Mario & Luigi Bowser’s Inside Story

See larger image Mario & Luigi Bowser's Inside Story (Video Game) List Price: $34.99 USD New From: $30.00 In Stock Used from: $19.68 In Stock Release date September 14, 2009.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Product Description
A single player action RPG (Role-playing Game), Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story takes players on the DS literally into the belly of the beast – that beast being Bowser. Set within an off-the-wall storyline that turns the world of Nintendo on its ear and featuring the ability to toggle between playing as the team of Mario and Luigi, and playing as Bowser himself, this third installment of the Mario & Luigi franchise is not to be missed.

Split play time between Bowser. View larger.

And the team of Mario & Luigi. View larger.

Two stories and gameplay paths that can affect each other in real-time. View larger.

Story
The story of Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story is an atypical one in the world of Mario and Luigi in that the two plumbers team up with Bowser for the good of the Mushroom Kingdom, even if Bowser is totally unaware of it. As the game opens the Mushroom Kingdom is seen to have been struck by a sort of infection known as “The Blorbs,” and exposure to it has caused out of control physical ballooning of the Toads. A council of the who’s who in the Kingdom, including Mario and Peach, is assembled to try and figure out what to do about it, when right on queue, in barges Bowser, intent on dragging away Peach. He is stopped and shown the door by Mario, but later is tricked by the villain Fawful to eat a “Lucky Mushroom.” Brainwashed by this, he returns to the council where the mushroom causes all the council to shrink to a tiny size and Bowser to literally inhale them. Fawful and his henchmen then set about taking over all of the Mushroom Kingdom, even the parts that Bowser has staked a claim to. Nobody, except maybe Mario, takes what is Bowser’s, so there is going to be trouble. Although now very small, Mario realizes a few things. Peach, as usual, has gone missing, Bowser and he are on the same side in this fight and that Bowser will need help. How will Mario save the day this time? That’s up to you.

Gameplay
A single player action RPG, action in Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story is split between the player-controlled team of Mario and Luigi, trapped in Bowser’s stomach, and Bowser himself. These play out as two separate paths of action, constantly overlapping, which players can toggle between and engage in. As they do so players see that Bowser’s actions on the outside affect the conditions for Mario and Luigi in his stomach, and the actions of the plumbers can add or subtract from Bowser’s abilities. Examples of this are the good and bad things that Bowser swallows that the Bros. must deal with, and conversely the toll an illness the Bros. can affect has on Bowser’s physical abilities. Players can see this link for themselves when at times during the game Mario and Luigi are shown on the lower DS screen, while simultaneously Bowser moves in in-game real-time on the top screen. Again, these two paths lead to the same place, the defeat of Fawful. The challenges that players face in doing this is the basis for the RPG gameplay, with players gaining experience points in the challenges that they face, which can be used to level up character-specific fighting and other abilities and even buy in-game gear. Additional gameplay includes puzzle-solving, searching for hidden items, mini-games and more, engaged in as the team of Mario and Luigi, and Bowser on his own.

Key Game Features

• Two Separate Storylines – One features Bowser and his efforts to stop an arch-villain from taking over his castle. Meanwhile, inside Bowser, the microbe-sized Mario and Luigi must muscle their way through challenges and keep their nerve if they want to find a way out. They take action to control Bowser from the inside – but without his knowledge.
• Switch Between Storylines at Will – What happens inside Bowser affects what he’s doing on the outside. Sometimes Mario and Luigi must solve puzzles and challenges behind the scenes to help Bowser overcome various obstacles and advance the plot.
• DS/DSi Integrated Gameplay – In some battles, Bowser grows so large that players must turn their Nintendo DS or Nintendo DSi system sideways, blow into the microphone or tap on the touch screen with the stylus to keep up with the action.
• Distinctive Nintendo Humor – The game features the same hilarious dialogue that has been the hallmark of the Mario & Luigi series.
• RPG Gameplay – A players work their way through challenges they can level characters up with experience points.

Customer Reviews

Easily surpasses its excellent predecessors!
I’ve played and beaten all seven Mario RPG’s (not just the Mario & Luigi games, all seven Mario RPG’s), and Bowser’s inside story is, without a doubt, the best one. That’s incredible because I never played a Mario RPG I wouldn’t give a score of at least 85/100 to. Bowser’s Inside Story is the best Nintendo DS game made so far. Bowser gets a huge portion of the gameplay, and it’s awesome. There are three different battle systems. One for Mario and Luigi, one for bowser, and one where Bowser becomes huge to fight huge enemies (This is the best part of the game, it’s epic). It will take the average player 25-30 hours to beat the game, while there are 5-8 hours of extras. What’s really amazing is that there’s so much diversity in the gameplay, it NEVER ONCE gets repetitive or boring.

Good Things
- Never boring or repetitive.
- Three different, all amazing battle systems.
- 25-30 hour adventure.
- Great graphics and sound.
- Worth replaying at least two times.
- Unique, unpredictable, epic RPG.
- All-around incredible game.

