Paper Mario 3DS announced

Paper Mario 3DS gameplay screenshots revealed
Paper Mario 3DS has been announced by Nintendo at E3 2010 for their miraculous new portable system that allows for 3D visuals without the need for 3D glasses.

If you’ve never played the original Paper Mario N64, you definitely need to check that game out, along with it’s sequels: Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (GameCube) and Super Paper Mario (Wii). The RPG Mario titles with flat paper-like characters and worlds are not to be confused with the Mario & Luigi series which includes the original Game Boy Advance “Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga” and it’s sequels: Mario & Luigi: Partner’s in Time (DS) and Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story (DS). Both series were spawned after the commerical and critical success of the original game that started it all, which you can read about in my Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars review (SNES).

Although there wasn’t much revealed about the new “Paper Mario 3DS” (tentative title), Nintendo did show a demo at E3 2010 in which several aspects of the game, how it will play, what it looks like and similarities/differences to previous games in the series have been gleaned:

Paper Mario 3DS screenshots E3 2010

* This game will return the series to it’s traditional 2D gameplay through isometric/3D-environments from a semi-side-scrolling viewpoint, as seen in the first two games (but changed up for the Wii’s Super Paper Mario).
* Partners who help you in combat will return.
* The game does not appear to use the bottom screen, only the top, 3D screen (the bottom screen on the 3DS is NOT 3D but a 2D, touch-screen like the regular DS systems).
* The game plays and looks similar to past titles, and isn’t necessarily fully 3D graphically, although certain visuals and effects will pop off the screen.
* Battle information is displayed on the bottom, touchscreen.
* Battles are turn-based.
* Lots of classic Mario enemies and characters will be featured in the game, including: Goomba’s, Pokeys, Wiggler’s, Chomps, and Thwomps. You can be sure that many others will return.
* One of your battle partners is a classic Chain Chomp enemy!
* A lot of puzzles and other tricks will be done by playing with 3D effects.

Hopefully we’ll get a video of the game in action soon.