Mario and Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story + Bowser Jr’s Journey First Impressions

Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story was a game on the DS originally. I never played it. And now Mario + Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story comes to the 3DS and with an extra game, Bowser Jr’s Journey, included. I received a review copy of the game yesterday. Here are my first impressions of Mario + Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story + Bowser Jr’s Journey!

I have never played Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story before. When I saw it on the DS, I didn’t think I’d like the game. Sure, I had liked Mario & Luigi games before but…a game where you go inside of Bowser? First: ew and second: um, why?

And now the game is on the 3DS and I’m reviewing it. I only received the game yesterday, so what follows is my first impressions of Mario + Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story & Bowser Jr’s Journey. Do I like the game so far?

I’ll talk about the main game first:

Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story

Bowser’s Inside Story has all the humor of previous Mario & Luigi games, plus the strangeness of being inside Bowser. The story is just pure fun. I have no idea why I was so resistant to this game. I should’ve known Nintendo would make the story and gameplay fun.

Yes, the gameplay is a lot of fun. The turn-based battle system is similar to previous Mario & Luigi games; I still love it. And the best thing about this game right now is being able to play as Bowser. Thats right! You are not just inside of Bowser, you also get to play as him.

Mario & Luigi brilliantly uses the top and bottom screen of the 3DS. There is no 3D in this game, a shame but I can understand why. The gameplay plays out on the top screen with Bowser and the bottom screen with Mario and Luigi. Bowser gets to roam around in a 3D environment, meanwhile Mario and Luigi get a 2D side scrolling area. The graphics on this game are really great!

I’m enjoying Bowser’s Inside Story a lot. Exploration, puzzles, and the battle system are very well done. The story is interesting too. I can’t wait to see what the game throws at me next.

But what about Bowser Jr’s adventure? How is that part of the game?

Bowser Jr’s Journey

I’m not sure what to think of Bowser Jr’s Journey so far.

Graphics and story wise, the game seems just like Inside Story but the gameplay is totally different. Instead of a turn-based battle system, the player is put into a side scrolling automatic battle. Bowser Jr is given troops to command. You can assign troops to help him but you don’t control the actual battle.

Bowser Jr and his troops auto-attack. You do get to press A for a special attack and a button to deny special enemy attacks, but other than that, you watch the battles play out.

I like a more hands on approach, like Inside Story, so I’m not really thrilled with Bowser Jr’s Journey so far. It looks like the player will recruit more troops and the story is good, but the gameplay hasn’t engaged me yet. I hope there will be more interaction with battles as Bowser Jr’s story continues. We’ll see.

At the moment, I really love Bowser’s Inside Story, while having my doubts about Bowser Jr’s Journey. I do look forward to playing more of both though.

Please keep an eye out for my full review of Mario and Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story + Bowser Jr’s Journey here at GamesReviews.com!