Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope review

Five years ago, Ubisoft released the first Mario + Rabbids, which made many gamers fall in love. Has the company been able to improve on the original's successful formula in a highly anticipated sequel? In short, yes. On the solid foundation of the original , Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope has been able to create something new. Although the game still has many familiar elements, it is fresh and exciting.

The biggest innovation is the Sparkles themselves. In keeping with the tone of the series, they are a mixture of Rabbits and Lum. Sparkles provide access to various abilities. Some are able to enhance elemental attacks, others - to protect, others - to deal damage to enemies. Not counting the unique skills available to each character. Thanks to Sparkles and an expanded roster of characters, there is more freedom of choice in terms of team formation.

The characters available are Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Peach Rabbit, Luigi Rabbit, Mario Rabbit, Rosalina Rabbit, Edge and Bowser. Only Yoshi and Rabbit Yoshi are not in the game.

While the previous game was more Mario Bros, Sparks of Hope is based more on the Rabbids. Biomes are characterized by seasonality, they do not have to stay in the same environment for a long time. In addition to the variety of stages, there is more personality in the characters.

Sparks of Hope is filled with role-playing and adventure elements, making the game more complete. Each world is a large open area with many side quests and secrets. There are characters to talk to, items and local currency to collect. But I didn't need it. I focused on the main focus on the combat system, and the rest of the elements simply slowed down. Don't get me wrong, I love doing side quests. But in this game, they simply can not be compared with combat.

Combat in Sparks of Hope is best described as brutal yet fair. Enemies use plus or minus the same techniques as you - elements, shields. Variety is achieved through Sparkles and three slots for recruiting a team. Even though I never bothered with the side quests, I still completed every story quest. If I ever ran into problems in combat, it was just a matter of tweaking or slightly changing my approach and strategy.

There is always a way to win

Let's talk about side missions. If you want to level up, there are plenty of options. Of course, there are additional fights that require more experience and skill. Be careful! Since you don't regenerate all your health between battles, the cost of victory can be quite high. Relying on items and passives is terribly expensive, which is why I always had a healer. But even in this case, it is easy to get into an unpleasant situation and at the most inopportune moment to depend on coins. My advice: use a passive ability that returns 15% of your health to you after winning a fight. Unlock it immediately.

Instead of focusing on the ingenuity of the first game, Sparks of Hope goes beyond its predecessor. Sparkles give the player an extra level of freedom of action and choice, while at the same time granting the same deadly tools to your enemies. Battles have become dynamic and exciting. So much so that everything else seems to be something tedious and superfluous. The dialogue is either witty or insufferable, and the plot exists only to justify your actions. However, don't let my quirky opinion fool you. Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is a great sequel to the great original game.