There's one key way in which Mario & Luigi: Brothership pushes the series forward. As the first original entry in the Mario & Luigi series in almost 9 years, the game can be seen as a major test of the franchise's continued potential and a path for it to ...

Visually, Mario & Luigi: Brothership is a candy-coated affair that fits right in with the series. There's a cel-shaded quality to the models that reminds me a little of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.

After completing the first main island, Willma will ask for your help in saving both of her kids, Billdit and Maykit who went to separate places. Before making your choice, there will be a notification indicating this choice has more weight than you may think; here's how your choice affects the game.

This structure allows for two fundamental truths that keep the combat in Brothership engaging for most of its runtime. Watching Mario and Luigi do stuff together is really charming, and putting quick-time events in turn-based battles makes the proceedings feel just a bit more exciting. Stats don’t dictate whether an attack lands, you do.

Brothership has a pretty slow start. It takes a good 20 minutes to get through all of the cutscenes and intro dialogue that sets up Mario and Luigis adventure, but even when you finally get control of the brothers,

Legend of the Seven Stars, Mario, and his party members are given typical pieces of armor like cloaks and hats. In the Mario & Luigi series, the two plumbers have always received various overalls to equip.

One tiny detail was changed for the latest Mario & Luigi game, and only veteran players of the series will notice it. New players miss it altogether.

After linking Rumbla Island to Shipshape Island, Mario and Luigi will be tasked with getting a hammer that could break open the purple capsule that dropped on the beach. Your destination of choice is between Raynforst and Twistee Island,

Mario and Luigi have two different types of weapons they can equip in Mario & Luigi: Brothership. First, the pair can only jump on enemies with a nice pair of boots. Second, they will unlock hammers that they can use to smash enemies into pieces with or rocks while exploring the various islands that they will sail to.