Bad Things
- A VERY MINOR complaint, the game has lame box art.

Presentation- 97.5/100
Does a very good job getting you into the game, I liked the game so much, it’s all I did in my free time until I beat it.

Graphics- 95.5/100
Strictly 2D, but still incredible.

Sound- 98/100
Sounds incredible. Sounds like a Mario game should, but the music is a little less cheery than a typical Mario game.

Gameplay- 100/100
So many different parts of gameplay, and they all come together perfectly!

Innovation- 96/100
The game designers really got creative with this Mario RPG, that’s for sure!

Replay Value- 98.5/100
You should replay it at least twice and try to see all the extras it has to offer.

Difficulty- Medium
It’s not quite as hard as Partners in Time. It seems easy until the final part of the game, where the difficulty goes up significantly.

Overall- 99/100
Bowser’s Inside Story comes out to be a near-perfect game, overall, and amazingly surpasses Kirby Superstar Ultra to become the best game on the DS.

A lot of fun
I bought this game primarily for my 8 year old son (and a bit for his 5 year old sister). As it can only save information for only two players at once, only me and my son have played. We have both been extremely impressed. He says it is definitely his favourite DS game (we have super mario brothers, as well as bunch of other non-Mario titles). He finds it interesting, never boring, challenging and a lot of fun. I have never played a RPG before and also find it a lot of fun if a bit challenging at times (likely due to my lack of experience). It is likely much too complicated for a 5 year old (even one who reads very well) but age 7 and up is probably great. Enjoy! Hope this helps. My son comparing it to Super Mario Brothers said — it is so much better because you don’t have to keep repeating the same levels over and over again. (i sort of agree though I do like super mario brothers a lot).

Maybe the Best DS Game Ever Made!!!!!
I want to start off by saying that this game does almost everything right and hardly anything wrong. The gameplay is great. You use Bowser on the top screen with the D-Pad and X makes Bowser punch and Y makes Bowser breathe fire. Mario and Luigi are controlled by the D-pad and the A and B buttons. The action is very smooth and well done in this game. The Bowser battles are a lot different then the Mario and Luigi battles but that helps make the game even greater. The characters in this game all are full of life, color, and humor. The boss battles are fun, and the battles that Bowser grows and you have to turn your DS around like a book are very fun. The storyline is crazy but its funny, and the text in the game and actions of the characters are 100% classic. Some of my favorite parts of the game are when your Bowser and you meet up with any of his minions that always leads to a funny moment.

Fun Factor- A+
Graphics- A
Sound- A
Controls- B+
Lasting appeal- A

Mario & Luigi Bowser’s Inside Story is posted by Suroboy. If you love it, you might consider to subscribe to our feed, follows me on Twitter, or receive our latest post via email.

Split play time between Bowser. View larger.

And the team of Mario & Luigi. View larger.

Two stories and gameplay paths that can affect each other in real-time. View larger.

Story
The story of Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story is an atypical one in the world of Mario and Luigi in that the two plumbers team up with Bowser for the good of the Mushroom Kingdom, even if Bowser is totally unaware of it. As the game opens the Mushroom Kingdom is seen to have been struck by a sort of infection known as “The Blorbs,” and exposure to it has caused out of control physical ballooning of the Toads. A council of the who’s who in the Kingdom, including Mario and Peach, is assembled to try and figure out what to do about it, when right on queue, in barges Bowser, intent on dragging away Peach. He is stopped and shown the door by Mario, but later is tricked by the villain Fawful to eat a “Lucky Mushroom.” Brainwashed by this, he returns to the council where the mushroom causes all the council to shrink to a tiny size and Bowser to literally inhale them. Fawful and his henchmen then set about taking over all of the Mushroom Kingdom, even the parts that Bowser has staked a claim to. Nobody, except maybe Mario, takes what is Bowser’s, so there is going to be trouble. Although now very small, Mario realizes a few things. Peach, as usual, has gone missing, Bowser and he are on the same side in this fight and that Bowser will need help. How will Mario save the day this time? That’s up to you.

Gameplay
A single player action RPG, action in Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story is split between the player-controlled team of Mario and Luigi, trapped in Bowser’s stomach, and Bowser himself. These play out as two separate paths of action, constantly overlapping, which players can toggle between and engage in. As they do so players see that Bowser’s actions on the outside affect the conditions for Mario and Luigi in his stomach, and the actions of the plumbers can add or subtract from Bowser’s abilities. Examples of this are the good and bad things that Bowser swallows that the Bros. must deal with, and conversely the toll an illness the Bros. can affect has on Bowser’s physical abilities. Players can see this link for themselves when at times during the game Mario and Luigi are shown on the lower DS screen, while simultaneously Bowser moves in in-game real-time on the top screen. Again, these two paths lead to the same place, the defeat of Fawful. The challenges that players face in doing this is the basis for the RPG gameplay, with players gaining experience points in the challenges that they face, which can be used to level up character-specific fighting and other abilities and even buy in-game gear. Additional gameplay includes puzzle-solving, searching for hidden items, mini-games and more, engaged in as the team of Mario and Luigi, and Bowser on his own.

