What was your first impression of Super Mario RPG? (GeekCritique Video Rec)

[Hailinel]

My first impressions were that it was entertaining, but as someone that played other Square RPGs of the era, it didn't do much for or stick with me in any particular way. My imagination was captivated by Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy VI. Super Mario RPG not so much.

 

[night814]

SMB2 crying in the corner.

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Lol totally forgot about mario 2 USA. That's not really peach but you're right

 

[NotLiquid]

As a European, I experienced both Paper Mario and TTYD before I tried out SMRPG. Both of them made SMRPG feel instantly dated to me in terms of world, writing and controls, although it did have some charms. Then I played Mario & Luigi, and that was that. Felt like a true blue followup given it comes from ostensibly the same talent.

 

[FTF]

Quite possibly my favorite RPG of all time. I remember my dad bought it for me at a garage sale along with a N64 and Zelda OOT.

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Damn your dad knew what was up.

 

[Chadtwo]

I was in middle or high school but this was like late aughts or early 2010s. I liked it! Writing seemed to hold up pretty well, I remember liking the party members you get, and also the difficulty was at a good level for someone like me who was pretty bad at rpgs at that point

 

[Kcannon]

Lol totally forgot about mario 2 USA. That's not really peach but you're right

Click to shrink...

There are still Super Mario Kart and Yoshi Cookie (which SMRPG actually references at one point).

 

[The Bookerman]

A muddy blurry mess on SNES that a lot of folks love. I'm not a mario Rpg guy though.
It was hyped back then because it was Square and Nintendo delivering an RPG.

Much more a chrono trigger fan.

 

[sir_crocodile]

I loved it. I loved the weirdness. Had to import it from America so it was expensive, but worth it.

 

[Issen]

I was already well-acquainted with RPGs. Somehow I only found out about this game after Final Fantasy VII. I thought it was outstanding then, one of my favorites, and I still think it holds up.

 

[Mars People]

A lot of the character design was really weird and off putting.
Almost grotesque in a strange way.

 

[Euler007]

I was 17 when it came out. It was OK, but I preferred the Dragon Quest and FF series. Overall I liked third party games more than first party on the NES/SNES.

 

[Deleted member 17207]

I didn't own it right when it came out, but I remember it being hard to find. I remember seeing a cardboard cutout of the characters at a video rental store and thinking it looked super different but cool.

A few years later when I had my own money I bought it at a local used video game store for a price that was higher than N64 games coming out. My parents didn't understand haha.

I loved the game, instantly. It was different, the music was fantastic, it was a turn-based RPG but with some "action" built in - it was great.

Still a fave.

 

[Doctor_Thomas]

Being in Europe, we never got it at the time.

So I was only aware of it in a post-FFVII world.

Dated and clunky.

 

[Z-Brownie]

i was stunned with the visuals and the humor and i have never played such fun combat in a jrpg.

 

[Judau]

Being a dumb kid back then, my first experience with it left me wondering who the hell would want to play a turn-based Mario game...and this was after playing and enjoying FF1 on the NES. Of course, once I gave it a proper chance, I realized that it was not only another great Mario game, but it was also an amazingly fun RPG. It was the first RPG I played where you could keep pressing the attack button for more damage with certain moves,which I think added to my enjoyment.

 

[Chirotera]

Absolutely loved it. I was all about RPGs, and Nintendo, so them in the same game? It was great!

It'll never not be weird to me though that Bowser and Peach are playable, but Luigi doesn't even show up in the story! And people wonder why he was so pissed off in Mario Kart.

 

[Crashman]

So, uhh...it was a weird one.

At the time I was super into Mario, which I place at the feet of a combination of the Mario Mania book, that Nintendo Power guidebook for Super Mario World, and also that Nintendo Power comic Super Mario Adventures. So I was super into any Mario game that came out, and SMRPG was no exception...except it was an RPG, and as a little kid, I'd get intimidated by games pretty easily. I got the guidebook of all things and got that only, and it was that way for years. I did have a friend who had gotten the game though, so when I was over at his house I got to see it for myself, which made me want it even more, even though I wasn't getting it. I don't think I got the game proper until sometime in the early 00s, and even by that time I was still young and not that good at RPGs, and as such didn't do super well with it, but I did make it past Exor, though I was intimidated yet again and didn't finish the game for years.

