List of Paper Mario glitches

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Herringway can be morphed into a normal Bumpty or become invisible if the player pauses the game right after Mario and Herringway go into the mayor's room and right before initiating the conversation with the detective during Chapter 7. If invisible, he will reappear when the room is left. If Herringway becomes a normal Bumpty, the game will freeze when the mayor gives him the present. Upon freezing, a debug screen will appear.

Gallery

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Names in other languages

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Trivia

  • This is one of four Mario RPG games that has Bowser as the main antagonist; the others are the game's 3DS sequel, Mario & Luigi: Dream Team and Mario and Luigi: Paper Jam. In all the other RPG games, Bowser is either an ally, a minor foe, or a penultimate boss.
  • This is the only game in the series not to be called Paper Mario in Japan, as there it is called "Mario Story".
  • This game was released in China on the iQue Player just one month before Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door was in Japan.
  • In Italy, the title is written with a lower-case p, thus being called "paper Mario".
  • This is the final Mario game released for the Nintendo 64 in Australia, while in the rest of the world, Mario Party 3 was the last Mario game to be released for said console.
  • Despite being said to make him invincible, the Star Rod doesn't actually make Bowser invincible. It merely raises his defense by a substantial amount. With an attack that does at least 15 damage, it's possible for him to take damage while invincible.

References

  1. ^ IGN: Miyamoto Reveals Secrets: Fire Emblem, Mario Paint 64 - interview from 1997 where Paper Mario (under the name Mario RPG 2) is mentioned as a 64DD title in development

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