This game feels like a jump forward, a step back, and then a couple steps sideways. Let me clarify:
The world, the characters, the presentation! The story's more complicated than simply “Bowser evil”, and while it still isn't anything special (that final “twist” that Ollie's so mad because he was written on feels kinda cheap... like you hear it and think to yourself “you've gotta be kidding me”), Olivia's enough of a well-written and likeable character for you to wanna engage with it. Bobby was a super fun character too, and while I would've liked him to stick around a little longer, his death hit an emotional note that I didn't think modern Paper Mario would have the guts to go to until it suddenly did. The humor never misses a beat, as per usual with the series, and makes every interaction enjoyable. The world is a blast to explore, and by that I mean that the set pieces seen throughout the game, especially later on, filled me with a certain sense of childlike wonder. Simply put, I didn't want the game to end. Along with all of that, it looks great (I can confidently say I like the modern Paper Mario art style more than the classic one now!), sounds great (the MUSIC, oh my god this game's OST has gotta be one of the best I've ever heard, like it is consistently phenomenal), and... generally filled me with a lot of joy! There's so much to find from exploring, whether that be folded Toads or little collectible figures, and there's fun little minigames and challenges here and there to mess around with. The game's more completionist-friendly than the older ones (easier than ever to see what you're missing), which coincides with a shift in the gaming industry in general in that direction, and fully completing it really is the way to get the most out of it. I had a lot of fun hunting down the tiny little things I missed (...or at least, I mostly did). And oh yeah! We're also free from the level-based structure and THE TYRANNY OF THE THINGS (...at least in one sense)! No more worrying about needing some completely random item in your inventory to get past random roadblocks you're expected to just have some level of insight about beforehand. Almost forgot to mention that, considering how ridiculous it is that that was even a thing in the previous two games (even if Color Splash tried to address it... it just didn’t do a very good job).
The battles certainly are... something. I didn't like them that much at first, largely because there's just so much more uncertainty involved in them than previous games, especially Paper Mario 64 and TTYD. No tattle mechanic means you'll have no idea how much damage enemies do until they hit you (one of my few deaths was near the beginning due to Spinies dealing way more damage than I expected... didn't die again until near the end of the game where you literally just die if you pick the wrong path at any moment during a segment), and you also won't know how much damage you deal or how much health enemies have. It was frustrating. I came around to combat with time... the ring system is at least interesting if nothing else, and they introduce harder puzzles as you go to have some semblance of a difficulty curve, which fit nicely as my brain slowly got adjusted to solving the puzzles. There are some fundamental flaws to the system, though. Even with puzzles getting harder over time, there's still only so many combinations to be made, and after a while in any area, it can start to feel repetitive as you end up solving the same puzzles over and over again. There's barely any attack options, and the boot and hammer variations are cosmically uninteresting. Items exist, but I found myself practically going through the entire game without using any besides the occasional mushroom. There's also some sort of system where you can pay the crowd to deal damage, which I similarly never used besides once to see what it did, and a button to ask Olivia for advice, which as far as I'm aware, accomplishes more or less nothing. The enemies feel more lifeless than ever before, and while you could argue that that’s the point, to show how mindless the Folded Soldiers are and what a terrible fate it would be to become one, in the realm of gameplay that means you’ll never really have to think about what enemy you’re fighting. I mean, there’s a few enemy-specific gimmicks here and there, but they’re usually nothing too special, and for most enemies, all you’ll have to pay attention to is whether they’re spiked or flying or not.
But perhaps the biggest step back with combat, however, is the rewards you get for it. Color Splash at least had Paint Scraps, which increased your max paint capacity... a reward that could've been more helpful if combat was structured a little bit better (...I have more words to say about that in my Color Splash review), but at least it was something. In Origami King, your rewards are instead solely confetti and money. For what it's worth, battles are the most effective way of refilling your confetti, however... you can literally also get confetti by hitting practically anything with your hammer. And as for money, inflation must be out of control in the Mushroom Kingdom with how little it's worth now. Everything's expensive, but it doesn't really matter since you're showered with coins to such an insane degree that it outweighs any and all prices. You will never be low on coins. I found myself avoiding enemies before even finishing the prologue.
