Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga (Game Boy Advance, 2003)

Super Mario RPG took a little while to catch on with gamers, but once it had, they were clamoring for a sequel.  What came, instead, was a spiritual successor of sorts called Paper Mario for the Nintendo 64.  It was basically an even more simplified Mario RPG, one for young children to become introduced to the genre.  It followed many of the guidelines set by its predecessor, but falls flat when compared to it.  A worthy successor to Super Mario RPG would come on the Game Boy Advance, however, in the form of Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga.
In this game, Princess Peach is welcoming an ambassador from the neighboring land to the Mushroom Kingdom, the Beanbean Kingdom, who turns out to be Cackletta, an evil witch.  She steals the Princess's voice, replacing it with an "explosive vocabulary" (the dialogue in the game is all in text, and when the Princess attempts to speak, her words explode).  The famous Mario and his not-so-famous brother Luigi are sent to the Beanbean Kingdom to retrieve the voice, aided by... Bowser?  Yes, Bowser lends the Mario Bros. a lift in one of his airships for the pursuit of Cackletta (he can't kidnap the Princess since her voice would destroy his castle).  The ship is attacked by Cackletta's henchman, Fawful, and the Mario Bros. make a crash landing over the Beanbean Kingdom.
Carried over from Super Mario RPG is the comical tone, but taken to an all-new level.  This is one of the funniest games I have ever played, made possible by the wonderful personalities given to all of the characters.  It is well known that Mario receives a bigger spotlight than Luigi, and the writers of the game incorporate this into the dialogue.  A Beanish resident recognizes the brothers and says "It's the famous Mario!  And his brother! ... Green guy!"  Bowser, while usually a threatening force in the Mario games, is here an incompetent, yet assured, grump.
Hands-down, the funniest character in the game, who multiplies the humor several times, is Fawful.  His dialogue consists of broken English and word salads (a phrase with correct syntax but nonsensical word choice) that give him a brilliantly unhinged personality.  The first encounter with him on Bowser's ship is a classic scene in gaming.  When Bowser says to him "What's your beef?" Fawful responds, "Beef?  I am lacking in beef.  Fawful is beefless!"  He compares Cackletta's plan to a sandwich, and then declares, "I am the mustard of your doom!"  His battle cry "I HAVE FURY!" was included in Nintendo Power Magazine's list of classic video game quotes.
The gameplay of Mario & Luigi takes place in two forms.  The first is the overworld, a huge span of land that the brothers traverse, often including platforming and puzzles.  Both brothers are moved at the same time, pressing A makes one jump and B the other.  Pressing Start makes them trade places.  They both get mallets, and eventually Mario gets the power to shoot fire and Luigi gets the power to shoot lightning.  All of these powers are used to solve the many puzzles in this game.  For one puzzle, A burning statue is blocking your path, and you put it out by having Mario fill up with water, and then Luigi jumps on him to spray it out.
The second form of gameplay are the turn-based battles.  Like Super Mario RPG, enemies are visible on the map, and bumping into them starts a battle.  However, this time you may make a pre-emptive strike to deal some damage before the fight begins.  Be careful though, since some enemies can do the same to you.  In battle, each brother can attack separately, or do a combo.  Also like Mario RPG is the ability to deal extra damage with well-timed button presses, but here there is a greater emphasis on it.  When enemies attack, damage can be negated, or even avoided, with good timing.  Combos are performed by a series of button presses that reward you for how well you perform them.
The Mario & Luigi series would receive two sequels, both on the Nintendo DS (Partners in Time and Bowser's Inside Story) but neither reaching quite the heights that the first game did.  Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga is a masterpiece of humor, gameplay, and story in the Mario franchise.  Is this game better than Super Mario RPG?  In some ways, yes, in others, no.  The original must be noted for all of its inventions that the spiritual successor owes to it, but then, Mario & Luigi does take everything that Super Mario RPG did well and magnify it.  Regardless, these are two wonderful and iconic RPGs that ought to be experienced by any fan of the genre.