3.5/5 ★ – MechaniChris's review of Paper Mario: Color Splash.

I really like this one! I can understand the criticisms that it’s just Sticker Star 2, but I also thought that Sticker Star was brimming with potential that this one actually lived up to. I had a few suggestions for the battle system and was ecstatic to find that they had already implemented them in this game, namely the switch to a large deck of cards, and the ability to draw a new card anytime you want. At no point did I feel completely blindsided in a boss fight because I had all the wrong attacks, and it’s so much smoother to sort through your deck than it was to flip through a sticker book. And you know, card battles are a real thing, and sticker battles aren’t. It’s just conceptually way better. I also really enjoyed the paint mechanic. I found it weirdly satisfying to fill in all the color spots (and rage inducing when I couldn’t find one). Plus it was great to have a visual representation of each enemy’s health without having an outright health bar. I thought it would be annoying having to constantly replenish my paint, but it’s so plentiful, it really only became an issue in later boss battles when you have plenty of paint replenish cards anyway. There’s not really much of a plot, which is a bit disappointing for an RPG game. I also miss the companions from the first three Paper Mario’s so hopefully they bring that back as this franchise continues. Overall though, I found it to be a very satisfying game and absolutely the best looking of the series. Now they just need to remake it on the switch so people don’t have to borrow a WiiU in order to play it.