Key Game Features

• Two Separate Storylines – One features Bowser and his efforts to stop an arch-villain from taking over his castle. Meanwhile, inside Bowser, the microbe-sized Mario and Luigi must muscle their way through challenges and keep their nerve if they want to find a way out. They take action to control Bowser from the inside – but without his knowledge.
• Switch Between Storylines at Will – What happens inside Bowser affects what he’s doing on the outside. Sometimes Mario and Luigi must solve puzzles and challenges behind the scenes to help Bowser overcome various obstacles and advance the plot.
• DS/DSi Integrated Gameplay – In some battles, Bowser grows so large that players must turn their Nintendo DS or Nintendo DSi system sideways, blow into the microphone or tap on the touch screen with the stylus to keep up with the action.
• Distinctive Nintendo Humor – The game features the same hilarious dialogue that has been the hallmark of the Mario & Luigi series.
• RPG Gameplay – A players work their way through challenges they can level characters up with experience points.

Customer Reviews

Easily surpasses its excellent predecessors!
I’ve played and beaten all seven Mario RPG’s (not just the Mario & Luigi games, all seven Mario RPG’s), and Bowser’s inside story is, without a doubt, the best one. That’s incredible because I never played a Mario RPG I wouldn’t give a score of at least 85/100 to. Bowser’s Inside Story is the best Nintendo DS game made so far. Bowser gets a huge portion of the gameplay, and it’s awesome. There are three different battle systems. One for Mario and Luigi, one for bowser, and one where Bowser becomes huge to fight huge enemies (This is the best part of the game, it’s epic). It will take the average player 25-30 hours to beat the game, while there are 5-8 hours of extras. What’s really amazing is that there’s so much diversity in the gameplay, it NEVER ONCE gets repetitive or boring.

Good Things
- Never boring or repetitive.
- Three different, all amazing battle systems.
- 25-30 hour adventure.
- Great graphics and sound.
- Worth replaying at least two times.
- Unique, unpredictable, epic RPG.
- All-around incredible game.

Bad Things
- A VERY MINOR complaint, the game has lame box art.

Presentation- 97.5/100
Does a very good job getting you into the game, I liked the game so much, it’s all I did in my free time until I beat it.

Graphics- 95.5/100
Strictly 2D, but still incredible.

Sound- 98/100
Sounds incredible. Sounds like a Mario game should, but the music is a little less cheery than a typical Mario game.

Gameplay- 100/100
So many different parts of gameplay, and they all come together perfectly!

Innovation- 96/100
The game designers really got creative with this Mario RPG, that’s for sure!

Replay Value- 98.5/100
You should replay it at least twice and try to see all the extras it has to offer.

Difficulty- Medium
It’s not quite as hard as Partners in Time. It seems easy until the final part of the game, where the difficulty goes up significantly.

Overall- 99/100
Bowser’s Inside Story comes out to be a near-perfect game, overall, and amazingly surpasses Kirby Superstar Ultra to become the best game on the DS.

A lot of fun
I bought this game primarily for my 8 year old son (and a bit for his 5 year old sister). As it can only save information for only two players at once, only me and my son have played. We have both been extremely impressed. He says it is definitely his favourite DS game (we have super mario brothers, as well as bunch of other non-Mario titles). He finds it interesting, never boring, challenging and a lot of fun. I have never played a RPG before and also find it a lot of fun if a bit challenging at times (likely due to my lack of experience). It is likely much too complicated for a 5 year old (even one who reads very well) but age 7 and up is probably great. Enjoy! Hope this helps. My son comparing it to Super Mario Brothers said — it is so much better because you don’t have to keep repeating the same levels over and over again. (i sort of agree though I do like super mario brothers a lot).

Maybe the Best DS Game Ever Made!!!!!
I want to start off by saying that this game does almost everything right and hardly anything wrong. The gameplay is great. You use Bowser on the top screen with the D-Pad and X makes Bowser punch and Y makes Bowser breathe fire. Mario and Luigi are controlled by the D-pad and the A and B buttons. The action is very smooth and well done in this game. The Bowser battles are a lot different then the Mario and Luigi battles but that helps make the game even greater. The characters in this game all are full of life, color, and humor. The boss battles are fun, and the battles that Bowser grows and you have to turn your DS around like a book are very fun. The storyline is crazy but its funny, and the text in the game and actions of the characters are 100% classic. Some of my favorite parts of the game are when your Bowser and you meet up with any of his minions that always leads to a funny moment.

Fun Factor- A+
Graphics- A
Sound- A
Controls- B+
Lasting appeal- A

Mario & Luigi Bowser’s Inside Story is posted by Suroboy.