Paper Mario: The Origami King beginner’s guide

Nintendo welcomes us back into the world of Paper Mario with Paper Mario: The Origami King. The beloved series took a slight dip in popularity with Color Splash and Sticker Star, but Origami King finds its way back into players’ hearts, even without the original fight system.

The game brings the wit, story, and new characters that are well known in the Paper Mario series. And, although it’s a kids game, there are parts to the gameplay that can leave us a little flustered and frustrated. It can be hard to navigate the game because it has a larger world that is dying to be explored. There are hidden gems everywhere in the game, which leads to some items passing us by because we’re not looking closely enough.

When first starting out, there are a few things you need to keep an eye out for in order to succeed. With so many collectibles and things to find, it can be overwhelming. Luckily, we have a few tips in order to help you save the Mushroom Kingdom!

Further reading

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• The best Nintendo Switch games for kids
• The best battery packs for the Nintendo Switch

Toads are disguised as anything, and they are everywhere

Find and collecting the Toads that have been folded is fun and challenging. Part of the problem is that a Toad can be folded into absolutely anything. From leaves on trees to bugs to shovels, these Toads have had the unfortunate experience of being folded into everyday objects and items. And, although it’s a little funny to read how the Toad feels once it’s unfolded, it can be frustrating to try to locate every Toad for that 100% completion rating.

Hunting down all the Toads can feel impossible. Although folded Toads stand out a little bit (either by being wadded-up balls, half sticking out under rocks, or appearing as origami butterflies), it can still be a difficult task to track these guys down. They sometimes even hide behind trees and bushes, making it even more difficult to locate them. They are literally everywhere and can be everything. Be sure to investigate every item on a level to find all the Toads, which actually leads to the next point.

Buy the Toad Bell Accessory as soon as possible

As soon as the accessory shop is open in Toad Town, the Toad behind the counter offers you a chance to buy a Toad Bell accessory. Take the chance now and just buy it. It will help in locating the pesky Toads that have been hiding everywhere throughout the map. This makes pinning down the Toads’ location throughout your game way easier. Although it doesn’t tell you exactly where the Toad is hiding, it gives you a bit of an idea as to where to begin searching.

Be sure to equip it as soon as possible. Once players are within a certain range of a Toad, the little bell will sound and a bell indicator will appear over Mario’s head. This gives you a chance to explore the immediate vicinity to see if you can find the Toad. And be sure to check areas above and below Mario, because sometimes the Toad hides there (places such as cave walls, underground tunnels and paths, etc.).

Keep an eye on the announcements

One of the features of this game is that, periodically, announcements will be made to help guide you. These announcements will tell you when new buildings in Toad Town are open, new options in the Battle Arena are available, when new equipment is available, and other updates that can be really helpful.

The game tries to help make it easy for you to hear when an announcement is coming. A small ring will happen and, in the top right corner, a little information will appear. Be sure to keep an ear open and eye out for these special announcements!

Don’t be afraid to ask Toads for help

Okay, let’s be real: It’s pretty embarrassing to ask a Toad for help. They’re adorable, but knowing how often these little guys are helpless and we have to rescue them makes asking them for assistance a little embarrassing. But asking Toads for help can really increase your chances of getting in those good hits against strong enemies.

When in a battle, the Toads in the crowd are made up of the Toads you’ve saved throughout the game. Slowly, the crowd gets bigger as you find more Toads. You do have to pay Toads in order to get them to help, but when you’re stuck in a tough battle, these little guys can really make your fight way easier. Toads will show you how you’ll interact with the game board and move across it, or during a regular enemy fight, the Toads will move the spaces for you. It can help save you from spending money on additional time as well.

Investigate everything

Just like every other Paper Mario game, there are goodies hiding in the most obscure and secret places. Some of the hidden places you’ll be able to see, while others will come as a complete surprise. The way the creators hid items throughout each level is clever, fun, and sometimes nerve-wracking. Sometimes, you’ll be able to see an item or a Toad hiding so close, but for some reason, you just can’t figure out how that Toad got there or how you will reach it.

Be sure to interact with everything in the environment. From hitting the walls with your hammer to jumping wherever you can, be sure to check out everything. There are secret passages and hidden treasure chests everywhere in the game, and you never really know when one will show up.

Utilize the Battle Lab

Just like any other Paper Mario game, the battle system requires good timing on your part. Every weapon and attack item that you get can add increased damage or has an attack strategy that’s a little bit different from what you’re used to. The throwing hammer will have a different strike pattern than Mario’s regular hammer, and the Fire Flower needs to have the throw perfectly timed if you want that “Excellent!” hit. You can also practice guarding to avoid additional damage that you can’t risk getting. To get that extra damage on enemies or a boost on your guarding skills, you need to get the timing of every movement just right. And the perfect place to do that is the Battle Lab.

The Battle Lab isn’t only a place to get good practice in; you can also get items that help you battle. One of the items you can get is time extenders. This will help increase your time in battles or even add coins for you to extend your time if your battle timer hits zero before you’ve finished out your turns.

Trees and plants have confetti

Confetti is a hot commodity in the game. We’re encouraged to save the Paper Mario world, so we need to fill the bottomless pits that King Olly has created, lest a poor, sweet Toad were to fall in. That’s where the confetti comes in most handy. By throwing the scraps of paper onto the holes, the world becomes patched and safe. Unfortunately, we have to continuously collect confetti, and the holes get bigger and obstruct our path the further into the game we go.

It’s important to remember that all plant life in the game actually holds confetti. From the trees to the flowers to the random weeds, all of the plants in Origami King have confetti hiding in them. This will help keep you from ever running out and getting stuck.

Take time to rest on a bench

Throughout the game, there are a series of benches that can be found. Be sure to take time out of your busy gameplay to stop and take a rest! Every bench you stop at gives you a refill of your health. It’s the perfect place to stop and take a break, particularly after big battles or a long stretch of easy fights.

Also, it helps that Mario and Olivia have a bit of cute dialog depending on which bench you rest at. It’s a fun way to get to know Olivia a little bit better and learn how our new adventure friend sees the world.

Find the Sensor Lab’s satellite offices

The Sensor Lab is one of the newest places offered in Origami King. Once you unlock the Sensor Lab’s main office, it becomes one of the fastest ways to head back to Toad Town. Although warp pipes can be found in different locations throughout the game, there are also the Sensor Lab’s satellite offices. Each Sensor Lab satellite office lets you use its Fax Travel to head to the main office, and a warp pipe right in front of the main office takes you back to Toad Town. This can help you head back to Toad Town when you haven’t found the pipe just yet.

Additionally, the Sensor Lab main office has a Toad that loves to play with the equipment. Periodically, it will offer you new items that will help you in various ways throughout the game. From a Toad Radar to Lamination, you’ll get items that have a window of time to use, but are extremely helpful in your quest to rescue the princess.

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