# *The Thousand-Year Door* Remake is Shaping Up Beautifully <div class=iframe-container> <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/gCV-uTRULn8?si=f7XCazWpGsTtYa5-" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe> </div> [Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door – Overview Trailer](https://youtube.com/watch?v=gCV-uTRULn8) Nintendo put up this snappy little overview trailer for the remake of *Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door* yesterday. I'm just delighted with the presentation and have to keep pinching myself that this [[Paper Mario - The Thousand-Year Door Returns|release is happening]]. Seems like the press had some hands-on time with the game, so lots of little in-sights are starting to trickle out about this remake. Plus, I picked up on a couple observations myself. Let's start off with some of the quality of life improvements / changes this go around. I watched [this video](https://youtube.com/watch?v=DcGuZF5hES0) from Good Vibes Gaming and recommend you do the same. They picked up on translation differences, soundtrack changes, and more. It's a good time. There's a neat little quick swap dial for partners. Now you don't have to go into the pause menu. You can pull up the wheel, spin around to who you want, and they'll pop out of Mario's pocket. Speaking of the soundtrack changes, there's *a lot* mixed up this time. Thankfully for my nostalgically sensitive heart, there is a *badge* that will play the original score (and presumably sound FX?). I love this touch, instead of some menu option. It makes me wonder if there are other, new 0 Badge Point (BP) badges that will change the game up, like those costumes from the original. The new music is interesting. I'll need to hear fuller samples and immerse myself in it before I make any real call. One element I am not sure about is the [Animalese](https://nookipedia.com/wiki/Animalese#:~:text=Animalese%20is%20the%20default%20language,to%20mispronunciation%20of%20some%20words.)-y sounds the characters make when talking now.[^2] I do enjoy the attention to detail that matches each species, but I am unsure about the cadence and hearing it constantly. This is another change I need to suss out and live with for a bit before passing final judgement. The truest nitpick of the bunch I came across is that the "A" button prompts are no longer green, matching the GameCube's "A" button.[^1] Instead they opted for a shade of red. The red looks good, but it immediately triggered a "this is off" beacon in my head. To pivot from nitpicks to praise, gosh this remake looks so slick. The surfaces have shine. The style is sublime. The lightning is tasteful. Everything is tactfully placed to curate joy. Good art direction never goes out of style. That's not to say this remake falls under the category of "this is how I remember the game looking," but rather it falls into a camp of respecting the original, while embracing the franchise's current practices. It's an absolute treat to gawk at, which is what I did over [this footage from VGC](https://youtube.com/watch?v=gCS78mcKp1Y). Continue to color me as thrilled for the game. I can't wait to buy it one day one just to hopefully communicate to Nintendo that we want more games like this one. Partners. Worlds. Badges. Battles. The whole core of classic *Paper Mario*. And I'll be excited to play it too. [^1]: And the current hyperlink color-scheme in dark mode here on Max Frequency... [^2]: Okay, four days later now (4/30/24), I realize what these new voices really sound like—[talking in the *Banjo-Kazooie* games](https://youtube.com/watch?v=D8CVyYkKpwM&t=583). But not as fitting/right as those games. But now my brain can rest.