As I began making my way through one of the final big-name Nintendo Switch releases of 2024, Mario & Luigi: Brothership, I was quickly reminded of what a treat it is to play a brand-new Mario & Luigi title. Not an updated older release with expanded content or a chapter in the Paper Mario sister series or even the return of a Nintendo RPG forebear—all of which are great in their own way—but a legitimately new Mario & Luigi experience.
Though the histories of all three franchises are perplexingly intertwined, the Mario & Luigi branch of this uniquely twisted family tree has long been a sentimental favorite. There’s just something about a Mario brothers tag-team adventure that has, for me, always seemed to yield far more than the sum of its parts.
Brothership is no exception and, like last month’s Mario Party Jamboree, it certainly seems like a series highpoint. A late-cycle release on the venerable Switch, it’s tailormade for Nintendo’s plucky handheld/console hybrid from its cartoony graphics with distinct character outlines to its jazzy, ska-infused soundtrack to its judicious use of the system’s HD rumble.
In classic Mario & Luigi style, Brothership sees our Italian adventurers exploring the unfamiliar world of Concordia aboard the equally foreign Shipshape Island, a mobile base of operations that sails the seas to restore this fractured land through the power of… wireless electricity?
With the Uni-Tree that once powered this world destroyed, Concordia’s continent has splintered, setting its disparate islands and their distinctive inhabitants adrift. Unsurprisingly, the newly arrived Mario brothers find themselves on a mission to rejoin what has been put asunder. With the help of new characters like Connie, a Wattanist familiar with Concordia’s inner workings, and flying not-pig Snoutlet, the duo navigates the sometimes choppy waters, exploring unique island biomes bubbling with challenge and personality.
Each island-hopping escapade involves a combination of environmental puzzle-solving and turn-based combat. Mario and Luigi are controlled independently but in tandem (usually using the A and B buttons) with more complex moves and attacks requiring alternating button presses. Proper timing provides maximum damage, with the same mechanic allowing for dodging and countering incoming attacks.
Brothership’s RPG-style combat commands are accessed using command blocks, a rotating (and expanding) selection of options. These include everything from basic hammer and jump attacks to fleeing combat and using recovery items. In time, you’ll unlock Bros. Attacks that involve more elaborate alternating timed button presses but yield much more devastating results.
While the brothers often act as a unit—Mario leading the way, platforming through lush isometric levels while Luigi dutifully follows—they’re not exactly joined at the proverbial hip. At random intervals during overworld travel, an onscreen message will let you know that you can tap the L trigger to send Luigi off to crush nearby blocks, pluck coin-bearing vegetables from the ground, and help manage two-man jump puzzles.
The real magic, though, happens during Bros. Moves. The non-combat answer to Bros. Attacks, these specialty moves open up more of the map by, say, turning Mario and Luigi into a spinning UFO that can fly over expanses too high and broad to jump across in the traditional manner.
Platforming aside, Mario & Luigi: Brothership still remains an RPG at heart, with plenty of coins, items, and material components available to collect. Each character has his own boot, hammer, and clothing slot, as well as special slots for gloves and accessories. These can supplement Mario and Luigi’s stats, which are regularly upgraded when the characters level up. There’s also a Battle Plug system that functions similarly to the badges in Paper Mario, allowing for even more cool combos and character customization.
The theme of electrical plugs further extends into the game’s numerous socket-based allies/enemies and even the islands’ geography. After you puzzle your way through a new environment, Mario and Luigi use Snoutlet to quite literally plug this new land into Shipshape Island. In addition to furthering the all-important plot, this makes return trips to previously discovered islands easier by also linking them via the classical Super Mario Bros. warp tube system, thus encouraging additional exploration as the brothers unlock side quests from the game’s colorful cast.
Combining old favorite elements and fun new diversions in equal measure, Mario & Luigi: Brothership is an action-packed seafaring journey like no other. While it occasionally challenges your hand-eye coordination with innovative puzzle mechanics and your patience when later enemies hit the brothers with status ailments during crucial battles, it’s perhaps most notable for challenging expectations. For example, I went into this game expecting the best but even I was blown away by how well Brothership delivers on all fronts. Still, the cream of the crop has a distinct high point, and in this game, that title goes to little brother Luigi.
A longtime Luigi apologist, I’m particularly fond of his characterization in this game. While still a hapless goofball—the brothers reach islands by firing themselves from a shipboard canon, regularly resulting in Mario’s graceful dismount contrasting with Luigi’s inevitable tumble into the nearby trees/shrubs/rocks/ocean—Luigi now has his own hint mechanic that helps our heroes navigate new challenges. Dubbed Luigi Logic, these flashes of inspiration strike when the brothers encounter a new obstacle that requires a fresh mechanic. Complete with a charming animation, each Luigi Logic sequence serves to nicely elevate what is already an outstanding gameplay experience.
Like last year’s Super Mario Bros. Wonder, Mario & Luigi: Brothership puts a satisfying spin on an already beloved property. It takes all the humor, heart, and high-octane thrills of Mario & Luigi to a whole new level, and in doing so, it makes me more optimistic about the as-yet uncharted futures of Nintendo’s other longtime franchises.
Destined to be a bona fide holiday hit and a true late-system stand-out, Mario & Luigi: Brothership is not a title to be missed. Why, I’d go so far as to call it positively electric!
Review and promotional material provided by Nintendo of America. This post contains affiliate links. I still think Snoutlet looks like a pig, though.
