Mario & Luigi: Brothership Beginner Tips

Key Takeaways

• Mario & Luigi: Brothership is an RPG with a unique turn-based battle system and multiple stats to level up.
• Players must choose carefully between upgrading stats, unlocking gear slots, and selecting the right bonus at Level 8.
• Exploration is key in Mario & Luigi: Brothership, requiring players to find hidden paths, hit question blocks, and take notes for backtracking.

Mario & Luigi: Brothership is the first new adventure in almost a decade and fans have been waiting a long time. The game begins with the two brothers being sucked into a vortex. The two eventually come across an island that is actually a ship wherein a young girl, Connie, asks for their help in restoring her world.

This ship used to be a part of one big landmass but some cataclysmic event split everyone apart into many islands. Mario and Luigi agree to help and away they go. That’s the general premise for Mario & Luigi: Brothership, but let’s get into gameplay next as there is a lot to learn for new players. This is no ordinary turn-based RPG, so here are some pointers.

6 Choosing The First Bonus At Level 8

Upgrade Your Slots

When Mario or Luigi level up, their stats will increase like any other RPG. At certain tiers though, players can unlock an additional bonus starting at Level 8. Players can choose to boost three different stats between HP, Speed, or Luck or grab two abilities.

Quick Leveling will increase how much EXP characters can earn and Gear Slot +1 will unlock the one additional accessory slot in the game. While it may be tempting to get Quick Leveling, do not grab it at any point. Mario and Luigi can only grab so many of these bonuses over the game and eventually, extra EXP is not going to mean anything whereas extra gear slots and bonus stats will always help players out.

5 Which Island To Go To First?

Raynforst Island Or Twistee Island?

There’s another big decision players have to make around the start of Mario & Luigi: Brothership. After the first island, players can choose to visit Raynforst Island to rescue Billdit or they can go to Twistee Island to rescue Maykit. Besides rescuing them for their mother, Willma, the plumber brothers need one of them to make them some hammers. The twist is that the choice doesn’t matter technically.

If Billdit is chosen first, he will make the hammer, and vice versa for Maykit. Whoever is visited second will not offer players quite as cool a reward and the islands do scale the levels of their monsters and change their shops. The island designs are different though with Raynforst Island being a straightforward dungeon without a town whereas Twistee Island is a bigger area with more NPCs. So, to get the hammers as fast as possible, it’s best to visit Billdit first.

4 Gearing Up

From Consumables To Equipment

Gold Coins are a precious commodity in Mario & Luigi: Brothership, the lifeblood currency of this RPG. Players can buy a plethora of things from the start like Mushrooms to heal or equipment to boost stats. While it may be tempting to invest heavily in the latter option, equipment will come soon enough through exploration.

The one thing players should always have on hand are 1-Up Mushrooms which will revive either brother in battle. With only two party members, one brother being incapacitated equals a no-win scenario. They are expensive but worth it. Still, only one is needed at a time and hopefully, like equipment, players should be able to find at least one 1-Up Mushroom in the field.

3 Battle Tips

From Offense To Defensive

There are two early pieces of battle gear that players can attack with. Both brothers can jump on enemies and then they will get those aforementioned hammers from either Billdit or Maykit. Both types of weapons will be more useful in certain situations, but players may want to think about diversifying their heroes beyond that.

For example, it would be too expensive to buy Mario and Luigi the best boots and best hammers at every store location. Instead, one brother should get the best boots and focus on jumping while the other should hold that hammer with a grip as strong as Thor’s. It should also be noted that the best offense in Mario & Luigi: Brothership will be a good defense in battle, meaning that learning enemy patterns and counterattacking will lead to victory.

2 Look Out For Hidden Paths And Blocks

The Rain Shows All

Gold Coins are hard to come by at first, as previously mentioned, but there are plenty of rewards to be had while exploring. Like typical Mario platformers, players can hit Question Blocks to get Gold Coins or items. There are also hidden Question Blocks that players should always keep an eye out for.

An easy way to spot them is with shadows, which give away the position of hidden objects. Another example can be found on Raynforst Island where the position of hidden Question Blocks will be given away via rain hitting them. As always, the map will be the RPG player’s best friend which can give away positions of side quests and materials like Sprite Bulb groves. The overall tip is for players to be aware of their surroundings.

1 Make Notes Of Blocked Paths

Use The Switch’s Screenshots

Another exploration tip is for players to take notes via screenshots. Players can do literal side quests given to them via NPCs but they can also backtrack to do non-specific side quests. For example, when an island is reconnected to Shipshape Island, special bulbs will grow and open up new paths but that’s only one reason players can and should go back to an old island.

Certain pathways will be blocked for other reasons though kind of like a Metroidvania. For example, there are big rock formations early on that can be broken with the hammer. It can be hard to remember locations with previously blocked paths like this which is where screenshots come in handy as they can help with backtracking.