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Paper Mario: The Origami King will use an open world rather than chapters to tell its story, affording players new modes of exploration to the established series (via GameSpot).
“One major feature that makes the world where this adventure takes place special is that there are huge maps to explore at every turn,” said Masahiko Magaya, director at studio Intelligent Systems, in an interview with Game Informer. “Because the game is laid out this way, we were careful during the design phase to make sure there is always something in the player’s field of vision to catch their attention.”
In The Origami King, Peach and her castle have been captured by the titular villain, and the papercraft world is filled with his allies. King Olly has five giant streamers under his control, tied to the ground, and Mario will be able to see these and use them to direct his journey. In addition, the open-world will feature side-quests, like locating the missing Toads from Toad Town. Once rescued, they’ll either join Mario’s party, or set up shop in the town to help out from home.
These stretches of world may be crossed by foot, or Mario might use a number of vehicles to speed up the adventure. There’s a boot-shaped car (if it ain’t broke, I suppose), and a boat to sail across the rolling waves of the ocean. The environments are delightful, and the detail shows off flecks, creases and tears in the paper like never before.
Paper Mario: The Origami King launches for Switch on July 17.