"I am Beep-0 - an autonomously intelligent scientific research and operational assistant."
--Beep-0, Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle
With Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, Mario enjoys his fourth turn-based game or game series after Super Mario RPG, Paper Mario, and Mario and Luigi. This time his universe crosses over with that of the Rabbids of Ubisoft's Raving Rabbids games. Each respective franchise is able to coexist with their other well due to similarities in the way the characters are handled, as almost everyone is portrayed in a lighthearted, somewhat comedic way. It is the gameplay style that most differs from standard Mario games and even from his other RPG-like adventures. A battle cover system, inability to jump outside of fights, and range of buyable energy-based weapons all help distinguish Kingdom Battle from what came before it.
Production Values
There is actually a tiny amount of voice acting in the opening cinematic that does not make it into the main game, but the sounds of weapons, movements, and environmental objects are consistently clear and fitting. The graphics match the audio in quality, with a jungle world, a desert landscape, and two other primary regions ensuring that there is some variety in the setting. Each world and the characters in them are free of pixelation and jagged outlines. There might not be much to do in these environments that is not related to the story or obvious thanks to the very limited scope of the path, but at least they are not blurry. Only close to the end of the game did visual glitches begin to occur, as some objects that seemed like they were not supposed to appear would blink in and out of sight.
Gameplay
While in the world at large, movement is very rigid. You cannot jump and there are only a few opportunities to walk outside of a fairly narrow pathway. However, there are still occasionally puzzles or collectibles that require slightly more attention to detail than the usual wandering around from one fight to the next. Inside battles, there are far more options for moving around despite the limited size of the fighting area, including a move where Mario or another playable character leaps off of an ally to reach places further out than their range normally allows. As the game progresses, there are more and more options for attacks and movement alike when dealing with enemies.
For instance, Mario, Luigi and the Rabbids or other companions with him can hide behind destructible blocks that provide cover, usually for about two to three enemy shots. Enemies themselves can also take cover and rush up to you only to retreat to some less accessible place. Shooting--yes, Mario and his party members have futuristic firearms of sorts--down at enemies from higher positions even grants a damage bonus. In other words, Kingdom Battle has far more strategic elements than plenty of games Mario has appeared in. There are also new weapons that can be unlocked using coins, which can in turn be obtained in the broad environments and by finishing battles in less than a specified number of turns.
Story
Some spoilers are below.
The Rabbids emerge from a washing machine created by a device, a set of goggles made by what seems to be a young girl in her basement, that can make new items out of preexisting objects. This invention merges two physical things into one. One of the Rabbids puts on the sophisticated goggles and accidentally brings the Rabbids to Mario's universe just after a new statue of Peach is unveiled. Joined by a seemingly sentient, floating machine called Beep-O, Mario and two Rabbids who resemble Peach and Luigi travel the altered world to stop the rogue Rabbid from using the goggles in disruptive or harmful ways.
Intellectual Content
Mild exploration and collectible hunting is available to players who walk around the edges of an area or follow a pipe to an otherwise inaccessible spot. It is a less intense exploration experience than many other games with Mario at first, but by the end of the second world, the complexity of many optional puzzles has increased quite a bit. As mechanics like the ability to push blocks get added, they are incorporated into the puzzles. A handful of them are even necessary to advance to the next part of the story.
Conclusion
Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle is one of the better crossover games in years and hints at a bright future for the relationship between Ubisoft and Nintendo. Anyone looking for the more frenzied and less confined nature of previous games with Mario is better off playing or revisiting older titles, but the turn-based combat here offers something new even by comparison to the mechanics of the similarly turn-based Paper Mario games. Mario has never to my awareness been featured in such tactical fights! Moreover, the successful appearance of two prominent sets of gaming characters is nothing trivial. There was never a more fitting time for new players to try Kingdom Battle than during the wait for the release of the sequel next year.
Content:
1. Violence: The only fighting in the game is mild to the point of having no severity whatsoever. Characters can run into each other with slide attacks or shoot each other with energy weapons.
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