Let’s just ignore the unfortunate approach to the end of Mario’s 35th birthday, or the completely ignored 35th anniversary of the Zelda series for a moment. 2021 is also a great year for Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, the game that fused Final Fantasy and Mario to create a timeless, turn-based strategy action game that is loved by just about anyone who has ever played it.
We must thank the Super Mario RPG for the Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi series … games, both arising from the collaboration between Square and Nintendo. By adding a story, humor and a lot of personality to the already established Mario formula, Square created a game that it played with the tools of Nintendo’s toy box like never before.
Unfortunately, the game-changing collaboration would be unique, with Square changing course for PlayStation and Final Fantasy, and Super Mario RPG – despite being the father of two different game series – would never receive a sequel. Perhaps it is the best, considering how the Paper Mario and Mario & Luigi games have been struggling in recent years.
The Super Mario RPG is one of those games that has aged very well, so although we have gone 25 years without seeing its peers again, we can still boot our SNESes (or our virtual consoles) and try, just like the old days. It was a game that came at an exciting time for Square and Nintendo, when new ideas were being thrown at the wall, and it just caught on.
As a result, Super Mario RPG stands alongside great RPG names of all time, such as Chrono Trigger, Earthbound and Final Fantasy as an excellent representation of the genre – which only it happens to star Mario.
Happy birthday, Super Mario RPG, and thanks for everything you’ve done. Now, please add Geno to the Smash.