(As a sidenote on the battles, I thought the boss battles were actually a blast. From the trailer, I thought they looked gimmicky and assumed I’d hate them, but instead I found them to be the most inspired battles in the game. Of course, there could’ve been a little more done with them, like I would’ve appreciated more ways to beat each boss through different creative uses of the 1,000-Fold-Arms, but what we got was still enjoyable.)
My fourth word might’ve been “characters” for “Jump Forward”, but that’s also exactly what I consider to be a frustrating step sideways for this game (a problem from Sticker Star and Color Splash that was left infuriatingly unaddressed). Main series characters like Luigi and Bowser are characterized excellently, and as previously mentioned, Olivia’s a treat, but there’s one much bigger overarching problem: T O A D S. Terrifying, I know. While there’s more instances of non-Toad NPCs than the last two Paper Mario games had, there’s still more Toads than everybody would like. It’s just incredibly frustrating to see what’s supposed to be an actual character just turn out to be a lifeless, unmemorable Toad wearing a different shirt or whatever (the Origami Craftsman could’ve been something so much cooler you guys... Seeing Olivia’s “birthplace” was shaping up to be a really cool moment until I saw that her creator was just some random Toad and I groaned).
And in another symptom of the same problem comes the name issue. Bobby may distinctly be Bobby in all our hearts, but as far as the game and all official material are concerned, his “real” name is simply Bob-Omb. Using “Bobby” as a nickname for the character almost feels like some sort of loophole in a rule against naming characters... but first off, as the developers of the game, shouldn’t they be the ones making the rules? And second off, how insane do you have to be to create a kind of media like this and implement a rule against naming characters? Everyone will undoubtedly point to the “it’s no longer possible to modify Mario characters or to create original characters that touch on the Mario universe” quote (this specific post seems to give some good insight into what exactly it means), in which case Nintendo is shooting itself in the foot. The protection of Mario’s brand and all is important from a business perspective I suppose, but it’s impossible not to feel a little hole in my heart from the restrictions on creativity that come as a result... Obviously from my rating, I enjoyed Origami King, but we could’ve gotten a game that was SO much better if the devs were allowed more freedom, something truly spectacular. And maybe if they were allowed this freedom the entire time, we never would’ve hit the same slump that modern Paper Mario did! It’s frustrating.
The main group of baddies this time around is the League of Stationary, which is where the TYRANNY OF THE THINGS comes back in. Like legitimately, they’re tyrants now. They terrorize some random Toads, and at least have some tiny amount of build-up to their fights (though nothing quite like the heights of the original trilogy... besides the stapler, which is foreshadowed from the very beginning of the game and is brilliant in that regard). They’re certainly more interesting than the Koopalings, with the benefit of the fact that you don’t instantly know what all the other bosses will be as soon as you see the first one. I was surprised to see them talk, and even more surprised to find that they had pretty charming personalities! From a hole puncher that’s obsessed with disco music and dances throughout the entire fight (accompanied by some excellent music that combines a stereotypical Arabian style with disco) to a tape dispenser with a mob boss accent and a pompadour, I found myself smiling at the League of Stationary more than I thought. Mostly one-note characters, sure, but I had fun with them.
The other bosses, on the other hand? They’re, uh, a bit rougher. Of the miscellaneous other bosses you fight, I don’t think any of them says a word. Crazy when the somewhat original characters are less interesting than the set of literal office supplies. The Handaconda is a little freaky at least (whole segment with the paper cutouts was totally unexpected and I loved it... wish there were more random and unique enemy designs, though I also understand that apparently the team only had so much freedom to do that), but the Vellumentals quickly become formulaic and are each woefully uninteresting.
Paper Mario: The Origami King is a great game taken for what it is. If you’re looking for something akin to the older Paper Mario games, you won’t find it... but I think it’s generally better to judge a game for what it is rather than what it isn’t. Despite some frustrating design restrictions imposed by Nintendo and a battle system that, while not awful, doesn’t quite incentivize you to take part in, I ended up loving Origami King. Finishing it was bittersweet, as I wanted to see all the game had to offer, yet didn’t want it to end. It’s rare to find a game like that, and it’s worth cherishing when you do.