Despite how weird situation was, because of that guide book, I was super invested in a game I didn't have or beat for such a long time, because it was like "the" Mario story that showed the world until Paper Mario. Heck, I've got a Geno avatar right now (though that's more because I was hoping he'd be the TGA reveal, and haven't bothered to change it back now that his chances have gone up in smoke).

 

[totowhoa]

I didn't understand it and thought RPG stood for "Rated PG" and Mario was gonna cuss in this game. I was 9 years old when I was first reading about it in game magazines. I had never played an RPG before

 

[Fridaynightcatlady]

First RPG I every played. Must have been 7-8 and I fell in love with it.

 

[Rhomega]

The first time I played it was as a rental. I had no idea how to start a new game, so I had to use one of the 4 save files that were at various points in the game, and while I could understand the game mechanics just with onscreen instructions, I had no real idea what was going on. Fortunately, I did like it enough to request it for Christmas that year, and it became my favorite game of all-time until I discovered Paper Mario on the Wii Virtual Console.

 

[Marmoka]

I wasn't used to play videogames when I first played it. I didn't know what the RPG genre was about, but it was a Mario game, so I played it.

My first impression: "WTF? This is not a Mario game! This is something very weird." I didn't like it at all.

Some years later I got more interested in this hobby and I could learn about different videogame genres outside of platforming, FIFAs and FPS. I could learn about RPGs too. It's not my favorite genre but I do enjoy playing them, and now I understand why people love the first Mario RPG game.

 

[AtomicShroom]

I loved it! It was the perfect game to get me started in the RPG genre. A friend had tried to get me hooked on FF3(6) previously and I had dismissed it as too complex for my tastes. I was lured in by the premise of this game being focused on making the genre accessible, and it fully delivered. Not only that, but it still got kind of complex by the end, where I truly felt like my comprehension of the style had greatly improved, and that it was not the "Babies First RPG" that some were fearing. After beating that, I asked my friend to lend me FF3 again, and oh boy. Such bliss. I thought "I got this now".

 

[Zyrox]

I'm in Europe and the game originally didn't release here. That said, one day my brother was handing me a disc for my then new PC (I was like 10 or something at the time). On that disc was a program that, when launched, could play SNES games. On PC. My mind was blown at the witchcraft on display. There was also a selection of SNES games on that disc and one of them was Super Mario RPG. I loved Mario and I loved RPGs but before that I had no idea that game even existed.
So I started playing and I got hooked. Really enjoyed the weird vibes, the battle system with the timed hits and the exploration that blends regular rpg stuff with platforming.


Looking back on it it was a great foundation for all the Mario RPGs that came after though some of them have definitely bested SMRPG imo.

 

[ElectricBlanketFire]

I was 10, had no prior experience with RPGs and had no idea what was going on.

It actually turned me off to the genre completely to this day and I wish that wasn't the case as I know I'm missing out on a lot of great games.

 

[Aaron]

Thought it was cool as hell as a kid but found it too hard for some reason. I think my first time trying to play it (around 8 years old or so) I got several game overs in a row to that purple crocodile thief guy. I hit a similar wall with Pokemon Blue where I stopped finding the game fun when I couldn't just bulldoze my way through everything (i.e. when I hit the Elite Four).

C'est la vie. Never gave it a proper chance after, but I have it on SNES mini and have always been meaning to.

 

[nopattern]

I loved it so much. Boosters Tower, The Axem Rangers, and Valentina are all still burned into my brain.

 

[Lothars]

I love it and it set the tone for all mario rpg's games going forward which unfortunately none of them are even close to being as good to me. I would love more of that world.

 

[JoeNut]

Played it on the snes classic. Didn't finish it but thought it was pretty good. Would like to see a modern version

 

[Flame Lord]

I remember seeing the cover when I was a kid and it made me feel like it was some kind of dark Mario game. I finally played it about a year ago and... It was ok.

