This here is the fourth installment in the Paper Mario series. It is the first game in the series to be made exclusively for a handheld game console, that being the 3DS. 5 long years after Super Paper Mario (the 3rd game in the series) Nintendo finally released the much anticipated Paper Mario: Sticker Star. Critics are crazy as we all might agree on, but, just to state the facts, the game didn't earn as much respect as the previous three, but it has still been cited as a worthy inclusion into the franchise and a great addition to the 3DS library. Well, I'll be the judge of that.

Story: The game begins on the night of the annual holiday called the "Sticker Fest", where the citizens come to watch the Sticker Comet fly by, which is said to make wishes come true. While Princess Peach is on stage, the Sticker Comet slowly comes down to be showcased. All of a sudden, Bowser comes in and crashes the festivities. In an attempt to steal the Sticker Comet, Bowser plunges towards it but is pulled back by a few Goombas. Mario tries to attack, but is overpowered. In the end, Bowser falls on the Sticker Comet, shattering into 6 different pieces. Mario wakes up the next day to find the Sticker Fest ruined. He soon meets a sticker tiara named "Kersti". Kersti blames Mario for the disaster in a case of mistaken identity, but soon finds out he on her side. She tells that the explosion caused stickers to scatter all across the lands and that the 6 pieces of the Sticker Comet have also been scattered. Mario sets out on a quest, along with Kersti, to retrieve the "royal stickers" and make things right again.

Gameplay: Exploring the overworld is very similar to past Paper Mario games. You play as a paperized version of Mario in a 3-D overworld, where you can explore. Throughout the land, you will find stickers which you can collect and put in a sticker album. These stickers can be used in battle... Or, may I say, WILL be used in battle, as they are the only means of fighting. In the overworld you will often be required to solved puzzles which sometimes involve sticking special stickers in strategic locations to move on. While in battle, you can choose any sticker you have collected to attack an enemy. You and enemies take turns attacking each other until you defeat them, or by disgrace, get defeated.

Mario using a fire flower on some Goombas.

Good/Bad? - The idea behind all that collecting stickers thing can be a bit irritating at times. Because, on rare occasions, you can run out of stickers in mid-battle, so you are basically left to die, unless you run away and go hunt for more stickers. The thing that makes it more irritating, is that you don't get any kind of reward like a level-up like in the previous games in the series. All you get are coins... So, the only thing that is really worth fighting in this game, are the bosses, since they are the only thing required to battle to progress through the game. Aside from the sort of controversial battle system, the game itself handels smoothly, especially while exploring the overworld. The level designs are quite well put together and offer good challenges compared to the other Paper Mario games (This is the hardest game in the series, in my opinion). It's a really good game.

Worth the Price? - Seeing as Nintendo predicted it would sell well and would be one of the better 3DS games, it costs 40 dollars. Now, 40 dollars can be a bit pricey if you haven't been a big fan of Paper Mario, or the Mario series overall, but any dedicated Paper Mario fan will surely find the price just right for this great game.

Final Score: It all comes down to the final score which is: 8.8.

I hope you enjoyed this review of Paper Mario: Sticker Star and check back for more reviews coming soon.