Mario and Luigi are back in another role-playing adventure, but this time, they’re bro-ing it up with some unique moves, including holding hands and spinning around until they resemble a flying saucer. These actions are literally called “bro moves.” They help add a little spice to Mario & Luigi: Brothership and offer a return to form for Mario both for better (it’s some lighthearted fun) and worse (for our poor Princess).
Months after Princess Peach finally got a Nintendo Switch game of her own in Princess Peach: Showtime! (and even Zelda received a heroine’s welcome in Echoes of Wisdom) Brothership places Peach back in the well-trodden damsel-in-distress role again. The classic trope could date what otherwise looks to be a fairly modern, well-animated romp across the sea. The Mario brothers sail via Shipshape Island, a vehicle that is part boat and part island, across the lands of Concordia (no relation to the now-defunct PlayStation live-service game). Inverse got to preview the game for over an hour, walking the brothers through a few fights and a complex maze.
Brothership is the first brand-new Mario and Luigi RPG for the Nintendo Switch (not counting various remakes and remasters) with a runtime that lasts dozens of hours. The gameplay features turn-based combat that feels similar to soccer, while Nintendo also crams in plenty of dad jokes. Some of the funniest moments, however, come from Mario and Luigi’s general sense of dopiness. From the Italian voiceovers saying their names (“Mario!” “Luigi!”) to the aforementioned bro moves, their brotherhood is Brothership’s winning asset.
Still, you can’t help but feel like Luigi is the younger brother who never gets his proper dues — just like Princess Peach is eternally waiting to be rescued. A new feature called Luigi’s Logic lets Mario send Luigi out on orders to pick up small loot nearby or punch up some crates. And when Mario perishes in battle, Luigi will panic before carrying Mario willingly on his back. Somehow, Mario lacks interest in doing the same if Luigi faints. Instead, he’ll just look on and not move. Maybe that’s just the kind of brother Mario is.
