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2D or not 2D? That is the question in this oddball RPG/platformer.

Mario is back, and looking flatter than ever. Super Paper Mario is the third game in Nintendo and Intelligent Systems' bizarre, one-dimensional Paper Mario series. It's hard to believe, though, given just how different Super Paper Mario is compared to the previous GameCube installment Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. Some of the new gameplay changes may startle longtime fans, but once you get accustomed to the new style, you'll wonder why the Paper Mario series didn't play like this from the start.

Our story begins with Princess Peach awakening at a wedding ceremony... with Bowser as her husband-to-be! The king of the Koopas is just as bewildered as Peach to find himself a step away from his goal since the original Super Mario Bros, but is nonetheless delighted. Little do either of them know that this unholy union is being orchestrated by Count Bleck, a villain who resembles Count Chocula dressed in pimp gear. According to a prophecy foretold in Count Bleck's Dark Prognosticus, all worlds will end when Peach and Bowser marry. Despite her obvious objections, the princess is hypnotized into tying the knot with the evil turtle, which creates a dark void that threatens to suck up the universe. All is not lost, however, as the Light Prognosticus foretells a counter-prophecy in which the Hero of Light (Mario) will be able to drive back the dark void if he can obtain seven Pure Hearts.

Gameplay-wise, Super Paper Mario is shockingly different from what most are used to in a Paper Mario game. Or any game for that matter. While at first glance SPM seems like a straight-up RPG, once you leave the first town, the gameplay shifts to an odd platformer/RPG hybrid. It's unlikely you've ever played a videogame quite like this before.

Mario starts off in the stick-figure-inhabited town of Flipside. From here, instead of our hero plumber leaving town and venturing into the world, he must complete stages located behind doors on the top floor of Flipside. Each stage is divided into several chapters, with a boss and a Pure Heart waiting at the end of the last chapter. At any point during the game, you're free to use your Return Pipe to warp back to Flipside, which acts as a central hub for healing and replenishing supplies.