Summary
- Fans are upset by Mario and Luigi: Brothership's single-button change for Luigi's controls.
- The new control scheme requires pressing A for Luigi's attacks, then B to confirm.
- The impact of this change on fan reviews remains uncertain, with professional critics offering generally favorable feedback.
Mario and Luigi: Brothership has made one seemingly minor change to the longstanding RPG series that has been getting a big negative reaction from players, shifting the controls for Luigi by a single button press. The controls for the Mario and Luigi series have been relatively static through its 20-plus-year run, and requiring a single press of the A button in Mario and Luigi: Brothership is a mechanic a lot of fans are having trouble coping with.
The sixth main installment in the RPG series, which dates back to 2003's Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga on the Game Boy Advance, Mario and Luigi: Brothership was released on November 7 exclusively for Nintendo Switch. Since its inception, the series has held a pretty steady formula of having players control Mario in the overworld, with Luigi close in tow, and shifting to a turn-based format when battles occur.
6 Beginner Tips For Mario & Luigi: Brothership
Mario & Luigi: Brothership isn't a typical turn-based RPG, so don’t go into battle without these mustachioed tips in mind.
There have been some changes in Mario and Luigi: Brothership that have set it apart from the rest of the series. While Mario's attacks have traditionally been mapped to the A button and Luigi's to the B button, the new control scheme forces players to first select one of Luigi's attacks with A before then pressing B to confirm the action. While it doesn't require players to learn an entirely new system, the single button press seems to have incensed a sizable portion of the series' fan base, as the slew of social media posts about the game is filled with complaints about the two controllable characters no longer having a single button that corresponds with controlling them.
Mario and Luigi: Brothership Fans Want Luigi Mapped Back to the B Button
The button mapping for Luigi's combat powers aren't the only changes made to the green-clad plumber. While previous games in the series would require separate button presses for each brother to help Mario and Luigi solve puzzles and generally get around in the overworld, again mapped to A and B, Brothership's Luigi Logic mechanic makes many of the younger Mario brother's actions automatic when the brothers are outside of combat. While this change affects gameplay much more prominently than Luigi needing a combination of the A and B buttons in combat, fans seem to be relatively silent about it.
Since the game was released so recently, it's unclear just how significantly the combat control scheme change will affect the collective fan review scores. The reaction from professional critics has been generally favorable so far, with the game currently holding a score of 79 on MetaCritic, but fan opinion can be affected by even seemingly minute issues, and review bombing on sites like MetaCritic can significantly alter a game's score.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 77 /100 Critics Rec: 68%
- Released
- November 7, 2024
- ESRB
- E For Everyone Due To Mild Fantasy Violence
- Developer(s)
- Acquire
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo
WHERE TO PLAY
All hands on deck for an island-hopping adventure starring Mario and Luigi
The brothers return for a brand-new adventure on the high seas! Set sail with Mario and Luigi on Shipshape Island (part ship, part island) and journey through the vast world of Concordia. Launch out of Shipshape’s cannon to visit, explore, and quest your way through islands that range from tropical rainforests to bustling cities. Meet new friends along the way, like Connie and Snoutlet (definitely not a pig), and encounter familiar faces from the Mushroom Kingdom like Peach and Bowser, who may help—or hinder—you on your journey!
You’ll have to rely on Mario and Luigi’s brotherly bond to succeed. Use Bros. Moves to get past obstacles while you explore, and powerful Bros. Attacks in a dynamic twist on turn-based combat. You’ll need every edge this “brothership” will give you to save the day!
- Franchise
- Mario & Luigi
- Nintendo Switch Release Date
- November 7, 2024
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch
- How Long To Beat
- 37 hours
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
