Ranking Every Mario & Luigi Game, From Worst to Best

While the Paper Mario game has become the main RPG subseries for everyone’s favorite mustachioed plumber, there was a time when the Mario & Luigi series was the go-to Mario RPG series, and we’re going to rank every game in the series from worst to best!

Ranking Every Mario & Luigi Game, From Worst to Best

Coming to us from AlphaDream, a company comprised of former Square developers, the Mario & Luigi series became the definitive RPG franchise on Nintendo handhelds that wasn’t Pokemon. Each game sent Mario and his brother Luigi on a wild adventure that emphasized goofy humor and an active combat system that rewarded quick and precise reactions that expanded on what Super Mario RPG and Paper Mario established.

With the upcoming release of the latest game in the series, Mario & Luigi: Brothership, it’s time for us to take a look at the series and rank each installment from worst to best. For the record, the first and third games in the series, Superstar Saga and Bowser’s Inside Story, respectively, both received remakes on the 3DS, but they won’t be factored in this ranking. While these games are solid remakes of their original games, outside of some updated graphics and completely superfluous side modes, they’re not worth talking about. Besides, their dismal sales numbers resulted in AlphaDream’s bankruptcy, so it’s best to forget these unnecessary remakes existed.

With that being said, here is our ranking of every Mario & Luigi game!

5) Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam (2016)

The last original game in the series, Paper Jam, asked a question that plenty of Mario RPG fans could only dream of: what if the Mario & Luigi series crossed over with the Paper Mario series? The answer is, sadly, a game that is anything but original. By this point, most of the mechanics in the Mario & Luigi series had become old and worn out, and while the addition of Paper Mario added some depth, it wasn’t anywhere near enough to energize a franchise that had lost its spark. The premise is barely explored, with most of it amounting to interacting with some generic NPCs from the Paper Mario series. This could have been a brilliant fusion, but instead, it feels like the RPG equivalent of the New Super Mario Bros. series—recycling old ideas without adding anything actually new.

4) Mario & Luigi: Dream Team (2013)

Dream Team isn’t a bad game by any stretch of the word, but when compared to the rest of the series, it’s a bit lacking. You frequently travel between the real world and the dream world in order to stop the fairly forgettable villain Antasma, with the highlight being the dream sequences where you can use Dreamy Luigi to pull off some creative and outlandish moves. The moment-to-moment gameplay is as fun as ever, but the thrill of using these bizarre moves loses its charm as the game plods on. That problem is made even worse thanks to the game’s sizeable length, easily standing as the longest game in the series. With little variety and many sequences being directly ripped from earlier games, most people will probably be bored with Dream Team sooner rather than later.

Related: All 2D Mario Games, Ranked From Worst to Best

3) Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time (2005)

As the first entry in the series on the Nintendo DS, you would expect Partners in Time to add some extra layers of depth, and it does so in some unique ways. The big addition is being able to control four characters instead of two simultaneously: Mario, Luigi, and their baby counterparts. This leads to more complex battles as you have to use all four face buttons to deal damage to your foes, thanks to attacks that utilize both screens. There’s some great moment-to-moment gameplay, but it’s somewhat let down by the lackluster villains, the Shroobs, an alien force that doesn’t have much personality other than their unique designs. But while the plot and humor may be disappointing, the game makes up for it thanks to its mechanics and dynamic battles.

2) Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story (2009)

Bowser’s Inside Story is a fever dream of weird creative decisions that makes it one of the funniest games on the Nintendo DS. Having the Mario brothers explore Bowser’s internal organs sounds disgusting, but this creates a wonderful tag-team dynamic where you explore sections and manipulate them to influence how Bowser interacts with his environment. And yes, you do control Bowser in this game, and his gameplay feels like an entirely separate beast from the brother-based mechanics the series is known for, mostly thanks to his touch-screen focused gameplay. There’s plenty of variety in terms of gameplay and set pieces, made all the more impactful thanks to the game’s wonderful writing that isn’t afraid to be silly and have fun. While it does lose a bit of steam in the last third of the game, everything still comes together as one of the best RPGs on the Nintendo DS.

1) Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003)

While it may not have the variety that Bowser’s Inside Story has or the complex mechanics of Partners in Time, Superstar Saga more than makes up for it with an accessible adventure that prioritizes simple yet challenging combat encounters. The concepts established in Superstar Saga defined the rest of the series, from how you control Mario and Luigi, the focus on humor, to an eclectic cast of characters. The gameplay has a lot of complexity despite its simplicity, leading to some great fights that require solid reflexes and strategy. The humor still gets a chuckle out of me to this day, mostly thanks to the characters you meet throughout the game in the fully fleshed-out Beanbean Kingdom. It may seem straightforward by today’s standards, but its easy-to-grasp mechanics, plot, and execution make Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga a timeless classic.

The most recent Mario games are available here.