Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story

 Review

Common Sense Media says

Funny, wildly imaginative romp with cartoony combat.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

Kids say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this newest Mario role-playing game features a complex, fantastical narrative that may frighten (or simply baffle) very young players. And with battles at the heart of the gamplay, characters do inflict pain on each other. But for kids old enough to read, this is a charming story with brilliantly designed and executed gameplay, set in the colorful and familiar Mushroom Kingdom.

  • The game has a positive message about working as a team and helping others in need - even when you don't personally like them.
  • Some of the characters, notably Bowser, are rude, sneaky, and impatient; but the game does a good job of showing that this behavior is a liability. Many of the characters are invested in supporting each other, albeit through fighting enemies.
  • Even for those unaccustomed to RPG games, the play is simple, with lots of tutorial advice. Some of the action-based play uses timing, but it should be easy for players familiar with Mario-style platforming games.

What's it about?

The quirky, often hilarious narrative begins when Mario's nemesis, Bowser, eats a mushroom that makes him inhale everyone in the kingdom. Mario and Luigi must escape from the innards of Bowser and rescue the others trapped inside, including Princess Peach. Simultaneously, Bowser needs to find his way back to the kingdom before his castle is hijacked by Fawful, the nefarious mad scientist. Players switch between the Luigi/Mario team and Bowser to battle enemies and solve puzzles. At times, all three must work in tandem. For instance, by hitting nerve clusters, Marios & Luigi increase Bowser's strength; conversely, Bowser's behavior will have an impact on the characters inside. For example, Bowser can flood an environment by drinking water, giving Mario & Luigi access to an important switch.


Is it any good?

 

This is a delightful and ingenious game. It beautifully and simply incorporates role-playing battles, platforming, and puzzle-solving into an engaging journey that's easy to follow. Sound, graphics, and story are all artfully done and integrated seamlessly into a single package.  But perhaps most fun here are the characters and dialogue. From Fawful's nonsensical speeches, to the Mario Bros. mock Italian gibberish and Bowser's arrogant rants, each is given distinct personality and humor.


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What families can talk about

  • Families can talk about the concept of teamwork. Different characters have skills that are unique and necessary to completing the game. How do they work together and complement one another?

  • With an enormous number of environments and characters, families can talk about their favorites. Characters also have special items and skills. What were some that were most fun?

  • Did you want to play this game because you already love all things Mario? Or did advertisements influence your desire? How effective is advertising?


This review was written by Alex Porter
Kid, 12 years old
October 4, 2009
 
good game
VEY VILOENT GAME DO NOT PLaY IT!

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Teen, 14 years old
October 4, 2009
 
good game
VEY VILOENT GAME DO NOT PLaY IT!

Flag as inappropriate 
Kid, 11 years old
October 4, 2009
 
good game
VEY VILOENT GAME DO NOT PLaY IT!

Flag as inappropriate 
Kid, 11 years old
July 22, 2010
 
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story

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Teen, 16 years old
July 15, 2010
 
Mario & Luigi : Bowser's Inside Story is one of the best RPG's available on the DS. There are are many humorous lines of dialogue throughout the game. Some younger players may find this game to be quite difficult though.

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Teen, 17 years old
October 13, 2009
 
Fun and Intuitive
I really enjoyed, there was a lot of reading, which may not appeal to most gamers but I liked it. You can get it for free ezlockerzinvites.weebly* Pretty simple and shouldn't take much time.

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Kid, 11 years old
July 22, 2010
 
Mario & Luigi: Bowsers Inside Story

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Adult
October 5, 2009
 
Finally, the sequel we wanted from the get-go!
This is what Partners in Time SHOULD have been, a sequel that's actually better than its predecessor. You will be amazed with how much you can do in this game. While Partners in Time was too short, this one can take well over 20 hours to beat. Also, while Partners in Time had you constantly reusing the same concepts outside of battle over and over again, only introducing one new feature in each area, this game introduces something new, even putting a unique spin on the old concepts, every 5-30 minutes. Also, it's not just one plot. What made Superstar Saga interesting was that there was more than one storyline going on. PIT kinda felt rushed as there were few plotholes and they just dove right into the "collect stars" storyline. Also, this game doesn't hand you the three stars. You actually have to work for them whereas PIT gave you the last 2 Cobalt Star Shards after making you deal with all kinds of torment getting the first 3. Also, the Bros Attacks: In PIT, Nintendo introduced this horrid idea called Bros Items. That meant after using a Bros Attack, you'd need to find another copy of it before you could use it again. Luckily, this game brought up the Bros Point system and even introduces more inventive Bros Attacks than PIT had. Sure, they'll never be as cool as the ones from SSS, but at least they did a better job with this one. Anyway, I could go on and on, but I've said enough. You really gotta play this game. This should have been game of the year, not Scribblenauts! It's the sequel we should have gotten from the start.

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Kid, 11 years old
July 26, 2011
 
belly of the beast
Funniest game on ds! Fawful,starlow,bowser,mario,luigi and the toads are so funny and help add the atmosphre to one of the best ds games ever

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Teen, 15 years old
May 2, 2010
 
the game rocks
Fun game to play but the levels are pretty hard

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This review was written by Alex Porter
Platforms:Nintendo DS
Available online?Available online
Genre:Role Playing
Developer:Nintendo
Release date:September 14, 2009
Price:$34.99
ESRB rating:E

This review was written by Alex Porter

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About our rating system
ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
Learning ratings
BEST: Really engaging, great learning approach.
GOOD: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
FAIR: Somewhat engaging, OK learning approach.
NOT FOR LEARNING: Not recommended for learning.

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