Mario & Luigi: The Brotherhood Epic was the big surprise of the Nintendo Direct in June 2024. E3 no longer exists, but the Kyoto firm still manages to catch us off guard during its summer conference. This year, the Japanese manufacturer did very well by launching its presentation with an RPG that no one thought they would see again. The Mario & Luigi saga, once carried by the AlphaDream teams, seemed lost forever since the studio closed in 2019 following bankruptcy. But Nintendo is not the type to give up so easily. Especially since the last twelve months have been marked by the resurrection of Mario-inspired role-playing games. After the remakes of Super Mario RPG in November 2023 and Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door last May, Mario & Luigi: The Brotherly Epic completes the spin-off triptych.
But does this episode developed by a new team really live up to its predecessors? If the Kyoto firm decides to continue a license after the closure of its initial studio, it is because it still sees potential. And it is clear that the Mario & Luigi recipe is still just as effective. Far from being flawless, this new adventure of the plumber brothers manages to rediscover the franchise's characteristic charm while trying to forge a new identity. Between good additions and controversial changes, Mario & Luigi: The Brotherly Epic is a nice surprise that would be a shame to miss, let us explain why.
A new adventure full of freshness
True to the atmosphere conveyed in its many trailers, the game is a real breath of fresh air that we enjoy exploring. Already, the teams d’Acquire – the new studio in charge of the franchise – have managed to overcome one of the most dangerous obstacles specific to this return to Switch. Until now, the Mario & Luigi RPGs have always featured 2D graphics, with the exception of certain gameplay sequences in the 3DS games. This allowed the license to stand out with a cartoonish style that was very attractive but difficult to transpose into a 3D environment. With this opus, the artists in charge of the project have managed to develop models and textures inspired by the promotional artwork characteristic of these games. For once, it’s as if the characters on the cover came to life: it’s quite an achievement.
In addition to being eye candy, this Mario & Luigi quickly takes us into its new world full of good ideas. We discover the land of Connexia in which the two brothers and the inhabitants of the Mushroom Kingdom are propelled following the appearance of a strange portal. Here, a continent once held in place by an energy called the Harmonéon was broken into many pieces following a still unexplained cataclysm. Inevitably, the two heroes will get involved in this story to help the inhabitants of this region. The artistic direction of the world goes hand in hand with its lore: the Harmonéon is a kind of electricity and the characters have electrical outlet heads. The environment is funny and coherent, so much so that we let ourselves be more easily carried away by the scenario.
Mario and Luigi take their places on the Navisthme, a strange boat housing Connexia's only hope: the Unicéa, a sort of world tree. On this boat, the young shoot of Unicéa acts as a sail to join the different pieces of the continent, now spread across the seas. In addition to the symbolism of the tree and its importance for the story, this set allows for an exploration that is still new for the franchise. For the first time, the game allows itself some liberties in the unfolding of its story. The player controls the boat and can sometimes choose the order in which he visits the islands. By linking the lore of Connexia to the core gameplay mechanics, the developers have created an exciting universe that we really want to save.
Losing our bearings
Upon its release, The Brotherly Epic suffered greatly from comparison with previous adventures, and that's quite normal. The Mario & Luigi saga is a franchise that players care about a lot. This Switch opus has made a lot of efforts to maintain its initial identity while trying to freshen up: but some changes are far from welcome. The entire franchise revolves around the duality between Mario and Luigi and the use of their respective talents via specific controls. And it is in this specific aspect that Mario & Luigi: The Brotherly Epic is suffering a lot.
Controlling Luigi in the environment is no longer of any interest. Although the player can still make him jump using the B button, the brother overcomes obstacles automatically and cannot even become group leader to take the lead. All of Luigi's actions are now confined to a new mechanic managed by the game's AI: "Luigi's Genie". In an effort to make the second brother more personable and independent, the player loses all control over the character so much that part of the puzzle and enigma aspect of the franchise evaporates with this change.
These strange changes related to Luigi also affect the fights. For some reason that escapes veterans of the franchise, you now have to press the A button to validate Luigi's actions in battles. As a result, it becomes too easy to get confused when this brother attacks. The game asks us to press B in rhythm while the finger is placed on the other button: it makes no sense. For regulars, the loss of bearings can be really disconcerting during the first few sessions of play. Once this adaptation period is over, we quickly realize that the game is not bad, but simply different. The story is excellent, the combats too, while the exploration finds new ways to exploit the duo in puzzles. It's the beginning of a new era.
A new identity for Mario and Luigi
The fraternal epic is a more symbolic Mario RPG than you might think. Already, this one follows a year of renewal for these spin-offs, after the re-release of two extremely popular titles among players. The comparison effect is therefore all the harsher for this title which, considering this variable, manages to hold its own. The developers have probably chosen to take this chance of rebirth to heart. The last twelve months have served as a reboot for the Mario franchise in the broad sense. After the departure of Charles Martinet and the arrival of a new actor to voice the characters, the new platforming recipe with Super Mario Bros Wonder as well as the return of RPGs, Nintendo and its partners have pulled out all the stops to give the mustachioed plumber a second lease of life.
The teams at the Acquire studio – notably at the origin of the Octopath Traveler phenomenon – preferred to evolve the Mario & Luigi saga rather than produce a sequel under the sign of fan service. In addition to being commendable, this decision is the only one that can guarantee the future of this license in the long term. The first opus dates back to the Game Boy Advance, and a session on the original title via the GBA catalog of Nintendo Switch Online is enough to better understand the changes applied by The Brotherly Epic. We are entitled to an RPG in keeping with its time and the standards that govern the genre today, but which also does not hesitate to innovate. Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam Bros had proven to us that fan service leads nowhere and this new opus avoids repeating the same mistakes. This adventure is an unexpected renewal that makes you want to discover more. Now how about a new Paper Mario to continue on this positive momentum?
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