 

[werezompire]

I really liked it at the time. I remember being really surprised that the game starts with a Bowser fight.

 

[PlanetSmasher]

I fucking loved this game. Still do.

Never did forgive them for not letting us recruit Yoshi or Luigi into the party, though.

 

[Poltergust]

I first played it on the Wii VC, after I already played other Mario RPGs like TTYD and Superstar Saga.

Compared to those games, it felt kind of... basic? Like, it was still a charming and fun experience, but it felt waaaaaaay too easy and the structure of it never shook things up. Considering its reputation, I honestly expected more.

I also didn't like how Bowser and Mallow are completely outclassed by the other party members. There's literally no reason to ever use them when you're not forced to.

 

[the magical kitsune]

Another European here, so I didn't get to play it until much later. I enjoyed it (much more than Paper Mario), but by that time I had already played Mario & Luigi 1-3 and considered them better games.

 

[donkey]

The game that got me into RPGs along with Chrono Trigger when I was a young teen. Loved the combat timing being satisfying to pull off, the music and the world. That Axem Ranger battle was awesome.

 

[louris]

I vividly remember reading about it in a magazine and being blown away that it was "3D". I managed to rent it some time later, and it couldn't hold my interest, I was too young for an RPG of its kind at the time. But I had fun for the amount that I could play.

 

[Doggg]

Because I was cynical, I thought it looked really dumb. Then I tried and realized that it was actually quite fun.

 

[red13th]

What a gem of a game. It blew me away when I was young. High quality all around.

 

[Kuga]

SMRPG is one of my favorite SNES games. The music was top tier. It's a great game to introduce somebody to the RPG genre. I think the graphics and isometric views aged relatively well too. I still have my original cartridge and play through the game again every couple years.

 

[Pancakes R Us]

When I encountered the turn based combat, my reaction was 'what the heck'?

 

[Mr. Gold]

I think this is the only SNES game that will make me get the Online Pass.

I would pay $80 CAD for a remake

 

[the-pi-guy]

I fucking loved this game. Still do.

Never did forgive them for not letting us recruit Yoshi or Luigi into the party, though.

Click to shrink...

Really feels like a legitimate sequel should have included that. Luigi at least.

 

[PlanetSmasher]

This music used to drive my mother legitimately insane:

 

[mute]

It was probably the or one of my first JRPGs and I actually bounced off it pretty hard. Remember getting it from the rental shop, think I only made it to the Alligator bandit dude before I returned it and didn't play it again until way later, when I had a better handle on what the genre was about.

 

[swirlyglasses]

I thought it was some sort of bootleg game

 

[whatsarobot]

I thought it looked weird.

Not necessarily bad, just... wtf am I looking at?

Is that fucking slave Donkey Kong?!

Click to shrink...

It's so funny because looking at this now, I can objectively say it looks BAD. But at the time the 3d models were so novel that my ten year old brain just thought it was fucking AWESOME.

 

[TheWildCard]

"Man why does this look so ugly"

Still don't like how it look tbh

 

[twentytwo22]

It was, and is, one of my favorite gaming experiences in my life. It is just a perfect title. The music, the settings that they put Mario into, the battle system... *chef's kiss*

I was around 12 when it came out and I played it and it is one of the games that cemented my love for Japanese RPGs.

 

[flashman92]

It was one of the best RPGs in terms of gameplay, with stuff I'd never seen before like timing attacks, platform based exploration, stat point allocation, etc. The music was also great. I don't even remember the story tbh As for characters, Mallow was a cry baby, and I remember more about Booster than I do Geno. Also fuck the Yoshi race.

It was also one of the ugliest games I remember playing, with terrible designs, use of color, and just general meh UI/interface. Stages would be set against a bright ass plain blue background, making every single area feel like a weird floating island. I thought nearly all pre-rendered sprites looked ugly then and I still do. It's just a really really ugly game.

 

[JPLC]

I love Super Mario RPG

It's a real shame that "timed hits" didn't become more prevalent in the battle mechanics of JRPGs in general

 

[taco543]

one of my favorite games of all time, such a classic. Nintendo just needs to put Geno in smash already.